A political memoir will reignited debate over U.S. foreign aid policy and the fate of one of the nation’s largest humanitarian agencies. Summit Books announced it will publish Into the Wood Chipper: A Whistleblower’s Account of How the Trump Administration Shredded USAID by Nicholas Enrich on April 14.
The book offers a firsthand account of the turmoil inside the United States Agency for International Development during the early months of President Donald Trump’s second administration. Enrich, a longtime civil servant who rose to become the agency’s acting assistant administrator for global health, describes how the organization he spent years working to strengthen began unraveling in a matter of months.
According to the publisher, the book chronicles Enrich’s experience as USAID became an early focus of sweeping government restructuring tied to a newly created Department of Government Efficiency, associated with billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk. The changes, Enrich writes, disrupted global health initiatives and foreign aid programs that had been central to the agency’s mission.
Enrich alleges that internal decisions and policy shifts prevented USAID from carrying out lifesaving programs around the world. Witnessing the rapid dismantling of projects and operations, he ultimately chose to release whistleblower memos describing what he believed were illegal and destructive actions within the administration.
Those documents quickly circulated online and drew widespread attention. In the days following their release, hundreds of aid programs that had been canceled were reportedly restored. The memos were also cited in a U.S. Supreme Court case examining the legality of the agency’s dismantling, highlighting the broader political and legal implications of the controversy.
Enrich’s decision to go public came at a personal cost. On March 2, 2025, he was placed on administrative leave after releasing the documents. Still, his actions made him one of the first government officials to publicly challenge the changes affecting USAID.
The book includes a foreword by surgeon and public health leader Atul Gawande and has already drawn attention from prominent figures in global policy circles. In an endorsement, former USAID administrator Samantha Power described the work as a “gripping page-turner that doubles as both a warning and an inspiration.”
Power said the book provides a rare behind-the-scenes look at how an agency responsible for global humanitarian programs came under siege, while also highlighting the public servants who attempted to protect its mission.
Beyond the policy debate, Enrich’s account promises to reveal the human consequences of decisions made at the highest levels of government. Through detailed recollections and internal conversations, he describes the uncertainty among staff members as programs were halted and lifesaving assistance stalled.
Summit Books says the narrative will offer both a personal memoir and a historical record of one of the most controversial episodes in modern U.S. foreign aid policy.