The Gist Franklin Foer: Chronicling The Purged
May 13, 2026
Franklin Foer, Atlantic staff writer who chronicled civil servants dismissed under Trump, discusses The Purged. He shares personal portraits of displaced experts and explains how mass removals hollow out institutional knowledge. Conversations cover food-safety inspectors, IRS modernization struggles, targeted offices like oversight and DEI, and the long-term costs of replacing expertise with contractors.
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Food Inspector Paula Soldner's Dirty Job Story
- Paula Soldner's story illustrates frontline loss: a longtime food inspector forced out after decades inspecting meat and pizza factories.
- Foer describes her riding out of slaughterhouses covered in gore and later becoming a union leader whose role offered some protection from retaliation.
Chainsaw Cuts Destroy Expertise More Than Bloat
- Institutional reform is necessary but a chainsaw approach risks losing top talent and expertise.
- Foer contrasts targeted modernization (e.g., IRS Direct File funding) with blunt mass firings that push experts to leave.
Contracting Replaces Staff But Inflates Costs
- Mass purges shift work to contractors, masking costs while degrading institutional memory.
- Foer warns contractors expand invisible bloat and the remaining workforce tends toward mediocrity unwilling to take risks.