U.S. Rep. Jen Kiggans sent a letter to Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth this week asking for restraint in layoffs affecting veterans and national security.

In the letter, the Republican congresswoman asks Hegseth to prioritize keeping veterans in their jobs and ensuring they are not disproportionally laid off by cuts to the federal workforce. She also asked that veterans get access to other federal positions in areas focusing on national security, writing that cuts could be “weakening (the United States’) defense capabilities.”

Hegseth directed the Pentagon^[1] in February to cut about 8%, or $50 billion, from the military budget. The Department of Defense has also announced it would review staff members still in their probationary periods for layoffs, according to a recent news release. This means about 5,400 probationary workers will be released from their jobs, followed by a hiring freeze across the department.

Kiggans noted Virginia’s 2nd Congressional District, which she has represented since 2023, is home to tens of thousands of servicemembers and veterans. She said Hampton Roads is especially vulnerable to cuts in military and federal workforce.

“As a former Navy helicopter pilot and a commonsense conservative, I believe we can responsibly rein in waste while ensuring ( Department of Defense) personnel with prior military service remain in positions where they can continue to contribute to our national security,” Kiggans said in a statement. “Any reductions or reforms to the size and scope of the federal government that risk weakening our defense capabilities, particularly as we face increasing global threats, are unacceptable.”

Hampton Roads is home to the world’s largest naval station and more than a dozen other military bases. According to the Department of Defense^[2], more than 100,000 active-duty and reserve personnel are employed in the region in addition to about 40,000 civilian personnel employed on Hampton Roads military bases.

Kiggans’ letter comes as Hampton Roads residents have become more vocal in their opposition^[3] to some of President Donald Trump’s policies. Twice in the last month, protestors have demonstrated outside Kiggans’ Virginia Beach district office.

“The ( Department of Defense) has laid off thousands of employees, many of whom are veterans who have dedicated their careers to serving our country,” Kiggans said in her letter. “These layoffs are not just a loss of jobs but also a loss of the skilled workforce that is essential to ensuring our defense readiness. President Trump pledged that he would work to minimize job losses for veterans. I hope the ( Department of Defense) is following that promise.”

Since cuts began earlier this year, Democrats have amplified outrage from constituents. Sen. Mark Warner told reporters he has received an “overwhelming” number of calls^[4] from Hampton Roads residents concerned about their jobs. He also said the loss of government contracting jobs could be a “recipe for disaster for the region.”

U.S. Rep. Bobby Scott, D- Newport News, invited a veteran who was laid off from her federal job^[5]to be his guest to Trump’s joint address to Congress on Tuesday. Retired Army Staff Sgt. Alexzandria Hunt was a supply technician at the Hampton Veterans Affairs Medical Center before getting laid off on Feb. 25. Other Democratic congress members are also bringing federal workers who have lost their jobs to Tuesday’s address.

Eliza Noe, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.^[6]

©2025 The Virginian-Pilot. Visit pilotonline.com^[7]. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.^[8]

The opinions expressed in this op-ed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Military.com. If you would like to submit your own commentary, please send your article to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.^[1] for consideration.

The email came at 7:30 at night on a Friday, an awkward time for an awkward message.

"Please see important attachment regarding your employment status with the Small Business Administration," it read.

That attachment detailed my termination with a two-week notice, explaining that, as a probationary employee, I had "failed to demonstrate fitness for continued federal employment."

I had served in the Air Force as an intelligence analyst, separating in 2010, and had signed up in the summer of 2024 to continue my public service with the U.S. Small Business Administration, America's only agency dedicated to supporting and uplifting the backbone of this country, small businesses. I was passionate about the work, and my supervisor had just given me a very positive performance review.

By Monday, that termination notice was rescinded, or so it seemed. The following day, I received the same termination email, this time terminating me immediately, with no notice and no severance. The next morning, I turned in my laptop and cleaned out my office, passing the same American flag I had stood in front of while being sworn into my now former position.

By the end of February, thousands of probationary employees (in their first year or two of service) had been fired across the federal workforce, each with a similar (if not identical) explanation -- poor performance. The truth? It was a sweeping, indiscriminate purge that disregarded actual job performance, efficiency or impact.

But why should you care? Why should we care?

Nearly one-third of the two-million-person federal workforce served in the military. If you're doing the math with me, that's over half a million veterans. Veterans get priority in hiring but are receiving zero protection from being fired. That's not just bad policy, it's bad faith. A community of people with special expertise in teamwork and effectiveness is a valuable asset to the government, and they should be relied upon to drive the best path forward.

