Rep. Schrier Denounces Sweeping New Cuts to Forest Service

There's no two ways about it: the U.S. Forest Service is at an impasse, seized by uncertainty like hardly ever before.

In its quest for a supposedly leaner, more decentralized government, the Trump administration, led by DOGE chieftain Elon Musk, is taking an ax to the federal workforce. The Forest Service in particular is hemorrhaging manpower: it was reported on Friday that Trump had pink-slipped 3,400 workers. That is roughly one-tenth of USFS personnel.

"These cuts are particularly impactful for the Northwest because we have vast expanses of national forest and public land," says Rep. Kim Schrier. However much the PNW has to lose, this is no mere regional issue. It's an affront to Mother Nature herself, Schrier says, because "we're taking away people who do what we call 'wildfire mitigation': they do the work that thins the forests to prevent catastrophic wildfires. They do that year-round so we aren't choking on smoke all summer."

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Schrier could go on - and go on she does, telling KPQ,

It's also, potentially, taking away the people who monitor the radar, the weather system, and communicate with firefighters to keep them out of danger. It may take away the rangers who keep our trails safe and clean - who crack down on people who build campfires during a burn ban.

According to Schrier, power is being wielded like a spiked club. Worse yet, she says, the White House's reasoning for these cuts is dubious at best and deceptive at worst.

We have heard from so many workers, across many departments. First of all, there is broad and widespread fear of retaliation - they've been not told not to talk to anybody, so I can't really disclose specifics, but we have heard from dozens of people.

 

They've also been told they're being fired because of poor performance - yet they have perfect performance reviews! So these are plain lies.

Click here to read our prior reporting on the issue.

Schrier says the White House has made a point of singling out "probationary workers" as though they're undesirables or mischief-makers. This is pure rhetorical manipulation, she says: "There's a sense that people on probation are in trouble or on the verge of being fired. The reality is, this is language used to describe people who've been on a particular job for one to two years. It could even be somebody who moved from one office to a higher-level position in a different office."

What can be done to stave off further assaults on the federal workforce? Schrier has some ideas.

I look at this as a three-pronged approach, the first being Congress. I want people to call Congress! I want to amplify people's stories. We are calling the White House, we are making ourselves heard and we are bringing legislation to the floor to protect important federal agencies.

 

Then there's the courts, and we're seeing lawsuits left and right because what's happening is illegal.  That is making its way through the court system, and that can feel slow, particular for someone who's been fired and has to pay rent.

 

The third is the community response! I want people listening to know their voice matters. This is a democracy; you can call the White House, or our office, or your congressperson's office. Don't just let this wash over. We all have a voice here, and yours matters.