More than 50 civil career servants and foreign service officers at the U.S. Agency for International Development were placed on administrative leave Monday afternoon effective immediately, two former USAID officials, a current agency official and a source directly familiar with the decision told NBC News.
In addition to striking at senior leadership in bureaus across the agency, the action specifically targeted senior attorneys, according to the two former USAID officials and a current official.
USAID employees were informed of the decision late Monday afternoon.
“We have identified several actions within USAID that appear to be designed to circumvent the President’s Executive Orders and the mandate from the American people,” said the email from acting USAID Administrator Jason Gray, which was obtained by NBC News. “As a result, we have placed a number of USAID employees on administrative leave with full pay and benefits until further notice while we complete our analysis of these actions.”
USAID did not immediately respond to a request for comment Monday evening.
USAID works to coordinate foreign aid and humanitarian development. Though it is an independent federal agency, it collaborates and receives policy guidance from the secretary of state.
Some of the agency’s responsibilities include providing humanitarian relief in response to conflicts and natural disasters, as well as promoting global health, environmental sustainability and education.
Former USAID official Jeremy Konyndyk said the decision by the Trump administration was a fundamental misread of what career staff exist to do.
“In my experience, they always do work in good faith as intermediaries between the political guidance that they get from the leadership of their building and from the White House, and turn that into development policy,” said Konyndyk who is now president of Refugees International.
He added that the sweeping action seemed like an attempt to intimidate and instill fear throughout the building.
“This is a destroying the village in order to save it approach to governing,” he said.
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The Trump administration froze almost all U.S. foreign assistance last week, in compliance with an executive order by President Donald Trump pending a 90-day review.
The order paused new obligations and disbursements of foreign aid pending reviews “for programmatic efficiency and consistency” with U.S. foreign policy.
Trump has made a series of other moves to restructure components of the government.
Last week, he made a late-night, legally murky move to fire 18 inspectors general in the federal government, sent home dozens of national security officials from White House jobs, said he was considering shutting down the Federal Emergency Management Agency, revoked 50 security clearances for former intelligence officials and gave the green light to terminate federal employees in diversity, equity and inclusion roles.
