The Trump administration is preparing to fire hundreds of high-level Department of Homeland Security employees
Trump Administration to Purge Hundreds of High-Level DHS Employees
The Trump administration is set to fire hundreds of senior Department of Homeland Security (DHS) employees this week as part of a sweeping effort to remove officials deemed misaligned with its agenda, according to three sources familiar with the plan.
Targeting High-Level Officials Across DHS
Sources say the administration has compiled a centralized list of high-ranking personnel across DHS agencies who will be targeted for removal. The layoffs come on top of broader workforce cuts that began Friday, affecting the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), and the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA).
However, unlike previous reductions aimed at cutting overall federal staffing, these firings are focused on removing career officials in key managerial roles—including Senior Executive Service (SES) and General Schedule (GS-15) employees—who the administration believes could obstruct its policies.
Reshaping DHS for Immigration Enforcement Priorities
DHS, which oversees Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), plays a central role in enforcing U.S. immigration laws. Trump has leaned heavily on CBP to tighten border security and on ICE to increase arrests and deportations of undocumented immigrants.
A former senior Biden administration official criticized the move, saying these career employees influence policy and strategy and that removing them could disrupt DHS operations.
A Trump administration official defended the decision, arguing that bureaucratic resistance had slowed the administration’s efforts.
"These people put themselves in a terrible position, and they need to be removed," the official stated.
Trump Administration’s Justification
In a statement, a DHS spokesperson framed the move as part of Trump’s broader effort to overhaul the federal government, saying:
"Under President Trump’s leadership, we are making sweeping cuts and reform across the federal government to eliminate egregious waste and incompetence that has been happening for decades at the expense of the American taxpayer."
With the mass removal of senior officials underway, the Trump administration appears determined to reshape DHS leadership to align with its hardline immigration and national security priorities.