- After the Trump administration cut USAID funding, Politico received backlash from conservative voices on social media accusing the political media company of its ties to the now-dead government organization. In truth, though, Politico claims to earn more than $16 million from government agencies—for its premium subscriptions and other offerings from the publisher. The Trump administration claims it will cut the government’s subsidized subscriptions to the outlet.
The Trump administration announced its plans to dismantle the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Monday, after the head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), Elon Musk, said over the weekend the organization was “criminal” and it was “time for it to die.”
DOGE claims it can eliminate $2 trillion in government spending, and beheading USAID is one of the first steps.
As USAID funding was cut off Monday, speculation began to rise around news outlet Politico about its financial ties to the federal government after the company missed payroll on Tuesday.
Ultimately, it was due to a technical issue, according to an internal email, but MAGA influencers took to social media criticizing the media brand and its funding. Citing USAspending.gov, users found the government had spent a total of $8.1 million at the news organization.
“Now we learn Politico — a ‘news company’ — which spent the last 10 years trying to destroy the MAGA Movement was being massively funded by USAID,” right-wing podcaster and internet personality Benny Johnson said in an X post, “Trump & Elon deleted their funding. Now Politico will go out of business.”
Additionally, conservative voice Dana Loesch demanded protests outside Politico offices on X.
President Trump weighed in on the allegations on Truth Social saying, “LOOKS LIKE BILLIONS OF DOLLARS HAVE BEEN STOLLEN [sic] AT USAID, AND OTHER AGENCIES, MUCH OF IT GOING TO THE FAKE NEWS MEDIA AS A “PAYOFF” FOR CREATING GOOD STORIES ABOUT THE DEMOCRATS,”
Although Politico received funding from USAID, it was minimal. That same website, referenced by right-wing accounts, showed Politico only received $44,000 from USAID from the 2023 and 2024 fiscal years.
“POLITICO has never been a beneficiary of government programs or subsidies — not one cent, ever, in 18 years,” Politico’s leaders wrote in a memo reported by CNN.
The majority of Politico's federal revenue came from government employees purchasing Politico subscriptions on the U.S. dime.
A senior executive at Politico said the federal government spends more than $16 million on their subscriptions. The payments are for Politico Pro and other offerings from the Axel-Springer-owned publisher. He noted some subscriptions and licensing deals can reach the five-figure mark.
Isaac Saul, founder of the independent Tangle newsletter, said it’s common for federal employees to purchase these types of subscriptions. Along with Politico, other news organizations host insider content behind an expensive paywall. He calls the rumors “DOGE nonsense.”
“Politico has a super expensive pro subscription with very valuable info that loads of US agencies want and pay for,” Saul posted on X.
According to a statement released by the news outlet addressing the controversy, it said “POLITICO Pro is about transparency and accountability: Shining a light on the work of the agencies, regulators, and policymakers throughout our vast federal government.”
Additionally, the statement said most Politico Pro subscribers work in the private sector. “They come from across the ideological spectrum and subscribe for one reason: value.”
According to the General Services Administration, the government spends capital on subscriptions and advertising in media outlets. Government agency heads have the ability to determine which outlets their agency will choose to invest in.
38 House Republicans spent over $300,000 and Republican-led committees wrote off half a million in revenue on Politico subscriptions from January to September in 2024, the Washington Post reported.
Additionally, the House Committee on Agriculture spent $84,000, the House Committee on Energy spent $58,000, and the Office of the Speaker of the House totaled over $9,000 in Politico subscriptions, according to government records.
In an X thread from Kyle Becker speculating that the Associated Press follows the same pattern of Politico, Musk said, “This is obviously a huge waste of taxpayer money!”
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt detailed the next steps the Trump administration will take to address these claims, and that she was “made aware that USAID has funded media outlets like Politico. I can confirm that more than $8 million that has gone to subsidizing subscriptions will no longer be happening.”
This isn’t the first time Trump has called for those under the government umbrella to end their news subscriptions. While unclear if it was ever enforced, in 2019, Trump advocated for federal agencies to unsubscribe from The Washington Post and TheNew York Times.
