- United States
- Alaska
- Letter
An Open Letter
To: Rep. Begich, Sen. Sullivan, Sen. Murkowski
From: A constituent in Anchorage, AK
April 13
I am writing to express strong opposition to the reckless and devastating cuts being executed across the federal government under the direction of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), led by Elon Musk. These cuts are fiscally dishonest and morally indefensible. DOGE’s headline promise of $2 trillion in savings has collapsed to a mere $150 billion. Nearly 40 percent of DOGE’s so-called savings are expected to yield no actual budget relief. Many of these cuts target programs with already obligated funds or services that are revenue-positive. There also was lying about the amount saved. For example, an $8 billion “cut” was later revealed to be only $8 million, a glaring 99.9 percent overstatement. These fabrications are dangerous political theater. To achieve these tiny savings, which amount to only a small fraction of the federal budget, over 280,000 necessary jobs have been eliminated from the federal government in just three months. The ripple effects are also being felt across nonprofit organizations and healthcare providers due to reductions in federal support. In March alone, 216,215 jobs were cut across all federal departments. This number far exceeds any private sector layoffs during what would have otherwise been a quiet month. Meanwhile, the cost we pay in lives, services, and lost revenue is staggering. The Internal Revenue Service has seen a 50 percent reduction in its enforcement staff, along with deep cuts to the Large Business and International Division. This division is critical for auditing corporations and ultra-wealthy individuals and brings in tens of billions in tax revenue each year. Economists estimate these cuts could result in $2 trillion in lost revenue over the next decade, with more than $500 billion lost in 2025 alone. Public servants who have dedicated their careers to helping others by processing Social Security claims, keeping food safe, providing health care to veterans, researching cures for diseases, researching the effects of toxins, keeping our waterways clean, insuring money in banks in case of failure, helping people rebuild after disasters, ensuring tax fairness, and so much more are being thrown out of work. Hundreds of thousands of federal workers are losing their livelihoods, their health coverage, and their stability. They are being discarded like liabilities for a pittance in savings that does not even materialize. These are not nameless bureaucrats. They are our neighbors, parents, veterans, and community leaders. Treating them as expendable is a disgrace to the values of public service and national stewardship. I urge you to stand up to this destruction. Restore critical funding and staffing to the IRS, SSA, HHS, NPS, USAID, the Department of Education, NOAA, EPA, NASA and the many other agencies that form the backbone of a functioning, compassionate society. This is not a partisan issue.
Write to Nicholas Joseph Begich III or any of your elected officials
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