US President Donald Trump has fired the independent inspector general of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), US media reported on Wednesday.
Paul Martin’s firing comes a day after his office released a report criticizing the Trump administration’s efforts to dismantle the agency, as reported by the Washington Post, CNN and others. The media outlet cited a two-sentence email sent to Martin from the White House on Tuesday. The email did not give a reason for the decision but said his position was “terminated effective immediately.”
A report from his office warned that more than $489 million in food aid was at risk of spoilage or potential misuse after the Trump administration implemented an aid freeze and stop-work order. The report said it had long “identified significant challenges and offered recommendations to improve the agency’s programs to prevent fraud, waste, and abuse.”
“However, recent widespread staff reductions across the agency… combined with uncertainty about the scope of foreign aid exemptions and permissible communications with implementers, have weakened USAID’s ability to deliver and protect taxpayer-funded humanitarian assistance,” the report said.
Trump had already fired 18 inspectors general, the independent watchdogs of the federal government, but Martin, who was appointed by Trump’s predecessor, Joe Biden, remained in office. Trump, who began his second term last month, has launched a campaign to reduce or dismantle various parts of the US government, led by the world’s richest man and his main donor, Elon Musk.
The most targeted is USAID, the leading US humanitarian aid agency worldwide, operating health and emergency programs in about 120 countries. USAID manages a budget of $42.8 billion. This is 42 percent of the humanitarian assistance distributed worldwide. It was seen as an important source of soft power for the United States in its struggle for influence with rivals including China.
The Trump administration has halted foreign aid, ordered thousands of internationally based employees to return to the United States, and begun reducing the number of USAID staff from 10,000 to about 300.
Labor unions are challenging the legality of the strikes. A federal judge on Friday ordered a halt to the administration’s plan to put 2,200 USAID workers on paid leave over the weekend. Democrats have said it would be unconstitutional for Trump to shut down government agencies without legislative approval.
