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The mass firings of government workers by the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) has business leaders in the Beltway fearing a localized recession could be on the way.

According to a report from the Wall Street Journal, restaurants, hotels and other businesses are witnessing in real-time sales plunging as workers lose their jobs or dial back spending due to a possible job loss.

As the Journals' Paul Kiernan and Rachel Louise Ensign wrote, "Economists believe government layoffs and looming budget cuts will push the Washington, D.C., metro area into a recession, challenging its reputation for economic resilience."

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In an interview, Julie Coons, president of the Northern Virginia Chamber of Commerce, painted a dark picture of the immediate future, explaining, "We see this as potentially catastrophic for the region," before adding, "This is our Detroit moment.”

The Journal report notes, "In Arlington’s Rosslyn neighborhood, bookings at the Residence Inn are 10% to 15% below target for the coming months, according to general manager Flavia Sampaio, who said local hotels rely heavily on business from government agencies. Across the Potomac River in D.C., Bluebird Sky Yoga co-owner Kristine Erickson has seen a slowdown in people seeking yearlong memberships," adding, "Sales at Cork Wine Bar & Market, a restaurant on a bustling stretch of 14th Street, fell about 15% to 20% in February compared with the same month last year, said co-owner Diane Gross. March sales were helped by a 'tariff sale' of bottles of wine but still ended down around 10%."

The report continued, "Oxford Economics projects gross domestic product in the Washington, D.C., metro area will fall 0.5% over the course of this year. This is the second-worst projected performance for any of the 50 largest U.S. metro areas after New Orleans, where tariffs are a significant risk, said Barbara Denham, lead economist for cities and regions."

You can read more here.

Joe Kasper, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth's controversial chief of staff, is expected to leave the Pentagon after coming under fire in recent days.

Initial reports said Kasper would step into another role at the Pentagon. But Politico confirmed on Thursday that he would leave the Department of Defense entirely and return to "government relations and consulting." As a special government employee, he will be limited to advising the Pentagon 130 days per year.

Kasper was reportedly behind the firings of three senior officials — Dan Caldwell, Darin Selnick, and Colin Carroll — who had enjoyed regular access to Hegseth.

"Kasper did not like that those guys had the secretary's ear," one person told Politico. "He did not like that they had walk-in and hanging-out privileges in the office. He wanted them out. It was a knife fight."

Hegseth's chief of staff was also recently criticized for what The New York Times described as "pointlessly bawdy" digressions in meetings.

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"One meeting Mr. Kasper led this month, with a group that works with veterans that was offering its services to the Pentagon, devolved into a recounting of an evening Mr. Kasper and a representative of the group spent at a Washington strip club, said a person who took part in the session," the report said.

Hegseth, however, has defended Kasper, calling him a "great American."

"He has done a fantastic job for us at the Defense Department…You make changes over time, and we're grateful for everything Joe's done," the secretary told Fox News.