As he had announced in his election campaign, among other things, US President Donald Trump intends to make drastic cuts in federal spending. Billionaire Elon Musk, head of the newly created Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), said he would close the US Agency for International Development.
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Elon Musk's team has gained access to many government systems. In the 11 days since President Trump took office, he has embarked on a major restructuring of the federal government, firing or sidelining hundreds of civil servants in his first steps toward cutting red tape and appointing loyalists to him.
Billionaire Elon Musk, who is leading U.S. President Donald Trump's efforts to make drastic cuts to federal spending, said on Tuesday he was working to shut down the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
Musk, the head of Tesla and SpaceX, discussed today the work of the newly created Government Efficiency Agency (DOGE), which he has undertaken with users at X, which he owns. Trump has called on Musk to curb federal spending and make it more efficient.
Vivek Ramaswami — a former candidate for the Republican nomination — and Republican Senators Johnny Ernst and Mike Lee took part in the debate.
Musk said they are working to shut down USAID. "It's not fixed," he said.
On Sunday, the world's richest man attacked USAID in a post on X, in which he said the agency "is a criminal organization," adding: "Did you know that USAID, using dollars from your taxes, funded research on biological weapons, including covid-19, that killed millions of people?" nor expand.
Reuters also reported on Saturday that two top USAID security officials were suspended on Saturday night for objecting to giving Musk's representatives access to sensitive data.
USAID is the world's largest donor of humanitarian aid. In fiscal year 2023, the U.S. offered $72 billion. dollars of aid around the world, to programs covering health services for women, access to clean water, HIV/AIDS treatments, energy security, and tackling corruption. In 2024, the agency provided 42% of all humanitarian aid registered by the UN.
Trump has called for freezing almost all U.S. aid under his "America First" policy, shocking aid groups.
Referring more broadly to spending cuts in the United States and tackling corruption, Musk estimated that the Trump administration could reduce the U.S. deficit by a trillion. dollars of time. However, he did not specify how this would be done.
Meanwhile, there is concern in the US after the New York Times reported that Musk gained access to the Treasury system, which pays $6 trillion in payments. dollars annually on behalf of federal agencies and containing personal information of millions of Americans who receive benefits, tax refunds and other benefits from the government.
Democrat Peter Welch, a member of the Senate Finance Committee, demanded an explanation for why Musk gained access to the payment system, which he said contained sensitive taxpayer personal data.
However, Musk appears to have the backing of the US president. When asked if Musk was doing a good job, Trump replied: "He's very good at cutting spending. Sometimes we won't agree with it and we won't go where he wants. But I think he's doing a very good job. He's a smart guy, very smart. And it reduces our federal budget immensely."
