Gutting of USAID could cost thousands of American jobs

The Trump administration’s freeze of foreign aid and dismantling of the agency that oversees it is putting at risk thousands of jobs in the US and abroad, industry sources told CNN.

The Trump administration’s freeze of foreign aid and dismantling of the agency that oversees it is putting at risk thousands of jobs in the US and abroad, industry sources told CNN. The fallout is already being felt at kitchen tables around the country with hundreds, if not thousands, of aid workers dealing with the reality that they could be out of work because of the aid freeze and potential downsizing of the workforce at USAID, which has been de-facto subsumed by the State Department. Secretary of State Marco Rubio outlined the freeze on almost all foreign assistance, which included immediate stop-work orders on existing work, in a directive less than two weeks ago. It has brought work around the world to a halt and also stopped disbursements of money to aid organizations and contractors. The move has already had immense repercussions, sources told CNN. “People are losing their jobs, left and right,” a humanitarian official said. “There’s going to be a ripple effect.” Federal contractors that are members of one Washington, DC-area trade association have racked up about $350 million in unpaid bills, forcing them to furlough some 2,000 staff in the area, a source familiar with the trade association told CNN. “You’re talking about thousands of people here and abroad, American companies that what they do is implement USAID programs,” said Dany Bahar, senior fellow at the Center for Global Development, a think tank. “A lot of the money from USAID is helping [foreign] countries grow and develop stronger commercial ties with the US.”