Reporters, workers and now judges across the country are disputing the cost-cutting claims of Elon Musk’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency, which has targeted federal employees across multiple sectors with firings, forced resignations and threatened layoffs. One of the millions of Americans being impacted by DOGE’s draconian measures is Latisha, an employee at the Department of Veterans Affairs who spoke with Democracy Now! in a personal capacity and not on behalf of her employer. She says that Musk’s recent demand ordering federal employees to email a summary of their work from the past week was “insulting” and “disrespectful,” and that “his real goal is to gut public services in the federal workforce and pave the way for privatization of public services, goods and programs that we all need and love.” She outlines how Black Americans and veterans, who are disproportionately represented among the ranks of federal workers, are being particularly affected by these cuts. We also speak to ProPublica editor-in-chief Stephen Engelberg about his recent reporting on a “clearly wrong, clearly disproved” statistic being cited by the Trump administration about the number of federal employees who are working remotely. The statistic is being used to justify the “king-like powers” claimed by Trump and the nepotistic hires at DOGE, says Engelberg.

This content originally appeared on Democracy Now! and was authored by Democracy Now!.

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