USADF head files lawsuit after standoff with DOGE employees – Washington Examiner
The president of the U.S.African Progress Foundation (USADF),Ward Brehm,has filed a lawsuit against the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) following a dispute regarding the agency’s operations and leadership. Brehm seeks a court order to prevent DOGE employees from accessing USADF’s building and removing him from his position. The lawsuit argues that the proposed removal is unlawful, as only the USADF Board, which DOGE members are not part of, has the authority to terminate Brehm. The situation escalated when DOGE staff attempted to enter the agency’s offices, leading to allegations that thay were unauthorized. the USADF contends that DOGE’s actions violate both the appointments clause and the African Development Foundation Act. Brehm asserts that the agency plays a critical role in enhancing economic stability in Africa and that the Trump management’s efforts may jeopardize its mission.
US African Development Foundation head files lawsuit after standoff with DOGE employees
The leader of the U.S. African Development Foundation is suing the Department of Government Efficiency over its attempted control of the agency.
The USADF is a government agency aimed at investing “directly in African grassroots enterprises and social entrepreneurs.”
Ward Brehm, president of the agency, asked a court on Thursday for a preliminary and permanent injunction to prevent DOGE workers from accessing the agency’s building and removing him as head. Democracy Forward, a liberal-leaning group, filed the lawsuit on Brehm’s behalf.
The lawsuit says the termination of Brehm would be “unlawful” and DOGE would not have the authority to do so. Staffers from DOGE and Peter Marocco, the acting head of the United States Agency for International Development, tried unsuccessfully to enter the building on Wednesday. They gained access on Thursday.
“The threatened termination of Brehm from his position as President of USADF, whether by Marocco, President Trump, Director Gao, or any of the remaining Defendants, is unlawful. None of the Defendants is lawfully a member of the Board of USADF, and only the Board has the authority to remove Brehm from his position,” the plaintiffs said in the lawsuit.
It is believed that the Trump administration will attempt to dismantle USADF much like they stripped down USAID as a part of DOGE’s vast cost-cutting efforts. Trump signed an executive order on Feb. 19 that suggested the agency should strip “non-statutory components and functions.” The agency said that they did not believe Marocco or DOGE were authorized to represent it.
“The United States African Development Foundation (USADF) offices were entered today by Mr. Peter Marocco and others who we do not believe are authorized to represent the agency. USADF is fully complying with its statutory obligations,” USADF told the Hill.
“We will follow the law with the expectation that our staff will be treated with dignity and respect,” the agency added.
The USADF argued DOGE is violating the appointments clause and the African Development Foundation Act.
“Without this Court’s immediate intervention, Defendants will continue their tactics and strongarm their way into USADF, no matter that USADF has a legally constituted Board and President. And within days, the damage that they do will be irreparable,” the plaintiffs said in the lawsuit.
TRACKING WHAT DOGE IS DOING ACROSS THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT
Brehm believes the agency has real value, noting that their work “boosts economic stability in fragile regions.”
“Not only have we improved the lives of millions of people in Africa, we’ve contributed to a safer and more secure world,” he added.
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