USAID Shake-Up: Trump Names Rubio As Acting Administrator Amid Tensions Over Musk’s Shutdown Threat

US President Trump has appointed Secretary of State Marco Rubio as acting administrator of USAID, citing misalignment with US interests.

File photo of Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

Source : Twitter - SenMarcoRubio

US President Donald Trump appointed Secretary of State Marco Rubio as acting administrator of the US Agency of International Development (USAID), as per a press release from the US Department of State.

In the statement, it said that the USAID has long strayed from its original mission of responsibly advancing American interests abroad, and it is now abundantly clear that significant portions of USAID funding are not aligned with the core national interests of the United States.

It added, "As an interim step toward gaining control and better understanding over the agency’s activity, President Donald J. Trump appointed Secretary Marco Rubio as Acting Administrator."

As per the details, Secretary Rubio has also now notified Congress that a review of USAID’s foreign assistance activities is underway with an eye towards potential reorganization.

"As we evaluate USAID and ensure it is in alignment with an America First agenda and the efforts of the State Department, we will continue to protect the American people’s interests and ensure their tax dollars are not wasted", the department said.

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has long strayed from its original mission of responsibly advancing American interests abroad, and it is now abundantly clear that significant portions of USAID funding are not aligned with the core national interests…

— Department of State (@StateDept) February 3, 2025

Earlier, tech-billionaire Elon Musk took to X (formerly Twitter) and posted, "USAID is a criminal organization. Time for it to die."

USAID is a criminal organization.

Time for it to die. https://t.co/sWYy6fyt1k

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 2, 2025

Mewanwhile, Ilhan Omar, US representative for Minnesota's 5th congressional district, said that real people who depend on the USAID to access food, shelter, and medical care, for survival will die because of this decision.

In a post, she said, "Elon Musk, an unelected billionaire, is wasting no time in abusing the influence he bought with $290 million by eliminating USAID, a program that has saved millions of lives around the world. Real people who depend on this critical aid to access food, shelter, and medical care, for survival will die because of this decision."

According to Reuters, USAID was established in 1961, by Democratic President John F. Kennedy at the height of the Cold War with the aim of better coordinating foreign assistance, already a key platform of US foreign policy in countering Soviet influence.