Democratic 2028 Candidates Must Pledge to Restore USAID After Trump-Musk Destruction

The Human Cost of DOGE's Chain Saw

The numbers are staggering and heartbreaking: more than 750,000 lives lost—most of them children—due to the Trump administration's dismantling of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). What was once America's most effective humanitarian agency, saving 92 million lives over two decades on less than 1% of the federal budget, was gutted in a matter of weeks by Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).

Nicholas Enrich, former top global health official at USAID and author of "Into the Wood Chipper," provides a damning insider account of how ignorance, indifference, and cruelty drove one of the Trump administration's most devastating decisions. The agency that projected American generosity worldwide and built lasting alliances more efficiently than military force was sacrificed to satisfy "the ego of a billionaire."

The Shocking Ignorance Behind USAID's Destruction

The officials tasked with destroying USAID were "shockingly clueless" about the agency's work, Enrich reveals. One appointee assumed USAID only performed abortions globally. Another demanded "Barney-style" slides to understand drug-resistant tuberculosis threats. The level of incompetence was matched only by the administration's willingness to spread outright lies.

Trump claimed USAID was sending "$50 million to Gaza to buy condoms for Hamas" for bomb-making. The reality? The project was a family-planning initiative in Gaza Province, Mozambique—not the Middle Eastern territory. Even Trump's chief of staff Susie Wiles admitted there was "no justification for dismantling the agency," calling the decision initially "aghast."

From Humanitarian Aid to Transactional Diplomacy

The remnants of American foreign aid have been folded into the State Department under Marco Rubio, despite his previous praise for USAID as crucial for countering Chinese influence and saving lives across Africa. However, the results have been predictably problematic.

Development assistance now operates through a "transactional diplomacy approach" that contradicts six decades of lessons about effective aid. The new "America First Global Health Strategy" conditions lifesaving HIV treatment for over 1 million Zambians on American access to critical minerals. This quid pro quo approach "jettisons everything we've learned" about building lasting partnerships through goodwill.

Why Independence Matters

As President Obama noted, "To many people around the world, USAID is the United States." The agency's logo—a handshake over "From the American People"—symbolized America's commitment to global health and safety. There's a reason Congress originally created separate departments for state and defense: different pillars of foreign policy require different approaches, operational capacities, and expertise.

Development work cannot be effectively "shoehorned" into existing diplomatic bureaucracy. The State Department's transactional approach undermines development goals by prioritizing short-term deals over long-term partnerships that actually create stability and prosperity.

The 2028 Presidential Litmus Test

Enrich argues that any serious Democratic presidential candidate for 2028 must pledge to immediately rebuild USAID upon taking office. This shouldn't be controversial—USAID enjoyed bipartisan support for over six decades and was demonstrably one of government's best investments.

The agency helped countries develop early warning systems for infectious diseases, protecting American borders from pandemics. It built the kind of soft power alliances that money can't buy and military force can't create. Most importantly, it saved nearly 100 million lives while operating on a fraction of the federal budget.

The Path Forward

Rebuilding USAID won't be as simple as Musk's destructive chain saw approach. The agency's expertise has been scattered, contracts terminated, and trust with partner countries destroyed. Full restoration will require congressional commitment and sustained effort.

But the alternative—continuing to condition humanitarian aid on resource extraction deals and abandoning America's leadership role in global development—is unacceptable. As Enrich powerfully argues, "USAID worked well. It was dismantled to satisfy the ego of a billionaire at a cost of the suffering of millions."

The question for 2028 Democratic candidates is simple: Will you commit to reversing one of Trump's most deadly mistakes? Millions of lives—and America's moral leadership—hang in the balance.