Deep Reads: His wife was dying, his federal job crumbling. It tested his faith — in God and Trump.
DEC 13, 202530 MIN
Deep Reads: His wife was dying, his federal job crumbling. It tested his faith — in God and Trump.
DEC 13, 202530 MIN
Description
<p><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">In the spring, Edward Brandon Becham was caring for his dying wife. He was also among hundreds of thousands of federal workers weighing whether to abandon public service. Donald Trump had taken office vowing to slash the federal bureaucracy, then </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/technology/2025/02/24/doge-fast-cuts-federal-workers-programs-elon-musk/?utm_source=podcasts&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=post-reports" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(17, 85, 204);">entrusted the task to billionaire Elon Musk</a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> and a newly created cost-cutting team called the Department of Government Efficiency. In a </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/02/08/doge-musk-goals/?utm_source=podcasts&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=post-reports" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(17, 85, 204);">matter of months</a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, Musk and his U.S. DOGE Service wiped out </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/07/31/federal-workers-doge-buyout-paid/?utm_source=podcasts&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=post-reports" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(17, 85, 204);">hundreds of thousands of jobs</a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/04/17/doge-trump-grants-hhs-nih-backlog/?utm_source=podcasts&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=post-reports" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(17, 85, 204);">billions</a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/business/2025/06/25/trump-budget-law-challenge/?utm_source=podcasts&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=post-reports" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(17, 85, 204);">of dollars</a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> in spending and the </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2025/02/17/trump-fires-federal-workers-performance/?utm_source=podcasts&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=post-reports" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(17, 85, 204);">job security</a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> that once distinguished government work.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Of America’s 2.4 million federal workers, nearly 4 in 10 registered to vote had, like Becham, cast ballots for Trump, according to a </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/tablet/2025/03/18/feb-28-march-10-2025-washington-post-ipsos-poll-civilian-federal-workers/?utm_source=podcasts&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=post-reports" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(17, 85, 204);">Washington Post-Ipsos poll</a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">. But as the days passed, Becham was becoming convinced that the Trump administration’s treatment of government employees — </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2025/02/17/trump-fires-federal-workers-performance/?utm_source=podcasts&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=post-reports" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(17, 85, 204);">large-scale firings</a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">, </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2025/03/01/second-elon-musk-doge-federal-workers-email/?utm_source=podcasts&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=post-reports" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(17, 85, 204);">emails</a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> he saw as harassing and strict return-to-office mandates — was wrongheaded and cruel. If he was unable to resign, Brandon would be required to report to a federal building in Las Vegas more than 70 miles away. Round-trip, it would cost him three hours a day with his three children, for whom he would soon be the only parent and sole provider.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Becham felt as though he was witnessing two painful deaths: his wife’s, of course, but also that of his career. In his darkest moments, Brandon turned to his Bible — and next to it, his leather-bound diary.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">This story follows Becham and his family for a week as he navigated his feelings about his wife, family, his career and Trump.</span></p><p><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/people/hannah-natanson/?utm_source=podcasts&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=post-reports" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(17, 85, 204);">Hannah Natanson</a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> reported and narrated the piece. </span><a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/people/bishop-sand/?utm_source=podcasts&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=post-reports" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(17, 85, 204);">Bishop Sand</a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);"> composed music and produced audio.</span></p><p><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">Subscribe to The Washington Post </span><a href="https://subscribe.washingtonpost.com/acquisition/?s_l=OFFSITE_PODCAST&p=s_v&s_dt=yearly&utm%5B%E2%80%A6%5De-podcast&utm_medium=acq-nat&utm_campaign=podcast-subs" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank" style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(17, 85, 204);">here</a><span style="background-color: transparent; color: rgb(0, 0, 0);">.</span></p>
