If USAID was providing aid to the world, why were its employees just ordered to shred or burn all their documents?
Thanks again to Mike Benz for helping us understand the parameters of the Blob
“Shred as many documents first, and reserve the burn bags for when the shredder becomes unavailable or needs a break,” read the email instructing staff to label the burn bags with “SECRET” and “USAID/B/IO” (which stands for “bureau or independent office”) in dark sharpie.
According to the report, the email did not provide any reasoning for the document destruction, however the building is currently being emptied out after mass layoffs, which may have disrupted the routine destruction of materials.
The effort also underscores the tumultuous way in which the Trump administration is dismantling an agency that once managed a $40 billion annual budget and had more than 10,000 staff around the world.
Efforts by Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency last month to access secure computer systems at USAID — including information about employees’ security clearances — triggered an uproar at the agency that prompted the administration to place two of the agency’s security staff on administrative leave. A DOGE spokesperson subsequently said that there was no improper access to classified material. –Politico
According to a former USAID staffer, “I’ve never seen something like this — en masse. Everyone with a safe is supposed to keep it up to date and destroy documents when they no longer need to be stored. Sometimes security will check your safe and tell you if you have to clean out old material.”