‘Categorically untrue’: Key government agency pushes back against media narratives of DOGE chaos

FIRST ON FOX: The General Services Administration (GSA), an independent agency that manages federal property for various agencies, is pushing back on recent media outlets reporting that the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has instilled fear among employees and insists it is continuing to deliver efficient and effective services with employees that are focused on their mission. 

“Over the past few days, numerous media outlets have reported on GSA’s return to office and future workforce plans,” the GSA said in a statement released on Wednesday. “These reports include numerous quotes from anonymous sources and contain significant inaccuracies.”

Several media outlets, including NPR, Politico and The Associated Press, have reported on a chaotic scene in recent days at GSA as DOGE searches the government bureaucracy for waste, and it has been reported that GSA is closely monitoring employees’ location and keystrokes and employees are calling the situation “grim” and “Orwellian” while reportedly facing massive staffing cuts. 

“For the record: GSA is leading the way to reduce government spend[ing] and close the deficit in service of the American taxpayer,” GSA’s statement continued. “GSA has no plans to surveil employees. GSA leadership is being forthright with our employees, and we’re sharing the best available information with them as they make decisions regarding their future. Characterizations that GSA senior leadership are unduly pressuring employees to leave the agency are categorically untrue.”

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A GSA career senior manager who has worked in multiple administrations told Fox News Digital that “the press seem to be trying to conflate DOGE with our agency’s appointee leadership team.” 

“GSA, like every other agency, is working in partnership with DOGE, but it’s GSA’s appointee leadership that is leading the transformation.”

The senior manager told Fox News Digital that career staff have relayed a sentiment of being “grateful for the frequency and tone of communications from our appointee leadership” and that the team is “focused on the mission” 

“Characterizations of ‘frantic’ meetings just aren’t what I’m experiencing,” the senior manager said. 

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The GSA has been involved in working with DOGE on its cost-cutting measures, including earlier this month when the agency issued a letter terminating the U.S. Agency for International Development occupancies in Washington, D.C., which GSA said “will be repurposed for other government needs.”

The manager told Fox News Digital that rather than an agency in “fear,” the agency is working efficiently to work with DOGE to ensure that the government is streamlined.

“GSA’s appointed leadership is working hand in hand with our career executives to thoughtfully find solutions that meet the administration’s goals of streamlining government and delivering effectively and efficiently for the American taxpayer,” GSA’s statement added. 

“GSA’s subcomponent, the Federal Acquisition Service, led by Josh Gruenbaum, is committed to a common sense approach to federal procurement, delivering goods and services with the best value, and helping all government agencies reduce wasteful contract spending. Optimizing GSA’s real estate portfolio prioritizes reducing our deferred maintenance liabilities, supporting the return to office of federal employees, and taking advantage of a stronger private/government partnership in managing the workforce of the future.”