Trump administration gets sued due to efforts to dismantle USAID

(MENAFN) The largest U.S. government workers’ union and an association of foreign service workers have filed a lawsuit against President Donald Trump's administration, seeking to prevent the dismantling of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), a key entity responsible for funding Political projects abroad.

According to sources, the White House plans to retain fewer than 300 employees out of USAID’s more than 10,000 staff members, despite the agency's $60 billion budget in 2023. trump had previously labeled USAID a "criminal organization" and accused it of funding bioweapons research and using its budget to influence media coverage in favor of the Democratic Party.

The lawsuit, filed in a federal court in Washington, DC, by the American Federation of Government Employees and the American Foreign Service Association, claims the administration’s actions to reduce USAID’s operations are “unconstitutional and illegal.” The complaint argues that Trump lacks the legal authority to dissolve the agency, which was established by Congress in 1998.

The plaintiffs are seeking both a temporary and permanent court order to restore USAID’s funding, reopen its offices, and halt any further efforts by the Trump administration to dissolve the agency.

Protests erupted in Washington on Wednesday, with hundreds of current and former USAID employees voicing their opposition to the cuts. The demonstrations saw banners reading “USAID saves lives” and “Save our democracy,” and several Democratic members of Congress, including Senators Mark Warner and Chris Van Hollen, and Representative John Garamendi, spoke at the event.

Elon Musk, who oversees the dismantling of USAID through his role as head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), recently criticized the agency on social media, calling it a “ball of worms” that needs to be completely overhauled.

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