Elon Musk Supports Closing USAID
U.S. President Donald Trump (L) and Elon Musk (R). X/ @angie_anson
February 3, 2025 Hour: 9:04 am
He referred to the United States Agency for International Development as a ‘criminal organization’.
On Sunday, Elon Musk, the head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), stated that President Donald Trump agreed to shut down the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).
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Previously, representatives from DOGE had visited USAID headquarters in Washington, gaining access to classified areas and American citizens’ data. The South African billionaire reviewed USAID’s issues in detail with Trump and asked him if he was sure he wanted to close it. Trump agreed to do so.
Musk’s remarks about the agency’s future follow the Republican president’s decision to freeze nearly all USAID funding for foreign aid programs for 90 days. Under Joe Biden’s presidency, USAID’s budget exceeded $60 billion.
Israel and Egypt are exempt from the funding freeze imposed on the agency, which assisted 180 countries in 2023. Ukraine was the top recipient (over US$17 billion), followed by Israel (US$3.3 billion), Jordan (US$1.7 billion), and Egypt (US$1.5 billion).
Since Trump took office for a second term, USAID—an independent federal agency responsible for planning and managing economic and humanitarian assistance worldwide—has been a target of his administration.
Musk referred to USAID as a “criminal organization”, adding that “it’s time for it to die.” On the same day, Trump also claimed that the agency, which was established in 1961 and has more than 10,000 employees, was run by “radical lunatics.”
Meanwhile, Senate Democrats wrote a letter on Sunday to Secretary of State Marco Rubio, demanding answers regarding the visit of DOGE personnel to USAID and the subsequent suspension of senior agency staff responsible for managing civilian foreign aid and development assistance.
Both USAID’s website and its social media accounts have been taken down. The agency’s suspension or closure puts at risk programs that rely on its multi-million-dollar aid.
teleSUR/ JF Sources: Axios – EFE
