DOGE cuts spur more Republican pushback
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Elon Musk, his son, and Donald Trump in the Oval Office on Feb. 11. Photo: Andrew Harnik/Getty Images
As the Trump administration plows ahead with its bid to radically reshape the federal government, increasing numbers of Republicans are pushing back on the offensive's wide scope and impacts on federal workers.
Why it matters: The Elon Musk-led Department of Governmental Efficiency's crusade against the federal bureaucracy has sparked a flurry of legal challenges as it purports to cut costs and end waste in the federal government.
State of play: The growing pushback to DOGE comes as many Republican lawmakers are faced with the impacts the agency's cuts will have on their constituents and states.
- Some GOP lawmakers have even been forced to contend with anti-DOGE protests and town halls in their districts.
The big picture: Rep. Rich McCormick (R-Ga.), who faced a testy audience at a town hall last week, told NBC News he planned to use a meeting with President Trump Tuesday to "bend" the president's ear on the DOGE cuts.
- "The question is, do we give people time to adjust to their lives? And I think that's my biggest concern, is that we're being compassionate," McCormick said.
- Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) took to X Sunday to question the callousness with which federal workers had been treated after a federal agency threatened to fire workers who didn't respond to an email asking what they accomplished last week.
- "Our public workforce deserves to be treated with dignity and respect for the unheralded jobs they perform. The absurd weekend email to justify their existence wasn't it," Murkowski wrote.
Zoom in: Sen. John Curtis (R-Utah) urged Musk during an appearance on CBS News' "Face the Nation" Sunday to "put a dose of compassion" in the process.
- "These are real people. These are real lives. These are mortgages ... It's a false narrative to say we have to cut and you have to be cruel to do it as well," Curtis said.
Context: They join a growing chorus of moderate Republicans who have spoken up against DOGE's process.
- Sen. Susan Collins (R-Maine) told Axios last week the administration is moving "too fast" and should take "a more surgical approach."
- Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) took to X last week to criticize the mass firing of new FBI agents, noting that "Louisiana specifically benefits from newly hired FBI agents."
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