Since Jan. 20, 2025, the first day of his second term in office, President Donald Trump has slashed U.S. foreign aid spending. It began with a stop-work order that paused spending on everything from treating tropical diseases in Mali to providing nutrition support in Nepal.
By early February 2025, billionaire Elon Musk announced that the U.S. Agency for International Development, the lead foreign aid agency, had been fed “into the wood chipper.” By July 1, USAID had ceased to exist, 83% of its programs had been canceled, and remaining aid programs were moved into the State Department – where it was unclear how they would be managed. Congress clawed back billions in previously approved aid spending, at Trump’s request, in July.
