It’s wild how much has changed in such a short time. The buyout program initiated by Trump and pushed forward by Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency has seen a staggering 75,000 federal workers walk away with a package they just couldn’t refuse. With the federal workforce swelling to over 2 million, Musk’s vision of slashing bureaucratic fat seems to be more than just talk. And now, after the courts lifted the freeze, agencies are bracing for up to 70% of their staff to be cut. As insane as this may seem to some, Musk’s comparison of government bureaucracy to weeds rings true—if you don’t pull them out at the root, they’ll just grow back. This purge isn’t about trimming the edges; it’s about completely uprooting and reshaping how we view government efficiency. If this program actually follows through, it’s going to change the game in a big way.
About 75,000 federal workers have abandoned ship and decided to accept President Trump’s deferred buyout after a federal judge lifted a temporary freeze on the offer – as DOGE boss Elon Musk vowed to ‘delete’ entire government agencies.
The buyout was just one of many approaches Trump and Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency have taken to dismantle bloated bureaucracies and slash a civilian workforce of 2.3 million.
Officials have been told that some agencies can see up to 70% of their staff cut.
The deferred buyout program promised employees their salaries and benefits until October if they leave immediately.
A federal judge on Wednesday lifted the temporary freeze on President Trump’s ‘buyout’ offer to federal workers as the administration looks to shrink the workforce.
A union which represents hundreds of thousands of federal workers sued last week to stop the deal. But a Massachusetts judge ruled the unions lack standing to challenge the directive.
O’Toole, a President Clinton appointee, lifted the temporary restraining order on Tuesday.
‘Aggrieved employees can bring claims through the administrative process,’ he also wrote.
The American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) and other unions sued ahead of the February 6 deadline for federal workers to accept the Trump administration’s ‘deferred resignation’ offer last week.
The deadline was placed on hold temporarily while a hearing was held on Monday.
Trump declared victory on the program Wednesday night and closed the offer to anyone who has not yet accepted.
He also warned federal agencies to prepare for wide-ranging job cuts, and several departments have begun to lay off recent hires who lack full job security.
Elon Musk cheered on the government purge Wednesday night and warned critics ‘the matrix is being reprogrammed’ as he seeks to cut $2 trillion in spending.
On Wednesday, in a video link address to Dubai’s annual World Governments Summit, Musk said the Trump administration needed to go further and ‘delete entire agencies as opposed to leave part of them behind.’
‘It’s kind of like leaving a weed,’ Musk said. ‘If you don’t remove the roots of the weed, then it’s easy for the weed to grow back. But if you remove the roots of the weed — it doesn’t stop weeds from ever going back, but it makes it harder.’
‘That’s not to say there won’t be an increase over time of bureaucracy in some new administration, but it will be from a much lower baseline. So certainly it’s a step in the right direction.’
The billionaire’s sweeping vision to overhaul government began taking shape as he targeted federal agencies.