Governors to fired federal workers: We're hiring
Governors around the country are putting up 'we're hiring' signs for fired federal workers.
In light of the thousands of federal job cuts doled out by President Donald Trump and billionaire adviser Elon Musk via the Department of Government Efficiency, a growing number of governors, mostly Democrats, have begun trying to woo those employees to apply for state government jobs. Others have promoted private sector opportunities and other resources available for those who are newly in the job market.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, a Democrat, launched a recruiting effort this week, dubbed the 'You're Hired' initiative, specifically targeting federal workers who have lost their jobs as a result of DOGE's cost-cutting efforts. Her office has assembled a job board of open New York state positions.
'The federal government might say, 'You're fired,' but here in New York, we say, 'You're hired,'' Hochul said in a Tuesday video announcing the initiative. 'We love federal workers. Whatever your skills, we value public service.'
Last week, Hawaii Gov. Josh Green, a Democrat, signed an executive order instituting an expedited hiring process for qualified federal workers who'd recently lost their jobs seeking employment in state government positions. The effort aims to provide such candidates who've applied for Hawaii jobs with a conditional job offer within two weeks of their application submission.
'As we witness the very quickly changing landscape of the federal government, federal workforce and federal policies, this order directs state agencies to review candidates and make a conditional job offer within 14 days of receiving an individual's application,' Green said in a statement announcing the initiative.
At least one Republican governor has gotten in on the effort, too, by trying to advertise private sector jobs to fired federal workers.
Gov. Glenn Youngkin of Virginia, where approximately 340,000 federal workers live, has praised the DOGE initiative while his administration has also launched a website effort to tout the 250,000 open positions across Virginia.
His administration's ' Federal Worker Resource Bundle,' also includes information about applying for unemployment benefits, preparing for a job search, and understanding health care options.
"Come work here," Youngkin said at a press conference this week. "Come experience those powerful words of 'you are hired.' Take advantage of the resources that will help you find your pathway to that career of your dreams."
Thousands of federal workers have been terminated from agencies and departments across the federal government as a result of DOGE, though the exact number is unclear.
Democratic governors in other states haven't gone as far as actively recruiting fired federal workers, but have launched programs designed to provide them with resources to ease their unemployment.
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore's administration, for instance, set up a ' Maryland Public Servants Resource Website ' earlier this month intended to serve a centralized location for fired federal workers to seek assistance.
The website includes information on unemployment insurance, job boards, and resources related to health insurance, housing, veterans' services and legal services. Maryland is home to at least 160,000 federal civilian jobs.
'The White House continues to take actions that jeopardize the livelihoods of our public servants and upend how the federal government can best serve the American people and advance our shared priorities,' Moore said in a statement announcing the site. 'We still hope we can move in partnership with this new administration to address common goals. But in light of recent actions that are hurting Marylanders, we must step up to defend our people.'
New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham launched a similar resource website for fired federal workers earlier this week.
The site includes job boards, career education, training and recruitment events for positions in both the public and private sectors, as well as resources regarding unemployment insurance.
'We are committed to ensuring that New Mexicans who have been abruptly dismissed from federal jobs have the resources and support they need to transition smoothly into new career opportunities,' Lujan Grisham said in a Monday statement announcing the effort.
Several other Democratic governors have spoken out in recent weeks about wanting to help fired federal workers in their states.
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker, for example, quickly issued statements and information for fired workers this month alerting them to their legal rights and the legal and financial resources available to them within days of DOGE's first termination efforts.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
38 minutes ago
- The Independent
‘You cheer against Trump so hard': Hegseth scolds Iran nuclear strike reporting with no proof of ‘devastation'
The former Fox News weekend presenter who now serves as the head of the massive American defense establishment baselessly accused the Pentagon press corps — including one of his former colleagues — of deliberately trying to cast doubt on the success of last weekend's U.S. airstrikes against Iranian nuclear sites out of a desire to undermine the Trump administration in a bizarre rant-filled press conference aimed at the Pentagon on Thursday. Speaking alongside the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff in the Pentagon briefing room, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth laid into the assembled reporters from the start by grousing about how news outlets hadn't given President Donald Trump enough credit for NATO members' decision to increase defense spending to an annual five percent of GDP at this week's summit in The Hague. He also accused them of missing 'historic moments' while trying to 'find wedges and spin stories' before claiming the airstrikes aimed at Iran's Esfahan, Fordow and Natanz nuclear sites on Saturday had been 'the most complex and secretive military operation in history' and 'a resounding success.' The airstrikes, which were conducted by seven B-2 Spirit bomber aircraft with the aid of numerous fighters and an Ohio-class guided missile submarine that fired dozens of Tomahawk Land Attack Missiles at one of the target sites, appear to have inflicted significant damage on the sites. But Hegseth and President Donald Trump have become increasingly irate over press coverage of the action because of reporting in the last few days which cited a preliminary report stating that the damage to the underground Fordow site wasn't enough to match their claims to have 'obliterated' the facilities. Hegseth complained that the press had reported on the preliminary document and cited other more recent statements from some of Trump's political appointees which assessed that the strikes had 'severely damaged' Iran's nuclear program before returning to attacking journalists and accusing them of wanting the military to fail because it would look bad for Trump. 'You cheer against Trump so hard, it's like in your DNA and in your blood to cheer against Trump,' he said. 'Because you want him not to be successful so bad, you have to cheer against the efficacy of these strikes.' 'You have to hope maybe they weren't effective, maybe the way the Trump administration is representing them isn't true. So let's take half truths, spun information, leaked information, and then spin it, spin it in every way we can, to try to cause doubt and manipulate the mind, the public mind over whether or not our brave pilots were successful,' he added. The ex-Fox News host's combative demeanor at the early-morning press conference matched the performative outrage he displayed alongside Trump less than a day before, when he called the bombing mission 'flawless' and said the 30,000 pound Massive Ordnance Penetrator weapons dropped onto the hardened Fordow site had created 'devastation underneath' before attacking the motives of the Defense Intelligence Agency analysts who'd written the intelligence assessment and accusing news outlets that have reported on it of 'trying to spin it to make the president look bad when this was an overwhelming success.'
