USAID Faces Uncertain Future as Trump and Musk Push for Shutdown

TDT | Manama

Email: mail@newsofbahrain.com

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced on Monday that he has been appointed acting administrator of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), following comments from billionaire Elon Musk that President Donald Trump had approved shutting down the agency.

USAID’s headquarters in Washington remained closed for the day, with employees instructed via email to remain at home. The agency’s branding, including logos and photographs of its aid initiatives, was reportedly removed from its building walls. Meanwhile, USAID’s website and social media accounts have gone offline, with only a reduced version of its webpage now appearing under the State Department’s official website.

“It is the apocalypse at USAID,” one agency official remarked, highlighting the sense of uncertainty surrounding its future.

The international aid organization has become a focal point in Trump and Musk’s broader efforts to reform the federal government. The former president and his allies have long criticized USAID, which was established by Congress as an independent agency, claiming it has become overly partisan. Democrats, however, have pushed back against this assertion, arguing that Trump does not have the authority to dismantle it without congressional approval.

Speculation about USAID’s fate intensified following Musk’s remarks on X, the social media platform he owns, during a live discussion early Monday morning.

“With regards to the USAID stuff, I went over it with [the president] in detail, and he agreed that we should shut it down,” Musk said during an X Spaces conversation.

The White House and USAID have yet to comment on the developments. Meanwhile, Trump reaffirmed his stance against the agency during an impromptu press conference late Sunday at Joint Base Andrews.

“It’s been run by a bunch of radical lunatics, and we’re getting them out. Then we’ll make a decision,” Trump told reporters, reinforcing his administration’s determination to overhaul the federal aid agency.

The move has sparked controversy among lawmakers and aid workers, many of whom have been bracing for USAID’s potential shutdown. Reports suggest that the agency could be placed under the umbrella of the State Department, effectively ending its independent status. However, legal and political challenges are expected as Congress and other stakeholders weigh in on the administration’s decision.