Trump Begins Shock and Awe Overhaul at USAID

By Stefano Gennarini, J.D. | February 6, 2025

NEW YORK, February 7 (C-Fam) For decades, pro-life and pro-family NGOs have been complaining about the radical nature of the U.S. Agency for International Development. Something is finally being done. The Trump administration has dramatically taken control of the agency this week. President Trump said the agency was run by “radical left lunatics” when confronted about it over the weekend.

The takeover of the agency, which has over 10,000 employees and gave over $40 billion to 130 countries last year, follows accusations of funding abortion, terrorism, LGBT projects, and censorship of the American People. It has also been accused of insubordination and covering-up its controversial programs to avoid scrutiny.

Late last Friday, the White House team from the newly established Department of Government Efficiency, known as DOGE, under Elon Musk, gained access to computers and escorted officials off-premises. Over the weekend, they told over 1,000 headquarters employees not to return to work on Monday. On Tuesday, all USAID staff were placed on administrative leave.

The dramatic takeover of the agency appears to have been designed to counter acts of sabotage and insubordination as the Trump administration attempts to review the agency’s work. The White House froze all USAID disbursements on January 24, pending a review of existing contracts and commitments, but apparently, not everyone at the agency was cooperating.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio cited the agency’s “rank insubordination” as the reason for the Trump administration’s actions. “We had no choice but to bring this thing under control,” he explained in interviews on Monday. Rubio emphasized that every U.S. foreign aid expenditure has to be reviewed to ensure it was promoting U.S. interests.

Elon Musk complained of USAID official sabotage through an X post, and said, “USAID is a criminal organization. Time for it to die.”

Critics of USAID on all sides agree that scrutiny of the agency’s work was long overdue. An inspector general report on January 23 found that the agency was failing to carry out due diligence in vetting U.S. foreign aid recipients to prevent funding to terrorists, fraudulent groups, and failing to require aid recipients to report on how U.S. funds are spent.

Over the weekend, reports of other controversial programs run through USAID circulated on social media and were amplified by Elon Musk. Among these, are accusations by Mike Benz of the Foundation for Freedom Online that USAID is a key player in efforts to build a global censorship machinery to control traditional and social media as well as efforts by the U.S. intelligence and pentagon schemes to overturn foreign governments.

Benz remains skeptical about current reform efforts. Many of USAID’s most controversial programs are classified and beyond the scrutiny of U.S. taxpayers.

“Killing USAID doesn’t end USAID,” Benz said. “It now gives the State Department a USAID [disease] unless billions in bad grants are ended, permanently, and not respawned by the State Dept inheriting USAID’s portfolio”

United Nations officials have complained that the freeze will disrupt aid delivery and endanger lives. The U.S. government provides over 47% of world’s humanitarian aid, including hundreds of millions of dollars in medical assistance in Afghanistan.

It remains unclear how USAID’s overhaul will shape up. It is unlikely that the White House plans to do away with the agency entirely because it is formally established through Congressional legislation. Democratic Senators issued a letter on Tuesday calling the Trump administration’s actions “illegal.”

The agency was first formed by John F. Kennedy through executive order and was later established by Congress under Bill Clinton.

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