Trump: Environmental Protection Agency eyeing to cut 65% of its staffers

"I spoke with Lee Zeldin, and he thinks he's going to be cutting 65 or so percent of the people from Environmental, and we're going to speed up the process too at the same time," Trump said. "He had a lot of people that weren't doing their job, they were just obstructionists, and a lot of people that didn't exist." 

Trump also suggested that the Department of Education could face steep cuts as he renewed calls to move education back to the states. Trump historically has signaled he is considering shuttering the agency entirely through an executive order, although Article II of the Constitution stipulates congressional approval is required to entirely eliminate a federal agency. 

The EPA said that Trump and Zeldin are "in lock step" to create a more efficient and effective federal government. 

"Compared to 2024, the total amount spent year over year at EPA will deliver significant efficiencies to American taxpayers by cutting wasteful grants, reassessing the agency's real estate footprint, and delivering organizational improvements to the personnel structure," an EPA spokesperson told Fox News Digital Wednesday. "In his first term, President Trump advanced conservation and environmental stewardship while promoting economic growth for families across the country and will continue to do so this term."

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) Director Russell Vought and acting Director of the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Charles Ezell issued a memo on Wednesday directing agencies to brace themselves for "large-scale reductions in force" and establish downsizing plans by mid-March. 

Additionally, DOGE has been tasked with eliminating government spending, waste and streamlining efficiency and operations, and Trump said Saturday he wanted to see DOGE take an even more aggressive approach moving forward. 

Musk, who said Wednesday that the U.S. will "go bankrupt" without DOGE cuts, has launched several initiatives to drastically cut the federal workforce. For example, Musk requested all federal workers respond to a personal productivity email - that he described Wednesday as a "pulse check review" - the Office of Personnel and Management (OPM) sent out by Monday at 11:59 p.m. listing five things they accomplished the previous week. 

Musk warned that those who failed to comply would lose their jobs. While some agencies instructed their staffers to ignore the email, Musk said Wednesday another email would go out as DOGE seeks to eliminate people who are on the government payroll but don't exist. 

Likewise, Musk said Wednesday that DOGE is seeking to preserve jobs for everyone who is an essential worker and is performing well, but warned that those who aren't could lose employment. 

The White House said Tuesday that 1 million federal workers did comply with Musk's productivity email request and that employees should look to their individual agency for guidance on how to proceed.