Trump moves to officially close USAID and tells remaining employees their jobs will be eliminated

Donald Trump‘s administration is moving to formally shut down the U.S. Agency for International Development, and has notified the remaining employees that their positions could soon be eliminated.

After weeks of bashing the foreign aid agency, attempting to freeze its funding and initiating mass layoffs, the administration notified Congress around noon Friday that it intends to move all of the agency’s remaining responsibilities, effectively shutting it down. The remaining functions would be transferred to the Department of State.

“Foreign assistance done right can advance our national interests, protect our borders, and strengthen our partnerships with key allies,” Secretary of State Marc Rubio said in a statement. “Unfortunately, USAID strayed from its original mission long ago. As a result, the gains were too few and the costs were too high.”

Later that afternoon, a federal appeals court cleared the way for Elon Musk and his so-called Department of Government Efficiency team to resume their efforts to gut the agency.

The Washington, D.C. appeals court blocked a lower-court ruling, which had stopped Musk and DOGE from “any work” as it “likely violated the Constitution in multiple ways.”

But a three-judge appellate panel argued that the government is likely to show that DOGE’s involvement doesn’t violate the Constitution because most of the cuts at USAID were approved by administration officials.

Beginning July 1, the State Department will be responsible for administering what’s left of USAID‘s programs, though it remains unclear which ones. Any of the agency’s functions “that do not align with Administration priorities” would be discontinued, according to Rubio.

USAID cannot be dissolved without congressional approval, teeing up yet another battle between the Trump administration and the judiciary as he faces an avalanche of lawsuits alleging unconstitutional and illegal maneuvers.

Earlier this month, a federal judge determined that his administration likely violated the Constitution’s appointments clause and the separation of powers by effectively granting Musk unprecedented authority even though he holds no official role, without Senate confirmation or appointment to an existing office, to be able to make such sweeping decisions.