Congressman reveals secret weapon in defense bill: bureaucracy bunker buster
Rep. Glenn Grothman says NDAA cuts up to 19% of civilian jobs, saving an estimated $30 billion.
By Misty Severi
Published: December 10, 2025 10:53pm
Rep. Glenn Grothman says the National Defense Authorization Act passed Wednesday by the House contains a little-noticed weapon to cut federal spending and bureaucracy.
The Wisconsin Republican told Just The News the bill now heading to the Senate cuts up to 19% of civilian jobs inside the War Department, saving an estimated $30 billion.
"It appears as though the Department of Defense is going to step up and, like some of the other departments, begin to lay off some employees who are really not necessary in today's highly technical world," Grothman said.
The House passed the nearly 3,100-page bill earlier Wednesday in a bipartisan 312-112 vote, and the legislation will now go to the Senate for approval before going to President Donald Trump's desk for his signature.
Grothman said that one thing Congress and the American people have learned in Trump's first year back in the Oval Office is how many Defense Department employees are civilians. The congressman said there were 760,000 civilian employees.
"I believe right now, we've reduced that number by 18 or 19%. I was able to talk to some of the people in the Pentagon," Grothman said on the "Just The News, No Noise" TV show. "Their goal is to reduce that figure further ... I think one of the things that DOGE exposed is there are a lot of federal employees who maybe aren't working that hard.
more
https://justthenews.com/government/congress/congressman-shares-hidden-pentagon-bunker-buster-new-national-defense
