Secretary of State Marco Rubio dismantled the US Agency for International Development (USAID) July 1, ending decades of controversial foreign aid programs and placing all overseas assistance under direct State Department control.
“Every public servant has an obligation to American citizens to ensure any programs they fund advance our nation’s interests,” Rubio said in his “Making Foreign Aid Great Again” statement.
The move capped a months-long overhaul led by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), part of a broader Trump administration effort to reduce the scope and ideological bent of US foreign aid. The White House had repeatedly accused USAID of funding activist causes at taxpayers’ expense.
“Beyond creating a globe-spanning NGO industrial complex at taxpayer expense, USAID has little to show since the end of the Cold War,” Rubio said. “Development objectives have rarely been met, instability has often worsened, and anti-American sentiment has only grown.”
In February, the administration flagged millions in USAID grants supporting diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) efforts abroad, “transgender” initiatives, and “sex changes” overseas. The White House also linked several USAID contractors to designated terrorist organizations.
The administration began reducing the number of staff members shortly afterward, slashing USAID’s workforce from an estimated 14,000 to just 294 by February.
On March 11, Rubio announced that more than 80% of USAID programs would be canceled following a six-week review.
Going forward, Rubio said US foreign aid will be “targeted and time limited,” while casting the July 1 overhaul as a new chapter in American diplomacy. The State Department, Rubio said, will prioritize “trade over aid, opportunity over dependency, and investment over assistance.”
“For Americans and many around the world,” he concluded, “July 1st will mark the beginning of a new era of global partnership, peace, investment, and prosperity.”
