ABC White House correspondent Selina Wang tried to emotionally manipulate viewers of Saturday’s Good Morning America by suggesting that the Trump Administration’s effort to trim the size of the government’s bureaucracy is an attack on veterans.
In studio, Wang declared, “First of all, this news is sending shock waves throughout the system, and the Trump Administration is firing tens of thousands of federal workers across the country, and workers who have suddenly been laid off tell me it's not just their livelihoods that are at stake here, but also the people they serve.”
Now doing a voiceover for a recorded report, Wang added, “This morning, the Pentagon bracing for potential cuts with tens of thousands of federal workers from the Department of Health, Homeland Security, and Energy already in shock after they were suddenly fired from their jobs.”
The first person Wang featured was Chelsea Milburn, who declared that “I was definitely upset” at the news.
Wang then filled in some biographical details, “Chelsea Millburn, a disabled veteran terminated from the Department of Education, says she fears for her financial future left to juggle her disability and her family's well-being.”
Milburn continued, “It kind of felt like having that piece of myself that was given to me yanked back out from under me.”
Teeing up one final snippet from Milburn, Wang announced, “Milburn says she hopes Americans realize that an attack on civil servants is an attack on veterans.”
Milburn concluded her portion of the segment by addressing the audience, “To the American people, I think they don't recognize that almost 30 percent of the federal workforce are veterans.”
According to a USA Today profile, Milburn has worked remotely since she was hired in November and has been “diagnosed with postural orthostatic tachycardia syndrome or POTS, a chronic condition that often leaves her dizzy when she stands, breathless and exhausted.”
That means Wang found one sympathetic example to paint the administration as heartless. What she didn’t mention was that Milburn’s status as a recent hire meant she was still on probation, and that is probably why she was part of the recent round of layoffs. Saying 30 percent of federal workers are veterans is another way of saying 70 percent are not. While it is all well and good that the government can find employment for those who served, those jobs should be 100 percent necessary (Milburn was a public affairs specialist). The federal government is not a jobs program. It is a gross appeal to emotion to say you either support an ever-increasing bureaucracy or you don’t support veterans.
Here is a transcript for the February 15 show:
ABC Good Morning America
2/15/2025
7:08 AM ET
SELINA WANG: First of all, this news is sending shock waves throughout the system, and the Trump Administration is firing tens of thousands of federal workers across the country, and workers who have suddenly been laid off tell me it's not just their livelihoods that are at stake here, but also the people they serve.
This morning, the Pentagon bracing for potential cuts with tens of thousands of federal workers from the Department of Health, Homeland Security, and Energy already in shock after they were suddenly fired from their jobs.
CHELSEA MILBURN: I was definitely upset.
WANG: Chelsea Millburn, a disabled veteran terminated from the Department of Education, says she fears for her financial future left to juggle her disability and her family's well-being.
MILBURN: It kind of felt like having that piece of myself that was given to me yanked back out from under me.
WANG: Milburn says she hopes Americans realize that an attack on civil servants is an attack on veterans.
MILBURN: To the American people, I think they don't recognize that almost 30 percent of the federal workforce are veterans.
