Roughly 80 Kentuckians gathered in Bowling Green to protest the mass firings of federal employees by President Donald Trump and his advisor Elon Musk. Protesters chanted, held signs, and demonstrated outside the Bowling Green office of U.S. Sen. Rand Paul.
The event was organized by SOKY Indivisible, a group that aims to bring community members together to hold federal leaders accountable. Allen County residents Charlie and Natalie Barman attended the event. Natalie said she feels policymakers from Kentucky could do more to stop federal cutbacks being carried out by the Department of Government Efficiency, headed by Elon Musk.
"Congress and the Senate are not doing their diligent duty for the citizens of the United States," she said. "They have the checks and balances to stop this President and Elon Musk. They have the responsibility to be a check on the presidency and they're not doing it."
Charlie added he hopes federal lawmakers like Sen. Paul take a stand against drastic federal job cuts across the country.
"What we've seen in the last couple weeks here is that the Congress is just bowing down to Trump and Musk," he said. "They're not doing what they should be doing and when you look at some of the people that they have gotten into key posts, they are totally unqualified and I'm just really concerned about our country at this point."
The Department of Government Efficiency, led by Elon Musk, has cut thousands of jobs across multiple federal agencies, including the Department of Veterans Affairs, Federal Aviation Administration, IRS, USAID, and National Park Service.
Sonya Griffith, a resident of Warren County and a former employee of the Department of Veterans Affairs, said she's concerned military veterans will be impacted by the federal cutbacks.
"This is not how our nation treats its people," Griffith said. "I'm offended on behalf of our veterans whom I love and I loved taking care of and I would like to see our nation go back to being a leader in the world."
