Roughly half of the Republicans seeking to represent Virginia’s 11th Congressional District condemned the process — but not the result — used by the Trump administration’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to slash the federal workforce.
Speaking to voters at a forum on Sunday (June 22), three of the candidates expressed a distaste for the way in which tens of thousands of federal government workers have been fired since President Donald Trump took office in January, allegedly to reduce spending.
Lucas Rand, a U.S. Army veteran who now works as a healthcare administrator in Springfield, was the first to explicitly declare that the “theatrics” of the widespread staffing shakeup “were completely uncalled for.”
“I don’t think there should have been a chromed-out chainsaw,” Rand said. “There should have been a little more respect and decorum for the people who gave their life and service to the country that we could have helped them out and did it a little more respectfully.”
Reuters estimates that, as of mid-May, roughly 260,000 civil servants have left the federal workforce since September. Cuts have only ramped up since January, with DOGE claiming to be responsible for an estimated $180 billion in “savings” through layoffs, contract and grant cancellations, and other program changes.
Fairfax County residents stand to bear the brunt of that gutting. A tally conducted last year by the Office of Personnel Management found that more than 51,000 federal employees reside in Virginia’s 11th Congressional District — roughly 12% of all workers in the district.
Countywide, the Fairfax County Economic Development Authority (FCEDA) estimates that approximately 80,000 residents are employed by the federal government, with thousands more working for private contractors that rely on federal spending. Depending on the final scale of the layoffs, they could have a more severe economic impact on the county than Covid did, the FCEDA projected.
At the Republican forum, which was held at the McLean Community Center and moderated by WMAL host Vince Coglianese, former 8th District candidate Karina Lipsman noted that the Trump administration has tried to walk back some cuts in response to staffing and intelligence concerns.
Some firings have also been reversed or put on hold by federal courts that have questioned the White House’s authority to overhaul federal agencies without Congressional approval.
“I think how things were done, the operation of actually cutting the waste, fraud and abuse, may not have been the best thing … and so, we see a lot of those people who are essential employees are actually being called back to support the mission,” Lipsman said.
Not all candidates who spoke on the issue took exception with the process. Stewart Whitson, a former FBI staffer, argued that major change can’t be made in the nation’s capital without a swift and authoritative approach.
“I was an agency employee. I spent 10 years in there. I was surrounded by wonderful, great people,” Whitson said. “But all it takes is 1% entrenched bureaucrats to get in the way of what the president wants to do, and it disrupts everything.”
Sam Wong, also a U.S. Army veteran, expressed support for the DOGE agenda, though he wished that a transition assistance program — akin to one available for those leaving the military — was established to prepare former government staffers for work in the private sector.
“We can match the best qualified federal workers … We want to set them up for success so we can shrink the government, take those skills and bring it to the private sector, because the private sector is also needing to grow,” Wong said.
Five of the seven candidates vying for the Republican nomination participated in Sunday’s forum. Mike Van Meter, a former D.C. police officer and FBI employee who challenged the late Rep. Gerry Connolly for the 11th district seat last year, was also in attendance.
The two absent candidates were banking executive Nathan Headrick, who was traveling overseas, and Fairfax County Taxpayers Alliance president Arthur Purves.
The 11th Congressional District Republican Committee has secured one day for early voting, which will be held 2-7 p.m. on Friday (June 27) at the Fairfax County Government Center. The following day, voters can participate in the party’s lone canvass event to determine its nominee from 9 a.m. until 4 p.m. at Fairfax High School.
Ultimately, the party’s nominee will advance to face the Democratic challenger in the special election on Sept. 9, which was necessitated by Connolly’s death from esophageal cancer on May 21.
