BUFFALO, N.Y. — Rep. Tim Kennedy, D-NY-26, is taking exception to the Trump administration's empowerment of billionaire Elon Musk and the U.S. DOGE Service to cut federal jobs and services.
On Friday, he criticized Musk's appearance at the Conservative Political Action Conference a day earlier.
"Unelected billionaire Elon Musk is just beginning with his arrogance and his disrespect to the American people to stand on a stage laughing with a chainsaw saying he's cutting services ultimately that people rely upon," Kennedy said.
The administration is targeting federal agencies from the Internal Revenue Service to the Veterans Administration and the Postal Service. Kennedy said while there are reports of at least 14,000 people already fired, the number is growing and likely much larger.
"It's at this point a number that we don't even have because they haven't even shared it with the public," he said. "I think they're afraid to share it with the public because they don't want the public to know what services they're gutting for the American taxpayer."
The congressman on Friday hosted a roundtable with labor leaders from his region, asking them to share their experiences.
"Attacks on these workers, whether through funding cuts, political interference or outright firings aren't just attacks on individuals. They're attempts to dismantle the safeguards that keep corporations and the wealthy in this country in check," WNY Area Labor Federation President Peter DeJesus said.
"Many of us are extremely dedicated to what we do. Many of us have worked decades for the federal government to make sure your mail gets delivered, to make sure your veterans are taken care of, to make sure your tax return is delivered to you in a timely manner," said Dave Grosskopf, National Association of Letter Carriers Buffalo - WNY president.
DOGE, a temporary agency, said its mission is to reduce waste, fraud and abuse within the federal government. Kennedy suspects a more sinister goal.
"They want to cut trillions of dollars to the budget to give a tax break to the wealthiest and the well-connected and the billionaires in this country," Kennedy said.
He said he is supporting lawsuits that challenge the constitutionality and legality of these actions and says in many cases already the courts have effectively checked the executive branch.
Kennedy said he wants to continue to shine a light on the actual impact and is asking people to go to Kennedy.House.Gov to share their stories either publicly or anonymously so he can amplify them