WASHINGTON—Hundreds rallied near the U.S. Capitol Wednesday to defend the U.S. Agency for International Development as the Trump administration moves to dismantle the agency, marking the third day of protests.
“It’s important to show that there are regular, everyday people who strongly support continuing foreign aid, and I would hope that there would be an acknowledgment that the actions against USAID are illegal,” said Laura Schauble, 48, a protester and senior executive at Agricultural Cooperative Development International/Volunteers in Overseas Cooperative Assistance, an international economic development nonprofit.
Protesters were joined by House and Senate Democrats, many of whom criticized the administration’s actions as “illegal” and “unconstitutional.”
“Getting rid of (USAID) makes us all less safe. It is also downright illegal,” Maryland Sen. Chris Van Hollen, a Democrat, said at the protest. “Presidents are not kings…the law is the law, and President Trump needs to obey all parts of that law.”
Lawmakers and protesters also condemned billionaire Elon Musk’s growing role in the federal government as head of the Department of Government Efficiency and a leading proponent of eradicating USAID, which he called on X a “criminal organization” that needs “to die.”
“(Elon Musk) is trying to play dictator here in our nation’s capital, but he does not get to ignore the law. We need to shut down the Musk operation now,” Van Hollen said.
USAID, the world’s largest provider of humanitarian aid, assists nations in need with agricultural assistance, health programs, disaster relief and other development efforts, according to the Congressional Research Service. A Tuesday evening order mandated that all USAID staff cease operations and vacate posts worldwide by midnight Friday – the latest step in the administration’s abrupt dismantling of the government agency.
“I think (USAID) is just an example of the kind of things that are good that ought to be kept in the federal budget,” retired federal employee and Maryland protester Richard Greely, 70, said.
Schauble echoed this sentiment, calling USAID’s work a “cornerstone of our status in the world” and condemning the funding cuts as “counterproductive and asinine.”
Three former USAID officials, Bama Athreya, Jeremy Konyndyk and Chris Milligan, also spoke at the demonstration, decrying the administration’s attack on the federal agency as a moral and constitutional failure that will lead to real harm.
“We are in a country where the richest man can decide that the richest country will no longer help some of the poorest people. We are in a very, very dire place. The attempts to kill USAID will kill people that America has committed to save,” said Konyndyk, who served in top USAID posts in the Obama and Biden administrations and is now the president of Refugees International.
The speeches, featuring 22 speakers over an hour and a half, were repeatedly interrupted by chants from protesters: “Let them work,” “Do your job,” “What’s your plan” and “Musk has got to go.”
House and Senate Democrats, the minority in both chambers, have staged protests across Washington all week. They demonstrated outside USAID headquarters Monday, the Treasury Department Tuesday and the Labor Department following Wednesday’s rally near the Capitol.
“We will not shut up. We will stand up. We will speak up. We will rise up,” Sen. Cory Booker, D-New Jersey, said Wednesday near the Capitol. “From the House of Representatives to the United States Senate, we will be introducing legislation to stop this assault on our Constitution and separation of powers.”
Despite the call to action from politicians, former USAID staffers and public health professionals, some protesters were doubtful the demonstration would sway the Trump administration.
“I don’t expect (this protest) to get the attention of the current administration,” Schauble said. “But I would hope that it gets the attention of the American people.”
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