'Middle finger to our heroes': Senators call out Trump for downsizing 'on the backs of veterans'

Project 2025, the Heritage Foundation's 922-page blueprint for a second Trump Administration, called for a dramatic restructuring of the United States' federal government. Donald Trump, during his 2024 campaign, distanced himself from Project 2025 — as he knew it was controversial. But after President Trump returned to the White House on January 20, 2025, his administration and the Elon Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) launched an aggressive government downsizing campaign.

The Trump Administration and DOGE are targeting a wide range of federal agencies for mass layoffs, which, according to the Washington Post, could put as many as 200,000 people out of work. Moreover, far-right Christian nationalist Russell Vought — a key architect of Project 2025 — is now director of the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB).

The U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) is among the many federal agencies the Trump Administration and DOGE are targeting for layoffs. In a Stars and Stripes article published on February 19, reporter Linda F. Hersey takes a look at Democratic U.S. senators who are calling out downsizing at the VA and other agencies.

READ MORE: Mike Johnson's big budget bill likely dead on arrival as 'key holdouts' threaten to sink it

According to Hersey, more than 1000 VA employees have been laid off in recent weeks.

"The mass firings were part of a larger federal workforce reduction announced by President Donald Trump's administration to downsize the government," Hersey explains. "But the layoffs are impacting many veterans, who represent approximately one-third of all federal workers, according to figures from the Office of Personnel Management."

Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Connecticut), a member of the Senate Veterans' Affairs Committee, is calling out the Trump Administration for "attempting to balance the budget on the backs of veterans." And at a February 19 press conference, Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Illinois), herself a veteran, told reporters, "Let's call this what it is: It is a middle finger to our heroes and their lives of service."

Chelsea Milburn, a veteran who was laid off from the U.S. Department of Education, told the Stars and Stripes, "As someone who has served in the military for 11 years — and having sacrificed a lot with my family — I missed a lot. Having this job ripped out from me and my family is unacceptable."

READ MORE: GOP lawmaker sounds the alarm on coming ‘clash’ between Republicans and Trump

Read the Stars and Stripes' full article at this link.