A Republican congressman is going viral for angrily direct messaging a former Veterans Affairs staffer on LinkedIn after he asked about government job cuts.
In the message, Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-Wisc.) appeared to threaten the ex-staffer with firing—apparently unaware that the man had already been let go.
A screenshot of the message was shared on X by WKOW 27 News reporter JT Cestkowski, where it quickly went viral.
“I have absolutely no say in the employment status of any individual in the executive branch however, I will be referring you to DOGE as it seems that at 13:46 on a Monday you should have been working for veterans, not posting trash about your boss, President Trump,” Van Orden, who is a member of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs, wrote.
Van Orden’s message was directed to Tony Ruiz, who had worked as a veterans service representative at the Los Angeles VA.
According to the Washington Examiner, Ruiz, a disabled veteran, was awarded VA Employee of the Quarter and received a cash bonus—but was told his firing, which occurred two weeks before the completion of his probationary period, was for to performance reasons.
Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) previously issued directives terminating the jobs of thousands of probationary employees.
Ruiz’s firing came after he penned an op-ed stating he felt targeted by the Trump administration’s anti-DEI push while pledging to continue working.
“How can it be that I finally got my dream job after so many years, and yet now I have this situation where they want to get rid of me in a sense—not just as a federal employee, but also as a Latino, born from Mexican immigrants, who are legal, and as an Army veteran who’s serving my country proudly?” Ruiz wrote, according to his essay published by Business Insider.
He later concluded: “But I’m not afraid. And I have no intention of resigning.”
Two business days after that essay was published, Ruiz was fired.
Since his firing, Ruiz says he has gone on the offense, reaching out to multiple lawmakers to discuss the layoffs, which appears to be what prompted Van Orden’s response.
And that caught social media’s attention.
“Exhibit number one in the wrongful termination lawsuit,” quipped one critic.
“Everyone should now contact [Van Orden] and remind him he works for us. Not DOGE and not Elon. This is disgraceful,” stated someone else.
“You work for We The People and don’t you ever forget that, sir. Check yourself,” echoed another commenter.
Rebecca Cooke, Van Orden’s former Democratic opponent who has eyed a rematch in 2026, similarly offered a sharp rebuke.
“Shameful. [Derrick Van Orden] bullies those who serve our veterans. Who does he think he is?” Cooke wrote. “We can do better for our veterans and all our communities.”
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