{"id":2398607,"date":"2025-02-04T09:31:02","date_gmt":"2025-02-04T14:31:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/rubio-attempts-to-tamp-down-concerns-about-immediate-shutdown-of-usaid-washington-examiner\/"},"modified":"2025-02-04T09:32:42","modified_gmt":"2025-02-04T14:32:42","slug":"rubio-attempts-to-tamp-down-concerns-about-immediate-shutdown-of-usaid-washington-examiner","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/rubio-attempts-to-tamp-down-concerns-about-immediate-shutdown-of-usaid-washington-examiner\/","title":{"rendered":"Rubio attempts to tamp down concerns about immediate shutdown of USAID &#8211; Washington Examiner"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">28<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Frubio-attempts-to-tamp-down-concerns-about-immediate-shutdown-of-usaid-washington-examiner%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2398607&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>In recent\u2064 developments concerning \u2064the U.S. Agency for International Advancement (USAID), \u2063Secretary of State\u2062 Marco Rubio attempted to\u200b alleviate concerns regarding the agency&#8217;s immediate shutdown following \u2064its recent reorganization under his control. On a chaotic Monday, hundreds of USAID employees \u200bwere instructed\u2064 to stay home as the\u2062 agency underwent significant changes after \u200bPresident \u2064Trump appointed Rubio as its <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/sen-cruz-accuses-biden-of-deliberately-circumventing-the-senate-in-nomination-of-key-safety-positions\/\" title=\"Sen. Cruz claims Biden is bypassing Senate in key safety nominations.\">acting\u200c administrator<\/a>. Rubio has \u200cauthorized Peter Marocco, a Trump ally, to conduct a review of the agency, potentially leading to cuts or restructuring.<\/p>\n<p>Despite\u2063 Elon \u200bMusk&#8217;s push to exert influence over USAID\u2014suggesting its closure\u2014Rubio reassured lawmakers \u2063via\u200d a letter that the\u200b Department of State intends\u200b to collaborate with Congress \u200cin reorganizing the\u200b agency rather \u200cof shutting it down entirely. This reassured some bipartisan legislators, although Democratic leaders expressed their strong opposition to Musk&#8217;s actions, underscoring that USAID is \u2062a <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">legislatively created entity<\/a> and not subject to unilateral decisions from \u200bprivate individuals.<\/p>\n<p>Rubio has also \u2063initiated \u200da \u206490-day review freezing most <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/congressional-republicans-call-on-biden-administration-to-act-swiftly-on-ethiopia-crisis\/\" title=\"...ional Republicans Call on Biden Administration to Act Swiftly on Ethiopia Crisis\">foreign aid<\/a>, though it&#8217;s unclear how this will \u200bimpact \u200bongoing programs. Some organizations have\u200c been advised\u200d that they may seek waivers if the freeze endangers U.S. interests.<\/p>\n<p>The tensions surrounding\u2063 USAID \u200dreflect \u2063broader concerns \u200dabout governance and foreign aid \u2063policy, especially \u200bgiven that foreign aid constitutes about 1% of the federal budget. \u200bThe\u200b situation remains fluid\u200b as stakeholders express varying degrees of resistance\u2063 and support for\u200c the proposed changes.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-header-search-button-mob dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><span class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-button\"><i class=\"tdb-mobile-menu-icon td-icon-mobile\"><\/i><\/span><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search\" aria-labelledby=\"td-header-search-button\">\n<div class=\"tdb-drop-down-search-inner\">\n<form method=\"get\" class=\"tdb-search-form\" action=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/\"><\/form>\n<div class=\"tdb-aj-search\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/#\" role=\"button\" aria-label=\"Search\" class=\"tdb-head-search-btn dropdown-toggle\" data-toggle=\"dropdown\"><i class=\"tdb-search-icon td-icon-search\"><\/i><\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<h1 class=\"tdb-title-text\">Rubio attempts to tamp down concerns about immediate shutdown of USAID<\/h1>\n<div><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-title-line\"><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\">\n<div id=\"Brid_1973807\" class=\"tpd-featured-video bridtv\"><\/div>\n<p>Secretary of State <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/tag\/marco-rubio\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">Marco Rubio<\/a> pushed back on the notion that the U.S. Agency for International Development would be shut down immediately after it was moved under his control.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div class=\"article-paywall\">\n<p>After a chaotic Monday morning at the agency when hundreds of federal workers were told to stay home, Trump <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/policy\/foreign-policy\/3308776\/marco-rubio-acting-administrator-usaid\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">named<\/a> Rubio acting administrator of USAID, and in turn, Rubio chose Trump ally Peter Marocco to oversee an agency review and possible cuts. This series of events unfolded after the increasingly influential Elon Musk looked to gain control over the foreign aid organization and shut its headquarters to agency officials. Rubio wrote a letter to senior Republican and Democratic lawmakers in an attempt to ease their concerns about the agency&rsquo;s future.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;The Department of State and other pertinent entities will be consulting with Congress and the appropriate committees to reorganize and absorb certain bureaus, offices, and missions of USAID,&rdquo; Rubio wrote.