As Elon Musk moves to shut down the U.S. Agency for International Development, an independent federal agency responsible for providing foreign assistance, right-wing conspiracy theorists are pushing for Musk to axe another humanitarian-centric organization: the Red Cross.
USAID has been in turmoil since the Trump administration instituted a sweeping freeze on foreign assistance and put dozens of officials accused of "circumvent[ing] the President’s Executive Orders" via waiver proposals on paid leave.
On Monday, the agency faced further issues, with a notice instructing employees to stay home as its headquarters had been closed. More than 600 employees reported being locked out of the agency’s computer systems overnight.
Monday's unanticipated office closure came days after two top security chiefs at USAID were placed on leave for refusing to turn over classified material to Musk's Department of Government Efficiency inspection team due to DOGE's lack of appropriate security clearances.
"USAID is a criminal organization. Time for it to die," Musk wrote on Sunday in response to the news that his agency was blocked from accessing the classified material.
Musk's moves against USAID, which he says President Donald Trump supports, have drawn extensive backlash, with critics arguing that as an agency codified into law by Congress, only Congress—not a presidential executive order or a unilateral action—can shut down the agency.
"These actions by Trump/Musk show America as a nation trampling the rule of law," concluded Sen. Andy Kim (D-N.J.).
But fans of Musk's drastic cuts are applauding his anti-USAID push—and some are calling for him to take aim at another aid-focused organization.
"@Elonmusk - What about the 'RedCross' You game for that?" challenged one person on X. "Have not heard anything on their PiggyBank from USAID."
"Do Red Cross next!" another user begged Musk.
The reasons for wanting Musk to gut the Red Cross—an independent nonprofit that does not receive regular federal funding—varied.
One person pointed to a report the Red Cross released that criticized the treatment of newly freed Palestinian prisoners, asking Musk and DOGE, "ARE we providing funding to Red Cross?"
"Defund the red cross international," another person advocated.
That post came in reference to a widely circulated image of a map from a pamphlet provided to migrants heading to the U.S. that contains information such as where to obtain food and water along the way.
"This document, like the humanitarian action of the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, does not seek to encourage or discourage migration, but rather to contribute to mitigating the vulnerability factors of this population along the migratory route," the Red Cross said in the past.
But the map is now being used to support social media's conspiratorial stances on the Red Cross.
"Red Cross helps in the trafficking of children," one person claimed in response to the map image. "Red Cross steals blood donated to them to make money. Red Cross is NOT who you think THEY are."
"The US Govt has been abetting SLAVERY in America as have the charities they funded like: The Red Cross, Catholic Charities, Lutheran religious etc," another person said in a post tagging Musk. "Cartels make many ILLEGALS into SLAVES as indentured servants & sex slaves including Children."
While Musk has not indicated any DOGE-related moves aimed at the Red Cross—though again, it does not receive regular federal funding—he appears open to the conspiracies around it.
"I was told that not only is the Red Cross facilitating illegal immigration, they are being paid to do so by the Federal government, specifically the Dept of Homeland Security out of the FEMA budget!" Musk wrote on X in January. "What the heck is going on!?"
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