Management
For DOGE, it was all in the name
COMMENTARY | Elon Musk made a mockery of government reform.
Management
How William Howard Taft’s approach to government efficiency differed from Elon Musk’s slash-and-burn tactics
President Taft worked with Congress to launch his effort to streamline government, while Trump has taken a different route.
Management
GSA preps for layoffs at TTS
The coming reductions in force are the latest in a series of workforce cuts within the Technology Transformation Services.
Updated
Transition
Project 2025 wanted to hobble the federal workforce. DOGE has hastily done that, and more
The controversial policy blueprint sought to cut back on civil servants’ powers, but the Trump administration’s turbulent method of execution wasn’t part of the plan.
Management
Trump administration moves to shutter mine safety offices in coal country
Miners and their advocates worry that DOGE's cuts to the Mine Safety and Health Administration will put them at risk.
Workforce
GSA reopens its Deferred Resignation Program and finalizes location consolidation
The agency made more important moves Friday.
Defense
Hegseth gives Defense leaders less than two weeks to lay out staffing cuts, changes
A Friday memo opens a new phase in the Defense secretary’s hurried effort to shrink the department's workforce.
Management
DOGE's attempt to be a force for genuine reform will depend on its decision-making
COMMENTARY | The Elon Musk-backed efficiency initiative should rely on sound decision-making as well as selecting sustainable preferences, argue two scholars.
News
Shutdown averted: Enough Senate Democrats vote with the GOP to pass a government funding bill
Democrats were split on the vote, with some wanting to use it as leverage to fight Department of Government Efficiency cuts.
News
To avert a government shutdown, Senate Democratic leader says he’ll vote with the GOP
A shutdown would begin after Friday without congressional action.
Management
The VA is not waste, it’s a lifeline
COMMENTARY | “There’s a way to improve VA without hasty and indiscriminate cuts that will set us back and hinder our ability to provide compassionate care,” argues one VA staffer and former combat medic.
News
Government shutdown prospects increase after Schumer says Democrats won’t vote for GOP funding bill
Democrats have argued that the shutdown fight is an opportunity to push back on Elon Musk-backed agency spending and staff cuts.
News
House passes GOP funding bill to avoid government shutdown
The measure now heads to the Senate where it’s uncertain if Democrats will provide the votes needed to avoid a lapse in government funding.
Workforce
MSPB orders temporary reinstatement of nearly 6,000 probationary workers at USDA
These Agriculture Department employees must be allowed back to their jobs for 45 days, as the Office of Special Counsel continues to investigate the Trump administration’s purge of recently hired, promoted or transferred federal employees.
Transition
Supreme Court rejects Trump’s bid to freeze USAID payments
In a 5-4 ruling, the justices require the administration to honor existing aid and contracts obligations while the legal battle continues.
Defense
At least one Pentagon agency has begun firing probationary workers
The Defense Logistics Agency has begun dismissing its share of the Defense Department’s 5,400 targeted employees.
Transition
‘Reclaim power from unaccountable bureaucracy’: Trump touts early actions against federal workforce in address to Congress
The president praised Elon Musk’s cost-cutting initiatives during his speech to Congress, the first of his second term.
Oversight
Judge blocks Trump administration from firing Democratic member of Merit Systems Protection Board
The ruling follows a weekend decision to stop the removal of Special Counsel Hampton Dellinger, who has pushed back on the firings of probationary employees.
Workforce
OPM retroactively edits probationary firing guidance to note it did not order probationary firings
Trump administration tweaks its guidance after a judge called OPM's role unlawful.
Updated
Workforce