‘MAGA Junkie' Fired in DOGE Cuts Now Regrets Voting for Trump: ‘I Expected Better'

A self-confessed 'MAGA junkie' from a red-voting city devastated by Department of Government Efficiency firings has said she regrets voting for Donald Trump.
In the lead-up to the election in November last year, Jennifer Piggott, from Parkersburg, West Virginia, flew a Trump flag outside her house. She was not the only one; her community in Wood County voted overwhelmingly for the Republican candidate, who scooped 70 percent of the votes in the area.
But just weeks into Trump 2.0, the president let Piggott and others like her down by firing 125 probationary civil service workers. The Treasury Department's Bureau of Fiscal Service—which effectively acts as the government's day-to-day bank—was gutted, and so was Piggott.
Speaking to CNN Live in a broadcast shown Thursday, Pigott said she cried after she was axed. 'I was a MAGA junkie, a MAGA junkie who thought her government job would be safe with Donald Trump in office. I cried. It's scary, you know, it's a really scary thing, and I was embarrassed,' she said.
Piggott and her colleagues were let go based on alleged poor performance. But in her final review just 21 days before she was axed, Pigott, who has voted for Trump in the last three elections, got 'the highest rating you can get on review,' she told CNN.
She added that she now 'regrets' voting for Trump. 'To cut the knees out of the working-class Americans just doesn't make sense to me. I expected more from President Donald Trump,' she said.
Her woes have not stopped. Pigott, who has spoken to the national press about the issue before, has been targeted by vandals and has even received death threats since speaking out.
'I expected better from you. I really did,' Pigott said, when asked what she would say to Trump if she got the chance. 'I expected that you would do what was right and cut waste and fraud and all of those things that you promised us before we elected you in office, but you're not doing that—you're creating a disaster and I don't know what America is gonna look like if this continues.'
CNN spoke to a second woman, afraid to reveal her identity for fear of retribution, who retired from the Bureau of Fiscal Service because she feared losing her health insurance if she was axed.
'I'm not sure that I would have [voted for Trump], and the way that it's been done... I'm for balancing the budget, that type of thing, but not, not in this context, it's just not right,' she said.
The Bureau employs some 2,000 people in the city of 29,000.
Earlier this month, a federal judge stood in the way of the spate of firings—ordering agencies, including the Bureau of Fiscal Service, to give fired probationary employees their jobs back. However, the Trump administration took the matter to the Supreme Court this week, asking it to overrule the federal decision. The 125 fired individuals, like thousands of other federal workers, are now in limbo, on paid leave.

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Yahoo

19 minutes ago

• Yahoo

Fact Check: Debunking alleged photo of Trump on Epstein's jet with underage girls

Claim: A photo shared online authentically depicts U.S. President Donald Trump on an airplane with underage girls. Rating: An image purporting to be an authentic photo of U.S. President Donald Trump aboard an airplane accompanied by five young women circulated online extensively in June 2025. The alleged photograph was shared widely across social media platforms like Threads (archived), Facebook (archived) and BlueSky (archived), but was particularly widespread on X (archived, archived, archived). Some users sharing the photo pondered if the airplane featured in the image belonged to accused sex trafficker Jeffrey Epstein, who is now deceased. Many others spreading the photo online alleged the young women present were underage. (Facebook user Danilo Padilla Ramirez) The image shared online purporting to show Donald Trump alongside underage girls, allegedly on Epstein's private jet, is fake. While there are authentic images of Trump alongside Epstein, plenty of false images have spread widely on the internet, including other fake photos of Trump with underage girls. The specific image in question has been shared online since at least 2023. It appeared in posts on meme websites Imgur and 9GAG in April 2023 before spreading to social media. In January 2024, Hollywood actor Mark Ruffalo even apologized for sharing fake images of Trump with underage girls, including the one in question. The actor wrote, "Sorry Folks. Apparently these images are AI fakes. The fact Trump was on Epstein's plane and what Epstein was up to is not." Indeed, the photograph was generated with artificial intelligence (AI). The AI-detection tool Hive Moderation reported a 99.8% chance the image was made using AI and was thoroughly debunked when it originally circulated. While the image was debunked during its original circulation, Trump's public feud with Elon Musk, who posted on social media that Trump appeared in Epstein's files in June 2025, brought the image back to prominence and is likely to blame for the proliferation of new claims. Snopes previously debunked fake images of Trump and Epstein with a minor as well as Trump and Epstein together on a private jet, though there have been authentic images of the pair together. Dapcevich, Madison. "Photos of Trump Alongside Diddy, Epstein Are Real." Snopes, 6 Dec. 2024, Esposito, Joey. "Musk Accused Trump of Being in Epstein's Files. Here Are 19 Rumors We've Looked into about the Disgraced Financier." Snopes, 5 June 2025, Fact Check: Trump, Epstein Photos With "Underage" Women NOT Authentic -- They're AI Generated | Lead Stories. 9 May 2023, Liles, Jordan. "Yes, Musk Alleged Trump Appears in the Epstein Files." Snopes, 5 June 2025, "Mark Ruffalo Apologizes after Reposting False Images of Trump on Epstein's Plane." NBC News, Accessed 12 June 2025. Wrona, Aleksandra. "Pic Supposedly Showing Trump, Epstein and a Minor Girl Is Fake." Snopes, 24 Aug. 2024,

