Rep. Ryan Zinke (R-MT) questioned whether his own constituents jobs are “important” after Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) fired hundreds of federal workers in Montana.
Since last month, DOGE has been conducting mass firings of federal workers as part of an effort to reduce federal spending.
The U.S. Forest Service (USFS) is among the several agencies affected by the job cuts wth thousands losing their jobs — including 360 federal employees in Zinke’s home state of Montana.
Pressed about the job cuts in an interview on NewsNation Tuesday, Zinke suggested that his constituents jobs weren’t that important.
“I wonder how it works when you see those headlines in your own community with your constituents losing their jobs. What’s the balance?” host Blake Berman asked in a clip highlighted by Mediaite.
“The concern was the seasonal workers coming up, fire season obviously is a concern. And in parks this summer season, they get a lot bigger,” Zinke responded. So, you look at the seasonal – those have been exempt. And the last hiring, and what do they get hired for? Four years ago, what the hiring looked like was thousands of people hired for old growth regulation.”
“So, I think it’s fair to look at it. They were last year’s, you know, probationary,” he continued. “But the bottom line is this. If the job is important, you’ll keep it. If the job is on the line, it’ll be looked at. And if the job isn’t necessary, it’ll be cut.”
“With hundreds, though, in your community potentially losing their jobs, how does that impact your neighbors and those who live around you?” Berman pressed.
“Well, you know, again, what do they do? Zinke said. “Is the job critical? And where’s the government at? What was that job? Should it be reorganized?”
