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When CNN put in a Freedom of Information Act request with the Office of Personnel Management for information related to security clearances for billionaire Elon Musk and other personnel at the so-called Department of Government Efficiency who have been allowed access to sensitive or classified government networks, the outlet got an unexpected response.
“Good luck with that, they just fired the whole privacy team,” an OPM email address wrote back, according to Tuesday reporting from CNN. An OPM official told the outlet that the federal government’s human resources agency did not layoff the entire privacy team, but did not comment further on the matter.
https://therealnews.com/cnn-made-foia-request-about-doge-only-to-learn-foia-staff-was-fired
angelofsnark
Firing the FOIA Team...
Bizarkly
"*What* democracy?"
emilytangerine8910
So is the NSA going under?
gayvillian
chata954
Cia are you butt hurt cuz the coup detat with out you? Pls feel free to try again
Heelcat70
I remarked a while ago that I was surprised that Trump didn't eliminate the FOIA. I guess he did the next best thing by getting Musky to fire the staff. Every firing seems to be people who could investigate or reveal crimes by the MAGAts.
EasierToPrayWhenIMasturbate
Isn't that a legislated function of government departments?
chata954
Who the fuckk is letting ppl be the guy locking ppl out they computer, we need better resistance. More fire. More leaking
Pally01
"they can't FOIA me if I fire the FOIA team." *Taps hairplugs.*
OkButWhyWereTheyFilming
"Transparency" they said
blzrdphoto
Here is the original reporting on this from CNN for more context rather than from this news outlet I’ve never heard of. https://www.cnn.com/2025/02/18/politics/opm-privacy-team-fired/index.html
KleptoKea
What home of the brave? Where are your spines, Americans? Where is your uprising to show you will not let your leaders make Nazis out of you all?
whatsisname
Play that clip of F-Elon saying how doge is the most transparent ever.
SumOneElse
...most transparently corrupt and unconstitutional.
blaghart
if they fired the FOIA team why didn't the FOIA team leak a whole bunch of sensitive data about DOGE on their way out?
blzrdphoto
Because when you get fired they usually remove your access before the firing so you can’t do exactly that.
blaghart
you're presuming a whole lot of competence that has repeatedly not been displayed in these firings
blzrdphoto
I didn’t say they were competent but what they have shown is that they know how to blanket shut people out of systems once they are in.
blaghart
They haven't though, that's the incompetence I was referring to. A lot of these firings are done without an exit interview or without prompt removal of privileges. Which makes me wonder why more people aren't burning them back for this behavior, except for all the former government employees who keep coming out saying "I voted for trump and just got fired" suggests they aren't interested in actually hurting the trump admin
blzrdphoto
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/musk-aides-lock-government-workers-out-computer-systems-us-agency-sources-say-2025-01-31/
spontaneous9
If you know differently, why not post a link to a source. Otherwise it occurs to me that presumption can just as easily be a two way street in cases like this one.
blaghart
literally all the media coverage about these firings discusses how short sighted and poorly planned they were, including a failure to properly remove people's credentials or even walk them out of the building
spontaneous9
So, "people are saying," and "everyone knows," are your sources for assuming they don't cut off your access before firing you, then.
Right. Got it.
blzrdphoto
https://www.reuters.com/world/us/musk-aides-lock-government-workers-out-computer-systems-us-agency-sources-say-2025-01-31/
LordofGoats
Pretty good chance they were locked out of their computers before they could.
blaghart
Given how these DOGE firings have been performed I doubt they were.
WhoIsFlabbergasted
Some of the firings I heard locked the employees out before they received the email. And the nuclear stockpile firings went so quickly that there wasn't a forwarding contact info, which backfired spectacularly when they realized that maybe they were essential employees
memedrift2410
Pussy IT are the ones allowing all this to happen. (I'm in IT) They could stop Doge, but they'd have to be clever or be willing to face consequences.
Niagaran
Read my fingertips: Any. Other. Country. In. The. World. Would. Be. On. Fire. By. Now.
Why are you Americans just sitting down and taking this nazi bullshit?
ADHDinkubus
They won't let me watch my Sheldon show in prison /s
OddOod
I don't wanna get shot. And I gotta make rent. I joined the IWW and will start organizing
usernameusedinlessplatforms2
Öh. No, Russia, North Korea or China isn't on fire either .
