George Bush Joins Obama in Denouncing Trump Over USAID Overhaul

Former Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama have joined forces to criticize President Donald Trump’s recent decision to dismantle the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), a move they say undermines American global leadership.

In a private farewell video shown to departing USAID staff, Bush and Obama appeared alongside U2 frontman Bono to offer praise and condolences to employees affected by the agency’s closure.

Obama described the cut as “a travesty” and “a tragedy,” emphasizing that USAID carried out some of the world’s most impactful humanitarian efforts. He warned that eliminating the agency was “a colossal mistake.”

Obama also predicted that bipartisan leaders would eventually recognize the agency’s value and the importance of its global mission.

USAID employees, many of whom are now out of work, received the video during an internal gathering as the agency was officially phased out under Trump’s administration.

Trump and Elon Musk, working through the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), spearheaded the shutdown of USAID, reducing it to a minimal staff while transferring responsibilities elsewhere.

The video was not made public, but the Associated Press obtained excerpts from the speeches given by Bush, Obama, and Bono.

Musk has previously referred to USAID as “a viper’s nest of radical-left marxists,” accusing the agency of harboring anti-American sentiments and promoting wasteful spending, per Trending Politics.

On Tuesday, the New York Post confirmed that USAID’s functions had been officially absorbed by the U.S. State Department.

Bush, who has generally avoided direct criticism of Trump, used his video remarks to commend the agency’s efforts in fighting AIDS and HIV, citing programs that have reportedly saved 25 million lives over two decades.

Bush told the staff they demonstrated the “strength of America” through their compassion and asked rhetorically whether it was in the national interest that 25 million people now live. “I think it is, and so do you,” he said.

Bono delivered a poem lamenting the agency’s closure and expressing concern about the potential loss of life from the discontinuation of humanitarian programs. He praised USAID employees, saying, “They called you crooks. When you were the best of us.”

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton also weighed in, writing on X that USAID employees were among the most dedicated public servants she had worked with and that their efforts saved lives and promoted global safety.

Bush and Obama, despite limited public commentary on Trump, were seen engaging with the President at his inauguration in January. Bono, however, has been vocally critical of Trump since his initial campaign in 2016.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio offered a different perspective, stating that USAID had become bloated and ineffective since the Cold War and had contributed to global instability and rising anti-American sentiment.

Rubio said the closure marked the end of what he described as “government-sanctioned inefficiency,” adding that foreign aid will now be delivered more strategically through the State Department.

Trump has claimed that the administration, in coordination with Musk’s DOGE, identified over $22 billion in federal waste, including millions allocated for overseas diversity and migrant support programs.

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