Elon Musk recently announced that he and President Donald Trump are collaborating to close down the foreign aid agency USAid, describing it as “beyond repair.”
President Trump is renowned for making bold decisions during his tenure in the White House and has signed numerous executive orders since reclaiming the presidency two weeks ago.
As the 47th President, Trump set a new record for the number of executive orders signed on his initial day in office and has since issued orders that raise tariffs on imports from China, Canada, and Mexico. Additionally, he has made changes to passport and immigration policies.
Now, Elon Musk, the owner of Twitter and Tesla, who is also part of the Trump administration, has shared on Twitter his intentions to close the United States Agency for International Development (USAid).
In a discussion with Republican Senator Joni Ernst, Mike Lee, and former Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, Musk stated, “It’s [USAid] beyond repair. He [Trump] agreed we should shut it down.”
The billionaire further commented, “It became apparent that it’s not an apple with a worm in it. What we have is just a ball of worms. You’ve got to basically get rid of the whole thing.”
Musk’s remarks follow the recent suspension of two top security chiefs at USAid by Trump’s administration, as they refused to share classified information with Musk’s government team, according to AP reports.
Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, abbreviated as DOGE, reportedly accessed the material on Sunday (February 2), as per the outlet.
In response to a Twitter post about the situation, Musk stated, “USAid is a criminal organization. Time for it to die.”
USAid, with approximately 10,000 employees, is the largest global donor of humanitarian aid, having spent over $40 million worldwide in the fiscal year 2023.
The organization’s budget is determined by Congress, focusing primarily on international aid and support for global charities.
A portion of the funds is allocated to initiatives such as women’s health in conflict zones, access to clean water, and HIV/AIDS treatment.
Democrat Peter Welch has demanded an explanation for why Musk required access to the sensitive data, including taxpayers’ personal information.
Despite this, President Trump has endorsed Musk, recently telling the media, “He’s a big cost-cutter. Sometimes we won’t agree with it and we’ll not go where he wants to go. But I think he’s doing a great job. He’s a smart guy. Very smart. And he’s very much into cutting the budget of our federal budget.”
While Trump may be able to significantly downsize USAid through executive orders, he would likely require congressional backing to completely shut it down.
This is because Congress established USAid as an independent agency in 1998, although it was originally created in 1961 by John F. Kennedy.
Just Security notes: “Litigation and congressional oversight are certain to follow, but the question is how effective either will be in the immediate term at stopping the most damaging impacts for USAID’s programs and its employees. The details of the E.O. will shape how specific challenges to the action unfold, but expect to see at a minimum suits brought by beneficiaries of USAID programs, impoundment act challenges, and more.”