
A storied US agency, one that began under President Kennedy in 1961 with the aim of providing global stability through a wide array of humanitarian aid and development programs, has now formally closed.
Since January, the Trump administration has systematically dismantled the US Agency for International Development (USAID), canceling thousands of contracts and firing or placing on leave thousands of employees within the U.S. and overseas.
In a public statement issued in early February, the U.S. State Department wrote that USAID "has long strayed from its original mission of responsibly advancing American interests abroad, and it is now abundantly clear that significant portions of USAID funding are not aligned with the core national interests of the United States."
To course correct, Secretary of State Marco Rubio was appointed as Acting Administrator of USAID. And as of July 1, the remainder of the aid agency will be absorbed into the State Department.