Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
- Sen. John Curtis urges U.S. leaders to show compassion amid federal layoffs.
- Curtis defends President Donald Trump's workforce reductions but criticizes DOGE's approach as reckless.
- Curtis emphasizes compassion, especially regarding Elon Musk's advisory role and email directive.
WASHINGTON — Utah Sen. John Curtis is calling on U.S. leaders to be more compassionate as layoffs of federal workers continue.
In an interview on CBS's Face the Nation this morning, Curtis defended changes the Trump administration is making to reduce the federal workforce, echoing comments he made to KSL last week.
Thousands of workers from the National Park Service, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Department of Veteran Affairs and more have been fired.
He said the majority of Americans asked for change and now we're seeing it. Curtis said the country has tried making subtle changes over time and it hasn't worked.
"We all knew what we were getting with President Trump," Curtis said. "Nobody should be really surprised at these dramatic shocks to the system."
In an op-ed for the Deseret News, Curtis said the nation's debt can't be ignored.
He wrote in part, "What President Trump is doing now — scrutinizing government spending on programs and employees through the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) and looking for areas to trim — is something any responsible executive would do."
On "Face the Nation," Curtis was asked about an email sent to federal workers instructing them to list five things they accomplished within the past week and copy their supervisor in their response.
Elon Musk, who has been advising the president on this issue, wrote on X: "Failure to respond will be taken as a resignation."
"We all know ... federal workers who are good people, who work hard, but the reality of it is, we have 3 million federal workers. Not all of them do. Many aren't coming to work," he said, referring to employees who work from home.
Curtis said it's not unusual to ask remote workers to report what they're getting done. But he did ask officials to have compassion and dignity when they make these cuts.
He wrote, "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."
"If I could say one thing to Elon Musk, it's like, please put a dose of compassion in this," he said to CBS. "These are real people, these are real lives, these are mortgages."
The email sent to federal workers said they have until 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time Monday to respond. Some agencies have told their workers not to reply.
