Elon Musk reposted a comment that said he “toppled” the USAID. He didn’t originally post it.

As X owner Elon Musk moves to shut down the U.S. Agency for International Development, he has called it a "criminal organization" and "a ball of worms." Despite social media claims amid Musk’s efforts to shutter the agency, he didn’t say he took down a "terror" organization. He did, however, repost a quote calling it one.

"Elon Musk officially cancelled USAID and fired all the staff," a Feb. 4 Facebook post said. "In his words, ‘we just toppled one of the biggest globalist terror organizations in history."

This post was flagged as part of Meta’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram and Threads.)

Musk didn’t say he "toppled one of the biggest globalist terror organizations." Instead, he resposted a Feb. 2 X post by provocateur  Milo Yiannopoulos that said, "By closing USAID, Trump and Musk have toppled the most gigantic global terror organization in history." Musk included a bull’s-eye emoji, a symbol for on target.

Musk said during a Feb. 3 X Spaces, a live audio conversation, that President Donald Trump agreed USAID should be shuttered. During that conversation he said USAID is "a ball of worms." The day before, Musk also called the agency a "criminal organization" on X, writing, "Time for it to die."

The organization has not officially been shuttered. The USAID website has been replaced with a message that says "all direct hire personnel will be placed on administrative leave" Feb. 7, except for some employees responsible for critical functions, core leadership and designated programs.

Trump’s administration plans to keep 294 USAID employees out of more than 10,000 staff, Reuters reported. As of Feb. 7, a federal judge said he would temporarily block the plan to put thousands of USAID staff on leave. 

Featured Fact-check

Social Media

stated on February 23, 2025 in in social media posts

"The Philadelphia Eagles have declined their invitation to the White House,” as of Feb. 24.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Feb. 3 that he would serve as the agency’s acting administrator, adding that some parts of USAID would merge with the State Department and the rest of the agency would be dissolved. 

A Facebook post quotes Musk saying about USAID, "We just toppled one of the biggest globalist terror organizations in history." 

Musk didn’t say this quote, but he reshared a similar quote from another user and posted a bull’s-eye emoji. A federal judge on Feb. 7 said he would temporarily block the Trump administration’s plan to put thousands of USAID staff on administrative leave as the State Department subsumes the rest of the agency.

We rate the claim Mostly False.