Marco Rubio announced on Monday that 83% of USAID’s programs are being canceled. What remains of the foreign aid agency will be absorbed by the State Department.
USAID, a major humanitarian aid provider, channeled $32.5 billion in 2024. It has been described as having been “fed into the wood chipper,” as promised by Elon Musk.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated Monday that after a six-week review of the US Agency for International Development, the Trump administration was “officially cancelling 83%” of its programs. The remainder will be merged into the State Department “in consultation with Congress,” Rubio said.
“The 5200 contracts that are now cancelled spent tens of billions of dollars in ways that did not serve, (and in some cases even harmed), the core national interests of the United States,” Rubio expressed in a Monday morning post on X. “Thank you to DOGE and our hardworking staff who worked very long hours to achieve this overdue and historic reform.”
USAID was one of the first agencies targeted for cuts by President Donald Trump and the White House DOGE office, which aimed to slash government spending and reduce the federal workforce.
As the world’s largest provider of humanitarian aid, USAID allocated nearly $32.5 billion to countries including Ukraine, Jordan, and Ethiopia.
In a post on X on February 3, Musk labeled the agency a “criminal organization,” claiming he “spent the weekend feeding USAID into the wood chipper.” Shortly after, USAID employees were instructed to stay home, and within days, the agency announced that all direct hire personnel would be placed on leave globally, with a few exceptions.
By the end of February, USAID staff received directions to clear their desks as construction crews proceeded to remove signage from the agency’s headquarters in Washington, DC.
Some constitutional law experts have suggested that shutting down USAID without congressional approval could be illegal. Additionally, Asia-focused policy analysts previously informed Business Insider that dismantling USAID would enhance China’s influence on the global stage.
