CURRENT EVENTS APRIL 3 - 8



“… The US Energy Department has identified 8,500 jobs as “non-essential” — including positions that oversee the nation’s stockpile of nuclear weapons — as it prepares to cut employees in response to a mandate from Elon Musk’s government efficiency team.

Those “non-essential” roles account for about half of the department’s 17,500 positions and could be targeted in upcoming layoffs, according to a document seen by Bloomberg News. The list includes positions across the department, including the National Nuclear Security Administration. …”

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DOGE had to backtrack on half-baked firing decisions once already at DoE but it sounds like they are back for a second bite at the department whacking apple.
 


Army slashes mandatory training requirements with regulation update​



“Shortly after taking his post as Army Chief of Staff, Gen. Randy George issued a directive to commanders — if it doesn’t add to war fighting, ditch it.

This week, changes to a cumbersome Army regulation on training have reinforced the chief’s guidance in writing. A list of 27 mandatory training items has been cut to 16 under the updated Army Regulation 350-1.

… Commanders now have the discretion to shed training in various areas, such as chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear, or CBRN; combat lifesaver, safety and occupational health; law of war; code of conduct; and online training courses in survival evasion resistance and escape, or SERE, and personnel recovery.

… Additionally, resiliency training has been removed entirely from the list of training tasks necessary for readiness. The training instructed troops on stress-coping measures for everything from individual challenges to dealing with family stress during deployments. …”
 

Army Planners Are Weighing Force Reductions of Up to 90,000 Active-Duty Soldiers​



“The Army is quietly considering a sweeping reduction of up to 90,000 active-duty troops, a move that underscores mounting fiscal pressures at the Pentagon and a broader shift in military strategy away from Europe and counterterrorism, according to three defense officials familiar with the deliberations.

… The move comes after Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth directed the Pentagon to come up with plans to cut 8% from the budget. Hegseth has long criticized what he describes as "woke" initiatives within the military, though that critique has centered on ill-defined cultural grievances and confused the force on how to comply and on what exactly needs scrubbing. …”
 

Defense officials considering cuts to military treatment facilities​



“Defense Health Agency officials are examining military treatment facilities across the military medical system, facility by facility, to determine their fate — which could include closing some facilities or downgrading some hospitals to clinics.

The process is in the “pre-decisional” stage, said DHA officials, speaking during a panel discussion at the Association of Defense Communities National Summit in Arlington, Virginia, on Monday. “We have to match our resources against the mission set that we have,” said Dr. Michael Malanoski, DHA’s deputy director.

… The issue is resources, Case and Malanoski said. The priority is readiness, especially at the largest facilities, where staff provide combat casualty care support, Case said. Those facilities, such as Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Maryland, and Tripler Army Medical Center in Hawaii, must be ready to receive casualties, he said. …”
 

VA leaders to halt mortgage rescue program launched last year​



“Veterans Affairs officials next month will end a 10-month-old mortgage rescue program for veterans in danger of losing their homes, following significant Republican criticism over the effort.

The Veterans Affairs Servicing Purchase (VASP) program was launched in late May 2024 to purchase defaulted VA loans from outside mortgage servicers. Officials would then modify the terms of the loans to allow financially strapped veterans to avoid eviction from and forfeiture of their homes.

About 17,000 veterans received home loans with lower interest rates through the program, according to VA statistics.

But the effort drew sharp criticism from conservative lawmakers on Capitol Hill, who claimed it undermined the existing VA home loans program by providing too much financial aid to a select few veterans. …”
 

Senator vows to hold all VA nominees over planned staff cuts​



Arizona Democratic Sen. Ruben Gallego on Tuesday vowed to hold all senior Veterans Affairs nominees in an effort to force department leaders to reconsider massive planned cuts to the agency’s workforce in coming months.

The move by Gallego — a member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee and a Marine Corps veteran who saw combat in Iraq — came on the same day the committee held confirmation hearings for three senior department posts.

… Republican leaders can still get around the holds and confirm those posts, but doing so will take extra floor time and procedural maneuvers. Gallego said the obstruction is worthwhile to highlight the potential dangers of VA leaders’ planned cuts.

“Let’s sit down and actually have a real review about where we can find efficiencies, where we can make investments in VA,” he said in an interview with Military Times. “Maybe that does mean that we have to close some areas, merge some areas, hire more people, invest in technology.

“But the fact is [the administration] is not doing any of that. They’re saying the best way for us to make improvements is just to cut the workforce. They’re not telling us how that actually is going to improve the lives of veterans, or if we’re actually improving efficiency.” …”
 

IRS sends RIF notices as it begins widespread layoffs​

The full timeline and scope of the cuts is unclear, but the first office to face them saw its workforce slashed by 75%​



“… IRS’ Office of Civil Rights and Compliance will be the first office to face the cuts, the agency’s human resources office said in an email sent to all staff on Friday. That office is set to lose 75% of its workforce through a reduction in force, and the remaining staff that does not separate by voluntary attrition will be absorbed into the Office of Chief Counsel to carry out its statutory responsibilities.

IRS made clear the civil rights office was only the first that will be affected by layoffs.

… The human capital office directed employees to upload their current resume to an internal portal to “determine qualifications” during the RIFs. …”
 
That can't be her...it's gotta be some AI filtered redo.... right?

No it’s a trend among women of that class and political affiliation. I read somewhere that facial plastic surgery is no longer about looking more symmetrical or youthful, it’s about looking different from regular people to prove that you have the ability to do so. It’s a class signifier. 9EB7350B-0D34-49E2-94EF-12E465CE7054.webp
 

IRS sends RIF notices as it begins widespread layoffs​

The full timeline and scope of the cuts is unclear, but the first office to face them saw its workforce slashed by 75%​



“… IRS’ Office of Civil Rights and Compliance will be the first office to face the cuts, the agency’s human resources office said in an email sent to all staff on Friday. That office is set to lose 75% of its workforce through a reduction in force, and the remaining staff that does not separate by voluntary attrition will be absorbed into the Office of Chief Counsel to carry out its statutory responsibilities.

IRS made clear the civil rights office was only the first that will be affected by layoffs.

… The human capital office directed employees to upload their current resume to an internal portal to “determine qualifications” during the RIFs. …”

IRS doesn’t have the tech to ‘backfill the gaps’ created by cuts, ex-commissioner says​

Charles Rettig encouraged laid-off IT employees to embrace private-sector opportunities, but shared concerns about the agency’s tech work following DOGE layoffs.


“Major cuts to the Internal Revenue Service workforce have left the embattled agency with holes that technology cannot fill, according to its former commissioner, opening up a “massive opportunity” for government contractors in the IT space.

… Charles Rettig, who led the IRS from 2018 to 2022, said during an ACT-IAC webinar Thursday that the Trump administration’s message has been “we’re going to go with AI, we’re going to go with technology, we don’t need as many people on deck.” Losing that “human perspective,” however, comes with some very obvious costs.

“They don’t have the technology to backfill the gaps they’re creating,” he continued. “So I think you’re going to see, if your interactions are government-related contracts, you ought to be all over this situation. It’s a massive opportunity for folks in that arena.”

… “Is technology the future of the world and the future of the IRS? Of course it is,” he said. “Does that mean that the IRS shouldn’t have X number of employees? You can’t tell how many employees you need until you know what the technology is going to be.”“
 
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