(Dan McCaleb, The Center Square) – The Department of State will assume many of the responsibilities and oversight of programs previously performed by the U.S. Agency of International Development, effectively shuttering the controversial USAID department.
Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) had been targeting USAID’s questionable spending for cuts, leading to legal challenges. But on Friday, a federal appeals court overturned a lower court’s ruling that certain DOGE activities at USAID were unconstitutional, granting a stay on the earlier ruling and allowing DOGE to continue its scrutiny of USAID spending.
“Foreign assistance done right can advance our national interests, protect our borders, and strengthen our partnerships with key allies,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio wrote Friday in a post to X. “Unfortunately, USAID strayed from its original mission long ago. As a result, the gains were too few and the costs were too high. Thanks to President Trump, this misguided and fiscally irresponsible era is now over.”
Rubio continued: “We are reorienting our foreign assistance programs to align directly with what is best for the United States and our citizens. We are continuing essential lifesaving programs and making strategic investments that strengthen our partners and our own country.”
USAID was responsible for overseeing spending on programs that provided humanitarian assistance around the world, but Musk’s DOGE revealed a list of controversial spending examples – including $1.5 million to “advance diversity equity and inclusion in Serbia’s workplaces and business communities,” according to the White House – that led to Rubio and President Donald Trump deciding to dismantle the agency.
