A Maine native who works to reduce waste and fraud in the federal government is critical of President Trump’s moves to slash government spending and downsize the federal workforce.

Dylan Hedtler-Gaudette took aim at the Trump administration’s recent firing of 17 inspectors general.

“It seems to me that if an administration were serious about wanting to root out waste, fraud and abuse, they would support and resource inspectors general and whistleblowers,” said Hedtler-Gaudette. “They would not demonize them, and they would certainly not fire them en masse in an unlawful midnight purge.”

Hedtler-Gaudette spoke Wednesday at a hearing of the House Oversight Subcommittee on Delivering on Government Efficiency, which is chaired by Republican Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, who is a vocal conservative and loyal Trump ally.

Greene was stripped of committee assignments when Democrats were in control of the House.

Dylan Hedtler-Gaudette is the Director of Government Affairs at the Project On Government Oversight (POGO), a nonpartisan independent watchdog organization.

Hedtler-Gaudette lead’s the agency’s efforts and has worked on policy reform related to defense spending, foreign influence, government ethics, and federal court reform.

The Portland Press Herald reports 38-year-old Hedtler-Gaudette grew up in Portland and Windham and graduated from the University of Southern Maine.

The Press Herald reports Hedtler-Gaudette graduated from the University of Southern Maine in 2014 and later earned a graduate degree in international relations from Northeastern University. He gradually lost eyesight because of a degenerative condition that began when he was a teenager. He appeared before the committee in sunglasses.

The committee hearing itself Wednesday featured outspoken partisan Congress members from both sides of the aisle, with Democrats attacking Elon Musk and his DOGE team, and Republicans defending Musk and attacking Democrats.