USAID, a little-noticed federal agency, until the Trump administration closed the agency’s offices on Feb. 3.
Now the U.S. Agency for International Aid is centerstage in a drama unfolding at both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue.
President Donald Trump wants USAID and all federal agencies to be accountable to the president’s agenda. Democrats think he’s abusing executive power and vow to fight it.
The agency has had successes in the projection of American influence through things like PEPFAR, a program to combat HIV/AIDS credited with saving tens of millions of lives.
Critics call it a rogue agency that wastes millions of taxpayer dollars and refuses to be accountable to Congress or the president.
The White House listed some questionable projects funded by USAID, including $1.5 million to “advance diversity equity and inclusion in Serbia’s workplaces and business communities,” $47,000 for a “transgender opera” in Colombia, and $2.5 million for electric vehicles in Vietnam.
The Middle East Forum reported that it handed $122 million to groups aligned with designated terrorist organizations including Hamas.
And it won’t open its books to Congress.
Ernst told The Epoch Times, “The agency has stonewalled me and used every trick in the book to hide what they are doing from the American people.”
That included falsely claiming some documents were classified to delay having staffers view them and that providing some spending information to Congress would violate federal law.
“They have basically evolved into an agency that believes that they’re not even a U.S. Government agency, that ... they’re a global charity,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Feb. 3.
Trump indicated that the agency would likely be closed and its functions permanently transferred to the State Department.
“This is what the beginning of dictatorship looks like, when you got the Constitution and you install yourself as the sole power.” Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) said at a press conference.
“Trying to shut down the agency for International Development by executive order is plain illegal,” Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) said.
But nothing in the law dictates how the agency must be structured, according to the Congressional Research Service, so the president can make organizational changes “including shifting certain functions from USAID to state.”
“This is not about getting rid of foreign aid,” Rubio said, adding that no decision had yet been made on what activities might be better done through the State Department and which might remain under a reformed USAID.
A primary objective of the restructuring is to make foreign aid projects align with U.S. foreign policy.
“We’re going to be the most generous nation on Earth in a way that makes sense, that’s in our national interest,” Rubio said.
—Lawrence Wilson
BOOKMARKS
The Treasury Department has informed Congress that the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has access to the government’s payment system, but in “read-only” form. The clarification comes after speculation and concern that giving Elon Musk and DOGE access to the system could pose a cybersecurity risk.
Trump has signed an executive order barring men from women’s sports in K–12 schools and universities. “From now, women’s sports will be only for women,” Trump said, while signing the order.
The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) says it will not fire FBI agents investigating the events of Jan. 6, 2021, if they acted ethically and were following orders. Acting U.S. Deputy Attorney General Emil Bove said this assurance will not apply to “those who acted with corrupt or partisan intent.”
Linwei Ding, former Google software engineer, is facing new charges after having been indicted last March for leaking the company’s trade secrets to two China-based companies. Prosecutors allege that Ding uploaded more than 1,000 internal company documents, some dealing with Google’s AI computer chip technology.
Yuma, Arizona Mayor Douglas Nicholls says illegal border crossings and forced deportations have significantly dropped since Trump took office on Jan. 20. Many illegals have chosen to self-deport, or are not willing to risk an illegal crossing.
Guatemalan President Bernardo Arévalo has agreed to accept illegal immigrant deportees from the United States, for a fee. The announcement follows a similar agreement with El Salvadoran president Nayib Bukele to house deportees—and possibly criminals—from America.
—Stacy Robinson
