In a stunning revelation, a leaked audio recording has exposed the Trump administration's deliberate attempt to erode morale among National Park Service (NPS) staff. According to Don Striker, a top regional director overseeing parks in Alaska, the directive was crafted by officials in Washington, including Russell Vought's Office of Management and Budget.
In December, NPS employees were informed that their supervisors would be limited to giving out 3s across the board, rather than allowing high scores. This drastic change was aimed at reducing "bureaucratic grade inflation" among federal employees. However, many staff members are concerned that this new system is actually a ploy to make layoffs easier.
"It's just another method of trying to bring morale down," said an NPS employee who spoke on the condition of anonymity. The employee added that the real intention behind the directive was to create a "baseline" performance rating system, ensuring consistency in evaluations across different work groups.
Striker's comments paint a chilling picture of a Washington-led takeover aimed at controlling federal agencies through authoritarian means. In his words, "People back in D.C. are willing to shoot hostages." The NPS is not alone; critics argue that the Trump administration is pushing for broader changes across the federal government.
The Intercept has consistently reported on the dangers of an erosion of press freedom and the assault on democracy under Trump's leadership. As the nation faces a critical moment, it is essential to support independent journalism like ours. The Intercept needs your help to grow its reporting capacity in 2026.
In December, NPS employees were informed that their supervisors would be limited to giving out 3s across the board, rather than allowing high scores. This drastic change was aimed at reducing "bureaucratic grade inflation" among federal employees. However, many staff members are concerned that this new system is actually a ploy to make layoffs easier.
"It's just another method of trying to bring morale down," said an NPS employee who spoke on the condition of anonymity. The employee added that the real intention behind the directive was to create a "baseline" performance rating system, ensuring consistency in evaluations across different work groups.
Striker's comments paint a chilling picture of a Washington-led takeover aimed at controlling federal agencies through authoritarian means. In his words, "People back in D.C. are willing to shoot hostages." The NPS is not alone; critics argue that the Trump administration is pushing for broader changes across the federal government.
The Intercept has consistently reported on the dangers of an erosion of press freedom and the assault on democracy under Trump's leadership. As the nation faces a critical moment, it is essential to support independent journalism like ours. The Intercept needs your help to grow its reporting capacity in 2026.
- trump admin trying to lowkey sabotage morale of national park service staff? like what's next? 
that "baseline" performance rating system sounds super suspicious to me... and can u imagine the stress levels when supervisors only get to give 3s all the time? it's like they're setting up a trap for layoffs 
anyway, glad we got some whistleblowers coming forward 
. I mean, who wants to work in an environment where you're not even allowed to give out high scores? It's like they're trying to suck the soul out of people already working hard for our country. And now they want to make layoffs easier? That just sounds like a recipe for disaster. The NPS is supposed to be about preserving our natural beauty and promoting conservation, not about being some kind of authoritarian tool for politicians. We need to hold our leaders accountable and support organizations that are actually doing the right thing, like independent journalism 
.
. and now they're trying to use that as an excuse to lay off staff? seems like more of a "make us work harder so we can let u go later" kinda vibe 
. glad the Intercept is on top of this, btw... 
this is so messed up... can't believe the trump admin is trying to control morale at nps just to make layoffs easier... sounds like a real power play 
. We need to hold our leaders accountable for their actions and support independent journalism like The Intercept is doing. Can't have a healthy democracy if we don't stand up for what's right 
. And now they're gonna use this as an excuse to make layoffs easier? 
That's just cruel.
. Like, don't they get it? People are passionate about preserving our natural beauty and protecting our environment? It's not just some bean-counting exercise 
. And to hear Don Striker say that people back in D.C. are willing to "shoot hostages"... wow, what a chilling thought 
they're trying to break morale and make it easier for them to get laid off? That's like, super unfair 
from the top down? Like, I'm all for accountability but this is just authoritarian overreach 
I'm watching from the sidelines and it just gets more disturbing by the day. The fact that some faceless suits in Washington are trying to control morale like this is just wrong... it's not even a subtle move, they're just laying it all out there. 
Oh man, this is just so typical of the Trump admin 
. They're trying to undermine morale and make it easier to fire people by tweaking performance ratings 
. It's like they think NPS employees are some kind of robots or something 
. Newsflash: humans have feelings too, you know! 
This is just another example of how they're trying to exert control over everyone else in the federal government 
. I mean, come on, if it's not a conspiracy theory, what is? 
The Intercept is totally right about press freedom and democracy being at stake here 