Trump and Musk’s Manufactured USAID Scandal: A Blueprint for Muzzling the Media

Trump and Musk want the public's trust, but they start out with lies.

Donald Trump has tasked Elon Musk with identifying government waste. In response, Musk illegally obtained Treasury Department records—an act that some might even call a coup. He then began publicly making false claims about news agencies like Politico, alleging that they received $8 million in taxpayer dollars to promote “liberal propaganda” and “liberal ideologies” via USAID.

This, of course, is blatantly and verifiably false.

Shortly after Musk’s outrageous claim spread on social media, Snopes debunked it. As it turns out, USAID purchased $44,000 worth of Politico subscriptions last year—not the $8 million Musk and Trump alleged (source). In fact, many members of Congress, from both sides of the aisle, routinely purchase Politico Pro subscriptions, which are costly.

Yet, once Musk’s misinformation spread online, the White House responded in lockstep.

During a press briefing, the White House press secretary amplified the false narrative, stating:

"Upon coming out here to the briefing room, I was made aware of the funding from USAID to media outlets, including Politico, which I know has a seat in this room. I can confirm that the more than $8 million taxpayer dollars that have gone to essentially subsidizing subscriptions to Politico on the American taxpayers' dime will no longer be happening. The DOGE team is working on canceling those payments now."

Clearly, if you’re trying to gain the public’s trust, the last thing you should do is spread easily debunked lies.

And if you’re a voter—and a critical thinker—you should be asking yourself:
“Why would the White House lie?”

The answer is extremely straightforward:

They are grooming the public to accept government control over media—starting with public institutions like NPR and PBS, which hold the government accountable and report news fairly. And as predicted, that’s exactly what’s happening. (Source)

Next, they will target private media sources, using similar lies. Because anyone who reports facts that challenge their agenda will become a target.

This is how fascism operates. It takes a small truth, distorts it, and weaponizes it for its own gain.

Whenever you see this happening—whether from the right or the left—your critical thinking antenna should go up.

The Trump administration understands that it takes far more time and energy to debunk a lie than to spread one. Instead of spending all our time debunking their falsehoods, we need to focus on exposing their intent—loudly and clearly—for everyone to hear.