Staff at the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) were ordered to stay away from the agency’s Washington headquarters on Monday after Elon Musk announced that President Donald Trump had agreed with him to shut it down.
More than 600 employees reported being locked out of the agency’s computer systems overnight, according to internal sources. Those still logged in received emails stating that, “at the direction of Agency leadership,” the headquarters building would be closed to personnel on February 3.
The move follows Musk’s comments on X Spaces, where he claimed that USAID was beyond saving. “It became apparent that it’s not an apple with a worm in it. What we have is just a ball of worms,” he said.
“You’ve got to basically get rid of the whole thing. It’s beyond repair.”
Musk, who is leading an unprecedented civilian review of federal agencies with Trump’s backing, declared:
“We’re shutting it down.”
USAID, which oversees humanitarian, development, and security programs in over 120 countries, has been in the crosshairs of Trump, Musk, and Republican lawmakers, who accuse it of promoting liberal causes.
Over the weekend, two senior USAID security officials were placed on leave after refusing to provide classified material to Musk’s inspection teams, according to sources cited by The Associated Press.
Democratic lawmakers have condemned the move, arguing that Trump lacks the constitutional authority to dismantle USAID without congressional approval.
Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has already conducted similar operations at the Treasury Department, where a senior official reportedly resigned over Musk’s team accessing sensitive financial data.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio, currently on his first official trip abroad in Central America, has remained silent on the USAID closure. However, the Trump administration has already imposed an unprecedented freeze on foreign assistance, effectively halting key USAID programs worldwide and forcing mass layoffs among aid organizations.
Trump defended the decision in remarks to reporters on Sunday night.
“It’s been run by a bunch of radical lunatics. And we’re getting them out.”
Established under the 1961 Foreign Assistance Act, USAID operates as an independent executive agency, meaning Congress would likely need to approve any move to shut it down.
With USAID controlling a significant portion of the U.S. government’s $68 billion international aid budget, its sudden closure could send shockwaves through global humanitarian efforts, particularly in conflict zones and pandemic response programs.
Support Our Journalism
The global Indian Diaspora and Australia’s multicultural communities need fair, non-hyphenated, and questioning journalism, packed with on-ground reporting. The Australia Today—with exceptional reporters, columnists, and editors—is doing just that. Sustaining this requires support from wonderful readers like you.

Whether you live in Australia, the United Kingdom, Canada, the United States of America, or India you can take a paid subscription by clicking Patreon