Letter to the editor: 46 former GSA executives say cuts to cause ‘irreversible damage’
Five former GSA administrators are among a group of prior agency leaders expressing deep concerns about the Trump administration's workforce cuts.
March 13, 202511:47 am
5 min read
As officials representing multiple administrations, we write to express our support for General Services Administration (GSA) employees and our concern that the Trump-Vance administration’s rash and misguided actions will reduce efficiency while putting taxpayer dollars, critical infrastructure and personal information at risk.
GSA is the backbone of the federal government, providing real estate, acquisition and technology expertise for all agencies. GSA was founded over 75 years ago after a bipartisan commission led by former President Herbert Hoover recommended to former President Harry Truman that basic government functions like real estate and contracting should be consolidated in one agency as a way to increase efficiency and save money. Since then, GSA’s talented employees have been its driving force, evolving with the changing times and pioneering solutions that have saved taxpayers billions of dollars while enabling agencies to deliver more effectively for the American people.
Before the past few weeks, the work of GSA rarely made headlines, but its work behind the scenes quietly supports the entire government’s ability to respond to emergencies, defend the security of the country’s physical and cyber infrastructure and ensure that our veterans, farmers, small businesses, seniors and millions of other Americans have access to the services they need from government.
The work of GSA is vital to the safe and effective operation of government. While every organization’s operations should be continuously evaluated for improvement, indiscriminate cuts to assets and personnel without a thorough analysis of their impact is irresponsible and can result in irreversible damage.
Evidence is mounting that the Trump-Vance administration’s drastic cuts, sloppy management and disregard for important safeguards will threaten the government’s ability to deliver services to the public and make America more vulnerable to fraud and cyber attacks, while reducing efficiency and effectiveness.
At the behest of Elon Musk and the “Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE),” dedicated public servants are being fired without regard to their performance. Those that remain are being threatened, bullied and driven to resign when they insist on following the law. Highly-sensitive IT systems are being put at risk and sensitive information is being downloaded to unknown, unvetted external sources in clear violation of privacy and data-protection rules. Programs with decades of successful outcomes are being hamstrung or shuttered entirely, including technology teams like 18F that keep essential government websites working and those like the GSA SmartPay team who ensure the government can save money when purchasing supplies and services.
These actions run directly counter to DOGE’s stated goals of reducing waste and improving efficiency.
Every year GSA helps other agencies save billions of dollars in real estate costs and on the purchase price of goods and services, including an estimated $8 billion in 2024 alone. Eliminating people who know where to find more savings defies common sense. And in some cases evidence suggests these attempts to downsize will actually cost more money than they save.
Indeed, recent reporting confirms that DOGE hasn’t touched the major sources of government spending, while its purported savings have been exposed as mere smoke and mirrors. Its plan to offload hundreds of government buildings like courthouses in a fire sale — without strategy or forethought — fails to meet even the baseline threshold for responsible fiscal stewardship of government assets.
Congress needs to act
The Trump-Vance administration’s promises of efficiency and cost savings for taxpayers ring hollow when their actions show a disregard for taxpayer dollars and create opportunities for conflicts of interest and corrupt self-dealing.
Avoiding the worst potential consequences of the Trump-Vance administration’s actions depends on those dedicated civil servants who continue to serve, and the watchdogs, whistleblowers and elected representatives who each swore an oath to uphold the Constitution and the rule of law.
We call on the Congress to exercise its constitutional oversight responsibilities, investigate these actions being taken against dedicated public servants and assess the significant costs taxpayers will ultimately pay.
We continue to stand with the career civil servants at GSA — both current and former — and we thank them for their service to the American people.
Signed,
Robin Carnahan
Former administrator, GSA – Biden-Harris administration
Denise Roth
Former administrator, GSA – Obama-Biden administration
Dan Tangherlini
Former administrator, GSA – Obama-Biden administration
Martha Johnson
Former administrator, GSA – Obama-Biden administration
David Barram
Former administrator, GSA – Clinton-Gore administration
Katy Kale
Former deputy administrator, GSA – Biden-Harris administration
Former chief of staff – Obama-Biden administration
Exclusive
Letter to the editor: 46 former GSA executives say cuts to cause ‘irreversible damage’
Five former GSA administrators are among a group of prior agency leaders expressing deep concerns about the Trump administration's workforce cuts.
As officials representing multiple administrations, we write to express our support for General Services Administration (GSA) employees and our concern that the Trump-Vance administration’s rash and misguided actions will reduce efficiency while putting taxpayer dollars, critical infrastructure and personal information at risk.
GSA is the backbone of the federal government, providing real estate, acquisition and technology expertise for all agencies. GSA was founded over 75 years ago after a bipartisan commission led by former President Herbert Hoover recommended to former President Harry Truman that basic government functions like real estate and contracting should be consolidated in one agency as a way to increase efficiency and save money. Since then, GSA’s talented employees have been its driving force, evolving with the changing times and pioneering solutions that have saved taxpayers billions of dollars while enabling agencies to deliver more effectively for the American people.
Before the past few weeks, the work of GSA rarely made headlines, but its work behind the scenes quietly supports the entire government’s ability to respond to emergencies, defend the security of the country’s physical and cyber infrastructure and ensure that our veterans, farmers, small businesses, seniors and millions of other Americans have access to the services they need from government.
