Ben Cardin actually said...

"At the same time, the region is struggling against the resurgence of authoritarianism from Cuba to Venezuela, and now the consolidation of the region's third dictatorship in Nicaragua."

"The retreat of democracy in Africa is threatening gains made in the Sahel and dashing the aspirations for participatory politics of millions across the continent."

"The United States has been very, very generous in its efforts to get let life-saving assistance to the people made vulnerable by Putin's unprovoked, brutal, and murderous war in Ukraine."

"There is a fundamental need to support democratic institutions, and the amount of resources that we allocate for support of democratic institutions is very limited and the needs are very great."