Workers Turned Away From USAID Offices

Officials and federal officers turned away scores of US Agency for International Development staffers who showed up for work Monday at its Washington headquarters after a court temporarily blocked a Trump administration order that would have pulled all but a fraction of workers off the job worldwide. A front desk officer told a steady stream of agency staffers that he had a list of no more than 10 names of people allowed to enter the building, the AP reports. Tarps hung over USAID's interior signs. A man who earlier identified himself as a USAID official took a harsher tone, telling staffers "just go" and "why are you here?"

USAID staff were also denied entry to their offices to retrieve belongings and were told by officials that the agency's lease had now been turned over to the General Services Administration, which manages federal government buildings.

• While the judge ordered the administration to restore agency email access for staffers, the order said nothing about reopening USAID headquarters. Some staffers and contractors reported having their agency email restored by Monday, while others said they did not.
• Some staffers told the AP that they came to the USAID offices because they were confused by conflicting agency emails and notices over the weekend about whether they should go in. Others expected they would be turned away but went anyway.
• A USAID email sent Sunday night, saying it was "From the office of the administrator," told employees that what it called "the former USAID headquarters" and other USAID offices in the Washington area were closed until further notice. It told workers to telework unless they are instructed otherwise.

• Even as President Trump and Elon Musk have taken aim at other government agencies, USAID has been hit hardest so far. The president signed an executive order freezing foreign assistance so the administration could review spending that it says is wasteful or not aligned with Trump's agenda.
• That has forced US-funded aid and development programs worldwide to shut down and lay off staff even as Secretary of State Marco Rubio had sought to mitigate the damage by issuing a waiver to exempt emergency food aid and "life-saving" programs.
• Despite the waiver, neither funding nor staffing has resumed to get even the most essential programs rolling again, USAID officials and aid groups say.

(More USAID stories.)