Trump Cancels $4.9 Billion in US Foreign Aid

U.S. President Donald Trump has formally asked Congress to approve nearly $4.9 billion in cuts to international aid programs, the White House confirmed Friday, a move that heightens the prospect of a federal government shutdown at the end of September.

🚨 Last night, President Trump CANCELLED $4.9 billion in America Last foreign aid using a pocket rescission.@POTUS will always put AMERICA FIRST! pic.twitter.com/1DvXYGdy3B

— Office of Management and Budget (@WHOMB) August 29, 2025

In a letter sent to House Speaker Mike Johnson and released by the Office of Management and Budget, Trump said the proposed reductions would affect programs under the State Department, the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), and other foreign assistance initiatives.

“The President will always put America first,” the White House wrote on X, echoing Trump’s longstanding position on foreign policy.

Democrats, however, have warned that any attempt to claw back previously approved funding could undermine negotiations to prevent a government funding lapse beyond September 30.

According to The New York Post, which first reported on the plan Thursday, the largest portion of the proposed cuts, around $3.2 billion, targets USAID programs.

Since returning to the White House in January, Trump has already frozen billions of dollars in foreign aid and formally dissolved USAID as an independent agency, placing it under the authority of the State Department.

For decades, USAID has been Washington’s primary instrument of “soft power,” providing humanitarian relief and development assistance across roughly 120 countries through health, emergency, and food security programs.

Global concerns are mounting over the potential fallout of such funding cuts. A study released in July warned that halting U.S. foreign aid could lead to the deaths of more than 14 million vulnerable people worldwide by 2030, one-third of them young children.