The work of GSA is vital to the safe and effective operation of government. While every organization’s operations should be continuously evaluated for improvement, indiscriminate cuts to assets and personnel without a thorough analysis of their impact is irresponsible and can result in irreversible damage.
Discover how agencies can enable secure, mobile-first collaboration in the zero trust era. Download this free e-book for practical strategies and real-world insights.
Threatened, bullied and driven to resign
Evidence is mounting that the Trump-Vance administration’s drastic cuts, sloppy management and disregard for important safeguards will threaten the government’s ability to deliver services to the public and make America more vulnerable to fraud and cyber attacks, while reducing efficiency and effectiveness.
At the behest of Elon Musk and the “Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE),” dedicated public servants are being fired without regard to their performance. Those that remain are being threatened, bullied and driven to resign when they insist on following the law. Highly-sensitive IT systems are being put at risk and sensitive information is being downloaded to unknown, unvetted external sources in clear violation of privacy and data-protection rules. Programs with decades of successful outcomes are being hamstrung or shuttered entirely, including technology teams like 18F that keep essential government websites working and those like the GSA SmartPay team who ensure the government can save money when purchasing supplies and services.
These actions run directly counter to DOGE’s stated goals of reducing waste and improving efficiency.
Every year GSA helps other agencies save billions of dollars in real estate costs and on the purchase price of goods and services, including an estimated $8 billion in 2024 alone. Eliminating people who know where to find more savings defies common sense. And in some cases evidence suggests these attempts to downsize will actually cost more money than they save.
Indeed, recent reporting confirms that DOGE hasn’t touched the major sources of government spending, while its purported savings have been exposed as mere smoke and mirrors. Its plan to offload hundreds of government buildings like courthouses in a fire sale — without strategy or forethought — fails to meet even the baseline threshold for responsible fiscal stewardship of government assets.
Congress needs to act
The Trump-Vance administration’s promises of efficiency and cost savings for taxpayers ring hollow when their actions show a disregard for taxpayer dollars and create opportunities for conflicts of interest and corrupt self-dealing.
Avoiding the worst potential consequences of the Trump-Vance administration’s actions depends on those dedicated civil servants who continue to serve, and the watchdogs, whistleblowers and elected representatives who each swore an oath to uphold the Constitution and the rule of law.
Sign up for our daily newsletter so you never miss a beat on all things federal
We call on the Congress to exercise its constitutional oversight responsibilities, investigate these actions being taken against dedicated public servants and assess the significant costs taxpayers will ultimately pay.
We continue to stand with the career civil servants at GSA — both current and former — and we thank them for their service to the American people.
Signed,
Robin Carnahan
Former administrator, GSA – Biden-Harris administration
Denise Roth
Former administrator, GSA – Obama-Biden administration
Dan Tangherlini
Former administrator, GSA – Obama-Biden administration
Martha Johnson
Former administrator, GSA – Obama-Biden administration
David Barram
Former administrator, GSA – Clinton-Gore administration
Katy Kale
Former deputy administrator, GSA – Biden-Harris administration
Former chief of staff – Obama-Biden administration
Read more: Commentary
James Benner
Biden-Harris administration
Thomas Berry
Biden-Harris administration
Krystal Brumfield
Biden-Harris administration
Reggie Cardozo
Obama-Biden administration
Morgan Carrico
Biden-Harris administration
Bryce Causey
Biden-Harris administration
Jacky Chang
Biden-Harris administration
Sam Cho
Obama-Biden administration
Keyva Clark
Biden-Harris administration
Kailynn Cummings
Biden-Harris administration
Elliot Doomes
Biden-Harris administration
Laila ElGohary
Biden-Harris administration
Janay S. Eyo
Biden-Harris administration
Brandon Faske
Biden-Harris administration
Arpit Garg
Biden-Harris administration
LeJamiel Goodall
Biden-Harris administration
Channing Grate
Biden-Harris administration
Christine Harada
Obama-Biden administration
Sonny Hashmi
Biden-Harris administration
Waldo Jaquith
Biden-Harris administration
Trevor Jones
Biden-Harris administration
Sukhee Kang
Biden-Harris administration
Michael Kerin
Obama-Biden administration
Fernando Laguarda
Biden-Harris administrationn
Angela Lesnak
Biden-Harris administration
Ann Lewis
Biden-Harris administration
Denise Maes
Biden-Harris administration
Andrea O’Neal
Biden-Harris administration
Nathan Osburn
Biden-Harris administration
Tenzin Pelkyi
Biden-Harris administration
Brett Prather
Biden-Harris administration
Obama-Biden administration
Gia Rivera
Biden-Harris administration
Obama-Biden administration
Exodie Roe III
Biden-Harris administration
Nitin Shah
Biden-Harris administration
Christine Simpson
Biden-Harris administration
Natasha Shah Syed
Biden-Harris administration
Quynh Tran
Biden-Harris administration
Dawne Troupe
Obama-Biden administration
Nicolas Valbuena
Biden-Harris administration
Christina Wilkes
Biden-Harris administration
Jetta Wong
Biden-Harris administration
Teressa Wykpisz-Lee
Biden-Harris administration
Obama-Biden administration
Copyright © 2025 Federal News Network. All rights reserved. This website is not intended for users located within the European Economic Area.
Related Stories
GSA offers voluntary early retirements amid widespread layoffs
GSA tries to walk back hundreds of lease terminations for ‘public-facing’ office space
After rocky history, GSA shuts down 18F office