New York Post

an hour ago

• New York Post

Police sound alarm on dangerous ‘jugging' robbery trend sweeping across America

As surveillance footage of an increasingly popular violent street crime has surfaced from South Carolina, police are warning Americans of the disturbing trend. The crime is known as 'jugging,' a type of robbery in which criminals surveil banks and ATMs, watching for victims who withdraw large sums of money. When those victims finish their transactions, the 'juggers' will usually follow them to a secondary location, where they will rob the victims, often inside their vehicles. 'Jugging rhymes with mugging, it's spread from Texas to South Carolina,' Fox News Senior Correspondent Steve Harrigan said on 'America Reports' on Friday. 'Some police there weren't even sure what the word meant until the crime started happening in their own districts. Law enforcement warns that it could be over in a flash.' In the footage, captured on April 26, a man can be seen struggling inside the front passenger area of a red truck, before jumping out of that vehicle and into a silver SUV. 3 Jugging is a type of robbery where perpetrators watch for victims who take out large amounts of money at banks and ATMs. FOX News The SUV then speeds off, and it is captured from different surveillance angles fleeing the parking lot. Cpl. Cecilio Reyes of the Mauldin, South Carolina, Police Department explained how the crime typically plays out. 'They are scoping, and they will watch you as you're either coming in or going out of the bank, or watch you do ATM withdrawals, seeing how much you're getting cash wise,' Reyes said. 3 When the victims finish the transactions, the criminals typically follow them to a second location where they will rob them. FOX News 3 The type of crime originated in Texas. FOX News Harrigan described a wave of jugging arrests in Texas, before the practice began spreading to North and South Carolina. 'In one place in South Carolina, a landscaping business owner went in a bank unaware that he was being observed, took out his weekly payroll, stopped at a gas station for a soda, and two juggers – they usually work in teams – pulled up alongside his Chevy, broke through the window and made off with what his entire payroll was, $6,000.' Harrigan also reported that the Texas legislature is working to make jugging a specific felony, with harsher penalties than simple robbery.

