Why DOGE Keeps Dumping on our National Park System

‘America’s Best Idea’ gets the Musk treatment. Ensh*ttification ensues.

Springtime in Yosemite National Park is one of those rare things that lives up to the hype — if you’re into meandering through wildflower-flecked meadows or stumbling across hidden waterfalls away from the crowds, that is.

I’ve hiked more than a thousand miles here over the years, but I discover something new every time, often thanks to a grizzled park ranger or campground host letting me in on their secret spot.

But if you’re thinking of visiting California’s most popular national park like I did earlier this month, you just might see a wildlife specialist mopping the men’s room instead of studying bears emerging from hibernation.

Forcing scientists and park rangers to multitask by cleaning up muck is the brilliant brainchild of Elon Musk’s DOGE, which ordered staff layoffs followed by a hiring freeze.

And if you were going to pitch a tent at the backpackers’ camp in the valley before plodding up the John Muir Trail, you’ll need to make other arrangements. The DOGE dudes have shut it down, even though it’s been a godsend for exhausted hikers like me at the beginning or end of long treks (and it also prevents damage from illegal camping).

The haphazard cuts have hit other parks hard, too. Visitors have had to wait hours just to enter the Grand Canyon. In March, Arches National Park had to shutter the popular Fiery Furnace hiking area. Finding open bathrooms in parks from coast to coast is becoming an adventure in and of itself.

And it’s not even peak tourist season yet.

It’s little wonder that people are starting to rethink their summer travel plans. With this much uncertainty looming, hotels, restaurants, and retailers near our natural wonders are bracing for slower sales — which few can afford, especially with Trump’s tariffs poised to cannibalize their bottom lines.

Yosemite Falls | Susan J. Demas

It’s yet another manufactured crisis from the Trump regime.

Ken Burns famously dubbed our national parks “America’s Best Idea” because conserving wild lands for all to enjoy represented what’s best about our nation. And now that vision is as endangered as our economic strength and our standing in the world, thanks to the Silicon Valley ethos to “move fast and break things.”

Let’s be clear: the National Park Service isn’t a bloated mess. It’s been chronically underfunded and shed staff since the Tea Party days.

That’s incredibly shortsighted, as there were a record-breaking 331.9 million visits to parks last year. And that’s a boon to local economies. Visitor spending in communities near national parks resulted in a nearly $56 billion benefit and supported over 415,000 jobs.

So the DOGE cuts aren’t about rooting out government waste or unearthing efficiencies. This is about breaking yet another institution that’s the envy of the world — and the livelihoods (or, at the very least, the spirits) of those who work there — so that billionaires like Musk can plunder natural resources and turn the parks into private moneymaking machines.

Death Valley National Park | Susan J. Demas

Trump and Musk simply can’t comprehend the idea of the public good. There’s no profit in that. We saw that in their selfish tirades during the early days of the COVID pandemic, when the idea of temporarily shutting down businesses or even wearing a mask to prevent mass death was deemed laughable.

If the national parks represent what’s best about America — pulling together to create something lasting and important, even though it requires sacrifice — Trump and Musk embody the worst.

In the short term, it means enshittification — which is DOGE’s stock and trade. Basically, we can all expect a worse experience on our public lands — whether you just want to drive through and grab a few shots at Instagram-worthy sights or spend days fishing, skiing, or kayaking to get away from it all.

Longer lines, closed visitor centers, and smellier bathrooms are bound to make weary tourists even crankier.

The last thing we need is this not-so-ingenious way to transform those notorious one-star national park reviews from a punchline to reality. But as usual under Trump, the stupidity is the point.

Susan J. Demas is the Executive Editor of Lincoln Square.