Elon Musk, the richest man in the world, is severing life-saving aid to the world’s poorest communities. The U.S. Agency for International Development, which supplies, funds, and expertise to nations in order to provide vital humanitarian, developmental, and security assistance, is being unlawfully dismantled by the Trump administration (USAID website goes dark as Musk calls aid agency criminal, Feb. 2). USAID is a cornerstone of American leadership overseas, tackling everything from promoting U.S. foreign policy to combating the spread of illness, but it only receives a small percentage of the government budget. The ongoing orders to dismantle the agency were temporarily halted by a federal judge.
Communities around the world that rely on this foreign aid suffer when USAID programs is halted. Additionally, it jeopardizes national security and American companies. More than 40% of the food aid provided by USAID comes from American farmers, and the agency buys $2.1 billion worth of crops from them annually on average. This comprises small companies and other nonprofit organizations in Oregon, as well as farmers throughout the state. Additionally, despite the issuance of a food assistance waiver, American farmers are not receiving payment, and USAID partners have not received payments.
Since USAID was established by law, the executive branch cannot simply disband it. This is a flagrant, unlawful abuse of executive authority that has affected the livelihoods of Americans and Oregonians and endangered innumerable lives across the globe. In order to restore foreign aid and stop additional abuses by the Trump administration, Congress must take immediate action.
Portland’s Daniel Peniston
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