President Trump shut down the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) as part of a broader effort to slash federal spending, eliminate what he described as government waste and inefficiency, and realign all foreign aid to serve America's national interests.
The agency, established in 1961 to administer U.S. humanitarian and development assistance worldwide, was targeted early in Trump's second term through executive actions that froze its funding, furloughed nearly all of its 10,000 employees by February 2025, canceled over 90% of its contracts and grants, and ultimately transferred remaining functions to the State Department by July 2025.
Here are key instances DOGE publicized as unaccountable waste and frivolity:
The agency, established in 1961 to administer U.S. humanitarian and development assistance worldwide, was targeted early in Trump's second term through executive actions that froze its funding, furloughed nearly all of its 10,000 employees by February 2025, canceled over 90% of its contracts and grants, and ultimately transferred remaining functions to the State Department by July 2025.
- President Trump publicly labeled USAID's spending "totally unexplainable" on Truth Social, calling for it to be closed down. Elon Musk, leading the new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) at Trump's urging, amplified this by branding the agency a "criminal organization" that funded "deadly programs" and unnecessary overseas initiatives, such as projects unrelated to U.S. security.
- President Trump argued it had strayed from its original mission, funding unnecessary programs abroad.
- Elon Musk drove the rapid dismantling effort, fitting USAID into a wider pattern of targeting agencies perceived as bloated or misaligned, with USAID as the"first and most extreme example."
Here are key instances DOGE publicized as unaccountable waste and frivolity:
- USAID funded Sesame Workshop to produce "Ahlan Simsim Iraq," an Arabic-language children's TV show promoting "diversity, equity and inclusion" program for Iraq's government, a monotheistic theocracy opposed to America.
- Millions in "humanitarian aid" was diverted to terrorist organizations. Humanitarian food and civilian support grants intended for Syrians were being misdirected to al Qaeda-linked groups like the Nusra Front, despite the fact that USAID's inspector general had previously warned of inadequate oversight. DOGE audits revealed millions funneled through unvetted NGOs, enriching terrorists instead of aiding victims of sectarian violence and civil war; this was tied to broader expenditures to ant-American extremists and to terror-linked entities.
- USAID spent millions on contraceptives in Gaza and the Middle East as part of "reproductive healthcare programs".
- A grant to advance "diversity, equity, and inclusion" in Serbian workplaces and businesses was canceled as part of broader DEI cuts across agencies.
- $1.75 billion Gavi vaccine grant (with $880 million already disbursed): Multi-year funding to Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, for global immunization was partially frozen, with DOGE labeling it wasteful foreign health spending despite preventing millions of child deaths. This fit into $40 billion in USAID grant terminations, including $781 million to the WHO, accused of lacking accountability and benefiting adversarial nations.
- Taxpayer funds were scheduled to be disbursed for dance classes in Wuhan, China.
- USAID was funding the "Bayader Association for Environment and Development", a Gazan NGO, with ties to Hamas, Audits revealed poor vetting, prompting immediate cancellation.
- Grants labeled as "public health and climate aid" that were found to be building foreign capabilities at U.S. expense were cut..
- USAID's 2022-2030 funding for a "net-zero" world was derided as a massive, unaccountable slush fund for "green" initiative lobbyists.
- USAID was funneling billions through unvetted grants to far-left organizations with zero traceability.