DOGE workers quit: 21 federal technology staffers resign

Twenty-one federal technology staffers who were recently integrated into DOGE’s government-slashing effort resigned from their jobs Tuesday.

The staffers wrote a joint resignation letter obtained by The Associated Press. 

DOGE workers quit

What they're saying:

"We swore to serve the American people and uphold our oath to the Constitution across presidential administrations," the staffers wrote in the letter. "However, it has become clear that we can no longer honor those commitments."

"We will not use our skills as technologists to compromise core government systems, jeopardize Americans’ sensitive data, or dismantle critical public services," they wrote. "We will not lend our expertise to carry out or legitimize DOGE’s actions."

FILE - Elon Musk departs the Hyatt Regency Capitol Hill where President-elect Donald Trump spoke to House Republicans on November 13, 2024 in Washington, DC. (Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)

Dig deeper:

The employees warned that they believed many of those enlisted by billionaire businessman Elon Musk to help him slash the size of the federal government under President Donald Trump's administration were political ideologues who did not have the necessary skills or experience for the task ahead of them.

The staffers said they were all recently questioned by people wearing White House visitors' badges about their qualifications and politics. 

"Several of these interviewers refused to identify themselves, asked questions about political loyalty, attempted to pit colleagues against each other, and demonstrated limited technical ability," the staffers said. "This process created significant security risks."

RELATED: Nearly 40% of DOGE’s canceled contracts may save no money, data shows

The other side:

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday morning.

White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt was dismissive of the mass DOGE resignations.

"Anyone who thinks protests, lawsuits, and lawfare will deter President Trump must have been sleeping under a rock for the past several years," Leavitt said in a statement. "President Trump will not be deterred from delivering on the promises he made to make our federal government more efficient and more accountable to the hardworking American taxpayers."

Federal employees fired

The backstory:

Earlier this month, about 40 other staffers in the office, the United States Digital Service, were laid off. 

Those who remained, about 65, were integrated into DOGE's government-slashing effort. About a third of them quit Tuesday.

Their resignation comes amid a flurry of court challenges that have sought to stall, stop or unwind their efforts to fire or coerce thousands of other government workers out of jobs.

DOGE stands for the Department of Government Efficiency. 

RELATED: Elon Musk email to federal employees targeted in lawsuit

United States Digital Service

Big picture view:

The staffers who resigned worked for what was once known as the United States Digital Service, an office established during President Barack Obama's administration after the botched rollout of Healthcare.gov.

The office was created to do things like improve services for veterans, and it helped create a free government-run portal so tax filers did not have to go through third parties like TurboTax. It also devised systems to improve the way the federal government purchased technology.