Among the hundreds of people chanting “Elon Musk has got to go!” and “No one elected Elon!” in front of the U.S. Capitol on Monday were recently fired federal workers left devastated and uncertain by their terminations.
“Elon Musk doesn’t even know my job exists, right? But like, we do a lot. I mean, I’m a public servant, and I do this job because I love it. So, yeah, I’m devastated, and my whole community lost their jobs. And I don’t know what I’m going to do now, but I’m going to keep fighting. And you know, this stuff really matters,” said Victoria, a Forest Service employee who asked to not use her last name.
Victoria, a probationary employee who worked for years to earn her full-time role, was abruptly fired on Saturday.
“I don’t know if I’m going to move back in with my parents or move to another country, but it’s not looking good,” she said, laughing. “So, yeah, I don’t know what’s going to happen.”
Peter Ketcham-Colwill, a lawyer formerly with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, described the moment when he found out he was fired last week.
“It was sort of an ‘Oh my God’ moment. Why is this happening? Is this really happening?’” he said.
Both Victoria and Ketcham-Colwill said the services they provide taxpayers will now be gone.
For Victoria, that was clearing trails for the Forest Service and serving as a key backup — as many employees of the agency do — to support Forrest Service firefighters as they battle blazes across the country.
“We provide a service to the public, and we don’t do it for the money. We do it because we’re passionate and because we care about these lands and we care about the people, the American people, you know?” she said. “So I’m a patriot, you know? I work for the federal government because I love this country. And I want to make a difference. And that that choice has been taken away from me now, and I’m unable to serve the public.”
Ketcham-Colwill now feels the American people are without the watchdog protections the CFPB provided.
“And, I mean, you know that feeling [of being fired] was bad. Honestly, the feeling that, you know, the financial cop is off the beat, the CFPB has worked, is not being done right now is even worse,” he said.
“The Department of Education, EPA — all over the federal government are important. They’re there for a reason. They’re there because they’re congressionally mandated functions that people need to live the American dream. And the fact that that work is not being done by civil servants who are there to serve the public is frankly unconscionable,” he added.
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