In recent days, McLaurine Pinover, the communications director at the U.S. Office of Personnel Management (OPM), has gained significant attention for her Instagram activities during office hours. This comes at a time when significant federal workforce cuts are occurring under the oversight of Donald Trump and Elon Musk through the newly implemented Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE).
On February 13, she shared a video on her personal Instagram account, @getdressedwithmc, the same day approximately 20 employees were let go from her own department, according to a report from The Guardian dated March 12. This incident has raised eyebrows given the timing of her posts amidst widespread layoffs.
Pinover, who had over 800 followers on her now-deleted account, posted multiple videos wherein she showcased her daily outfit choices, complete with purchasing links that would allow her to earn a commission. Her content featured hashtags such as “dcstyle”and “dcinfluencer,”appealing to a fashion-focused audience. Remarkably, she did not disclose her role as a federal employee on her account, which has led to controversy.
In a conversation with CNN, an anonymous former OPM employee expressed disbelief at Pinover’s actions, stating,
“I saw it and I was like, ‘Are you kidding me, that’s my office.’ She’s [Pinover] the spokesperson for the agency that is advocating for the firing based on performance and efficiency of the rest of the government workforce, and she’s using government property as a backdrop for her videos.”
Support for DOGE Cuts Amidst Controversy
McLaurine Pinover started her role at OPM in January and has consistently backed the Trump administration’s strategy of terminating various probationary employees. A report by CNN highlighted her endorsement of the OPM’s recent email requesting staff to summarize their weekly contributions, which she touted as a move towards “an efficient and accountable federal workforce.”
Many of her posts were recorded in her office on the fifth floor of the OPM’s Washington, D.C. headquarters, situated adjacent to an annex frequently utilized by DOGE personnel. This backdrop has added another layer of scrutiny regarding her use of government space for personal promotion.
As per federal regulations, public property should not be used for unauthorized purposes, with minimal personal use considered acceptable. However, some observers have called Pinover’s actions into question. Another former staffer remarked on her Instagram activity during the layoffs, stating,
“While her team is getting axed, she’s twirling around in her office.”
On February 28, she posted another video coinciding with an OPM email instructing employees to outline their recent work, which has provoked further criticism amidst the ongoing layoffs initiated by DOGE. The initiative’s overarching goal, according to Elon Musk’s comments on social media, is to eliminate the appearance of underperformance among federal employees, declaring,
“Pretending to work while taking money from taxpayers is no longer acceptable.”
DOGE, spearheaded by Musk, is a controversial initiative aimed at enhancing government productivity and efficiency. Its ambitious agenda encompasses significant workforce reductions, thorough data analysis from various government entities, and reviewing protections for whistleblowers, creating a significant impact on the federal workforce landscape.