Hacker News with Generative AI: Federal Government

Reddit Becomes a Lifeline for Federal Workers Scared of Losing Their Jobs (nytimes.com)
On March 4, a Trump appointee at the Department of Veterans Affairs circulated a memo to senior leadership. The agency, it said, would “move out aggressively” to improve efficiency, with an “initial objective” of cutting the work force to 2019 levels.
Federal student loan site down, a day after layoffs gutted Education Department (apnews.com)
An hours-long outage Wednesday on StudentAid.gov, the federal website for student loans and financial aid, underscored the risks in rapidly gutting the Department of Education, as President Donald Trump aims to dismantle the agency.
Reasons veterans are especially hard-hit by federal cuts (theconversation.com)
The Department of Veterans Affairs is planning to cut 83,000 jobs, slashing employment by over 17% at the federal agency that provides health care for millions of veterans, according to an internal memo obtained by The Associated Press on March 5, 2025.
Federal workers ordered to return to offices without desks, Wi-Fi and lights (cnn.com)
Technology specialists who worked across the federal government are fired (nytimes.com)
The Trump administration is terminating the jobs of dozens of technology specialists whose broad portfolio of projects across the government included the I.R.S.’s free tax filing software and passport services.
The Collapse at the NIH (theatlantic.com)
For decades, the National Institutes of Health has had one core function: support health research in the United States. But for the past month, the agency has been doing very little of that, despite multiple separate orders from multiple federal judges blocking the Trump administration’s freeze on federal funding.
Departing Words from a Terminated US Federal Worker (atmos.earth)
Five months ago, I packed my bags, loaded my truck, and trekked nearly 4,000 miles across the country from North Carolina to Juneau, Alaska. The move cost me thousands of dollars and meant leaving behind the life I had built on the East Coast—but I knew it would be worth it. After 18 years in wildlife biology, I finally landed my dream job as a biologist with the National Park Service.
The GSA Plans to Sell Hundreds of Its Federal Government Buildings (wired.com)
Employees at the General Services Administration (GSA) have been told to sell off 500-plus federal government buildings across the US, sources tell WIRED.
Deferred resignation email to federal employees (opm.gov)
During the first week of his administration, President Trump issued a number of directives concerning the federal workforce. Among those directives, the President required that employees return to in-person work, restored accountability for employees who have policy-making authority, restored accountability for senior career executives, and reformed the federal hiring process to focus on merit.
Six Charged in Scheme to Defraud the Federal Government (justice.gov)
Six defendants have been charged for their roles in schemes to rig bids, defraud the government and pay bribes and kickbacks in connection with the sale of IT products and services to federal government purchasers, which resulted in overcharges of millions of dollars to the U.S. government, including the Department of Defense (DoD).
Federal Ban on Home-Distilling Exceeds Congress' Enumerated Powers (reason.com)