President Donald Trump and his billionaire adviser Elon Musk have launched a full-frontal assault on the United States Agency for International Development. Pending a review, Trump has ordered a pause to all US foreign aid — with some exceptions — and Musk has threatened to shut down the independent government agency entirely,

Billionaire businessman Elon Musk said on Monday that President Trump agreed the United States Agency for International Development should be shut down.

USAID programs include things like vaccination initiatives, which can help prevent the spread of diseases, but critics claim the spending is wasteful.

In a brief note posted on the international development agency's website, almost all employees were told they would be put on leave. The note ended with the words, "Thank you for your service."

Until a few days ago, most Americans might have gone their entire lives without hearing of the US Agency for International Development, the little-known government organization that the world’s wealthiest man targeted for dissolution over the weekend by labeling it as a criminal enterprise on his social media platform.

Dr. Atul Gawande said denigrating the agency is "dangerous for the country" and shuttering its programs could make Americans less safe.

Elon Musk and President Donald Trump are shutting down USAID, a federal foreign aid agency that houses Food for Peace, which has a Kansas history.