Mathias Busekist
The Twitter owner has since hit back with a blunt five-word response.
Just three months into his role as head of the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), Elon Musk has ignited a firestorm of criticism over sweeping federal cuts that, according to philanthropist Bill Gates, are already having devastating consequences for the world’s poorest.
Appointed by President Donald Trump shortly after his second inauguration, Musk wasted no time executing what he called a mission to eliminate wasteful government spending. His aggressive campaign began with a mass layoff initiative that resulted in hundreds of federal workers losing their jobs — only for the administration to rehire 180 of them after logistical breakdowns hampered operations across key agencies.
Among the most controversial of Musk’s decisions has been the drastic downsizing of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), previously the world’s largest single donor of humanitarian aid. Before the cuts, USAID had approximately 10,000 employees and distributed over $40 billion in assistance in the 2023 fiscal year. Now, much of its funding has been slashed, and entire programs have been dismantled.
Musk has not shied away from defending his actions. In a February statement, he labeled USAID a “criminal organization,” declaring, “It became apparent that it’s not an apple with a worm in it. What we have is just a ball of worms. You’ve got to basically get rid of the whole thing.”
But billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates strongly disagrees — and has gone public with his condemnation. In an interview with the Financial Times, Gates accused Musk of “killing the world’s poorest children” by gutting essential humanitarian efforts. He detailed how aid shipments containing life-saving medicines and food are now sitting in warehouses, unused and expiring, due to DOGE’s funding freezes.
“This is not just about budgets,” Gates warned. “We’re talking about real lives — babies born with HIV, measles outbreaks, communities cut off from polio vaccines. The picture is not a pretty one.”
One of the most damning accusations revolves around a halted grant to a hospital in Gaza that was providing antiretroviral therapy to pregnant women living with HIV. According to Gates, the funding was pulled based on what he describes as a false claim that the hospital was involved in distributing condoms to Hamas.
“I’d love for [Musk] to go in and meet the children that have now been infected with HIV because he cut that money,” Gates said.
Musk, now facing mounting international scrutiny, responded bluntly on social media. On May 8, he posted to X (formerly Twitter), writing simply: “Gates is a huge liar,” in response to a CBS Morning clip of Gates reiterating his criticisms.