Why did US stop $21 million ‘voter turnout’ aid to India? Trump answers

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday explained why his administration decided to cut the $21 million funding to India for ‘voter turnout’. Calling India “one of the highest taxing countries in the world, Trump said the country already has a lot of money.

“Why are we giving $21 million to India? They have a lot more money. They are one of the highest taxing countries in the world in terms of us; we can hardly get in there because their tariffs are so high,” Trump told reporters while signing executive orders at his residence in Mar-a-Lago.

Trump praised Prime Minister Narendra Modi while making the remarks, saying that while he has a lot of respect for India, giving them this amount was unacceptable.

“I have a lot of respect for India and their Prime Minister, we’re giving USD 21 million for voter turnout. It’s voter turnout in India. What about like voter turnout here?” Trump said.

DOGE tasked with ‘saving money’

His remarks come days after Elon Musk-led DOGE’s (Department of Government Efficiency) announced that USAID would not send money to India aimed at boosting voter turnout.

DOGE on February 16 listed items on which the “US taxpayer dollars were going to be spent” and the list included “USD 21M for voter turnout in India.” The department announced that all of the items have been cancelled.

The list also included $29 million to “strengthening political landscape in Bangladesh”, $20 million for “fiscal federalism” and $19 million for “biodiversity conversation” in Nepal as well as $47 million for “improving learning outcomes in Asia”.

The DOGE has been put in charge of overseeing workforce reduction across the government, and as part of that, Musk announced that he would shut down USAID, which is responsible for humanitarian efforts around the globe.

According to USAID officials on February 7, all USAID humanitarian work worldwide had been stopped, reported ABC News.

The agency’s website was shut down before Musk’s announcement. Later, a Trump-nominated judge announced a temporary restraining order that prevents the president and DOGE from placing 2,200 employees on administrative leave.