Some GOP lawmakers start to call out DOGE — carefully

Republican lawmakers are starting to call out Elon Musk’s U.S. DOGE Service amid fierce pushback from their constituents, who have packed into town halls and bombarded congressional offices with objections to the Trump administration’s dramatic cuts to the federal government.

Congressional Republicans have been extremely reluctant to criticize President Donald Trump and his deputies, and GOP leaders remain broadly supportive of Musk’s project to shrink the federal government. But some lawmakers have publicly questioned the billionaire Trump donor’s methods in recent days — at the same time that top Trump officials push back on Musk’s weekend demand that every federal worker explain their job via email to stay employed.

Rep. Richard McCormick (R) — whose town hall in Georgia last week drew hundreds angry about DOGE’s cuts — told reporters this week that he’s “concerned that maybe we’re moving a little bit too fast” and that he plans to raise the issue with Trump and Musk. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) called Musk’s latest email demand to workers “absurd.” Multiple GOP lawmakers have urged the tech CEO to show more “compassion” for the workers whose lives are upended.

But Republicans are walking a fine line with their pushback and, in many cases, trying to resolve their worries privately with the Trump team.

“We reach out when we find something hasn’t gone quite right,” said Rep. Doug LaMalfa (R-Calif.), who said he’s raised concerns with the administration about cuts to staff he believes are necessary for agriculture and conservation programs. He found Trump officials to be “attentive.”

“There’s been a couple rough patches. … So we want to work on that aspect, but not just give up on the whole concept,” LaMalfa said. “Because we’ve seen some amazing things that have been turned over.”

“My concern is that we use a scalpel … and not use a sledgehammer,” echoed Rep. Jeff Van Drew (R-N.J.). “So we have to be really careful that we’re cutting things that don’t hurt everyday people.”

Democrats have called Musk’s DOGE, which stands for Department of Government Efficiency, an illegal power grab and argued that the Trump administration has no right to make such sweeping changes to the federal bureaucracy without the consent of Congress. Musk and his deputies have demanded access to sensitive data and sought abrupt cuts across agencies, triggering lawsuits and, in some cases, court orders to stop.

But DOGE’s overall project has plowed on at high speed, effectively gutting the U.S. Agency for International Development — which administers humanitarian aid abroad and had 10,000-plus staff — and enacting layoffs at national parks, health agencies and more that extend well beyond the Beltway.

The fallout has put pressure on Republicans, who control Congress. Members of the House returned to their districts last week for recess to find protests at their offices and angry constituents at their events — even in red districts.

McCormick, the Georgia lawmaker whose town hall grew testy last week, continued to defend DOGE on the Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s “Politically Georgia” podcast this week — but acknowledged that “some people who are very conservative also think we should move much more slowly.” Later, he told NBC News that he would “bend” Trump’s ear on the matter at a previously scheduled Tuesday meeting with congressional Republicans.

“If we have layoffs at the CDC, some people are going to be affected,” said McCormick, whose district is not far from the agency’s headquarters in Atlanta. “The question is, do we give people time to adjust to their lives? And I think that’s my biggest concern, is that we’re being compassionate.”

Sen. John Curtis (R-Utah) struck the same note in an op-ed published this past weekend.

“I agree with those concerned that the DOGE approach has appeared reckless and rash, and that we should show more compassion and dignity to those affected by its mission,” Curtis wrote.

Some of the strongest objections have come from Murkowski, the moderate Alaska senator known for bucking her party on key votes. “If Elon Musk truly wants to understand what federal workers accomplished over the past week, he should get to know each department and agency, and learn about the jobs he’s trying to cut,” she wrote in a recent X post.

Last week, it was Murkowski who, during a virtual town hall with constituents, said Congress should “stand up” to Trump if he withholds appropriated federal funding, or if he violates the Budget Act or the Impoundment Act.

“If we in Congress allow that, we effectively cede some of our authority, and so, your question as to, what do we do about it? We have to stand up,” she said. “It requires saying ‘that violates the law, that violates the authorities of the executive.’”

Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) also criticized Musk’s directive for federal employees to email a list of their activities last week, saying he supported agency leaders’ decision to ignore the orders.

“If I’m a confirmed member of the administration and somebody else is asking about my staff, then I’d have a problem with it,” Tillis said. “It’s called ‘line of control.’”

Federal employees who were laid off by DOGE planned to mount a “job fair” and a sit-in in a Senate building Tuesday morning to demand that senators “rein in unelected smash-and-grabber Elon Musk.” The demonstration was set to include employees terminated by DOGE, as well as contractors on canceled federal contracts and others impacted by Musk’s cuts.

Many Republicans continue to praise DOGE without reservation. Sen. Jim Justice (R-W.Va.) said that “naturally” he has heard from some constituents who disapprove of the cuts, but he insisted that West Virginians in general support the efforts.

“We’ve got to get a handle on all this stuff,” he said. “People are sick and tired of government not functioning like a business. … And so while naturally you hear, some people that are surely not happy and everything, we’ve got to some way rein in on the spending.”

And while Rep. Kevin Hern (R-Okla.) — who last week was confronted by constituents unhappy with DOGE cuts — told NBC News on Monday that his voters back home told him they “don’t like Elon,” he later told The Post that it was only Democrats in his district who complained about Musk and DOGE.

“My Republicans love it. They call and say, Thank you. Appreciate you. Stand up to the Democrats,” Hern said. “They didn’t want waste, fraud and abuse.”

Sen. Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), who represents a swing state, said constituents there have voiced frustration over the disorder in Washington and have specifically voiced opposition to jobs cut at the Bureau of Indian Affairs. He said of his Republican colleagues, “Inside, they’re struggling with this too, but they need to speak out.”