Trump brushes back Musk as Democrats plot DOGE resistance
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Elon Musk speaks with then-President elect Trump on Nov. 19, 2024, in Brownsville, Texas. Photo: Brandon Bell/Getty Images
Congressional Democrats vowed to intervene Monday to prevent Elon Musk from shutting down the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).
The big picture: Trump, who has yet to make an official statement on USAID's future, appeared to damper Musk's ambitious plans, telling reporters the billionaire can't take action without "our approval."
- Musk, head of the new Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), "can't do and won't do anything without our approval," Trump said Monday at the White House. "We'll give him the approval where appropriate. Where not appropriate, we won't."
- "Where we think there's a conflict or there's a problem, we won't let him go near it," Trump added.
- Secretary of State Marco Rubio, who was out of the country when Musk announced USAID was shutting down, said Monday he's now the agency's acting director.
Driving the news: House Judiciary Committee Ranking Member Jamie Raskin (D-Md.) called the move to shut down the agency an "illegal, unconstitutional interference with congressional power," during a press conference outside the USAID headquarters,
- He noted that Congress created the agency and Musk "doesn't have the power to destroy it."
- "We don't have a fourth branch of government called Elon Musk, and that's going to become real clear," Raskin added.
What they're saying: Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) called Musk's efforts "an absolute gift to our adversaries — to Russia, to China, to Iran and others" because the agency "is an essential instrument of U.S. foreign policy and U.S. national security policy."
- Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) said a billionaire who hasn't been elected, vetted, or gone through confirmation "should not be telling American employees that they cannot access the building they work at."
- She added: "Privileged billionaires who don't give a damn about America and Americans should not be making decisions that put Americans at harm."
Where it stands: Staffers were barred from entering the agency's headquarters, a source familiar with the USAID situation told Axios.
- Most of the USAID's Bureau for Planning, Learning and Resource Management had their access to agency systems revoked as of Monday afternoon, the source said.
- Employees in the Bureau for Resilience, Environment, and Food Security, — which houses teams for agriculture and climate, among others — were told they could lose access to their emails tonight or tomorrow, the source said.
- "We work in countries where this happens," the person told Axios. "We never imagine[d] it would happen here."
Catch up quick: Musk said Monday morning that Trump had "agreed" to "shut" USAID down.
- That was following reports that two senior USAID officials were placed on administrative leave after barring DOGE representatives from internal systems during a recent visit.
- Trump himself has railed against USAID, telling reporters over the weekend that the agency was run by "radical lunatics."
Axios' Avery Lotz contributed to this report.
Go deeper: Ending USAID climate programs could increase security risks