And there is a specific reason why my examples are those. Only difference is that the propaganda machine owns the state in the US and other 3 state owns the propaganda machine. But effect is quite similar.
blessedarethecheesemakers
Part of the problem is how huge the country is. It’s very easy for people to feel detached from DC.
Plus, the powers that be have done a great job of making us feel just comfortable enough to prevent revolt. By the time it starts affecting regular folks, it will be too late.
SausageStuffer
That really is a big part of it. I live in a small town in the Midwest that no one in the US would describe as “remote” - but I’m 35 miles away from the nearest major city, 60 miles away from my state’s capital, and 800 miles away from DC. What street would someone suggest I march in? To what shall I set fire? What, exactly, should the message be and to whom is it directed? Half of the country is pissed off, but no one knows what to do about it.
memedrift2410
Because for 20 years those of us with brains allowed the idiots of our country to be fed lies by Fox News. At first it was just a silly cartoon to entertain them while we did real work. By the time we found out that they had actually managed to form a Moron Army it was too late. Why is the country not blowing up? Because about half of us are heavily armed total idiots who have been Winter Soldier level brainwashed.
FellAsleepInSchool
If I openly protest against this administration in my town, I'd likely be killed. I'm not exaggerating or being dramatic. These fuckin' "Christian" rednecks are armed and stupid.
theworldcouldbeflat
Because they believe thoughts and prayers is a solution. Letting their kids die at school has literally been a thing for 20 years now.
maday1br
Perhaps this is just a description of cowardice, but I think the US federal government (especially under Trump) would be quick to use violence in response. That's not to say it isn't worth the risk, but that actions have to be carefully calculated to be effective in the distressingly high likelihood that you don't get a second chance.
awkungen42
Because our country is probably 100x the size of yours and we have a police force with more military power than your entire countries military force in most states and they are more than willing to kill us.
memedrift2410
This. Gotta love Belgians asking us why we don't revolt. Dude, we make guns Motherfucker, not chocolate.
kraeftig
in terms of raw territorial size there's only a couple other countries in the world that compare. Australia, China, Russia, Mexico and Canada. The vast majority of us can't just hop in a car for 2-3 hours and march on the capitol. It's a multi-day trip to get there. There's quite literally topographical hurdles interfering with our ability to rise up. Imagine how different it would look if the thousand or so people at every capital across the country was instead at the federal capital.
Niagaran
While they were on the wrong side of things, Canadian antivaxxers from all over the country locked up Ottawa for three weeks.
kraeftig
Not saying it's not doable but issues like this needs tens of thousands of people and not just a thousand. If you add all the capitol protests *together* across the 50 states (some states had multiple cities marching), it would be a very big protest. Unfortunately, it looks small because it's spread across 50-100 different places.
kraeftig
People *are* rising up, but we are so spread out our effect and momentum is very limited. It's why it's important for everyone to keep pushing the visibility of the protests.
jasondeslin
In almost any other country, you can take an afternoon and go to your capital.
That's a week long trip for me, if I turn around the second I get there.
In smaller countries, the entire center of power can be targeted by the same protest, and the leaders can't flow out of range without fleeing the country.
Here, there are countless plans to hide and protect the parasites, and an hour flight escapes any threat of personal violence.
There are logistics involved.
Do you have workable solutions?
LordofGoats
You have no idea how tuned out most Americans are. And then there are so many who think all of this is somehow good. That's a big part of how we got into this situation in the first place.
Onebigcanuck
I was literally just talking to one of my cousins about the Canadian tariff wars. I'm a dual citizen and expect it'll affect me at some point. My cousin said that he likes the tariffs because "it'll bring jobs back to the US." I asked him what jobs those were, but he couldn't tell me. Jobs were gonna come back, though. That's your average American.
zFUBARz
So look... This is something Americans need to finally learn, and maybe this is the time. American Exceptionalism is bullshit, and you're not magically different than everyone else. It's been one of the core problems of the country for what... 200 years or so? Every country has its quirks and challenges. Americans have just always said theirs somehow make them different so there's basically nothing they can learn from elsewhere. (Generalization I know, but it's pretty accurate for so many.)
