USAID official put on administrative leave for scathing memo blaming political appointees for affecting ‘life-saving’ work
CNN
A top official at the US Agency for International Development (USAID) was put on leave after issuing a scathing memo blaming Trump political appointees for the US government’s inability to conduct life-saving humanitarian work.
A top official at the US Agency for International Development (USAID) was put on leave after issuing a scathing memo blaming Trump political appointees for the US government’s inability to conduct life-saving humanitarian work. The official warned the Trump appointees’ work will “no doubt result in preventable death, destabilization, and threats to national security on a massive scale.” The memo from Nicholas Enrich, the acting administrator for global heath at USAID, details “obstacles” put in place by “political leadership at USAID, the Department of State, and DOGE” that have prevented USAID from implementing waivers for life-saving assistance. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has repeatedly claimed he issued such waivers to exempt the assistance from a sweeping foreign aid freeze put in place in late January. “These actions individually and in combination have resulted in the U.S. Government’s failure to implement critical lifesaving activities,” Enrich wrote in the memo dated February 28 and seen by CNN. In his stark memo, Enrich detailed the types of activities impacted by the ongoing freeze, along with the actions taken by Trump administration appointees from January 29 through February 28 that blocked life-saving work from moving forward. These include “emergency outbreak response activities needed to respond to the Ebola outbreak in Uganda – the first approved global health activities under the waiver.”
The US has suspended operations and planning for offensive cyber operations against Russia, a senior US official told CNN.
First lady Melania Trump is expected to speak publicly Monday, for the first time since her husband returned to office, highlighting her support for a bill aimed at protecting Americans from deepfake and revenge pornography.
The White House is making clear it views President Donald Trump’s Friday Oval Office showdown with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky as an overwhelming win underscoring Trump’s “America First” leadership, dispatching top officials and allies on the airwaves to amplify Trump’s handling of the situation even as European leaders are putting on a key show of force of unity for Ukraine and its leader.
Campaigning in Pennsylvania last September, JD Vance seemed to strike at an unlikely political foe: the besieged president of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, who’d spent most of the previous two years being hailed by Western leaders as a hero.
CNN’s 5 Things Sunday brings you all the news you need to start your week smart.
The American public’s view of Donald Trump’s presidency and the direction he’s leading the country is remains more negative than positive just ahead of his first formal address to Congress since returning to office, according to a new CNN poll conducted by SSRS.
The American public’s view of Donald Trump’s presidency and the direction he’s leading the country is remains more negative than positive just ahead of his first formal address to Congress since returning to office, according to a new CNN poll conducted by SSRS.
In cities across the United States someone or something is almost always watching you. On Tuesday, as Mardi Gras revelers flock to New Orleans to celebrate the end of Carnival, it will be no different.
Immigration law experts say the “gold card” proposal is far more complicated and uncertain than President Donald Trump and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick made it sound last week.
Authorities in parts of North Carolina and South Carolina issued evacuation orders Saturday as firefighters hurried to contain wildfires driven by dry, windy conditions across the region.
Posting to her mother’s X account Saturday, Love’s daughter, Abigale Love, said that she and her mother’s team have decided to prioritize being with her and keeping her comfortable at this time.
Former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced Saturday he is running for mayor of New York City.
A federal judge ruled Saturday that the head of a government watchdog agency whom President Donald Trump is attempting to fire is entitled to remain in the post, setting up a dispute that will almost certainly be decided by the Supreme Court.