The effort to reduce the size of the federal government by US President Donald Trump and Elon Musk is ongoing. The US Department of Defense (Pentagon) is reportedly preparing to lay off around 60 thousand civilian employees. A news report by the Associated Press (AP), based on defense officials, highlighted the Department’s intention to terminate the jobs of 50 to 60 thousand civilian employees. The report also mentioned that around 21 thousand civilian employees who accepted the Trump administration’s previous “voluntary resignation” call will leave the institution in the coming months. These officials stated that the Pentagon, which has over 900 thousand civilian workers, plans to reduce its workforce by 5 to 8 percent, aiming to cut around 6 thousand positions per month by not filling vacated positions as part of their routine procedures. US President Donald Trump, along with Elon Musk, who oversees the Government Efficiency Department (DOGE), argues that the federal government needs to be downsized. The layoffs had been taken to court previously, with San Francisco district court judge William Alsup ruling against the Trump administration in a case involving fired federal employees. Alsup, stating that the White House does not have the authority to fire federal employees, ordered the immediate reinstatement of those who had been fired by the Trump administration from departments such as Veterans Affairs, Agriculture, Defense, Energy, Interior, and Treasury. The case seen in San Francisco against the mass layoffs by the Trump administration is just one of many similar cases across the country. President Trump, after coming into office, had laid off thousands of people working in federal institutions through the Government Efficiency Department led by billionaire Elon Musk. Following the mass layoffs, which particularly affected new hires, numerous unions and organizations across the country had filed lawsuits against the Trump administration.