NanFeb 26, 2025
BrianKrebs

At least 21 employees of the U.S. Digital Service, which was renamed DOGE last month, resigned their positions yesterday in a letter to Trump's chief of staff.

"On Jan. 21st, we completed 15-minute interviews with individuals wearing White House visitor badges. 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. This process created significant security risks."

"We will not use our skills as technologists to compromise core government systems, jeopardize Americans' sensitive data, or dismantle critical public services. We will not lend our expertise to carry out or legitimize DOGE's actions."

https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/25544180/usds-resignation-letter.pdf

Feb 26, 2025 at 12:30pmWeb
Show threadGordFeb 26, 2025

@briankrebs "asked questions about political loyalty"

JFC...

Show threadBrokarFeb 26, 2025
@briankrebs Jesus! Imagine how bad it must have become that these people, dedicated to their jobs and public service, are willing to resign because of internal politics? These people have my highest respect.
Show threadWeltzeitgeistFeb 26, 2025
@briankrebs THIS people are heroes. Take notice and act like it.
Show threadChiaraFeb 26, 2025
@briankrebs Am I the only one who’s worried about legit gov employees resigning left and right? They might be doing the honorable thing, but they’re also making room for Trump loyalists to completely take over the gov. Maybe it’d be better if they stayed and fought.
Show threadBronMasonFeb 26, 2025

@chiaraaa

I think it has to be an individual decision. If you stay to fight you have to collaborate or be fired…

Unless like in the movies there’s a way to SEEM to cooperate while secretly undermining, but that’s probably not reality.

@briankrebs

Show threadjgeorgeFeb 28, 2025

@chiaraaa @briankrebs I agree with your point on an academic level, but in practical application I dont think it’d work that way, it hasn’t seemed to so far.

Staying and “fighting” gets you fired, and then the MAGA crowd light up with 47 “getting rid of the ‘deep state’” that you weren’t part of until you resisted their rantings. It lights a fire of harassment under the butts of people who are already pretty hot-butted. It puts a target on your back.

Leaving on your own terms seems to result in a “meh, good riddance” response from the rabid MAGA crowd, so it’s a much safer response for your own personal well being.

I get that it’s taking an “easy” way out as opposed to staying and fighting the good fight, but not everyone is up to that, or feels that they’d make a difference with the size of the enemy they’d be fighting, nor can everyone take that personal or family risk.

Show threadchris actualFeb 26, 2025
@briankrebs It's Trump's Best People 2.0. Working with emboldened and true-believer incompetents has to be the literal worst.
Show threadBrad SmithFeb 26, 2025

@briankrebs

I suspect that these were 'legacy' USDS staff that were already working when DOGE was folded into USDS.

The original USDS offered talented IT professionals from the private sector an opportunity to work for a limited time as special government employees. The goal was to help federal IT staff improve service delivery and quality. It was an appeal to patriotism - help improve federal IT service delivery for 2 or 3 years before returning to the private sector.

Working as a government employee brings a number of benefits that are not possible with contractors.

The downside from a regular federal employee's perspective was that in order for USDS to compete with private sector pay scales, these USDS staff were hired as GS-15s. Under normal federal hiring guidelines, a recent college graduate has to start as a GS-9 or possibly GS-11 with a graduate degree. In the agency where I worked, the CIO and Deputy CIO and Assistant Directors were GS-15s.

So our GS-9/11 staff were working side by side with someone doing similar work but as a GS-15. Most federal employees would expect to retire as a GS-13 assuming that they shift in supervision and management and away from day to day technical work.

I suspect, therefore, that the DOGE USDS hires are GS-15s - some without meeting bare minimum qualifications for a GS-9 or GS-7 for that matter. I also suspect that the legecy staff who signed up to help improve IT service delivery found the goals of the new USD(oge)S of disruption to be intolerable.

Show threadWar on the Castle, Peace in the Valley🛡️🍉🇵🇸 🏳️‍🌈 🇺🇦Feb 26, 2025
@briankrebs Unfortunately this story was incorrectly reported by many outlets to imply that Musk staffers were jumping ship, whereas these were career civil servants. However the details cited by Brian Krebs indicate just how banal and crude this development was as it unfolded: operatives who would not identify themselves -- that seems to be part of the modus operandi of the criminal Trump regime, bringing to mind for instance the "arrests" of demonstrators in Washington during Trump 1.0 or the recent "ICE" raids. Well I suppose we shouldn't be too worried with actors like "Big Balls" on it.
Show threadLuna chanFeb 26, 2025
@briankrebs The rebellion begins DOGE is now starting to fall apart.
Show threadGailen OlsonskiFeb 26, 2025
@briankrebs Thanks all of you for your decision to stand up against these Thugs !