DEFENSE OF DEDICATED FEDERAL PUBLIC SERVANTS

DEFENSE OF DEDICATED FEDERAL PUBLIC SERVANTS

Congressional Record, Volume 171 Issue 37 (Tuesday, February 25, 2025) [Congressional Record Volume 171, Number 37 (Tuesday, February 25, 2025)] [House] [Pages H774-H775] From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [ www.gpo.gov ] DEFENSE OF DEDICATED FEDERAL PUBLIC SERVANTS The SPEAKER pro tempore (Mr. Harris of North Carolina). The Chair recognizes the gentleman from New York (Mr. Kennedy) for 5 minutes. Mr. KENNEDY of New York. Mr. Speaker, I rise today in defense of our dedicated Federal public servants in the face of the relentless attacks from President Trump and Elon Musk. Hardworking families in my district and people across the country are beginning to see this initiative for what it really is: a sham perpetrated by President Trump and run by an unelected billionaire, the richest person in the world, who has no idea how our government operates or what our public servants do for our communities. Trump and Musk's goal is to undermine people's faith in public services, gain access to sensitive government data, and ultimately give away trillions of dollars in tax cuts for the rich. We know their game, and we are not playing it. Last week, I met with union leaders who are representing our Federal workforce, including the American Federation of Government Employees, National Nurses United, the National Association of Letter Carriers, the American Postal Workers Union, and the Western New York Area Labor Federation. [[Page H775]] I am deeply grateful for their work to empower our Federal workforce: our air traffic controllers, veteran healthcare practitioners, Social Security benefit experts, and so many more who provide the services and assistance hardworking families in our communities deserve and need. Their ability to continue doing so is under immense threat. Union leaders on the front lines painted a picture in which our Federal workers are living in fear of wrongful firings, receiving intimidating emails that are causing mass confusion, and receiving unclear directives from an administration that has no interest in the rule of law. These are workers who have dedicated their lives to public service. They help our parents and grandparents receive the Social Security that they have earned and rely on. They deliver world-class care to our veterans who have sacrificed so much for our freedoms. They keep our borders secure, our air and water clean, our airports and skies safe, and so much more. They deserve our gratitude, not to be subjected to this demeaning and cruel treatment, especially as they continue to deliver for hardworking families amid all of it. Mr. Speaker, I have also spoken to constituents who have been impacted by these wrongful cuts. A young man named Jeff Plummer spoke to me hours before being wrongfully fired from the Internal Revenue Service. Jeff received exemplary reviews of his work within the IRS Small Business/Self-Employed Division, which helps small businesses to comply with tax requirements, helping our regional economy to thrive. Due to the simple fact that he had worked for the IRS for less than 1 year, he was terminated. He is among 6,000 IRS employees who have been wrongfully fired, all in the middle of tax season. Jeff and his fellow IRS employees are not alone. Our veterans are being directly harmed and discriminated against. They are experiencing real harm as the services they rely on are being decimated. Service-disabled veterans are among the 8,500 Federal employees in my district alone being attacked and dismissed for being DEI hires. I spoke with one disabled veteran who bled for our country and continued to serve as a Federal employee for nearly two decades. He received a title change in the last year, which automatically put him on probationary status. He was fired last week with absolutely no justification. These veterans feel demeaned and betrayed. It is unthinkable and shameful to treat our military heroes this way. It violates the sacred honor that we have to care for our veterans and provide the services and benefits that they have earned and that they deserve. I have spoken to constituents myself. I have heard the palpable fear and anxiety that our Federal workers are feeling, which makes it impossible to deliver the best quality care and services for taxpayers, from caring for veterans and seniors to protecting our environment. As egg prices are skyrocketing due to bird flu ravaging our farms, Trump and Musk have cut FDA and USDA employees, putting the health and well-being of our communities on the line. After we saw the first commercial airline crash in 16 years, there are FAA employees who are being fired. Their message each time: These employees weren't mission critical. Don't worry. You won't miss them. Tell that to the senior whose medicine is contaminated due to the lack of oversight, or to the airline passenger facing major delays because of a severe shortage of air traffic controllers. Meanwhile, unelected billionaire Elon Musk is celebrating on the world stage with a chain saw in his hand, bragging about the degrading treatment of our public servants, with no regard for the taxpayers who will suffer as a result because they cannot get the services that they rely on. Why wouldn't he celebrate? President Trump has illegally given him the keys to our Treasury, sensitive government data, and control of our Federal workforce. We won't let him take a chain saw to our Federal workforce without a fight. That is why we are speaking up and speaking out and holding those accountable. We ask our colleagues on the other side of the aisle to join in our fight. ____________________