Skip to content
Sign in
Artwork for Forking Off
Government

Forking Off

Forking Off

A podcast by former feds who got the fork out of government service.

In 2025, hosts and former FBI intelligence analysts Jill and Philip Fields joined the exodus of public servants leaving federal service under the deferred resignation program. Conflicted over what to do next, they began encountering other recently departed feds fighting to find their voice.

They started Forking Off as a platform to lift them up, preserve the public record, and document the destruction of American governance. Join us the last Tuesday of every month as we share their stories.

Play
Open in
  • 23 episodes
  • monthly
  • Avg 42 min
  • English

Episodes 23

NewestOldestLongest
All3Unplayed3In progress0Played0
Counted on this page — what you have heard stays on this device, so it is not something the list can be paged by.
  • S1 · E10
    Nov 24, 2025 · 37 min

    Molly Kocialski Makes it Make Sense

    When Molly Kocialski became the Director of the Rocky Mountain Regional US Patent and Trademark Office, she traded the wealth of 20 years of private practice for the stability and flexibility of federal employment. In September 2025, that balance shifted, and Molly left her job of ten years with the USPTO. At 12:04 am Eastern Time on October 1st, just minutes into what would become the longest government shutdown in history, the USPTO announced the closure of the Rocky Mountain Regional Office and a reduction-in-force targeting approximately 200 employees. Molly was the Rocky Mountain office's second—and last—regional director. A 2019 study determined intellectual property directly supported $7.8 trillion in US GDP and over 44 million American jobs. As an educator and public liaison, Molly made sure the public got its money's worth out of the nation's only fully fee-funded agency. Molly traveled over a dozen times a year throughout her office's nine-state region, meeting with everyone from farmers to semiconductor manufacturers to ensure they knew how the USPTO could help them protect their intellectual property. As an administrator, Molly cared deeply for her people. You can hear this as she poignantly discusses how they were undermined by policy changes since January. From contract reductions to travel bans, it became nearly impossible to do the necessary work of the USPTO. After the February return-to-office mandate, Molly started "snacks and support" because the office's food services had ceased during COVID, and her team's fast pace of virtual meetings with the public didn't leave time for people to go out for lunch. Even after her departure, she spent the early hours of October 1st consoling former employees and colleagues who had abruptly lost their jobs. Molly is continuing her commitment to service in private practice where she's helping inventors navigate the constant series of changes at the USPTO. When she's not busy at the office, Molly can be found lovingly serving bagels at her son's football practice, which you may hear echoes of in this episode. 🏈 In this episode, Molly highlights numerous changes at the USPTO that raise concerns about the agency's ability to continue issuing patents every Tuesday, as it has like clockwork since the 1800s. In that spirit, we've created a small project to monitor whether patents are issued on time. We hope you'll check it out on our website from time-to-time to see how things are going, or learn how to implement it yourself on our GitHub. Connect with Molly on LinkedIn or find her at Holland & Hart. For more information about this episode, ⁠⁠⁠⁠visit our website⁠⁠⁠⁠. If you enjoy Forking Off with us, consider supporting us on ⁠⁠Ko-fi⁠⁠, and ⁠⁠follow us⁠⁠⁠ on ⁠⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠TikTok⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠Bluesky⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠, ⁠⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠⁠, or wherever you get your podcasts. ---------- The views expressed in this episode are solely those of the individuals providing them and do not necessarily represent the views of the FBI, the DOJ, the USPTO, the United States, or any past or current employers.

