Move On – March 15, 2025

Tell Congress to protect civil servants from mass firings!

Dear MoveOn member,

Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has unceremoniously fired tens of thousands of educators, Forest Service employees, clean energy innovators, national park rangers, researchers, and other public service sector workers. And while federal courts have ruled thousands of these terminations illegal, the future remains uncertain as President Donald Trump prepares to appeal and continue the ruthless cuts.¹

One thing is clear: These mass layoffs are hurting all of us.

From compromised food safety inspections to increased flight safety concerns to delayed veterans’ benefits to disrupted Social Security services, American families and our local communities are paying the price.

Trump and Musk are laying off massive numbers of Americans and cutting funding to pave the way for huge tax cuts for their friends and fellow billionaires. Real people are suffering while the billionaires line their pockets with even more cash. Yet federal workers’ salaries make up just 4% of the federal government’s budget, while their work literally keeps our water and air clean, cures diseases, and does so much more.

Will you sign my petition demanding Congress pass immediate legislation protecting workers from these unfair and dangerous politically motivated firings?

Tell Congress: Protect America’s workers from DOGE’s cruel and disastrous firings!

Trump and Musk’s callous job cuts are wreaking havoc. Everyday people committed to public service while also trying to feed their families, pay rent, and retire with dignity are seeing their futures disappear before their eyes:

An Iowa dad in the county next to mine just lost his dream job as a National Parks educator, leaving him scrambling to make ends meet.²

A health care worker serving veterans in Michigan lost her job after 28 years—just four years away from retirement.³

Trump is betraying the very people who deliver critical services to American families—many of whom have done so over the course of years, even decades, and across administrations. Add your name to the petition calling on Congress to stop the Trump administration’s cruel and likely illegal mass firings.

These job cuts could end up being the biggest in U.S. history and are likely to have devastating ramifications for the broader economy.⁴ But they also have wide-reaching and alarming implications for the essential services everyday Americans rely on.

In the aftermath of Trump and Musk’s firings, paying taxes could become more difficult, the spread of bird flu may worsen, homeowners and renters could face delays and shortages, credit card fees could become more expensive, and cancer research could slow—to name just a few possible impacts.⁵

We must use every lever of government available to push back against the mass firings by Trump and Musk—and that includes Congress taking action now.

Every American family relies on dedicated and competent federal employees. Whether it’s the FDA inspector ensuring our medicines are safe or the Social Security administrator helping our seniors, public servants work for all of us—not for any political agenda.

We need to keep up the pressure. When political appointees can fire essential public servants at will, we lose the expertise, institutional knowledge, and nonpartisan service that our communities and country depend on to function. All federal employees sign an oath to protect and defend the Constitution. Let’s pledge to protect and defend them at this moment.

Our collective voices can change the world. Join me in defending these vital public servants—sign my petition to Congress now!

Thanks for all you do.

–Toby Cain, MoveOn member

Sources:

1. “A 2nd judge orders thousands of fired federal employees temporarily reinstated,” NPR, March 14, 2025
https://www.npr.org/2025/03/13/nx-s1-5325694/maryland-court-fired-federal-employees-trump

2. “National Park ranger fired from ‘dream job’ on Valentine’s Day pens emotional viral letter: ‘Things are not ok,'” CBS News, February 18, 2025
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/national-park-ranger-fired-dream-job-emotional-viral-letter/

3. “Ann Arbor VA firings leave former employees confused, scrambling,” MLive, February 19, 2025
https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/2025/02/ann-arbor-va-firings-leave-former-employees-confused-scrambling.html

4. “How the Trump and DOGE terminations — perhaps the biggest job cuts in history — may affect the economy,” CNBC, February 23, 2025
https://www.cnbc.com/2025/02/23/how-trump-doge-job-cuts-may-affect-the-us-economy.html

5. “7 Ways DOGE’s Government Cuts Could Impact Everyone,” Washingtonian, February 24, 2025
https://www.washingtonian.com/2025/02/24/7-ways-doges-government-cuts-could-impact-everyone/

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