Logo for USAID / U.S. Government, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

By Morgan Sweeney | The Center Square

(Worthy News) – The Trump administration wants to purge more than 90% of the U.S. Agency for International Development’s foreign aid contracts, in addition to approximately $60 billion in global U.S. assistance, according to a new memo.

The latest figures come from an internal memo obtained by the Associated Press.

Since President Donald Trump took office just over one month ago, he and the newly established Department of Government Efficiency have worked to drastically cut the agency’s spending, in part by laying off or terminating most of its staff.

A federal judge had issued a court order requiring the administration to release nearly $2 billion in foreign aid by Wednesday night, but Chief Justice John Roberts intervened and temporarily blocked the order.

Sunday night, the administration placed “all USAID direct hire personnel,” with some exceptions, on administrative leave globally, and announced that 1,600 employees would be let go. Employees working in the Ronald Reagan Building have been directed to retrieve their personal belongings, if applicable, in 15-minute supervised shifts on Thursday and Friday.

One of the lawsuits challenging the administration’s actions against the agency claims it is acting illegally because “the dismantling of USAID was not authorized by Congress” and is “inconsistent with statutes establishing and funding USAID.”

The Trump administration has consistently defended its actions, saying that President Donald Trump is rightfully acting within his power as chief executive and that district court judges have exceeded their authority by interfering with the president’s “basic executive authority.”

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