US aid agency workers told to stay out of Washington HQ

Staff at the US Agency for International Development (USAid) have been instructed to stay out of the agency’s Washington headquarters, after billionaire Elon Musk announced President Donald Trump had agreed with him that the body should close.

USAid workers said they tracked 600 employees who reported being locked out of the agency’s computer systems overnight.

Those still in the system received emails in the agency system saying that “at the direction of Agency leadership” the headquarters building “will be closed to Agency personnel on Monday February 3”.

The developments come after Mr Musk, who is leading an extraordinary civilian review of the US federal government with the Republican President’s approval, said early on Monday that he had spoken with Mr Trump about the six-decade US aid and development agency and “he agreed we should shut it down”.

The Tesla and SpaceX chief said: “It became apparent that its not an apple with a worm it in.

“What we have is just a ball of worms. You’ve got to basically get rid of the whole thing. It’s beyond repair.

“We’re shutting it down.”

Members of Mr Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, known as DOGE, eventually did gain access on Saturday to the aid agency’s classified information, which includes intelligence reports, a former official said.

Mr Musk’s DOGE crew lacked high enough security clearance to access that information, so the two USAid security officials – John Voorhees and deputy Brian McGill – believed themselves legally obligated to deny access.

On Sunday, Mr Musk responded to an X post about the news by saying: “USAID is a criminal organization. Time for it to die.”

He followed this with additional posts on X about the aid agency.

Democratic politicians have protested against the moves, saying Mr Trump lacks constitutional authority to shut down USAid without congressional approval and decrying Mr Musk’s accessing sensitive government-held information through his Trump-sanctioned inspections of federal government agencies and programmes.

“It’s been run by a bunch of radical lunatics. And we’re getting them out,” Mr Trump said to reporters about USAid on Sunday night.

Mr Musk’s and Mr Trump’s comments came with Secretary of State Marco Rubio out of the country, in Central America, on his first trip abroad in office. Mr Rubio has not spoken publicly about any plans to shut down USAid.

The Trump administration and Mr Rubio have imposed an unprecedented freeze on foreign assistance that has shut down much of USAid’s aid programmes worldwide – compelling thousands of layoffs by aid organisations – and ordered furloughs and leaves that have gutted the agency’s leadership and staff in Washington.

Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren said in a post on Sunday that Mr Trump was allowing Mr Musk to access people’s personal information and shut down government funding.

“We must do everything in our power to push back and protect people from harm,” the Massachusetts senator said, without giving details.