Friday Night Massacres: How Government Jobs Are Being Axed Under the Radar
Imagine this: You’re winding down for the evening in a hotel room after catching up with old friends, not a care in the world. That was Mary Glantz last Friday night. She was staying at a Hampton Inn in Columbia, South Carolina, feeling relaxed—until her phone started blowing up around 9:30 p.m. Nonstop pings. A flood of frantic messages. Something was clearly wrong.
Those messages were from coworkers at the U.S. Institute of Peace (USIP), where Glantz had worked as a senior adviser. The independent, congressionally funded institute, meant to promote peace and prevent violent conflict, was suddenly under siege—figuratively and literally. What her colleagues told her next left her stunned.
DOGE Storms In
A newly formed government agency, ironically titled the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), had just forced its way into the USIP building in Washington, D.C. With the help of local law enforcement, DOGE officials bulldozed their way past protesting staffers on March 17. What followed? A sudden wave of mass layoffs.
Then, at exactly 10:09 p.m., Glantz received an email. It was her termination notice. She was out—effective immediately. No explanation. No heads-up. Just a digital pink slip.
“I wasn’t expecting it,” Glantz said. “It was shocking. We were under the impression leadership was preparing a report to justify our work to DOGE. I didn’t think I’d be fired—especially not like this.”
And she wasn’t the only one. That night, most of USIP’s 300 staff members were let go in a sweeping purge that left the building echoing with uncertainty.
Friday Nights: The New Dread
Turns out, this wasn’t a one-off. Since President Donald Trump and tech billionaire Elon Musk joined forces in their mission to overhaul the federal bureaucracy, Friday nights have become the most anxiety-inducing time of the week for civil servants across the country.
Here’s why:
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Firings have taken place on 7 out of Trump’s 10 Fridays in office.
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Hundreds of employees have lost their jobs late at night—usually without warning.
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Legal experts say this timing is strategic: courts and legal offices are closed, so it's harder for people to fight back.
In fact, the dismissals have been so abrupt, some employees didn’t even know they were on a list until their access badges stopped working the next day.
Why Fridays? Let’s Break It Down:
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Media coverage is minimal on weekend news cycles.
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Legal help is unavailable until Monday morning.
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IT teams have the entire weekend to revoke access and lock down systems.
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Shock value is maximized—who’s expecting to be fired at 10 p.m. on a Friday?
“It’s all about control and optics,” said Rosa Brooks, a law professor at Georgetown. “This is about getting rid of or intimidating anyone perceived as insufficiently loyal.”
The “Security-Related” Excuse
A White House official, when asked why the firings tend to hit on Fridays, gave a vague answer: “These decisions are purely logistical and security-related.”
No further clarification was provided. DOGE also declined to comment.
Cutting the Fat—or Cutting Democracy?
Trump and Musk maintain that their collaboration aims to “trim the fat” from a bloated federal government. Their goal: reduce waste, fraud, and cost to taxpayers.
Sure, efficiency is good. But legal scholars and historians warn that the method—and the message—behind these cuts raises major red flags.
“Firing government watchdogs, inspectors general, and public servants without due process on a late Friday night? That’s not just unusual—it’s unprecedented,” said historian Timothy Naftali.
Let’s not forget: previous administrations from both sides of the aisle have used late Fridays to sneak out bad news. But rarely, if ever, has it been used as a mass layoff tool.
Remember the Nixon Era? This Is Worse.
Some compare this wave of firings to Richard Nixon’s infamous “Saturday Night Massacre” during the Watergate scandal. But Naftali puts it bluntly:
“Nixon tried to fire one man. This administration is firing hundreds.”
Who’s Getting the Axe?
Let’s look at some of the most eye-popping firings:
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January 24: Inspectors general at 17 federal agencies, including Defense and State, were let go due to “changing priorities.”
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February 21: The Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, C.Q. Brown, and five other high-ranking military officials were fired late on a Friday.
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January 31: A Justice Department prosecutor involved in the January 6 investigations got his notice while sipping a cocktail in a D.C. bar.
That prosecutor, who wished to remain anonymous, said he was with about a dozen colleagues when the emails started rolling in. Each message was the same—terminated effective immediately.
“We laughed. Not because it was funny, but because it was so absurd. We were fired for doing our jobs.”
Trump later stated their prosecution of his supporters was a “grave national injustice.” And as one of his first acts in office, he had already pardoned everyone involved in the Capitol riot.
The DOGE Digital Crackdown
DOGE hasn’t limited itself to policy think tanks and prosecutors. They’ve also targeted tech departments within federal agencies.
Case in point: Last Friday at 6 p.m., around three dozen IT staffers at the IRS got emails placing them on paid administrative leave. That’s usually the first step before a firing.
The emails were addressed generically to “Dear Employee” and informed them their system access had been revoked. No explanations. No appeals.
According to insiders, the DOGE initiative is pushing to get full access to these systems to “streamline operations,” eliminate redundancy, and root out fraud. But critics say this kind of power grab is just another form of control disguised as efficiency.
Is This Legal? Is It Ethical?
Employment attorneys argue that this kind of sudden dismissal, especially over email and after business hours, mirrors tactics more common in the private sector—not the federal government.
“It’s shady. It’s designed to catch people off guard, and it’s hard to fight back if your lawyer’s office is closed and your building access is revoked,” said one D.C.-based labor attorney.
While there are legal paths for federal workers to challenge their terminations, most of those processes depend on immediate access to support—something that’s not possible on a weekend.
A Chilling Effect on Public Service
The bigger issue, critics warn, isn’t just the firings—it’s the fear they spread.
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Dedicated public servants are second-guessing their every move.
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Watchdogs and whistleblowers are staying silent.
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Experts fear a hollowing-out of expertise that could cripple long-term policy work.
Even those who haven’t been fired yet admit they’re living under a cloud of anxiety every Friday.
“I keep my phone on loud every Friday night now,” said one federal employee who asked not to be named. “That’s not normal. That’s not how government should work.”
Looking Ahead
As of April 4—Trump’s 11th Friday in office—it remains to be seen whether another wave of terminations is coming. But after 10 straight weeks of shakeups, few are feeling secure.
For Glantz and her colleagues, the damage is already done. Not just to their careers, but to the morale and trust that used to define government work.
In Summary:
🔥 Friday night has become termination night for federal workers
🚨 DOGE is bulldozing agencies under the banner of efficiency
💼 Experts compare it to Nixon’s Watergate era—but on steroids
📉 The impact: morale shattered, trust broken, fear widespread
Whatever your thoughts on “draining the swamp,” this new style of governance is sending a clear message: loyalty comes first. And if you’re not on board, don’t get too comfortable—especially on a Friday night.
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