President Donald Trump escalated his historic drive to dismantle the humanitarian organisation on Friday by calling for the closure of the US aid agency, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
“THE CORRUPTION IS AT LEVELS RARELY SEEN BEFORE. CLOSE IT DOWN!” Trump wrote on his Truth Social app as part of a drive that has triggered chaos in the agency’s global network and allegations of weakening American influence.
Elon Musk, the richest man in the world and Trump’s top fundraiser, has spearheaded a campaign to reduce or demolish large portions of the US government in the three weeks since he took office.
The USAID, the main agency responsible for delivering US humanitarian relief globally, has been the target of the most intense fire.
With reported effects on the ground progressively increasing, the Trump administration has already blocked international aid and ordered thousands of foreign-based employees to return to the United States.
A union representative verified allegations on Thursday that the 10,000 staff currently employed by USAID would be trimmed to about 300.
The legality of the assault is being contested by labour unions, who are also contesting Musk’s team’s separate offer of buyouts for the entire government.
Democrats in Congress claim that Trump, who has also stated his intention to eliminate the Department of Education, would be unconstitutional if he closed government departments without the approval of the legislature.
Approximately $58 billion of the US budget is currently set aside for foreign aid.
According to the Pew Research Centre, despite Washington being the largest assistance provider globally, the funds have only accounted for 0.7% to 1.4% of all US government spending over the past 25 years.
Around 120 countries, including the poorest areas in the world, are served by USAID’s health and emergency programmes.
In its fight for influence with adversaries like China, where Musk has significant commercial interests, it is regarded as a crucial source of soft power for the US.
In a harsh opinion article published in the New York Times on Friday, Samantha Power, the former head of USAID under President Joe Biden, called the organisation “America’s superpower.”
Power, a former UN ambassador, stated, “We are seeing one of the worst and most expensive foreign policy errors in US history.”
Power stated that “future generations will marvel that it wasn’t China’s actions that eroded US standing and global security” but rather “an American president and the billionaire he unleashed to shoot first and aim later” if the dismantling is not stopped.
The hard-right The necessity of USAID has long been questioned by Republicans and libertarians, who also criticise what they see as unnecessary foreign spending.
These critiques have intensified after Trump’s return, when the government accused USAID of being plagued with fraud and demonised its employees without providing any supporting proof.
Trump stated in his post, “USAID IS DRIVING THE RADICAL LEFT CRAZY.” It is completely inexplicable that so much of it is fraudulent. The degree of corruption has never been this high.
