Judge declines to block DOGE from taking over African development agency
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SUMMARY
A federal judge gave the green light Tuesday for Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to move in on the U.S. African Development Foundation (USADF). U.S. District Judge Richard Leon shot down a bid to keep USADF chair Ward Brehm in his seat and block Peter Marocco—acting USAID deputy head—from taking over. Brehm’s team argued he’d be irreparably harmed, but Leon wasn’t convinced, saying job loss alone doesn’t cut it. “If he wins later, we can reinstate him with back pay,” Leon wrote, though he did raise an eyebrow at whether Trump’s push to slot Marocco in oversteps his power. This all kicked off last week when DOGE staffers got locked out of USADF’s D.C. headquarters—Brehm had told his crew to bar them without him there. They got in the next day anyway. USADF, born in 1980 to help African grassroots groups, is now in the crosshairs of Trump’s cost-cutting executive order. No word yet from DOGE, the White House, or Brehm’s camp—everyone’s still chewing on what’s next.
