As a federal judge ordered the administration to unfreeze funding for U.S. Agency for International Development aid programs, President Donald Trump pondered whether the agency had “tried” to rig the 2020 election.

During a question and answer session in the Oval Office on Thursday during a joint appearance by Trump and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The president was asked his thoughts on USAID playing a role in his 2020 loss as his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) implemented a funding freeze on foreign assistance.

“President Trump, first of all, congratulations for a fantastic 24 days of your presidency. Historic and unprecedented decisions that you’ve made–,” a reporter began.

“I like her,” the president quipped.

“I’m particularly impressed by the exposé on USAID. And I would like you to share with us, if you think USAID had a role in election interference in the U.S. in 2020, and in the elections in 2024,” the reporter continued.

“So, it could’ve had a role,” Trump replied.

“There were a lot of bad things that happened in 2020. I think bad things happened in 2024, but it was too big. We won by a tremendous margin. And we won every swing state. We won the popular vote by millions of votes. So it was too big to rig,” he continued.

“But yeah, I think they probably tried,” Trump said.

“We’re looking to go to a system now, much different where one-day voting, voter ID, and just, we have to do that. And paper ballots, we want paper ballots. And when they do that, we’re gonna clean it up very, very well,” he added.

Many USAID staffers have taken to the courts in the aftermath of DOGE’s purge, asserting that they have been abandoned by the administration – sometimes in overseas locations – without jobs and funding that covered necessities.

Former State Department official Mike Benz spoke of the origins of USAID during an appearance on the Shawn Ryan Show podcast where he exposed how the agency has worked behind the scenes.

“JFK created USAID and just one month later launched Operation Pincushion,” he said in one clip from the podcast, referring to President John F. Kennedy.

“It would later turn out USAID very quickly played this function of supporting these very same CIA-backed mercenary groups that Operation Pincushion was recruiting,” he added.

“JFK created USAID and just one month later launched Operation Pincushion. It would later turn out USAID very quickly played this function of supporting these very same CIA mercenary groups that Operation Pincushion was recruiting.”

“When it’s too dirty for the CIA, you give it… pic.twitter.com/cBe4LvA1O9

— Shawn Ryan (@ShawnRyan762) February 13, 2025

“USAID has played this swing role between State, CIA, and DoD, and special forces work practically from the day it was born,” Benz explained, going on to point out how many of the CIA “scandals” of the last decades have not actually been of the agency’s own making.

“I always say, when it’s too dirty for the CIA, you give it to USAID because the CIA needs to get presidential approval for every covert action they do… USAID does not.”

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Frieda Powers

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Originally from New York, Powers graduated from New York University and eventually made her way to sunny South Florida where she has been writing for the BizPacReview team since 2015.

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