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Trump slams DC crime after DOGE employee 'Big Balls' beaten up by 'bunch of thugs'
Sources tell FOX News that the former DOGE employee who Trump said was beaten up in D.C. was Edward Coristine, a teenager also known as "Big Balls."
WASHINGTON - Earlier today, President Donald Trump once again threatened to take federal control of the District of Columbia in a lengthy Truth Social post after a famed former Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) employee was allegedly beaten in the nation's capital.
What we know:
That former employee is Edward Coristine, a teenager known as "Big Balls," multiple sources told Fox News Digital. The president shared a photo of a bloodied Coristine, who he claimed was "beaten mercilessly by local thugs."
"Perhaps it should have been done a long time ago, then this incredible young man, and so many others, would not have had to go through the horrors of violent crime," Trump wrote. "If this continues, I am going to exert my powers, and federalize this city. MAKE AMERICA GREAT AGAIN!"
But who exactly is Edward "Big Balls" Coristine?
The backstory:
Coristine is one of two operatives for DOGE who was given potentially wide-ranging access to a number of systems at the Small Business Administration (SBA) back in early February. As such, DOGE gained access to the National Finance Center, the system which provides payroll and human resource functions for the Department of Justice (DOJ), the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), among several other agencies.
Coristine is 19 years old, and was one of DOGE's earliest hires. He was originally brought on as a permanent government employee at the General Services Administration (GSA) before he resigned and then came back to work as a special government employee at the Social Security Administration.
Coristine told Fox News earlier this year that he came up with his cheeky nickname, telling host Jesse Watters that he chose the username "Big Balls" for his LinkedIn profile as a joke. He said it was meant to challenge the serious nature of the professional social networking platform.
"People on LinkedIn take themselves super seriously, and they're averse to risk," he said. "I wanted to be neither of those things, so I just said it," he said.
What they're saying:
Former DOGE head Elon Musk weighed in on X following Trump's comments.
"A few days ago, a gang of about a dozen young men tried to assault a woman in her car at night in DC," Musk wrote. "A @Doge team member saw what was happening, ran to defend her and was severely beaten to the point of concussion, but he saved her. It is time to federalize DC."
The Source: Information in this article was provided by multiple sources, linked above.