White House Now Asks Hundreds of Employees to Come Back After DOGE Layoffs • Franknez.com

In a humbling about-face that’s got federal circles buzzing, the White House is pleading with hundreds of General Services Administration employees—fired en masse by Elon Musk’s now-defunct Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE)—to dust off their résumés and come back to work.

The chaotic reversal comes after DOGE’s aggressive cost-slashing blitz left the agency crippled, scrambling to handle basic operations like managing government office spaces while taxpayers foot the bill for empty desks and expired leases.

The saga unfolded quietly until an internal memo leaked to the Associated Press this week, revealing that the GSA is offering reinstatement to a swath of laid-off workers with a tight deadline: They have until Sunday, September 28, 2025, to decide.

Those who say yes will slide back into their roles on October 6, essentially capping off what’s been dubbed “a seven-month paid vacation” courtesy of Uncle Sam.

It’s a stark admission that Musk’s DOGE experiment—meant to hack $1 trillion off the federal deficit—backfired spectacularly at the GSA, one of the agencies hit hardest in the January firings.

Details of the Initial Firings

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DOGE, the Musk-led task force that Trump hyped as a government-slimming powerhouse, unleashed waves of terminations starting January 20, 2025.

At the GSA, the cuts were brutal: a 79% slash at D.C. headquarters, 65% of portfolio managers shown the door, and 35% of facilities staff axed.

The goal?

Streamline bureaucracy and torch waste.

But insiders say the speed was the killer.

“Ultimately, the outcome was the agency was left broken and understaffed,” Chad Becker, a former GSA real estate official, told the AP.

“They didn’t have the people they needed to carry out basic functions.”

A current federal official, speaking anonymously, painted a picture of disarray: The GSA’s been stuck in “triage mode” for months, juggling a skeleton crew while basic tasks pile up.

Another ex-employee echoed that, noting the downsizing happened “too quickly,” with too many key players booted before backups could step in.

The fallout?

The agency kept paying for dozens of unused properties and leases it planned to ditch, racking up unnecessary costs that ultimately land on taxpayers’ tabs.

Will Roles Get Filled or Has Trust Been Eroded?

Musk, the Tesla and SpaceX mogul who camped out in the Oval Office until a reported falling-out with Trump this spring, was the face of DOGE’s zeal.

He boasted of trimming $206 billion in “wasteful spending” through asset sales, contract cancellations, fraud busts, and workforce reductions.

But with Musk now out of the picture—his DOGE email blasts no longer carrying official weight—the cleanup falls to a chastened White House and GSA brass.

The Daily Beast reports that it reached out to both for comment but got no immediate response.

This isn’t isolated to the GSA; DOGE’s scythe swung wide across federal agencies, sparking lawsuits, impeachments of judges who blocked firings, and a torrent of bad press.

Yet the rehiring push feels like a quiet surrender, highlighting the pitfalls of slash-and-burn governance.

For the workers on the receiving end, it’s a bizarre second chance: Seven months of severance pay, plus the option to return without the stigma of a botched layoff.

Will they bite?

With the deadline looming, the GSA’s betting on nostalgia—or at least job security—to fill those empty chairs.

As Trump eyes midterms with his slim congressional edge, this episode serves as a gritty reminder that efficiency dreams can curdle fast when they hit the ground.

For now, the White House is left hoping a “please?” email blast reverses the damage—because in Washington, even billionaires’ big ideas need a human touch to stick.

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