“It’s something that should have been done a long time ago,” President Donald Trump said as he signed an executive order aimed at shutting down the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
Late Tuesday, a directive was issued ordering all direct-hire employees worldwide to go on leave by Friday night and return to the U.S. within 30 days. Contractors, who make up a significant portion of the agency’s workforce, have already been laid off.
The move is part of Trump’s push to dismantle USAID entirely, folding its operations into the State Department, now led by Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
Meanwhile, families are being uprooted, and employees overseas are scrambling to determine their next steps. Critics warn that freezing foreign aid could have severe consequences for global stability.
While Trump cannot legally shut down USAID without congressional approval, the uncertainty raises questions about who benefits from dismantling the U.S.’s largest foreign aid organization—and who will handle emergency disaster relief abroad. Many of these programs also serve U.S. national interests.
Click play to listen to the report from AURN White House Correspondent Ebony McMorris. For more news, follow @E_N_McMorris & @aurnonline.
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