An unprecedented effort to shrink the federal labor force is impeding work at government sites across the country and spawning unintended consequences for services Americans rely on. The U.S.

Across the country, protests have erupted in opposition to Elon Musk’s involvement in the federal government’s reshaping efforts, particularly the controversial Department of Government Efficiency.

Before DOGE was even a thing, I ran a similar operation for the NSW Coalition. Here are the three lessons I learned.