<\/p>\n<p>It is unclear how Rubio and the State Department would work with lawmakers on USAID with Musk&rsquo;s determination to close the agency entirely. Rubio, in 2019, voiced his support for USAID in its efforts to fight the spread of tuberculosis.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>An email to USAID personnel on Monday morning said &ldquo;Agency leadership&rdquo; made the decision to close the headquarters, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/politics\/policy\/trump-administration-shutters-usaid-headquarters-db3fac7e?mod=hp_lead_pos4\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">according<\/a> to the <em>Wall Street Journal<\/em>. The message said replies should be directed to an email address that appears to be associated with Gavin Kliger, who, according to his LinkedIn profile, is a special adviser to the director of the Office of Personnel Management and works for Musk&rsquo;s Department of Government Efficiency.<\/p>\n<p>Democratic lawmakers in the House and Senate went to USAID headquarters Monday to hold a press conference about Musk&rsquo;s attempt to close the agency.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Elon Musk, you didn&rsquo;t create USAID. The United States Congress did for the American people &hellip; like Elon Musk did not create USAID, he doesn&rsquo;t have the power to destroy it. And who&rsquo;s going to stop him? We are,&rdquo; Rep. Jamie Raskin (D-MD) said.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;This is a constitutional crisis that we are in today,&rdquo; Raskin added.<\/p>\n<p>USAID is an independent organization codified into law in 1961. Its programs support economic development, counterterrorism training, and public health initiatives.&nbsp;&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Rubio additionally froze most foreign aid as part of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.wsj.com\/politics\/national-security\/state-department-freezes-most-foreign-aid-904f297c?mod=article_inline\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\">a 90-day review<\/a>. The immediate effect of Monday&rsquo;s decision on these programs is unclear, but some aid organizations were told they could apply for waivers if they believe&nbsp;the freeze will harm U.S. interests.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The fact that DOGE, under the control of the richest man in the world, nearly shuttered its doors made some question if this is how DOGE plans to carry out its operations with other agencies it does not like.<\/p>\n<p>On the matter, Trump said Musk &ldquo;has access only to letting people go that he thinks are no good, if we agree with him, and it&rsquo;s only if we agree with him.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Elon can&rsquo;t do and won&rsquo;t do anything without our approval. We&rsquo;ll give him the approval where appropriate; where not appropriate, we won&rsquo;t. But he reports in, and it&rsquo;s something that he feels very strongly about,&rdquo; Trump added.<\/p>\n<p>Earlier in the day, however, Musk said that Trump did agree with him that USAID should be closed, saying he &ldquo;went over it with him in detail, and he agreed that we should shut it down.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"http:\/\/washingtonexaminer.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" title=\"\"><strong><\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n<p>Musk also said on X, the social media platform he owns, &ldquo;We are shutting [USAID] down.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Foreign aid represents approximately 1% of the federal budget.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<p> <script data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"http:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/cdn-cgi\/scripts\/5c5dd728\/cloudflare-static\/email-decode.min.js\"><\/script><script>!function(){var g=window;g.googletag=g.googletag||{},g.googletag.cmd=g.googletag.cmd||[],g.googletag.cmd.push(function(){g.googletag.pubads().setTargeting(\"has-featured-video\",\"true\")})}();<\/script><script>var _bp=_bp||[];_bp.push({\"div\":\"Brid_1973807\",\"obj\":{\"id\":\"27789\",\"width\":\"1280\",\"height\":\"720\",\"stickyDirection\":\"below\",\"video\":\"1973807\"}});<\/script><script defer src=\"https:\/\/services.brid.tv\/player\/build\/brid.min.js\"><\/script><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<div class=\"tdb-block-inner td-fix-index\"><\/div>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Rubio reassures against immediate USAID shutdown fears<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2910,"featured_media":2398608,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/GettyImages-2193460790.webp","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[39629,5438,16381],"class_list":["post-2398607","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-government-shutdown","tag-rubio","tag-usaid"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.washingtonexaminer.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/01\/GettyImages-2193460790.webp","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2398607","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2910"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2398607"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2398607\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2398611,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2398607\/revisions\/2398611"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2398608"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2398607"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2398607"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2398607"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}