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The White House Office of Management and Budget began using millions of dollars from the dismantled U.S. Agency for International Development to pay for OMB Director Russell Vought's security detail, allocating $15 million of what remained of USAID operating expenses to cover the costs of his protection by the U.S. Marshals Service through the end of 2026. The allocation came after Vought played a lead role in gutting USAID, an organization that had managed $43 billion in appropriations and assisted 130 countries with disaster relief and economic development in fiscal year 2023.
The use of USAID funds for Vought's personal security raised ethical questions about the appropriateness of repurposing humanitarian aid agency resources for executive protection, particularly after Vought had orchestrated the agency's dismantling. USAID's former workforce of 10,000 had been reduced to just 378 employees by early 2026, representing one of the most dramatic workforce reductions under DOGE. Studies showed USAID programs had helped prevent an estimated 91 million deaths over the past two decades, including 30 million children.
Vought's security detail became necessary after he generated intense controversy for his role in mass firings of federal government employees as the architect of Schedule F and for stating in private speeches he wanted to put career civil servants "in trauma." He faced violent threats following his controversial comments and actions, culminating in Colin Demarco's arrest on attempted murder charges after appearing at Vought's Northern Virginia home in August 2025. The allocation of USAID funds for security highlighted the broader pattern of DOGE-related officials repurposing federal resources, as critics argued Vought had created the security threat through his own extremist approach to government restructuring, then used funds from an agency he helped destroy to protect himself from the consequences.