A US judge has issued a temporary order to halt plans to place 2,200 US Agency for International Development (USAID) employees on leave. This decision comes as part of a limited injunction aiming to obstruct the Trump administration’s efforts to dismantle the agency.
US District Judge Carl Nichols, who was appointed by President Trump, sided with two federal employee unions in delaying the placement of USAID staff on paid leave. Judge Nichols emphasized that his order was not a final decision regarding the employees’诉求 to reverse the administration’s swift dismantling of the agency.
However, Judge Nichols did not show enthusiasm for the unions’ additional requests to reopen USAID offices and restore the funding for agency grants and contracts.
Trump Claims USAID Corruption Without Evidence
A Justice Department representative, Brett Shumate, informed Judge Nichols that the administration’s plans would place approximately 2,200 USAID employees on paid leave, with 500 already on leave.
Shumate stated, “The president has decided there is corruption and fraud at USAID.”
Judge Nichols’s order aims to prevent the immediate furlough of these 2,200 employees and halt the relocation of humanitarian workers stationed abroad.
President Trump made unfounded claims about USAID corruption on Truth Social. (AP: Alex Brandon)
On Truth Social, President Trump accused USAID of corruption and fraudulent spending without providing any evidence.
“USAID is driving the radical left crazy, and there is nothing they can do about it because the way in which the money has been spent, so much of it fraudulently, is totally unexplainable,” Trump declared.
“The corruption at levels rarely seen before. Close it down.”
Upon inauguration, Trump halted all US foreign aid to align it with his “America First” policy, leading to chaos at USAID, which distributes billions of dollars in humanitarian aid globally.
Full-Scale Dismantling of USAID
Union representatives argue that Trump lacks the authority to shut down the long-standing aid agency without congressional approval.
“This is a full-scale gutting of virtually all the personnel of an entire agency,” legal counsel Karla Gilbride stated before Judge Nichols.
A Justice Department attorney, Brett Shumate, contended that the administration possesses sufficient legal authority to place agency employees on leave.
“The government does this routinely. It’s just happening here on a larger scale,” Shumate explained.
USAID has become the primary target of the Trump administration and Elon Musk’s budget-cutting Department of Government Efficiency, sparking unprecedented challenges to federal agencies.
Workers obscured the USAID logo at its Washington headquarters in an act of defiance. (AP: Jose Luis Magana)
The Trump administration acted swiftly to physically erase every trace of USAID’s presence.
Workers on a crane scrubbed the agency’s name from the building’s stone facade while covering the logo with duct tape and taking down the USAID flags.
Additionally, according to Democratic officials, USAID’s computer servers were dismantled.
Judge Nichols’ ruling marks a significant obstacle for the Trump administration, whose previous policies have faced temporary halts due to judicial intervention.
These include offers of financial incentives to encourage federal workers to resign and plans to terminate birthright citizenship for anyone born in the US.
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