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This story was originally published in Public Domain<\/a><\/em>.<\/p>\n As the Trump<\/span> administration fired hundreds of probationary Park Service employees in February, it spared a special subset from the purge \u2014 it exempted from the mass firings National Park Service staffers that help manage the White House and President\u2019s Park.<\/p>\n Records viewed by Public Domain<\/a> show that at least three NPS probationary employees at the White House, including park guides, received exemptions from the mass firings specifically on the grounds that they worked at the White House. The records were corroborated by an Interior Department source familiar with the matter, but who asked to remain anonymous for fear of retaliation.<\/p>\n The National Park Service maintains the White House property and President\u2019s Park. The NPS workforce there includes gardeners, guides, painters, and maintenance staff. The Park Service, in a statement, said it does not comment on personnel matters. It did note, however, that NPS employees at the White House have security clearances.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n In mid-February, in what has come to be known as the Valentine\u2019s Day massacre, the Trump administration\u00a0eliminated roughly<\/a>\u00a01,000 NPS probationary employees across the country. These employees served as rangers, guides, visitor center staffers, scientists, and more. The firings spanned the nation, from Valley Forge in Pennsylvania to California\u2019s Yosemite. Particularly hit hard were places like Everglades National Park, Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and Rocky Mountain National Park, all supremely popular destinations that\u00a0reportedly lost\u00a0<\/a>a dozen or more employees each. These firings were part of the broader effort,\u00a0driven by<\/a>\u00a0Elon Musk\u2019s so-called Department of Government Efficiency, to decimate staffing at federal agencies in all parts of government.<\/p>\n But while the general American public was witnessing the sudden loss of large numbers of staff members at their favorite Park Service locations, the president and his visitors were spared the same experience at 1600 Pennsylvania Ave. The directive to exempt the NPS probationary staff at the White House came down to NPS from higher up in the Interior Department, according to the source.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n