The US federal government is facing significant upheaval as the Trump administration initiates widespread dismissals across various departments, including the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). This move comes amid heightened international tensions following a US-Russia meeting in Riyadh, which coincides with escalating conflict in Ukraine. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy has postponed his visit to Saudi Arabia in response, emphasizing his nation's exclusion from discussions that could impact its future.
The Office of Personnel Management reports approximately 200,000 probationary employees within the federal government. The Trump administration plans to terminate hundreds of senior DHS employees this week, and at least 7,500 IRS employees have already been identified for dismissal. This sweeping action also impacts the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), where engineers and technicians face job cuts, though air traffic controllers remain unaffected. A union spokesperson confirmed that no probationary technicians were included in these cuts, citing about 133 job losses so far.
“People are scared and not speaking up to voice dissent or disagreement,” said an employee at the 18,000-person agency who spoke on condition of anonymity.
The White House has yet to disclose specific numbers regarding these mass layoffs. Meanwhile, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) faces reductions involving Laboratory Leadership Service fellows, who play a crucial role in training public health laboratory staff and supporting outbreak responses. These cuts occur as workers across various agencies review Elon Musk's Neuralink and monitor the H5N1 bird flu outbreak.
“If you’re not testing, you don’t know what disease is there,” remarked a LLS fellow who received a notice of termination.
Domestically, the Supreme Court's recent decision prohibiting race as a factor in college admissions has prompted new administrative memos justifying these actions. The Trump administration's memo states:
“Schools have been operating on the pretext that… educational institutions may neither separate or segregate students based on race, nor distribute benefits or burdens based on race.”
Craig Trainor, acting assistant secretary for civil rights, emphasized this stance:
“Selecting students for ‘diversity’ or similar euphemisms is not selecting them based on race. No longer. Students should be assessed according to merit, accomplishment and character.”
Meanwhile, Representative Claudia Tenney from New York's Finger Lakes region has proposed legislation to combine Flag Day with a new observance of Trump's birthday, underscoring his influence:
“His impact on the nation is undeniable.”
Internationally, the US-Russia meeting in Riyadh occurred just hours after Russia launched a drone attack on Ukraine. Ukrainian President Zelenskyy's decision to postpone his Saudi visit aims to avoid legitimizing discussions that exclude Ukraine's input.
“We want no one to decide anything behind our backs… No decision can be made without Ukraine on how to end the war in Ukraine,” Zelenskyy asserted.
Mykhailo Podolyak, an adviser to Zelenskyy’s office, criticized the meeting's implications:
“Encouragement rather than coercion, a voluntary and bizarre renunciation of strength in favour of disheartening and unmotivated appeasement of the aggressor.”
The abrupt resignation of a longtime federal prosecutor in Washington DC on Monday adds another layer of uncertainty to the current administrative chaos.
“You don’t realize how real this is until you can’t reason with people,” commented Elon Musk, reflecting on the broader implications of these developments.