On Friday, nearly all staff members of the U.S. Institute of Peace in the United States were terminated, marking a significant escalation in the efforts of the Trump administration and Elon Musk’s DOGE team to dismantle the government-funded independent nonprofit, according to current and former employees and termination notices acquired by The New York Times.
The late-night dismissal of dozens from the organization inflicted severe damage as Trump officials aimed to exert control over the nonprofit and deconstruct it. Earlier this month, the administration and Mr. Musk’s team confronted the institute’s building in a dramatic incident, supported by private security and local law enforcement.
The White House did not respond to inquiries about the administration’s intentions regarding the complete dissolution of the institute, which was established by Congress 41 years ago to promote diplomatic resolutions to global conflicts. However, a spokeswoman implied that President Trump did not see value in the institute’s activities.
“President Trump concluded the era of endless wars and achieved peace during his first term, and he is fulfilling his mandate to eliminate unnecessary spending and save taxpayer money,” said spokeswoman Anna Kelly in a Saturday statement. “Taxpayers do not wish to allocate $50 million annually to a publicly funded ‘research institute’ that has not succeeded in delivering peace.”
Most of the staff located in the U.S. received an email late at night sent to their personal accounts from an acting head of human resources notifying them that their employment was terminated as of Friday. The Times obtained the emails, which requested that employees sign a separation agreement imposing restrictions on seeking legal action regarding their dismissals.
The Trump administration initially targeted the institute through a February executive order that mandated a reduction of the institute’s operations and staffing to the “minimum presence and function required by law.”
