Brian Slodysko and Byron Tau report for AP that more than 20 civil service employees resigned Tuesday from billionaire Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)—a government-slashing initiative under President Donald Trump—stating they refused to use their expertise to "dismantle critical public services."
“We swore to serve the American people and uphold our oath to the Constitution across presidential administrations,” the 21 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 resignations of engineers, data scientists, and product managers pose a setback for Trump and Musk’s effort to overhaul federal agencies, which has already sparked legal challenges and widespread unease among government employees.
The resigning staffers, who previously worked at Google and Amazon, were part of what was once known as the U.S. Digital Service (USDS), an office created under President Barack Obama to modernize Social Security, veterans’ benefits, tax filing, and healthcare.
However, after Trump’s inauguration, they were called into a series of secretive interviews, where unidentified individuals wearing White House visitor badges grilled them about their qualifications and political views. Many of the interrogators appeared to be Musk loyalists with limited technical experience, according to the resignation letter.
“Several of these interviewers refused to identify themselves, asked questions about political loyalty, attempted to pit colleagues against each other, and demonstrated limited technical ability,” the staffers wrote.
Earlier this month, about 40 staffers were laid off, significantly weakening the government’s ability to administer and safeguard federal digital systems. The latest resignations leave only 65 employees remaining, with a third of them quitting Tuesday.
“We will not use our skills as technologists to compromise core government systems, jeopardize Americans’ sensitive data, or dismantle critical public services,” the departing employees wrote. “We will not lend our expertise to carry out or legitimize DOGE’s actions.”
In a statement, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt dismissed concerns over the mass resignation.
“Anyone who thinks protests, lawsuits, and lawfare will deter President Trump must have been sleeping under a rock for the past several years,” Leavitt said. “President Trump will not be deterred from delivering on the promises he made to make our federal government more efficient and more accountable to the hardworking American taxpayers.”
Despite White House assurances, former USDS staffers warn that the exodus has left critical government systems vulnerable.
"These highly skilled civil servants were working to modernize Social Security, veterans’ services, tax filing, health care, disaster relief, student aid, and other critical services," the resignation letter states. "Their removal endangers millions of Americans who rely on these services every day. The sudden loss of their technology expertise makes critical systems and Americans’ data less safe."
DOGE was initially presented as a non-governmental advisory panel, but after Trump’s election, Musk suggested it had greater ambitions. Following Trump’s victory, he posted on X (formerly Twitter):
"Threat to democracy? Nope, threat to BUREAUCRACY!!!"
Musk has since embraced the role of a government disruptor, even raising a Chinese-made chainsaw—a gift from Argentine President Javier Milei—at the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) last week.
"This is the chainsaw for bureaucracy!" Musk bellowed from the stage.
While Musk has attempted to retain core technical talent, recent layoffs at DOGE have focused on designers, product managers, and administrative staff. However, one of the few fired engineers—Jonathan Kamens—believes his dismissal was politically motivated.
Kamens, who publicly endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris on his blog and criticized Musk in workplace chats, told AP:
"I believe that Elon Musk is up to no good. And I believe that any data that he gains access to is going to be used for purposes that are inappropriate and harmful to Americans."
While Musk and his allies advocate for rapid government downsizing, former federal officials warn that reckless disruption could destabilize essential services.
"'Move fast and break things' may be acceptable to someone who owns a business and owns the risk. And if things don’t go well, the damage is compartmentalized. But when you break things in government, you’re breaking things that belong to people who didn’t sign up for that,” said Cordell Schachter, former Chief Information Officer at the U.S. Department of Transportation.
As Musk accelerates his slash-and-burn approach, critics argue that his ideological drive jeopardizes the very systems millions of Americans rely on—and that Tuesday’s resignations are just the beginning of a broader federal technology crisis.