The future of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) seems uncertain, with Tesla CEO and billionaire adviser to the Trump administration, Elon Musk, suggesting it may be shut down soon.
Musk, who has recently been involved in efforts to take control of the agency, made these remarks during a live session on X Spaces (formerly Twitter Spaces) early Monday.
Musk revealed that he had discussed USAID in detail with President Donald Trump, who, according to Musk, agreed with the idea of dismantling the agency.
“He agreed we should shut it down,” Musk said, adding that USAID had become beyond repair.
“It’s not just an apple with a worm in it, it’s a whole ball of worms,” Musk commented, indicating that the situation is so dire that it requires complete closure.
“We’re shutting it down,” he confirmed.
Musk’s comments come amid a conflict between his team and USAID’s leadership.
The Trump administration placed two senior USAID security officials, John Voorhees and deputy Brian McGill, on leave after they refused to provide Musk’s government-inspection teams with classified materials.
According to a current and former U.S. official, Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) team eventually gained access to these materials, which included intelligence reports.
However, the DOGE team lacked the required security clearance to access the information, leading the USAID officials to believe they were legally obligated to deny access.
In response to the controversy, Musk labeled USAID a “criminal organization” and called for its closure, further criticising the agency on social media.
Kate Miller, an advisor to DOGE, clarified in a separate post that no classified material was accessed without proper clearance.
This incident follows a similar operation by DOGE at the U.S. Treasury Department, where Musk’s team accessed sensitive information, including data on the Social Security and Medicare systems.
The Washington Post reported that a senior Treasury official resigned in the wake of the breach.
DOGE, which Musk formed in collaboration with the Trump administration, aims to streamline government functions by cutting programs, reducing federal regulations, and firing federal workers.
USAID, a key agency responsible for providing humanitarian and development assistance globally, has been a target of the Trump administration’s efforts to scale back federal operations.
Over the weekend, USAID’s website unexpectedly disappeared, fuelling further speculation about the agency’s fate.
Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio have already imposed a significant freeze on foreign assistance, halting many of USAID’s programs and forcing widespread layoffs.
USAID, as the largest global donor of humanitarian aid, administers billions in aid across more than 100 countries.
Peter Marocco, a political appointee from Trump’s first term, played a central role in enforcing the shutdown.
USAID staffers suspect that Musk’s DOGE team, often seen asking questions at the agency’s headquarters, is behind some of these disruptions.
Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) criticised the move, accusing Trump of enabling Musk to access personal information and defund government programmes.
She called for efforts to protect citizens from these actions, though she did not provide specific details.
