Rubio: 83% of USAID programs cut

Over 80% of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) programs will be scrapped after tens of billions of dollars were spent in opposition to U.S. interests, said U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Monday.

Rubio also said the State Department reviewed the USAID budget over the last six weeks, cutting 5,200 contracts “that did not serve, (and in some cases even harmed), the core national interests of the United States.”

“In consultation with Congress, we intend for the remaining 18% of programs we are keeping (approximately 1000) to now be administered more effectively under the State Department,” said Rubio in a post on X. 

Rubio then thanked the team working under Elon Musk, called the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), for helping flag the wasteful spending. 

In one of the first acts of the incoming administration, hundreds of USAID workers were laid off.

While Democrats have accused DOGE leader Elon Musk of being a “key villain” in the new Trump presidency for making recommendations on slashing government spending, Rubio’s announcement confirms that cabinet secretaries are in charge of the budget, not Musk.   

The New York Times reported that Musk and Rubio clashed in a cabinet meeting last week over cuts, while President Donald Trump presided over the fierce debate between the two.  

But Trump called the news of a difficult Musk-Rubio relationship “fake news” in a post on Truth Social. 

“Elon and Marco have a great relationship,” said Trump.  

Later Trump chastised a reporter from NBC News for asking about the cabinet fireworks during a press conference for the World Cup.  

“No clash. I was there – you’re just a troublemaker,” Trump said, after interrupting the reporter’s question about the reported squabble, wrote the New York Post. “And you’re not supposed to be asking that question, because we’re talking about the World Cup.” 

Previously, Reuters reported that as an outcome of the cabinet meeting, Trump confirmed to cabinet secretaries that they, not Musk, have final say over their budget. 

The Reuters report characterized the cabinet discussion as more productive than a falling out between Musk and Rubio. 

Trump later told reporters that Musk was teaching everybody how to cut costs, but that the government also had to keep the very best people in key positions. 

“It’s very important that we cut levels down to where they should be, but it’s also important to keep the best and most productive people,” Trump said, according to Reuters. “We say the ‘scalpel’ rather than the ‘hatchet.'” 

Musk replied to the Rubio announcement calling the cuts to USAID “tough, but necessary.”  

“Good working with you,” Musk added with a nod to Rubio. “The important parts of USAID should always have been with Dept of State.”  

The USAID programs are still partially funded, even with the Rubio announcement, pending the decisions in multiple lawsuits filed against the Trump administration.