White House uses $15M in USAID funds to pay for Vought security detail

Reuters reported on February 13, 2026 that the White House Office of Management and Budget, led by Director Russell Vought, allocated $15 million from USAID operating funds to cover Vought's personal security detail through year-end. Internal documents showed OMB had signed an agreement with USAID in September 2025 to pay $1.6 million for Vought's protection, then added $13.5 million for the remainder of 2026. Vought had been a primary architect of USAID's dismantlement, eliminating the agency's independent leadership structure.