'I feel so sorry': Deep red rural Texas left reeling by DOGE slashes

"As DOGE rips through the federal government, Texans wonder what it means for them" was first published by The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan media organization that informs Texans — and engages with them — about public policy, politics, government and statewide issues.

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LUFKIN — When Mary Beth Hash-Walker heard the Nacogdoches Social Security office was closing, the 72-year-old retiree was quietly glad. She and other Nacogdoches residents have watched the office sit largely vacant for years, used — by her estimate — once a month.

“It’s the biggest waste of taxpayer dollars that I’ve seen,” Hash-Walker said.

The terminated lease is just one of several federal offices slated to close in Texas as part of President Donald Trump’s and Elon Musk’s effort to shrink the federal government and end what they call waste, fraud and abuse.

The final number of offices closed, as well as other canceled federal contracts and grants, in Texas and across the country remain uncertain. While the Department of Governmental Efficiency, led by Musk, shares its work online, it changes frequently. For example, the Social Security Administration and U.S. Attorney’s Office in Lufkin were at one point set to close. Both are expected to remain open.

The whiplash has left those who use government services confused.

Meanwhile, advocates for the elderly, poor and a host of other groups such as farmers, are worried about the final outcome for their communities. About 25% of the East Texas population relies upon some sort of federal aid, according to an analysis by EIG, a bipartisan policy group.

Hash-Walker is one of the East Texans. She spent many years shuttling her husband, Jack, and more than 500 pages of documents to Lufkin to keep up his benefits as a disabled veteran. She always scheduled those meetings first thing in the morning and got in line, which often extended outside, before the office even opened. Now, she also does this for herself.

“It's always old, old people,” she said. “And you know, it's been hot some days, rainy some days, and I feel so sorry for those people.”

The 36-mile drive was a pain, Hash-Walker said. But doable. She’s worried about other East Texans, older and farther away.

“Think about all the people who are out in these small towns — Garrison, Timpson, Gary — that have to drive all the way over there,” she said. “That's a long way for not just elderly people, but for anybody.”

Social Security beneficiaries can access most services online or over the phone — for now. But Trump has suggested changing that to cut down on fraud, a change that could make physical office space more of a necessity.

“I think there are a lot of considerations about people's ability to get to and from these offices when they need to be in person,” said Jonathan Schwabish, a senior fellow in the Tax and Income Supports Division specializing in aging and retirement for the Urban Institute, a Washington D.C.-based think tank.

The Lufkin offices was among the many leases originally on the chopping block when the DOGE was first created in January. Panic set off.

Phones at the Social Security Administration have been ringing as nearly 100,000 more people per day have called in the last three months compared to 2024. And the percentage of callers who actually reached a representative dropped from 58.4% in 2024 to 45.1% in 2025.

The Social Security Administration in a March statement said all reports of offices closing permanently were false, except some small hearing rooms with no employees. Like the one in Nacogdoches. Closing that office is expected to save the government $86,414.

“SSA is committed to providing service where people need help and our local field offices are no exception,” Lee Dudek, acting commissioner of Social Security, said in a statement. “We have not permanently closed any local field offices this year.”

Schwabish at the Urban Institute said the Trump administration needs to closely examine the impacts of its choices. Cutting the Lufkin Social Security office, for example, would have left hundreds of thousands of East Texans 70 miles or more away from the closest Social Security office.

The Nacogdoches Farm Services Agency, a part of the U.S. Department of Agriculture, is also on the chopping block. And just like Social Security, Texas Farm Bureau representatives' phones are buzzing with farmers on the line.

Texas farmers and producers want to wrap their heads around the proposed changes, said Gary Joiner, the Farm Bureau’s director of communications. Farmers are concerned about what will happen if those offices close or if staff is reduced.

The Farm Service Agency closing won’t directly affect the average American consumer. But it can make it more difficult for farmers to work with the USDA, an agency many rely upon from season to season.

Much of the talk has been speculative, Joiner said. Communities catch wind an office may close and news spreads like wildfire.

“My understanding is, (the list) is a proposal from the Department of Government Efficiency,” Joiner said. “It's the ultimate decision of those agencies and those cabinet positions that oversee those agencies, whether those recommendations are pursued.”

A USDA spokesperson said Secretary Brooke Rollins, a Texas native, supports Trump’s initiative to eliminate wasteful spending and the agency is optimizing building capacity while prioritizing frontline services. Rollins has promised to protect what is vital to the American people.

Joiner has faith Rollins will do what is best for Texas farmers and ranchers, he said.

“We hope that when given that opportunity and that ability to make that decision, she will do the right thing,” Joiner said. “And she'll make sure those offices are open and those offices are staffed at levels that are necessary to service Texas agriculture.”

Disclosure: Texas Farm Bureau has been a financial supporter of The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan news organization that is funded in part by donations from members, foundations and corporate sponsors. Financial supporters play no role in the Tribune's journalism. Find a complete list of them here.

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This article originally appeared in The Texas Tribune at https://www.texastribune.org/2025/04/08/doge-texas-elon-musk-social-security/.

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