US budget giving $3.6 million to Hati for bakery and dance

Executive summary — Short answer, with evidence up front. The widely circulated claim that “the US budget is giving $3.6 million to Haiti for a bakery and dance” is misleading and not supported by the available government spending records. Official program data and grants reviewed show PEPFAR and USAID-related funding for health services, workforce development, and a USAID-led Health Leadership Project near the $3.6 million range, but none of the authoritative spending datasets or grant descriptions substantiate pastry classes, a bakery, or dance focus groups as the purpose of a $3.6 million U.S. allocation. Political statements and op-eds amplified a narrative about pastry classes and dance focus groups, while independent program documents and grant listings record health workforce, clinical HIV services, agroecology, and humanitarian assistance instead ^{[1] [2] [3]}.

1. How the claim first surfaced and who amplified it — political theater or fiscal fact? A string of public remarks and op-eds framed this as a clear instance of wasteful foreign spending, with Senator John Kennedy and others directly naming pastry classes, cyber cafés, psychosocial counseling, and dance focus groups for male sex workers as line items. The floor remarks and opinion pieces presented that narrative as evidence that the Biden administration had approved such spending, and urged congressional rescissions ^{[4] [5]}. Those political statements served an advocacy purpose: to justify rescinding small foreign assistance items as emblematic of larger fiscal excess. The presence of these claims in legislative debate influenced public perception, but the testimony and op-eds did not cite a single grant award notice or program budget line that described a $3.6 million bakery-and-dance project in Haiti ^{[4] [5]}.

2. What the program and spending data actually show — health and development, not pastry schools. An analysis of PEPFAR spending and State Department datasets shows U.S. expenditures in Haiti focused on HIV prevention and clinical services, with $4.1 million documented to benefit male populations between 2018 and 2024 and line items for health worker salaries and clinical HIV services rather than culinary or dance training ^[1]. A separate search of recent government awards found a USAID-led “Health Leadership Project” of about $3.6 million focused on strengthening Haiti’s health sector and workforce — a description that contains no mention of sex workers, cooking classes, or dance focus groups ^[1]. Other U.S.-funded grants cited in the record focus on workforce development and humanitarian assistance, not on the specific activities alleged.

3. Other grant activity in Haiti shows varied donors and different priorities. Independent foundation and NGO grants active in the same period include a W.K. Kellogg Foundation $3.5 million grant for agroecology and food systems, and a USAID Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance award of $5.4 million to CORE for food, WASH, and agriculture support — both focused on food security, agriculture, and livelihoods, with no mention of pastry classes or dance ^{[3] [6]}. Likewise, community disability inclusion grants were much smaller and targeted vocational training and credit access rather than a $3.6 million bakery program ^[7]. These third-party grants illustrate that donors in Haiti fund workforce, food systems, and humanitarian responses, not the sensational items attributed to U.S. budget line items.

4. Congressional records and rescission politics — what was removed, and what remains uncertain. A congressional record entry from October 2025 lists a $3.6 million allocation among other foreign items that were later removed during rescission negotiations; the entry referenced pastry cooking classes and dance focus groups in the floor debate context ^[2]. The inclusion and subsequent removal of the item in debate show how budget line descriptions can be politicized during rescission fights, and that removal from a topline does not confirm the original existence of the specific activities alleged. The public legislative record documents the contention, but not a definitive grant award for pastry classes or dance activities in Haiti that matches the description repeated in op-eds and speeches ^[2].

5. Reconciling claims and evidence — verdict and next steps for verification. Consolidating the data: political claims named a $3.6 million bakery-and-dance program; program datasets and award searches found health-sector and humanitarian grants in the same dollar range but with different purposes; independent foundation grants addressed agroecology and food security rather than pastry instruction ^{[1] [3] [6]}. The responsible conclusion is that the specific claim about a U.S. budget “giving $3.6 million to Haiti for a bakery and dance” is unsubstantiated and misleading. To verify further, request the precise award number or contract vehicle referenced by speakers, and consult USAID and State Department award databases for the named award number or project title—documents that would definitively confirm or refute a line-item purpose ^{[1] [8]}.