Senate staff probes DOGE, finds locked doors and windows covered with trash bags
arstechnica.com

... Democratic staffers investigated DOGE activities at the SSA, GSA, and Office of Personnel Management (OPM), resulting in the report written by staff for Democrats on the Senate Homeland Security & Governmental Affairs Committee. The report criticized the agencies for lack of cooperation.

"None of the agencies have allowed meetings with representatives from agency DOGE teams.

In the DOGE spaces staff were permitted to view, armed guards controlled access to work and living spaces, rooms were locked, and office windows appeared to have been hastily covered with black trash bags and tape," the report said.

At the GSA building, "officials refused to show staff at least six offices that GSA had allowed DOGE to convert into bedrooms," and refused to show staff the agency's Starlink broadband equipment, the report said.

In another instance described by the report, "GSA officials said they did not have the key to open a locked room that had windows covered with black paper, trash bags, and tape.

When staff asked why the most senior officials in offices charged with building management and security could not open an office door, GSA could not provide an answer."

The report said that during a site visit at the SSA building, the DOGE workspace was guarded by armed security. "SSA officials providing the tour confirmed that this level of security was unusual," the report said. "When staff asked why the additional security for the DOGE workspace was needed, Mr. [Dan] Callahan [the Assistant Commissioner for Building and Facilities Management] said that DOGE staff were concerned about threats to their safety. Staff asked whether these were direct threats and whether officials informed law enforcement. Officials explained that there had not been a specific threat, rather that some DOGE staff felt threatened based on a communication with an SSA employee that 'included cursing.'"

Aside from the security guard, the DOGE offices appeared to be empty on a Thursday afternoon, the report said. ...

Federal agencies DOGE questions about what cost-cutting team is doing
www.theregister.com