21 employees quit Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency on Tuesday, citing a refusal to participate in what they called the dismantling of “critical public services” and raising alarms about political ideologues lacking necessary expertise.
“We swore to serve the American people and uphold our oath to the Constitution across presidential administrations,” the staffers wrote in a joint resignation letter obtained by the Associated Press. “However, it has become clear that we can no longer honor those commitments.”
The group of engineers, data scientists, designers, and product managers had been working for what was previously known as the United States Digital Service, an office created during the Obama administration after healthcare.gov’s troubled launch.
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Their resignation letter claimed that individuals wearing White House visitor passes had interrogated employees about political loyalty and work experience, while also gathering information about other federal workers.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt dismissed the resignations in a statement, saying: “Anyone who thinks protests, lawsuits, and lawfare will deter President Trump must have been sleeping under a rock for the past several years.”
Musk rejected the employees’ concerns on X, calling it — surprise — “fake news.”
“These were Dem political holdovers who refused to return to the office,” he claimed. “They would have been fired had they not resigned.”
Read: Musk’s Federal Worker Ultimatum Backfires as Agencies Assert Authority
Tensions surrounding DOGE have intensified amid growing public concern about Musk’s influence and methods. A recent Washington Post-Ipsos poll found just 34% of Americans approve of Musk’s government role, with 63% expressing worry about his team accessing sensitive federal databases.
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