Dozens of community members, retired federal workers and lawmakers gathered outside the Office of Personnel Management building on Tuesday afternoon, speaking out against the Department of Government Efficiency, a team formed by President Donald Trump’s administration tasked with slashing federal spending.
Members of the American Federation of Government Employees led the demonstration.
The hourlong protest was advertised as an event to “evict” DOGE from OPM. In a news release, AFGE, which represents over 800,000 federal employees, said its members are frustrated with DOGE using OPM “to give illegal directives to agencies, wreaking havoc on federal employees and the services they provide.”
Since Trump took office in January, billionaire Elon Musk and DOGE have operated out of OPM, and have used the agency to provide guidance to others about how to make changes to their workforces.
Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-M. D., told the crowd that the gathering was important to spread the word that “we will not stand for Elon Musk’s illegal operation.”
“People have mortgages, people have families, and it’s just a shame,” said Barbara Jackson, who worked for the government for over 49 years. “To see what’s happening now is just a shame. Never thought I’d see anything like it.”
Protesters held signs that said things such as “Stop the war on America’s workforce” or “Federal employees are taxpayers too.”
Ronnie Whiteside, a retired federal worker, said the rally was critical because “people don’t believe stuff stinks until they step in it. You have to get involved, otherwise people think it won’t affect them.”
However, Whiteside said, the changes to the federal workforce are likely to impact Social Security and hospitals.
“People don’t realize how much civil servants do for them, because they don’t see it, it’s sort of behind the scenes,” Whiteside said. “But now they will find out.”
The Trump administration tasked DOGE with making cuts at government agencies. Last week, the cuts reached the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and on Monday, Education Department employees faced a deadline to decide whether to accept a $25,000 buyout.
Reid Bauman, a former foreign service officer, said he attended Tuesday’s rally to protest the way cuts had been made “without any regard for the people.”
“It’s a disgrace to the country, and to have someone like Musk up at CPAC, the conservative convention, dancing around with a chain saw, saying in a gleeful tone how happy he is to feed USAID to the wood chipper, it’s a disgrace,” Bauman said. “We should all be ashamed as Americans.”
Daniel Beeton, meanwhile, said he has relatives who work for the government.
“I’m very concerned about the future of our government right now,” he said. “How well it’s going to continue to function with everything that DOGE is doing.”
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