WASHINGTON — Just weeks into his term, President Donald Trump has launched an unprecedented offensive against his own government, sparking widespread fear among federal employees and aid recipients alike. Testing the boundaries of his authority, Trump is reshaping the scope, function, and neutrality of the federal government—all without congressional approval.
Leveraging two relatively obscure agencies, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) and the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), Trump has aggressively targeted domestic and foreign aid programs, made it easier to fire tens of thousands of federal workers, and pressured even more to resign.
Although two federal judges have blocked his domestic spending freeze, and Trump was forced to walk back an OMB directive in response to public backlash, the core executive order remains in effect. This leaves federal employees caught in a dilemma—follow court mandates or adhere to the president’s directives.
In conversations with Family Us News, nearly two dozen federal workers have described an atmosphere of fear, confusion, and deep skepticism within their agencies. Many believe they are being monitored in ways that were unheard of before Trump’s return to power.
As trust in government continues to erode, with most Americans doubting Washington’s ability to act in their best interests, Trump is aggressively pursuing long-held conservative goals of shrinking and restructuring the federal government. However, critics warn that his scorched-earth approach will ultimately render the government weaker, less effective, and more vulnerable to partisan manipulation.
The impact is already being felt. Nearly 60 employees of the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) have been placed on administrative leave following Trump’s order freezing global aid funding. Additionally, his administration is exploring ways to unilaterally fold USAID into the State Department, a move many argue requires congressional approval. Over the weekend, the agency’s website mysteriously went offline.
“The organizing idea behind what they’re doing is that Trump wants to be king,” said Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.). “He doesn’t want to be accountable to the law, and the American people are paying the price.”
Van Hollen also warned that Trump’s actions could complicate efforts to avert a looming government shutdown.
“It raises serious questions about whether we can negotiate in good faith on spending measures,” he said. “We reach compromises, yet the president picks and chooses what he wants, disregarding the rest.”
On the other side, Trump allies, including freshman Sen. Jim Banks (R-Ind.), insist that the president is merely fulfilling his campaign promises.
“The American people overwhelmingly voted for President Trump, in part, because of his commitment to cutting government waste and restoring common sense to Washington,” Banks stated. “With a $36 trillion national debt, I support his administration’s efforts to ensure every tax dollar is spent responsibly.”
Trump’s gamble is clear: he is betting that the public will reward him and the Republican Party for aggressively overhauling the federal government, even if it means slashing funding for programs people depend on. His allies argue that he faces little personal risk, given that he is constitutionally barred from running again. Instead, they say it will be up to Vice President JD Vance and other Republican incumbents to defend these actions in the future.
“So far, the approach has been phenomenal,” one GOP strategist noted. However, they admitted to concerns over the recent dismissal of six senior FBI officials, suggesting it could create greater external problems for Trump than internal ones.
“When it comes to backlash, [Trump] really shouldn’t care,” the strategist said. “He’s not running again, and reducing the federal workforce is part of his mandate. It’s up to Vance and the current officeholders to handle any future fallout.”
Trump is not waiting for attrition to shrink the government. In addition to ousting FBI leaders, he has fired up to two dozen Justice Department prosecutors working on cases related to the January 6th Capitol attack. Most Jan. 6 defendants have received presidential pardons, while others have had their sentences commuted.
Federal employees are now under pressure to report colleagues involved in work related to “diversity, equity, and inclusion” (DEI) initiatives. Trump has even blamed a fatal mid-air collision between a regional jet and a military helicopter on alleged “DEI hires” at the Federal Aviation Administration—without presenting any supporting evidence.
Critics argue that Trump’s words and actions amount to a full-scale effort to demoralize and intimidate the federal workforce. Billionaire Elon Musk, who heads Trump’s newly created Department of Government Efficiency, has been empowered to offer “buyouts”, paying federal workers through September if they voluntarily resign. These “deferred resignation” offers are being communicated directly from OPM and agency personnel chiefs on a near-daily basis.
On Wednesday, Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) employees received an email reminding them that anyone who has worked for the government for less than a year can be fired at will.
“If you want government to function, you wouldn’t be attacking federal employees on a daily basis with psychological warfare,” a longtime federal manager said. “You want them to show up motivated. This is not the way to do it.”
