Erik De La Garza
January 27, 2025
RAW STORY
Chaos and uncertainty are swirling around the Trump administration’s new order halting most foreign aid grants for three months – and introduced the possibility that organizations dependent on federal funds could soon face bankruptcy, according to a report in Politico.
By Monday, groups spanning from health providers to landmine removers were still digesting the Friday directive issued by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, with some bewildered by its scope and still struggling to make sense of it, the report added.
“This ‘stop work’ order is cruel and deadly,” Health GAP executive director Asia Russell told Politico. “It will kill people.”
The sudden freeze, which reportedly shocked State Department officials, is spurring organizations to weigh which programs to cut and whether to trim employees or even cease operations, according to the publication.
“We operate on a shoestring budget,” the head of one non-governmental organization on the receiving end of funding from the State Department and USAID told Politico, who was granted anonymity “as they feared they would lose future contracts if they spoke out publicly.”
“In 30 days, you’ll start to see a very significant cash crunch across the board and probably some bankruptcies,” the source added. “It’s an absolute dumpster fire and no one has any idea what’s going on.”
The order also includes foreign military financing programs to countries including Ukraine, Jordan and Taiwan, though the scope of the effect remains uncertain. Aid groups said they couldn’t recall a similar situation involving a sudden halt to funding in the past.
“As they seek waivers, aid groups are scrambling to adjust — from seeking non-federal funds to help refugees arriving in the U.S. to halting efforts at HIV clinics in Africa,” the report said. “Many federal workers, from the Pentagon to the U.S. Agency for International Development, are confused by the wording of the order, such as what exactly could qualify for an exemption.”
President Donald Trump swiftly halted foreign aid for 90 days just after sweeping back into the presidency. But the move has also kicked off a legal battle as some top aid organizations argue the blanket half violates existing regulations and government contracts.
“I’m not sure anyone knows all the details right now and key folks are almost certainly trying to unpack the actions and implications,” a former senior Pentagon official told Politico, added that the United States “is the world’s No. 1 provider of humanitarian aid.”
Chaos and uncertainty are swirling around the Trump administration’s new order halting most foreign aid grants for three months – and introduced the possibility that organizations dependent on federal funds could soon face bankruptcy, according to a report in Politico.
By Monday, groups spanning from health providers to landmine removers were still digesting the Friday directive issued by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, with some bewildered by its scope and still struggling to make sense of it, the report added.
“This ‘stop work’ order is cruel and deadly,” Health GAP executive director Asia Russell told Politico. “It will kill people.”
The sudden freeze, which reportedly shocked State Department officials, is spurring organizations to weigh which programs to cut and whether to trim employees or even cease operations, according to the publication.
“We operate on a shoestring budget,” the head of one non-governmental organization on the receiving end of funding from the State Department and USAID told Politico, who was granted anonymity “as they feared they would lose future contracts if they spoke out publicly.”
“In 30 days, you’ll start to see a very significant cash crunch across the board and probably some bankruptcies,” the source added. “It’s an absolute dumpster fire and no one has any idea what’s going on.”
The order also includes foreign military financing programs to countries including Ukraine, Jordan and Taiwan, though the scope of the effect remains uncertain. Aid groups said they couldn’t recall a similar situation involving a sudden halt to funding in the past.
“As they seek waivers, aid groups are scrambling to adjust — from seeking non-federal funds to help refugees arriving in the U.S. to halting efforts at HIV clinics in Africa,” the report said. “Many federal workers, from the Pentagon to the U.S. Agency for International Development, are confused by the wording of the order, such as what exactly could qualify for an exemption.”
President Donald Trump swiftly halted foreign aid for 90 days just after sweeping back into the presidency. But the move has also kicked off a legal battle as some top aid organizations argue the blanket half violates existing regulations and government contracts.
“I’m not sure anyone knows all the details right now and key folks are almost certainly trying to unpack the actions and implications,” a former senior Pentagon official told Politico, added that the United States “is the world’s No. 1 provider of humanitarian aid.”
President Donald Trump has ordered a halt to a decades-old program dating back to the George W. Bush administration that has saved millions of lives abroad by distributing HIV medications to low-income countries, The New York Times reported — "even if the drugs have already been obtained and are sitting in local clinics."
The shutdown of the program, known as the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, or PEPFAR, is part of a broader directive by the Trump administration to suspend nearly all foreign aid, except for emergency food assistance and arms deals for Egypt and Israel. It also comes amid Trump's move to withdraw the United States from the World Health Organization, which many in the GOP have accused of being overly protective of the Chinese government during the COVID-19 pandemic.
That foreign aid pause only applies for three months. However, according to The Times, "On Monday afternoon, officials worldwide were alerted that PEPFAR’s data systems would shut down at 6 p.m. Eastern — roughly three hours after the email was received — immediately closing off access to all data sets, reports and analytical tools," which has some experts worried the Trump administration has no plans to restart the program.
Meanwhile, the report continued, "Appointments are being canceled, and patients are being turned away from clinics, according to people with knowledge of the situation who feared retribution if they spoke publicly. Many people with H.I.V. are facing abrupt interruptions to their treatment."
PEPFAR is widely considered one of Bush's greatest legacies as president and is thought to have saved around 25 million lives worldwide, with many being in Africa where HIV has ravaged communities for decades. However, many Republican lawmakers who distrust family planning care have wanted to get rid of it for years.
Already, PEPFAR was in jeopardy under former President Joe Biden's administration, with significant cuts to the program planned even before Trump was re-elected.
"Without treatment, virus levels in people with H.I.V. will quickly spike, hobbling the immune systems of the infected people and increasing the odds that they will spread the virus to others," The Times noted. "One study estimated that if PEPFAR were to end, as many as 600,000 lives would be lost over the next decade in South Africa alone. And that nation relies on PEPFAR for only 20 percent of its H.I.V. budget. Some poorer countries are almost entirely dependent on the program."
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