Reports emerge of a “secret network of federal workers resisting Doge from the inside.”
This shadowy coalition, dubbed “#AltGov” by some on social media, is allegedly working to undermine the ambitious reforms spearheaded by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), an initiative tied to the Trump administration’s latest push for bureaucratic overhaul.
While details remain murky, multiple news outlets and online discussions have begun to shed light on this covert resistance.
The Guardian first brought this story to prominence with an article titled “#AltGov: the secret network of federal workers resisting Doge from the inside,” which has been widely circulated on platforms like X.
According to the piece, a group of career civil servants—disillusioned by DOGE’s aggressive cost-cutting and deregulation agenda—has formed an informal alliance to protect what they see as the integrity of federal institutions.
Sources cited in The Guardian suggest that these workers, scattered across various agencies, are using encrypted communication channels and off-the-record meetings to coordinate their efforts.
Their goal? To slow or sabotage DOGE’s initiatives, which they view as a threat to public welfare and institutional stability.
This narrative aligns with murmurs reported elsewhere.
A recent piece in The Washington Post hinted at unrest within the federal workforce, noting that some employees have anonymously voiced concerns over DOGE’s proposals to slash budgets and eliminate redundancies.
While the Post stopped short of confirming a coordinated resistance, it quoted an unnamed senior official who warned of “quiet pushback” from staff who feel their expertise and decades of service are being disregarded.
The official remarked, “You can’t dismantle a system this complex overnight without expecting some friction.”
Adding fuel to the fire, Politico ran a story last week exploring the broader political context of DOGE’s mission.
The outlet reported that the department, co-led by high-profile figures from the Trump orbit, has polarized federal employees.
Politico’s sources—none of whom claimed direct involvement in an organized resistance—suggested that morale has plummeted in agencies targeted for downsizing.
One mid-level bureaucrat told Politico, “There’s a sense that DOGE isn’t about efficiency—it’s about settling scores.”
This sentiment, while not evidence of a secret network, provides a plausible backdrop for why such a group might emerge.
The specifics of #AltGov’s actions remain elusive.
The Guardian alleged that the network has engaged in subtle acts of defiance, such as leaking internal memos to sympathetic journalists or deliberately misfiling paperwork to delay DOGE directives.
However, without named sources or hard evidence, these claims remain speculative.
Posts on X have amplified the story, with users like @Texboyer45 declaring, “Who said there wasn’t a deep state?” Yet, social media buzz alone doesn’t substantiate the existence or scale of this resistance.
Skeptics argue that the “secret network” might be overstated.
A commentary in The Wall Street Journal dismissed the idea as a conspiracy theory born from bureaucratic paranoia, suggesting that any resistance is likely just the grumbling of a workforce resistant to change.
The Journal pointed out that DOGE’s mandate—to streamline government operations—has bipartisan roots, citing past efficiency drives under both Republican and Democratic administrations.
“Every reform effort faces pushback,” the editorial board wrote. “That doesn’t mean there’s a cabal hiding in the shadows.”
Still, the notion of an #AltGov resonates with a public already primed to suspect hidden agendas.
The Guardian’s reporting taps into a long-standing narrative of a “deep state”—a term that has evolved from fringe rhetoric to mainstream discourse.
Whether this network is a disciplined insurgency or a loose collection of disgruntled employees, its emergence underscores a broader tension: the clash between political appointees wielding DOGE’s axe and careerists who see themselves as guardians of the public good.
As of now, no federal agency has officially acknowledged the existence of this resistance, and DOGE leadership has remained silent on the matter.
The story’s ambiguity leaves room for interpretation. Is #AltGov a heroic stand against overreach, or a self-serving attempt to preserve an bloated bureaucracy?
Without more concrete evidence—perhaps from whistleblowers or leaked documents—the truth remains obscured.
For now, the secret network persists as a whispered rumor, amplified by newsrooms and X alike, in a government divided against itself.
