No - bullshit. It is not defensible to conflate the dismantling of entire agencies and departments with discretionary enforcement.

"But but but Democrats" isn't a response when we are dealing with COMPLETELY unprecedented actions.

They're not being dismantled. Funding is being paused while they are audited --and the audits are showing very concerning waste, potential fraud and are being reorganized under a different department.

This is a good thing. They should not get to waste our tax dollars without oversight and fraud detection.

> They're not being dismantled.

O RLY? You might try reading literally anything the people involved are putting out there. They're open about trying to shut down USAID and the department of Education, and interfering so deeply in places like NIH is beyond the plausible legal limit (which is part of the point during an authoritarian takeover).

https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2025/02/03/usai...

USAID was codified by 22 U.S.C. 6501

> and the audits are showing very concerning waste

Giant flashing neon sign saying "Citation Needed". Visible from fucking space.

I know that HN is supposed to be a place of reasoned discourse, but your takes are so removed from reality I can't take you seriously. I hold your authoritarian apologism in utter contempt and disgust. Be better.

I think everyone should be concerned how the government is spending our money and every government administration should have its spending audited and any graft, fraud and waste eliminated with a waste-0 initiative. This should be transparent to the voters. We should know how they are spending our money and where. The purpose of the government agencies isn't to be a jobs program.

> This should be transparent to the voters. We should know how they are spending our money and where.

The fact that you think this is what's happening right now is fucking hilarious. It's also hilarious that you don't seem to know just how much public information IS available from these institutions.

Some random, ketamine addicted, un-elected oligarch with a cadre of teenage lackeys being let loose with unlimited authority over giant institutions in a process with zero accountability or transparency is your fucking idea of an audit? Like the rest of your arguments here, that's either phenomenally stupid or a mediocre astroturfing job.

So you think voters were aware of how USAID moneys were being spent?

Causing instability overseas, paying Reuters, Catholic charities, BBC, NYT, Politico, etc., for disinformation, people smuggling, etc. It's ridiculous. I'm glad it's happening. The corruption is being exposed. It could be Stalin's great-grandkid doing this and I would welcome the exposure of our waste.

Of course Soros junior so mad his manoeuvering isn't as effective no more.

> So you think voters were aware of how USAID moneys were being spent?

What the fuck? We're talking about the availability of information, not what random idiots have bothered to make themselves aware of.

> Causing instability overseas, paying Reuters, Catholic charities, BBC, NYT, Politico, etc., for disinformation, people smuggling, etc. It's ridiculous. I'm glad it's happening. The corruption is being exposed. It could be Stalin's great-grandkid doing this and I would welcome the exposure of our waste.

Nothing is being exposed. There are legal ways to pursue "audits" and "efficiency", but nobody can seriously believe that's what's happening now. USAID could be evil incarnate, and the current power grab would still be illegal and a threat to the very existence of our country (and we're not ONLY talking about USAID, they just started there).

Just admit it - you're an authoritarian at heart and you're happy daddy is going to decide everything now. Real life is too complex to bother trying to understand.