Ever scrolled through X or Truth Social and felt like you just walked into the middle of a high-stakes thriller? That’s exactly what happened in early 2025 when a massive wave of posts claimed that the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) was basically a secret piggy bank for Politico. The numbers being thrown around—specifically a staggering $8.2 million—made it sound like the government was outright buying the news.
People were livid. Critics suggested that did USAID pay Politico for favorable coverage, or worse, that it was a "payoff" to help destroy certain political movements. But when you actually peel back the layers of federal procurement records, the reality is a lot less like a spy novel and a lot more like a boring office supply run.
The Viral Spark: Where the 8 Million Figure Came From
It started with a screenshot. Kyle Becker, a former Fox News producer, posted an image from USASpending.gov showing that Politico LLC had received over $8 million from the federal government. Benny Johnson and even President Donald Trump quickly amplified the narrative. Trump actually called it "perhaps the biggest scandal in history," alleging that billions were being "stollen" and funneled to "fake news" as a reward for pro-Democrat stories.
The timing couldn't have been weirder. Just as these posts went viral, Politico staffers reported a delay in their direct deposits. Naturally, the internet connected the dots: Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) must have frozen the USAID funds, causing Politico's payroll to collapse.
It made for a perfect story. Only, most of it was built on a fundamental misunderstanding of how the government buys things.
Breaking Down the Math: Subscriptions vs. Subsidies
So, did USAID pay Politico $8 million? Strictly speaking, no.
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When you look at the actual data on USASpending.gov, that $8.2 million figure represents the entire federal government's spending with Politico LLC over a specific period—not just USAID. We're talking about the Department of Health and Human Services, the Department of Energy, and the Department of the Interior. Each of those agencies spent over $1 million.
USAID’s actual contribution? It was roughly $44,000 over two years.
- September 2023: $20,000 for a subscription to E&E News (an energy and environment trade publication owned by Politico).
- September 2024: $24,000 for another subscription from the Center for Climate Positive Development.
That is a far cry from "billions" or even "millions" in direct funding. These weren't grants. They weren't "handouts." They were standard business-to-government (B2G) transactions for Politico Pro and E&E News.
Why Does the Government Pay for News Anyway?
You might wonder why a government agency needs to spend $24,000 on a subscription when they could just read the news for free. Here's the kicker: Politico Pro isn't the stuff you read on the homepage.
It’s a high-end intelligence platform. It provides real-time tracking of every tiny amendment in a bill, deep-dive data on regulatory changes, and specialized analysis that most people would find incredibly dry. For a staffer at the Department of Energy, having a tool that alerts them the second a specific climate regulation changes is just... part of the job. It’s like a law firm paying for Westlaw or a trader paying for a Bloomberg Terminal.
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Honestly, it's pretty common. The government also pays for subscriptions to The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and even The Epoch Times.
The DOGE Factor
Karoline Leavitt, the White House Press Secretary, confirmed that the administration—spurred by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy—planned to axe these subscriptions. They viewed them as an unnecessary "subsidy" of the media. Whether you think that's a smart way to save taxpayer money or a "know-nothing" approach that leaves federal workers in the dark depends entirely on your political lens.
Addressing the "Payroll Crisis"
What about those Politico employees not getting paid? Politico management insists it was a technical glitch between their bank and their payroll provider. They eventually cleared the payments within 24 hours.
While the optics were terrible—happening the exact same week the DOGE rumors took off—there is no evidence that a $44,000 USAID subscription (which had already been paid months prior) being "canceled" would cause a $200 million company to miss payroll for its entire staff. The math just doesn't work. Politico’s revenue is massive, and government contracts make up a tiny, tiny fraction of their bottom line.
What Most People Get Wrong About Media Funding
The biggest misconception here is the difference between a contract and a grant.
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- A Grant: The government gives you money to do a specific thing (like research a cure for a disease) with no direct benefit back to the government.
- A Contract: The government buys a product or service.
Politico’s relationship with the feds is strictly contractual. They sell a product; the government buys it. If the government stops buying it, Politico loses a client, but it doesn't mean the government was "funding" their journalism any more than they "fund" Microsoft when they buy Windows licenses for office computers.
Interestingly, records show that Republican-led committees and even individual GOP reps like Lauren Boebert have also paid for Politico subscriptions. It turns out that regardless of whether you like the outlet's editorial stance, the data they provide is useful to people on both sides of the aisle.
Key Takeaways and Next Steps
The storm over whether did USAID pay Politico serves as a masterclass in how data can be stripped of context to create a narrative. While the $8.2 million figure is "real" in the sense that it appears on a government website, its portrayal as a clandestine payoff is factually incorrect.
If you want to verify these things yourself, here is how you can stay ahead of the curve:
- Use USASpending.gov directly: Don't rely on screenshots. Search for "Politico LLC" and look at the "Awarding Agency" column to see which departments are actually spending the money.
- Check the "Transaction Description": Usually, it will say something like "Publications and Reference Material" or "NR-IOA-55-NEW CONTRACT E&E SUBSCRIPTION." This tells you exactly what was purchased.
- Distinguish between Editorial and Pro: Remember that the reporters writing the "free" stories you read are often in a completely different division than the analysts producing the "Pro" data the government buys.
Moving forward, expect to see more of these "line-by-line" audits from the Department of Government Efficiency. The best way to navigate the noise is to look past the viral headlines and check the procurement categories for yourself.