HubicPairs
As an American, +1.
shadowdorothy
Also, it is a very long way from where I live to Washington DC. I don't think most Europeans understand just how geographically vast America is.
I can protest all I want but unless it's right in their faces affecting the lives it does fuck all good. The general strike is May has a very good chance of making it affect them all over.
Also most people can't just take off work to burn down the government, and that's by design. You can't protest if you're starving/barely making rent.
CoarseAndSalty
You're finding out about this at the same rate we are. You have identical resources. What are you doing that we're not? We're at least marching in the streets by the millions trying to stop this before it requires violence.
Niagaran
My country is not responsible to save you from yourselves.
CoarseAndSalty
That's funny, we never said that when your country was in trouble. That's fine. You don't have to be a part of the solution. Nor do we give a fuck about your opinion if you're just going to be in the way.
Niagaran
Okay, "America First" piece of shit
BenderRodriguezJrJr
...we actually did say that. america was extremely isolationist till pearl harbor
usernameusedinlessplatforms2
And Trump said that many many times the 1st time around and now again.
FiveShiftOne
Then shut the fuck up.
Niagaran
Suck a beefy fart from my ass, enabler of fascism
FiveShiftOne
You see why those of us actually trying to fight what's happening over here hate you fucks who sneer at and blame us for shit over there? Shut your whole fucking mouth because all you fucking do is blame and demoralize the people actually dealing with this shit at home. You're not the good guy here. You're just an evil piece of shit on a moral power trip.
jesuisgur
No, because the shit being spewed by the US is already affecting everyone. Just because we don't have power over it doesn't mean we can't complain.
FiveShiftOne
Sure. But if you're gonna sit there blaming those of us who are trying to fight against it here because you're deep in your feelings and want to lash out and the people actually responsible are beyond your reach/don't give a shit what you say, you can go fuck yourself.
ViennaCircle
I can't speak for everyone, but I'm waiting to see if the guardrails kick in. They're slow, but they have worked historically. I'm not naive, but I am 50 years old. I remember Bush v. Gore. The SC had to step in. I expect something similar soon. And then we'll see where the rubber hits the road.
2graves
..... The supreme Court some the election there in favor of Bush. I'm not sure what you're saying
Niagaran
The SC back then didn't appoint someone to be a king though
M4UsedRollout
The Supreme Court stole that election for Bush. That was the first bolt being taken out of the guard rails.
Nanoline
Okay, but...remember that the SC sided with the guy who had less votes, whose brother was Governor of the state where votes for his opponent were seemingly being undercounted (including the ~2000 Gore votes from Palm Beach that ended up redirected to heccin *Buchannan*), and the result was decades of largely unnecessary war in Iraq and an overall gutting of the government and economy that led to the 2008 crash...yes?
Like, of all the "SC stepping in" examples, that is *not* one to give hope.
ViennaCircle
Oh, I remember. Bush and Gore tied. They counted and recounted, and it never left the margin of error. 25 years later, I see this as one of the high points of American history. The SC picked somebody-- and not one tank rolled down the street. We discussed it like adults, accepted it and moved on. I'm simply waiting a little bit to see who steps in to put this incontinent toddler in his place. But my patience is not infinite. And I'm confident I'm not alone in my feeling.
jasondeslin
They didn't tie. The electoral college tied due to MASSIVE voter suppression, and enough votes in Florida were straight up thrown out to make it close enough to force the recount.
That election was straight up stolen.
Every time someone has lost the popular while winning the presidency, it's a stolen election, but Gore would have won the electoral college as well as the popular if every vote had been counted.
Nanoline
Well, he just fired three members of the Joint Chiefs, and the SoD is in support of “Christian military rule of the modern world” (per his podcast comments since the election), so it won’t be the military that does it. And the US Marshals who would enforce the judiciary are busy deputizing Elon’s private security mercenaries and enforcing removing federal officials from buildings, *against* court orders, so they’ve picked their side. And most of the citizens with guns support Trump, so not them.
ViennaCircle
Agreed, none of this is good. But their entire philosophy is geared toward getting us freaked out and arguing online, so I'm waiting a little bit. I'm just saying I don't personally feel like it's time for pitchforks yet. But maybe soon.