USAID security leaders removed after refusing Elon Musk's DOGE employees access to secure systems

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According to five sources close to the story who spoke with NBC News, the director and deputy of security at the U.S. Agency for International Development were placed on administrative leave on Saturday after they attempted to limit access to secure USAID systems for government employees who worked to improve bureaucratic efficiency, sources informed NBC News.

The USAID systems the DOGE team sought to access included personnel records and security systems, including classified systems that were above the security clearance level of some DOGE employees, according to three of the sources.

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When USAID Director of Security John Voorhees and his deputy, Brian McGill, initially declined to allow DOGE employees to enter, the employees reportedly threatened to contact the US Marshals, according to two of the sources. The DOGE employees were eventually able to access the secure systems, as three of the sources confirmed, but it is unclear what information they were able to acquire.

The call went out for the USAID "to implode" and labeling the independent agency as a "criminal organization" without providing any evidence.

President Trump stated on the airfield at Joint Base Andrews on Sunday that Musk "is doing a good job" and criticized USAID as "run by a bunch of radical extremists."

"It's been managed by a bunch of radical extremists, and we're getting them out, and then we'll make a decision," he said.

However, Democrats claimed that DOGE's attempt to access USAID records was a major threat.

Reports that unauthorized individuals may have accessed classified USAID areas as well as private information belonging to American citizens are extremely concerning and unprecedented," U.S. Sen. Jeanne Shaheen, D-N.H., ranking member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said to NBC News. "We're urgently seeking information on any potential impact on national security and are planning to assemble a bipartisan Senate group to address this issue as soon as the Senate reconvenes tomorrow.

To Secretary of State Marco Rubio: "Security guards stationed at the facility were intimidated when they questioned the DOGE workers seeking access."

a move that Democrat lawmakers and legal experts say would violate a law passed by Congress that established the agency.

The State Department, USAID, and Musk did not immediately respond to calls for comment.

The official website of the US Department of State, state.gov, is currently active.

On U.S. global aid the Trump administration put in place a little over a week ago.

In recent cuts to staff, most of the 125-person Bureau for Legislative and Public Affairs was placed on administrative leave late Saturday, according to three sources who have firsthand knowledge of the actions, and several of the agency's communications staff members were prevented from accessing internal systems to contact fellow staffers this week, a source said.

No one feels safe approaching the Ronald Reagan Building," a USAID official told NBC News. "We've been called a criminal organization by Elon Musk. Our security director was escorted out. We know DOGE is monitoring us.

This article was originally published onConsumer Reports.