DOGE Workers 'Energetic And Dug In’ Despite Threats: Source

Authored by Nathan Worcester via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

WASHINGTON—After reporters revealed the names of multiple Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) employees, threats have proliferated against them and the department’s head, Elon Musk.

Sources familiar with DOGE staff described a mood of resilience among those working to fulfill President Donald Trump’s pledge for government reform.

Illustration by The Epoch Times, Getty Images

“The young DOGE engineers seemed surprised and initially unprepared to be personally targeted by so much animus,” one source familiar with DOGE’s operations, speaking on the condition of anonymity as they were unauthorized to speak to the media, told The Epoch Times. “But they are energetic and dug in.”

Even as DOGE faces criticism from many congressional Democrats and is beset by lawsuits seeking to restrict its access to government data, its early results—including billions in cuts identified to The Epoch Times by the White House—may just be the tip of the iceberg.

DOGE aims to deliver $2 trillion in federal spending cuts during its 18-month lifespan. It ends in 2026 on the 250th anniversary of July 4th, 1776.

A source familiar with DOGE said it was “still in the sorting stage.”

As DOGE seeks to overcome hurdles, billions could be just the beginning.

The Mood Amid Threats

The Epoch Times has reviewed numerous posts on the social media platform Bluesky that are aimed at DOGE and its reported staff members. Many disseminated personally identifiable information, including names, ages, and home addresses.

A source told The Epoch Times that federal law enforcement was dispatched to protect family members of DOGE employees after their names were leaked. As of publication time, the Department of Homeland Security had not confirmed that with The Epoch Times.

On Bluesky, an anonymous user called DOGE workers “Nazi scum,” adding, “The only good nazi is a dead nazi.” The post listed the reported names of several DOGE workers.

A Bluesky user whose name matched that of an employee at Boston University’s business school posted a “Wanted” graphic with DOGE employees’ names, faces, and the words “Dead or Alive.”

A statement from the university described the post as one from “an employee on his personal social media account,” adding, “the views expressed do not reflect the values of Questrom School of Business.”

The Bluesky app is displayed on a cell phone and computer monitor in Pasadena, Calif., on Nov. 14, 2024. Mario Tama/Getty Images

Members of Congress, including DOGE oversight leaders, voiced shock and anger at the threats.

“That’s horrible,” Rep. Blake Moore (R-Utah), co-chair of the House DOGE Caucus, told The Epoch Times. “I haven’t really seen the severity of it, but that’s horrible.”

On the other side of the aisle, a spokesperson for DOGE critic Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman (D-N.J.) told The Epoch Times that she “strongly opposes political violence toward anyone, for any reason, in all forms.”

A spokesperson for Rep. Eric Swalwell (D-Calif.) said the congressman “condemns threats against DOGE employees.”

Rep. Raul Ruiz (D-Calif.), who is also concerned about DOGE’s impact, told The Epoch Times, “I unequivocally condemn violence of any kind.”

Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-Wis.), who oversees the House DOGE Caucus’s defense and veterans’ affairs portfolio, told The Epoch Times that “if those people broke the law by doxxing these folks and doing that and threatening them, they should be thrown into prison.”

“I don’t mean jail. I don’t mean a fine,” he added. ”People that are doing these death threats need to go to prison, or it’s not going to stop.”

Under the Privacy Act, agency officials or others who disclose the personally identifiable information of federal employees could be guilty of a misdemeanor and fined up to $5,000. Threats on social media may also cross the line into threatening interstate communications, which carries a penalty of up to five years in prison.

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