You risk everything for your country.
Leave friends and family behind.
Watch your friends die or have their lives changed forever.
Elon Musk shakes hands with Donald Trump back stage during a campaign rally at the Butler Farm Show grounds on Oct. 5, 2024 in Butler, Pennsylvania.Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images
The nightmares keep you up.
That old military injury never really heals.
You work full-time, go to school, scrape by just to make it.
Then one day, you get the email.
Finally, after years of sacrifice, you have a fresh start.
You buy a home, get married, have kids, maybe even travel.
Ten years go by.
Youve built a life.
You have a steady career, glowing performance evaluations, and now a family and a mortgage.
Your service paid off.
Youre finally living the American Dream.
Then a promotion opportunity comes along.
Just the raise you’re gonna wanna book that dream vacation with your family.
A short probationary period.
Youve had a stellar record in federal service and the military.
You take the job.
ThenElon Musk, an unelected billionaire with no ties to the military, fires you.
The administration this week beganaggressively laying off thousandsof government employees across multiple agencies, hitting veterans hard.
The U.S. Forest Service, meanwhile, is dismissing 3,400 employees.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has fired probationary workers, as well as full-time contract employees.
Musks team has alsoreportedlyarrived at the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), fueling fears of deep cuts.
Trumps administration has launched a full-scale attack on veterans, their families, and federal workers who support them.
For every four employees who leave, only one can be replaced.
For an already understaffed VA, this is a disaster.
Veterans medical care, disability claims, and support services depend on an adequate workforce.
Slashing hiring ensures growing backlogs, worsening care, and increased suffering for those who rely on VA services.
These programs provide critical support for transitioning service members, veterans seeking jobs, and military families overseas.
Instead of a merit-based system, hiring decisions are now subject to unnecessary delays and potential political interference.
The VA is already grappling with a severe workforce shortage in medical and benefits processing roles.
And whos paying the price?
Veterans, federal employees, and military families.
This Valentines Day, many military veterans wont be celebrating with their families.
Instead, theyll be struggling to pay their mortgages, car payments, and child care costs.
Regardless of the reasons, the damage is undeniable.