Gizmodo

an hour ago

• Gizmodo

Elon Musk Has a New Plan to Win Back MAGA

Elon Musk is in comeback mode. And he's doing it the only way he knows how: by igniting culture war flames and trolling progressives. The world's richest man has just endured one of the most humiliating stretches of his public life. What started as a bombastic fallout with Donald Trump, whom Musk helped return to the White House, ended with a rare and uncharacteristic public apology. 'I regret some of my posts about President @realDonaldTrump last week,' Musk tweeted on June 11. 'They went too far.' I regret some of my posts about President @realDonaldTrump last week. They went too far. — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 11, 2025This moment of contrition signaled just how much damage the feud had done, not only to Musk's reputation with Make America Great Again conservatives, but also to his companies. Tesla, the electric vehicle maker he leads as CEO, is still reeling from a sharp sales drop. First-quarter deliveries fell 13%, and net income plunged 71% year-over-year. The company's stock has dropped more than 20% since January. Behind the scenes, Musk has attempted to re-focus on business. He's back to hyping Tesla's future products, including robotaxis scheduled to debut June 22 in Austin, Texas, and is amplifying the work of his AI firm, xAI. But politics remains his drug of choice. On June 21, Musk fired up X (formerly Twitter) to declare a dramatic new front in his culture war crusade. ''Baby, what happened to Woke?'' he posted, mimicking a conversation. Then answered himself: 'Dead, my darling, Woke is dead.' 'Baby, what happened to Woke?' Dead, my darling, Woke is dead. — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 21, 2025The post racked up over 35 million views. Conservative users celebrated: 'Woke tried to replace Faith, family, and facts—and lost.' Woke tried to replace faith, family, and facts and lost. — Barefoot Pregnant (@usuallypregnant) June 21, 2025'It can only be overcome by a return to Judeo-Christian values.' Others were more skeptical: 'Woke is not dead – It's regrouping.' ❗️Wokeness is not dead — it's regrouping, seeking new disguises. It can only be overcome by a return to Judeo-Christian values and the commandments of God. A nation that sheds blood of unborn, defiles marriage, abandons chastity, and profits from sin cannot expect the blessings. — Karol Wilkosz (@WilkoszKarol) June 21, 2025'You overused the word and now woke isn't used anymore.' You overused the word and now Woke isn't used anymore. People are still as aware and awake as ever-more so! Free Palestine. — Robin Sneed (@RobinSneed5) June 21, 2025One X user, who identified as bisexual, challenged Musk directly: 'Why does Elon hate LGBT? I know it's cause of his son but don't take it out on everyone else.' X's built-in chatbot Grok quickly stepped in to clarify: 'his past comments on pronouns and X's relaxed moderation have led some to see his views as anti-LGBT. [But]There's no clear evidence his stance stems from personal issues. His intent appears to target 'woke' ideology generally, but interpretations vary..' I'm sorry you feel insulted. Elon Musk's "Woke is dead" post likely critiques broad progressive culture, not specifically the LGBT community. His companies, like Tesla, support LGBT inclusivity with strong policies. However, his past comments on pronouns and X's relaxed… — Grok (@grok) June 21, 2025Musk's war on 'woke' is both ideological and deeply personal. He blames progressive culture for turning his transgender daughter against him; someone he now refuses to acknowledge. 'My son, Xavier, died,' he posted in March. 'He was killed by the woke mind virus. Now, the woke mind virus will die.' Exactly. My son, Xavier, died. He was killed by the woke mind virus. Now, the woke mind virus will die. — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 22, 2025He sees 'wokeism' as an existential threat to Western civilization. Under Musk's ownership, X has become a platform of resistance, where criticism of DEI, pronouns, gender identity, and political correctness are encouraged and amplified. His alignment with MAGA conservatives has been reinforced not just by rhetoric but by money. Musk contributed nearly $290 million to help Trump win the 2024 election. His support didn't go unrewarded: Trump named him head of a newly created Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). But the honeymoon didn't last. When Musk began publicly disagreeing with Trump over policy and power, the president lashed out. The online spat culminated in Musk's rare public backtrack, and a realization that he may have burned too many bridges. Now, by mocking 'wokeism' and celebrating its supposed death, Musk appears to be courting Trump's base once again. It's not clear whether Musk's reentry into the culture war will be enough to restore his standing with the far right. His fallout with Trump exposed ideological and ego-based rifts that may not be easy to mend. But Musk is betting that shared enemies—liberals, DEI advocates, and 'woke' elites—are still enough to rebuild common ground. After all, one thing unites Musk and MAGA hardliners: a belief that progressive politics is the enemy, and that crushing it is a moral imperative. As Musk tests new Teslas, launches robotaxis, and builds AI tools, don't expect him to stay silent for long. He's not just fighting for influence. He's fighting for relevance. And right now, culture war is still his favorite battlefield.