    • Transcript
  • S1 · E9
    Nov 17, 2025 · 37 min

    Dr. Sarah DeGue Creates a New Path

    While finishing her Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology, Dr. Sarah DeGue thought she would go into research and maybe private practice. Instead, Sarah was called to public service by the appeal of stopping violence before it starts, and she spent the next 17 years doing just that at the CDC's Division of Violence Prevention, Research and Evaluation Branch. For the last 10 years, Sarah also served as a Senior Scientist and Director of CDC’s Dating Matters teen dating violence prevention initiative. Sarah used her expertise to educate communities and employed a public health approach to prevent violence in the United States, including mass violence, ideological violence, and hate crimes. In April 2025, the Department of Health and Human Services eliminated 10,000 employees through Reduction in Force (RIF) and nearly wiped out the CDC's entire Division of Violence Prevention. The United States lost a wealth of knowledge in the public health space. Through the elimination of these jobs and the removal of research from the public domain, over 40 years of research in violence prevention was effectively destroyed—a loss that could take a decade to rebuild. Sarah never thought it possible that she and so many of her colleagues would be forced to leave government, but that's exactly what happened. Still reeling from the RIFs, Sarah worried about what would happen in the violence prevention space through the dramatic loss of resources. True to her calling, Sarah created Violence Prevention Solutions, LLC, as a space for her former colleagues to maintain expertise and rebuild. Violence Prevention Solutions is reinventing and evolving to make resources more stable while no longer relying on the government or non-profit sector. During her last years at the CDC, Sarah also worked with the Department of Homeland Security to develop public health approaches to prevent targeted violence and domestic terrorism, but that work is no longer continuing due to the cuts at the CDC. Sarah worries about the lack of prevention at a critical moment in time, villainization of LGBTQ+ communities, and misinformation surrounding the overstated threat of leftist ideology. In the aftermath of the August 2025 CDC shootings, Sarah was appalled as HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., visited the CDC campus in Atlanta and blamed CDC employees for bringing the shooting upon themselves. After briefly granting CDC employees an opportunity to telework, they were required to return to office and continue working from bullet-riddled offices. Employees were left without mental health services and took it upon themselves to provide their own. Connect with Sarah on LinkedIn or learn more about Violence Prevention Solutions on their website. For more information about this episode, ⁠⁠⁠visit our website⁠⁠⁠. If you enjoy Forking Off with us, consider supporting us on ⁠Ko-fi⁠, and ⁠follow us⁠⁠ on ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠, ⁠⁠TikTok⁠⁠, ⁠⁠Bluesky⁠⁠, ⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠, ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠, or wherever you get your podcasts. ---------- The views expressed in this episode are solely those of the individuals providing them and do not necessarily represent the views of the FBI, the DOJ, the CDC, the United States, or any past or current employers.

    • Transcript
  • S1 · E8
    Nov 10, 2025 · 32 min

    Mike Johnson is a Game Changer

    Mike Johnson would make an excellent first base coach for the Boston Red Sox. As an Interior Communications Electrician in the Navy, he honed the skills necessary to protect sensitive communications under stress. He also learned to foster growth and build high functioning teams—a skill he carried forward while mentoring veterans at the State Department and now as a civilian. He's no stranger to celebrities either. Mike worked with high ranking diplomats, and even met former Vice President Kamala Harris. Not to mention, he's got prior experience coaching first base with the Fairfax Little League. As a Public Affairs Specialist with the Bureau of East Asian & Pacific Affairs, Mike managed crisis communications for high-visibility policy issues ranging everywhere from the Burmese military coup and North Korean missile launches to natural disasters and COVID. As a Program Analyst, he advised presidential appointment candidates on clearance and vetting processes and coordinated with the White Hose to manage all State Department presidential nomination packages. In January 2025, Mike made the move to the Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations Office of Policy and Program Analysis and prepared to lean into his leadership background before learning that he was being terminated as part of a Reduction-in-Force despite having tenure, veterans preference, and a stellar performance record. Since leaving government, Mike has continued to mentor veterans, while also advancing his own professional interests. Mike is exploring opportunities in project management and corporate government affairs, as well as educational opportunities in Artificial Intelligence Management. Whether you're managing a Major League Baseball team or a communications program at a Fortune 500 company, Mike would make a great addition to your team. Cheer Mike on via LinkedIn. For more information about this episode, ⁠⁠visit our website⁠⁠. If you enjoy Forking Off with us, consider supporting us on ⁠Ko-fi⁠, or ⁠follow us⁠⁠ on ⁠⁠Instagram⁠⁠, ⁠⁠TikTok⁠⁠, ⁠⁠Bluesky⁠⁠, ⁠⁠LinkedIn⁠⁠, ⁠⁠YouTube⁠⁠, or wherever you get your podcasts. ---------- The views expressed in this episode are solely those of the individuals providing them and do not necessarily represent the views of the FBI, the DOJ, the United States, or any past or current employers.

    • Transcript
Showing 21–23 of 23 episodes