Unsurprisingly, the Department of Veterans Affairs is a strong employer of veterans, more than 120,000 of them. In fact, nearly one-quarter of the VA's new hires last year were veterans, making them easy targets as probationary employees. Veterans bring unmatched experience to the VA -- as both employees and patients. These reckless cuts hit veterans twice -- first as employees, then as those relying on federal services. Not only can they find themselves unexpectedly and undeservedly laid off, but the very department designed to help them in their times of need will now be understaffed and possibly unavailable.

At the Defense Department, where thousands of layoffs have already been announced, nearly half of civilian workers are veterans.

From a business perspective, my other expertise as a prior small business owner, this is downright ironic. These indiscriminate firings, masked as an attempt to make the government more efficient, will lead to less productivity and a decrease in service availability to taxpaying Americans. In business, the bottom line is a critical measurement of health. In government, the safety and well-being of its citizens are the priority. Yet, the people who help keep us safe are being discarded in favor of a bottom line.

But there's still time. Each of us has a voice, whether written or verbally, and a representative who needs to hear it. This isn't a case of big government versus small government, red or blue. This is a case of good government, and every American deserves it, especially veterans. Call your congressperson, write your senator, and voice your concern. Call today. Demand an investigation. Ask them: "What's the plan to protect veterans?" Insist on answers.

We cannot sacrifice our nation's heroes in favor of a bottom line. If not, I can only pray for my fellow patriots when they receive that awkward email on a Friday night.

-- Chris Wicker is a veteran of the U.S. Air Force, former small business owner, and workforce advocate. Most recently, he served as deputy district director for the U.S. Small Business Administration before being fired in a wave of federal workforce reductions.

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s nominee for the top policy job at the Pentagon acknowledged during his confirmation hearing on Tuesday that Russia invaded Ukraine and poses a significant military threat to the U.S. and Europe, but only after persistent questioning from senators on both sides of the political aisle.

Elbridge Colby on multiple occasions declined to answer directly whether Russia invaded Ukraine, saying it’s a sensitive topic and he doesn’t want to say anything that might hurt chances of peace.

But, in only one instance — when Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, pressed him, demanding, “In February 2022, did Russian forces cross the border and invade Ukraine? Yes or no? — he told the Senate Armed Services Committee that she was “describing a factual reality” that is “demonstrably true.”

Trump in recent weeks^[1] falsely blamed Ukraine for starting the three-year war^[2] that has cost tens of thousands of Ukrainian lives and called Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy a dictator for not holding elections during wartime. On Friday, in a stunning Oval Office blow up, Trump berated ^[3]Zelenskyy and said he wasn’t grateful enough for America’s support^[4].

Against that backdrop, Colby also would not answer whether Russian President Vladimir Putin is a war criminal or had committed war crimes. The International Criminal Court in 2023 issued an arrest warrant^[5] for Putin for war crimes, accusing him of being personally responsible for the abductions of children from Ukraine.

And when asked about Trump's decision Monday to pause military aid ^[6]to Kyiv, Colby said the president has a plan to end the war and ensure a secure and sovereign Ukraine.

Colby, who served as deputy assistant defense secretary for strategy during the first Trump administration, also faced repeated questions from both Democratic and Republican senators on previous statements he made suggesting the U.S. could tolerate and contain a nuclear-armed Iran.

More recently his comments on the issue have evolved. And on Tuesday, in response to questions from Sen. Tom Cotton of Arkansas and other GOP senators, he said a nuclear armed Iran “would pose an existential threat” to the U.S. and “we should deny Iran to have a nuclear weapon.”

He downplayed his previous comments over the years on Iran, saying, “was my wording always appropriate? Was my precise framing always perfect? No."

Vice President JD Vance made a quick stop at the committee hearing to urge Colby's confirmation, saying the nominee has said things in the past that alienated Republicans and Democrats, and also said things that both sides would agree on. He said the nominee will be able to work with lawmakers, and added that Colby will work to restore the defense industrial base, a key goal.

In other comments during the hearing, Colby said the U.S. “should maintain the highest level of cyber vigilance and capability vis-a-vis Russia.” Asked if the U.S. should not use offensive cyberoperations against Russia, Colby said that generally any moves by Moscow should “be reciprocated.”

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth^[7] has paused offensive cyberoperations against Russia by U.S. Cyber Command, according to U.S. officials., who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive operations. That decision does not affect cyberoperations conducted by other agencies, including the CIA.

Colby has also made comments in the past about pulling back from commitments in the Middle East in order to focus more on China. Asked on Tuesday about threats from an array of adversaries, including China, Iran and North Korea, he said the U.S. doesn’t have a “multi-war military.”

He said the U.S. should not abandon the Middle East, there should not be a nuclear-armed Iran, Russia must not “run roughshod” over Europe and North Korea shouldn't take over South Korea.

But he said he also believes the U.S. “could be at the precipice of a major war with China” and added that the U.S. can’t deal with all of those issues at the same time. The country, he said, needs a credible plan, more resources and additional help from allies.