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Live from NPR News, I'm Lakshmi Singh. Protests are being held today in the Washington, D.C. area as the Trump administration prepares to put many federal employees on administrative leave. Today, a large crowd gathered outside the U.S. Capitol to protest billionaire tech mogul Elon Musk's efforts to shut down the United States Agency for International Development. Here's NPR's Luke Garrett.
Crowds chanted against tech billionaire turned special government employee Elon Musk, who has called USAID a, quote, ball of worms. Musk has worked to dismantle the International Aid Agency with the support of President Donald Trump. Many at the rally were current USAID or nonprofit workers, but didn't want to give their names publicly, fearing that they'd be targeted by the Trump administration.
This is my career. I've worked in the sector for seven years, and I'm not telling many people yet, but my first child is due in September, and I want to be able to feed my family.
USAID has announced that all employees are being placed on administrative leave and that overseas personnel are directed to return within 30 days. Luke Garrett, NPR News, Washington.
As acting administrator for USAID, Secretary of State Marco Rubio is defending Trump's directive upending thousands of employees around the globe.
Our preference would have been to do this in a more orderly fashion from the top down, but we had no cooperation and, in fact, insubordination, and so it required us to work from the bottom up.
His position standing in stark contrast to his prior record in the U.S. Senate as a strong advocate for USAID's mission. He's been quoted saying that foreign aid as part of the country's overall budget accounts for less than 1% of the total amount the U.S. government spends.
The White House says President Trump's not committed to sending troops to the Gaza Strip, but it's facing backlash from Trump's remarks, suggesting Gaza's Palestinian residents relocate to other parts of the Middle East and the U.S. control of the Gaza Strip. During a meeting today with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Netanyahu thanked Trump for his support.
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