You would think, at least on the surface. But offering packages to everyone is inconsistent with that. It doesn't take a high school graduate to realize that if people leave, and aren't replaced, service will suffer. If he had exempted the VA and SS, that would have made sense under your paradigm. But he didn't. He wants lots of folks gone, damn the consequences.

And I'm not sure that will make right-wing news. The VA has been suffering for years. Decades. Reps have shown little interest in funding it more, and the right-wing media doesn't seem to cover it. "Rah-rah" war, and then they're a bunch of fakers ("Gulf War syndrome", PTSD, etc). If it penetrates the RW bubble, I agree...constituents will not be happy. But it has to pierce that bubble first.

Musk wants to damn the consequences. Trump does not. So far, there haven't been any consequences. But if the local VA hospital doesn't replace their X-ray tech (or anyone else who has a job necessary to service patients), that's when the consequences start happening.

Yes, the VA has been suffering - but it still has ardent defenders on the Hill and can make a big stink. Many Administrations have made it less than a priority, but you can't break it without a whole lot of political blowback. Trump doesn't care enough about budgets or deficits or the philosophy of reducing government to be willing to tolerate any political consequences to this. If it starts causing pain to his voters, the VA will end up having to rehire these people. They can't just stop providing X-rays to vets.