Democratic Sen. Slams Marco Rubio For Paying Millions To African Nation To Take Deportees: 'Highly Unusual'

Democratic senator Jeanne Shaheen criticized Secretary of State Marco Rubio over the Trump administration's payments to the African country of Equatorial Guinea to take deportees from third countries.

Shaheen noted that the $7.5 million paid to the country raise "serious concerns over the responsible, transparent use of American taxpayer dollars." She also called the move "highly unusual."

The New York Times noted that the amount represents the largest payment the Trump administration is known to have made to another government to take third country deportees.

The senator then said that Transparency International ranked the country 173 out of 180 for corruption. And the State Department said in its 2023 human rights report that the country's "president and members of his inner circle continued to amass personal fortunes from the revenues associated with monopolies on all domestic commercial ventures."

Shaheen went on to say that she has "serious concerns over whether, without appropriate oversight mechanisms and guardrails, a direct payment to Equatorial Guinea's government could be used to facilitate human trafficking."

"I am also concerned about what protections are in place to ensure that third-country nationals removed to Equatorial Guinea are themselves not vulnerable to human trafficking, smuggling or human rights abuses," she added. The State Department declined to comment to the outlet, saying it wouldn't reveal details of "diplomatic communications with other governments."

Several African countries have taken deportees from third countries, including Eswatini, Ghana, Rwanda, South Sudan and Uganda.

Ghana was the latest one to do so,, with President John Mahama confirming in September that 14 West African nationals deported from the U.S. had arrived in the country.

"We agreed with Washington that West African nationals were acceptable because all our fellow West African nationals don't need a visa to come to our country," Mahama said, according to The Associated Press.