The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) website went offline Saturday without explanation amid the Trump administration’s ongoing freeze on foreign aid and development funding. The incident comes as thousands of USAID staffers face furloughs and layoffs, and global humanitarian programs are halted or significantly reduced.
The funding freeze, enacted by President Donald Trump on his first day back in office on January 20, placed a 90-day hold on billions of dollars in U.S. foreign assistance. The move has sparked increasing resistance from congressional Democrats, who accuse the administration of attempting to dismantle USAID as an independent agency.
USAID was the focus because they were the federal organization deliberately violating Trump’s orders:
All @DOGE did was check to see which federal organizations were violating the @POTUS executive orders the most.
Turned out to be USAID, so that became our focus. https://t.co/26FXTFFlLJ
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 4, 2025
Democrats have raised legal concerns, arguing that Trump does not have the authority to eliminate a congressionally funded agency unilaterally. They contend that USAID plays a key role in national security by stabilizing foreign nations through development programs. Some lawmakers, including Senator Chris Murphy, have warned that dissolving the agency would result in a constitutional crisis.
Republicans, including Trump and his allies, argue that much of U.S. foreign aid is wasteful, often funding projects that do not align with American interests. They have criticized certain USAID programs as advancing a liberal social agenda and have long advocated for a reassessment of the agency’s role. Some conservatives have suggested folding USAID into the State Department to consolidate oversight and reduce administrative costs.
The Trump administration has not formally announced plans to eliminate USAID, but concerns have grown among agency staff and aid organizations. Officials at the White House and State Department declined to comment Saturday on whether such a move is under consideration. Meanwhile, staffers have monitored the agency’s headquarters in Washington, reporting that USAID’s signage and flag remained in place as of late Saturday afternoon.
The Department of Government Efficiency, a newly created office led by billionaire Elon Musk, has been tasked with identifying areas where federal spending can be cut. Musk has publicly supported the idea of dissolving USAID, sharing posts on his X platform that call for eliminating the agency. “Live by executive order, die by executive order,” Musk wrote in reference to USAID, echoing Republican criticisms that previous Democratic administrations expanded the agency’s power through executive actions.
In his first public remarks on the matter, Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that USAID programs are under review to determine which aligns with U.S. national interests. Rubio has allowed some emergency life-saving programs to continue during the freeze but did not comment on whether the administration intends to restructure or eliminate USAID altogether.
🚨RUBIO: USAID rife with “rank insubordination” — “we had no choice but to take dramatic steps to bring this thing under control.”
“They have basically evolved into an agency that believes that they’re not even a U.S. government agency…they’re completely unresponsive. They… pic.twitter.com/LQOKRDUlBk
The United States is the largest provider of humanitarian aid globally, though foreign assistance accounts for less than 1% of the federal budget. USAID was established in 1961 under President John F. Kennedy to counter Soviet influence during the Cold War and has since played a central role in U.S. foreign policy. More recently, the agency has been involved in countering China’s global Belt and Road Initiative by funding development projects in strategically significant regions.
— Western Lensman (@WesternLensman) February 4, 2025
Debates over the effectiveness of USAID are not new. Republicans have often sought to bring the agency under greater State Department control, arguing that aid should be more directly tied to diplomatic and security goals. Democrats have defended USAID’s autonomy, asserting that its programs help prevent instability and reduce the need for military interventions.
Forty-three paragraphs into the NYT’s latest hit piece on @elonmusk, the six (!) by-lined reporters reveal that the federal government lost $236 billion to apparent fraud (“improper payments”) in 2023 alone. Maybe this isn’t the dunk you guys thought it was? pic.twitter.com/7UDVijgVMe
— Michael Shellenberger (@shellenberger) February 4, 2025
A similar dispute played out during Trump’s first term when his administration attempted to cut the foreign operations budget by a third. After Congress refused, the administration froze already appropriated funds, leading to a ruling from the General Accounting Office that the action violated the Impoundment Control Act.
USAID should’ve been disbanded years ago. It’s not foreign aid—it’s a foreign slush fund. Time to shut it down for good. pic.twitter.com/kgkC07wNJG
— Laura Ingraham (@IngrahamAngle) February 4, 2025
As the 90-day review continues, uncertainty remains over the future of USAID. Aid groups and foreign governments have raised concerns about the suspension of assistance programs, while the administration maintains that the freeze is necessary to reassess spending priorities. Congressional battles over USAID’s status are expected to intensify in the coming weeks as lawmakers on both sides of the aisle push for clarity on the agency’s long-term role.
USAID is only 0.7% of the federal budget.
If they’ve found this much fraud and waste in this one tiny piece already, imagine how bad the rest of it is.
— Ron Rule (@ronrule) February 3, 2025