Reuters
43 minutes ago
- Reuters
Hawkish Fed could inflict markets' biggest 'pain trades'
ORLANDO, Florida, June 26 (Reuters) - As the first half of the year closes, financial markets are in limbo, waiting to see how the kaleidoscope of global trade deals will – or won't – come together after July 9, when Washington's pause on its "reciprocal tariffs" expires. But if investors are wrong-footed, which trades will be the most vulnerable? The state of suspended animation in today's markets is remarkably bullish. U.S. growth forecasts are rising, S&P 500 earnings growth estimates for next year are running at a punchy 14%, corporate deal-making is picking up, and world stocks are at record highs. The uncertainty immediately following President Donald Trump's April 2 "Liberation Day" tariffs seems a distant memory. The relief rally has ripped for nearly three months, only taking a brief pause during the 12-day war between Israel and Iran. It's a pretty rosy outlook, some might say too rosy. If we do see a pullback, what will be the biggest "pain trades"? The major pressure points are, unsurprisingly, in asset classes and markets where positioning and sentiment are most overloaded in one direction. As always with crowded trades, a sudden price reversal can push too many investors to the exit door at once, meaning not all will get out in time. To identify the most overloaded positions, it's useful to look at the Bank of America's monthly global fund manager survey. In the June survey, the top three most-crowded trades right now are long gold (according to 41% of those polled), long "Magnificent Seven" tech stocks (23%), and short U.S. dollar (20%). This popularity, of course, means these three trades have been highly profitable. The "Mag 7" basket of Nvidia, Microsoft, Meta, Apple, Amazon, Alphabet and Tesla shares accounted for well over half of the S&P 500's 58% two-year return in 2023 and 2024. The Roundhill equal-weighted "Mag 7" ETF is up 40% this year, and the Nasdaq 100 index, in which these seven stocks' make up more than half of the market cap, this week hit a record high. Meanwhile, the gold price has virtually doubled in the last two-and-a-half years, smashing its way to a record high $3,500 an ounce in April. And the dollar is down 10% this year, on track for its worst first half of any year since the era of free-floating exchange rates was established more than 50 years ago. In some ways, these three trades are an offshoot of one fundamental bet: the deep-rooted view that the Federal Reserve will cut U.S. interest rates quite substantially in the next 18 months, a scenario that would make all these positions money-spinners. Even though the Fed's revised economic projections last week were notable for their hawkish tilt, rates futures markets have been upping their bets on lower rates, largely due to dovish comments from several Fed officials and a sharp fall in oil prices. Traders are now predicting 125 basis points of rate cuts by the end of next year. Economists at Morgan Stanley are even more dovish, forecasting no change this year but 175 basis points of cuts next year. That would take the Fed funds range down to 2.5%-2.75%. Lower borrowing costs would be especially positive for shares in companies that can expect high future growth rates, like Big Tech. Low rates are also, in theory, good for gold, a non-interest-bearing asset. But, on the flip side, it's difficult to construct a scenario in which the economy is chugging along, supporting equity performance, while the Fed is also slashing rates by 175 bps. Easing on that scale and at that speed would almost certainly signal that the Fed was trying to put out a raging economic fire, most likely a severe slowdown or recession. While risk assets may not necessarily collapse in that environment, over-extended positions would be exposed. Granted, this isn't the first time investors have banked on Fed cuts in the past three years, and we have yet to see a major blow-up as a result. Markets have handled "higher-for-longer" rates much better than many observers warned, soaring to new highs in the process. Still, if "pain trades" do emerge in the second half of the year, it will likely be because of one sore spot: a hawkish Fed. (The opinions expressed here are those of the author, a columnist for Reuters.) Enjoying this column? Check out Reuters Open Interest (ROI), your essential new source for global financial commentary. ROI delivers thought-provoking, data-driven analysis. Markets are moving faster than ever. ROI can help you keep up. Follow ROI on LinkedIn and X.
The Independent
44 minutes ago
- The Independent
Iran nuclear capability set back ‘years' fresh US intel claims
Donald Trump 's administration released new intelligence claiming Iran 's nuclear program has been set back 'years' due to recent strikes. This new information contradicts an earlier, widely reported, leaked assessment that suggested military strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities only set the program back by mere months. CIA Director John Ratcliffe has now claimed that credible intelligence indicates Iran's nuclear program was severely damaged, requiring years to rebuild key facilities. Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard also asserted the destruction of Iran's nuclear facilities, criticizing 'propaganda media' for selectively leaking classified information. Following the leak of the initial assessment, the Trump administration reportedly plans to limit the sharing of classified intelligence with Congress.
