Senator: Trump has fired the most military veterans of any US president
For all the latest developments in Congress, follow WTOP Capitol Hill correspondent Mitchell Miller at Today on the Hill.
Nearly 6,000 military veterans who worked for the federal government have been fired and the number is only expected to grow as President Donald Trump’s administration and its Department of Government Efficiency initiative, led by Elon Musk, press ahead with slashing the federal workforce.
Democratic lawmakers critical of the cuts have sought to highlight the fact that veterans are being disproportionately affected by the job losses.
“The numbers coming in suggest that Donald Trump has fired more veterans than any president in the history of the United States — in six weeks,” U.S. Sen. Tim Kaine, D-Va., said during a hearing this week.
Kaine’s frustration was clear, as he pressed the nominee for Deputy Secretary of Labor, Keith Sonderling, about the soaring number of firings and layoffs of federal employees.
The Democratic lawmaker noted veterans make up 30% of the federal workforce.
“You have said that you have an interest in protecting all Americans’ rights in the workplace, but you can’t even answer a question that I’m asking you about your own workforce,” Kaine said during the Thursday hearing of the Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions Committee.
“I truly respect all veterans in the service of their country,” Sonderling said, noting that in his work he had hired veterans.
Veteran fired after decades of service
Kaine told the committee the story of a disabled veteran from Prince William County, Virginia, who served in the Marine Corps for 25 years, including stints in Afghanistan and Iraq.
After retiring from the military, he worked for several years for a federal agency.
“He got recruited to work for another federal agency in March of last year — and now he’s 30 years of service to the country,” Kaine said. “But he’s a probationary employee. And he just got fired.”
He is one of nearly 6,000 veterans to be fired so far, according to figures compiled by Rep. Rosa DeLauro, the ranking Democrat on the House Appropriations Committee.
“Our veterans make significant sacrifices in service of our country, but those sacrifices do not seem to matter to President Trump and unchecked billionaire Elon Musk,” DeLauro said in a statement.
More cuts on the way
The Trump administration has indicated more cuts are coming, with the Office of Management and Budget requiring federal agencies to outline their latest plans for reductions in force by March 13.
“The federal government is costly, inefficient, and deeply in debt,” said a memo from OMB Director Russell Vought and Charles Ezell, acting director of the Office of Personnel Management.
The memo said “tax dollars are being siphoned off to fund unproductive and unnecessary programs that benefit radical interest groups while hurting hardworking American citizens.”
Kaine, speaking to reporters this week, said Trump and Musk “are on a rampage to sack as many federal workers they think they can get away with, regardless of the important work they’re doing.”
Kaine is a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee and is among the Democratic lawmakers who have sought to make the public aware of how many veterans are being hurt by the cutbacks.
Republican lawmakers who are members of the Senate DOGE Caucus met with Musk at the White House on Thursday.
The chair of the group, U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst, R-Iowa, said it was a productive meeting and that GOP lawmakers are pleased with how Musk’s efforts are leading to cost savings for taxpayers.
The lawmakers also said they sought to clarify communications channels, so that they are up to date on DOGE’s fast-moving initiatives.