Republicans' "not-in-my-backyard" strategy on DOGE cuts
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Illustration: Sarah Grillo/Axios
As Elon Musk's slash-and-burn budget cuts hit Republican and Democratic areas alike, some GOP lawmakers are privately back-channeling with the Trump administration to try to shield their constituents from the fallout.
Why it matters: Republicans have largely cheered on DOGE in public — but behind the scenes, many of President Trump's allies fear potential political backlash to the cuts, and are scrambling to limit the damage.
- Of the 60 congressional districts with the most federal workers, a slight majority are represented by Republicans, Axios previously reported.
What we're hearing: Several House Republicans told Axios they have succeeded in — or at least contributed to — getting DOGE to reverse certain cuts through private back-channeling.
- Rep. Cliff Bentz (R-Ore.) said he raised concerns about job cuts at the Bonneville Power Administration: "Whether it was my remarks back to DOGE or somebody else's, it got fixed. They ... hired back 30 people."
- Said Rep. Zach Nunn (R-Iowa): "When we have heard from constituents who have been directly impacted by this in a way that harmed them, I have reached out directly to the agencies and teams."
- Nunn cited Agriculture Department cuts that "could ... have impacted farmers" in his district, telling Axios he "talked to the administration on it, they recognized it, they heard it, and we got those positions reinstated."
State of play: Musk's DOGE has implemented abrupt, sweeping changes across the federal government through mass workforce purges and the dismantling of entire programs and agencies.
- The moves have drawn significant legal pushback, but Musk wants DOGE to continue to grow, saying Monday on Fox Business' "Kudlow" show that he aims to roughly double DOGE's size.
- GOP lawmakers also have faced backlash at town halls in their districts over the DOGE cuts, prompting House Republicans' campaign chief to encourage a shift from in-person to virtual town halls.
Zoom out: Other Republicans have gone public with their concerns. Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.) said in a local media interview that Tinker Air Force Base in his state "cannot operate if we lose 600 civilian employees there."
- He also decried cuts to another Oklahoma military installation, McAlester Ammunition Plant: "We will not be able to keep aircraft in the air long-term for the Air Force. That is really important for us to be able to have."
- Rep. Tom Cole (R-Okla.) this week praised DOGE for reversing cuts to his district: "After working closely with DOGE and the administration, I am thrilled to announce that common sense has prevailed."
The other side: Democratic lawmakers — many of whom have been vehemently opposed to the DOGE cuts — complain that they lack the same pipeline to voice their concerns that their Republican counterparts enjoy.
- Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) told Axios: "I have not heard of any Democrats getting that kind of treatment. I think Tom Cole, obviously, has better connections with the oligarchs than we do."
- "I'm trying to help people, but so far I've not come with any back channel to Donald Trump," said Rep. Don Beyer (D-Va.), whose district in the D.C. suburbs has one of the largest concentrations of federal workers.
The bottom line: "That is no way to run a government," Huffman said. "That is, sort of, the ultimate partisan crony capitalism ... but apparently that's what we've come to these days."
Go deeper: Musk plans to double DOGE staff amid federal government cuts
