On Friday evening, hundreds of staffers at the US Institute of Peace were fired. This came after the agency had a standoff with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
USIP employees told The Washington Post that between 200 and 300 people had been fired. This accounts for nearly all of the staff at the headquarters, where the standoff occurred.
Some employees were offered severance pay and an additional month of health insurance in exchange for their signatures to waive their rights to sue. Reportedly, USIP has a total staff of about 600 people in offices across the globe. The institute reportedly helps certain areas implement peace settlements and rebuild, including in Ukraine.
USIP previously sued to block DOGE’s “takeover by force,” as Townhall covered. This came after DOGE staffers had to be escorted into the agency by armed police officers.
"Defendants have been and are at this minute engaged in conduct that will cause the Institute irreparable harm that will prevent the Institute from performing any of its lawful functions and is likely to utterly destroy it,” they wrote.
This week, DOGE’s spearhead, Elon Musk, confirmed on X that the USIP deleted financial data linking them to the Taliban and Iraqi leaders.
Yup
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 1, 2025
Each year, the United States Institute of Peace (USIP) receives $55M in congressional (taxpayer) funds.
— Department of Government Efficiency (@DOGE) March 31, 2025
- Prior management would sweep excess funds into its private Endowment (zero congressional oversight).
-In the past 10 years, USIP has transferred ~$13M to its private…