(COLORADO SPRINGS) — On Friday, Feb. 28, more than 50 people gathered outside of Congressman Jeff Crank’s office in Colorado Springs to protest federal cuts and layoffs, including those at the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA).
This week the department cut more than 1,400 employees in another round of dismissals. This comes as the VA temporarily suspended billions of dollars in planned contract cuts following concerns that the move would hurt critical veterans’ health services. The Associated Press (AP) has the full list of the 875 affected contracts, which shows the cuts would affect everything from cancer care to the ability to assess toxic exposure.
One contract that was on the chopping block supports assessing veterans’ disability ratings. Newly sworn-in VA Secretary Doug Collins described the cuts as simply consulting deals, and said the cancellation would save $2 billion as the Trump Administration works to slash costs across the federal government. The VA said in a statement to the AP that its review of the contracts “is ongoing and not final.”
Many protestors on Friday told FOX21 News they support cutting waste and fraud, and that’s why they want to defund the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
“These are people who are staffing the VA clinics and working in the hospitals and supporting our military installations and they’re being villainized as though they are the axis of evil if you will, when in fact, many of them have very important roles and we’re going to miss them a lot if they aren’t doing those jobs,” Sharon Roggy, a protestor, said.
The firings are part of an effort by Elon Musk and DOGE to slash the size of the federal government. President Donald Trump weighed in on the VA cuts during an interview with FOX News.
“We take good care of our veterans,” Pres. Trump explained. “We’re watching that very carefully and we hope it’s going to be as small a number as possible, but we are having great success in slimming down the government.”
Steve Kjonaas, the Legislative Director for the VFW Department of Colorado told FOX21 News he’s keeping a close eye on the cuts and said it’s only a matter of time before veterans’ care is impacted.
“The first thing that comes to mind is the wait time, the length of time that it takes for a veteran to get an appointment to be able to be seen by a provider or anybody,” Kjonaas explained.
El Paso County is home to one of the largest veteran populations in the nation, and VFW officials say now is the time to check in on them.
“There are some veterans out there who may be at that trigger point of self-harm,” Kjonaas said.
While Colorado Springs may feel far way from the nation’s capital, many protestors gathered outside Congressman Jeff Crank’s office hoping their message would make it to Washington, D.C.
“What is going on in Washington is not serving all of the people, it’s serving the elites,” saod protester Erica Erickson.
A U.S. Army veteran joined the protest and said the cuts won’t just impact veterans, but the nation’s workforce.
“A lot of us who served in the military have a VA disability and use various other programs, so I do feel that he’s going to cut those,” said Daniel Rosenbaum, a U.S. Army veteran. “Right now, veterans basically make up a very large part of the working class, as we said in the Army, it’s the backbone of the Army, it’s the backbone of the workforce right now.”
Congressman Crank was out of the office during the protest but provided FOX21 News with a statement in response.
I support the American people’s First Amendment freedom to peacefully assemble and express their views; it’s what makes America great.
Rep. Jeff Crank (R-CO)
Meanwhile, the Legislative Director for the VFW Department of Colorado is calling on congress and the Trump Administration to stop firing VA employees and start rehiring them.
