« Mid-Morning Art Thread [Kris] | Main | Trump Orders "One Flag" Policy -- Only the American Flag Will Fly at Federal Buildings. No Gay Flags, No BLM Terrorist Flags. »

Wednesday Morning Rant

Regaining Control

One of the open questions and areas of speculation in the run-up to Monday's start of the second Trump Administration has been "how will he accomplish what he wants with the bureaus arrayed against him?" This has certainly been - and it remains - a major question for me. The opening day, however, provides some cause for cautious optimism. In tone and in action so far, President Trump has done some things that I think are very promising.

Over the past eight years, I have been tested and challenged more than any president in our 250 year history, and I've learned a lot along the way the journey to reclaim our republic has not been an easy one that I can tell you.

That quote from his inaugural address is an extremely good sign. "I know how you operate, I know your tricks, I know your schemes, and your old playbook ain't gonna work this time" is a promising indicator to say the least.

There was more from the inaugural address that bodes well in terms of attitude and approach:

My recent election has a mandate to completely and totally reverse a horrible betrayal, and all of these many betrayals that have taken place, and to give the people back their faith, their wealth, their democracy, and indeed, their freedom.

That is not putting to fine a point on it. Starkly presenting the system as it was - and sadly, as it is and as it will remain for some time - to underscore his mandate and ambitions is also a good sign.

But there have been direct actions so far that give me hope that he might be able to accomplish something in terms of wresting control of the bureaus away from the Party men. From his victory speech after the inauguration:

I will implement an immediate regulation freeze which will stop Biden bureaucrats from continuing to regulate. Most of those bureaucrats are being fired, they're gone. ... I'll also issue a temporary hiring freeze to ensure that we're only hiring competent people who are faithful to the American public, ...

Those EOs are now in effect. The regulatory freeze reads in part:

Do not propose or issue any rule in any manner, including by sending a rule to the Office of the Federal Register (the "OFR"), until a department or agency head appointed or designated by the President after noon on January 20, 2025, reviews and approves the rule.
...
Immediately withdraw any rules that have been sent to the OFR but not published in the Federal Register, so that they can be reviewed and approved as described

along with this absurd component that shouldn't be necessary:

Comply in all circumstances with any applicable Executive Orders concerning regulatory management.

The hiring freeze reads in part:

I hereby order a freeze on the hiring of Federal civilian employees, to be applied throughout the executive branch. As part of this freeze, no Federal civilian position that is vacant at noon on January 20, 2025, may be filled, and no new position may be created except as otherwise provided for in this memorandum or other applicable law.
...
Contracting outside the Federal Government to circumvent the intent of this memorandum is prohibited.

These EOs are, in my opinion, extremely important in terms of the power struggle within the bureaus.

It remains to be seen how effective they will be and how much compliance Trump can force down the throats of the agencies and what the consequences will be for the inevitable obstruction, dodging and outright disobedience from the #Resist set, but these are excellent moves to take right out of the gate. "The crap you pushed through or are about to is all canceled. There will be no more of you people hired. We're taking control and you are all on hold until we impose our will. Everything you are working on is on hold. You will sit in your offices and do nothing until we figure out what to do with you."

That is a good thing. The obstructionists and those doing the Party's business are forbidden from doing what they do for the time being, and presumably Trump will have some recourse against those who disobey him.

And the EO hits keep coming in furtherance of the attempt to prevent cronyism once the hiring freeze is lifted:

(b) This Federal Hiring Plan shall:

(i) prioritize recruitment of individuals committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution;

(ii) prevent the hiring of individuals based on their race, sex, or religion, and prevent the hiring of individuals who are unwilling to defend the Constitution or to faithfully serve the Executive Branch;

If he can enforce it, no more Party Man shoe-ins. Or at least, fewer of them. Good. The civil service is supposed to be professional, right? Go for merit.

The SES is is on notice, too.

(c) Each agency head shall, as necessary and appropriate and consistent with the procedural requirements of section 3395 of title 5, United States Code, reassign agency SES members to ensure their knowledge, skills, abilities, and mission assignments are optimally aligned to implement my agenda;

(d) Each agency head should terminate its existing Executive Resources Board (ERB), institute a new or interim ERB, and assign senior noncareer officials to chair and serve on the board as a majority alongside career members;

(e) Each agency head should terminate its existing Performance Review Board membership and re-constitute membership with individuals committed to full enforcement of SES performance evaluations that promote and assure an SES of the highest caliber; and

(f) Any agency head who becomes aware of an SES official whose performance or continued occupancy of the position is inconsistent with either the principles reaffirmed in this Order or their duties to the Nation under section 3131 of title 5, United States Code, shall immediately take all appropriate actions, up to and including removal of that official, with the support of OPM and OMB. Restoring an accountable government workforce is a top priority of my Administration.

Oh, so you're an SES big shot? Don't even think about losing that cushy gig by stepping out of line, or the new boss will fire you with the full approval of the president. Boy, I hope that one bears fruit. Make the executive ranks think twice.

And another big one:

To remedy these abuses of the public trust, this Order directs the revocation of any active or current security clearances held by: (i) the former intelligence officials who engaged in misleading and inappropriate political coordination with the 2020 Biden presidential campaign; and (ii) John R. Bolton.

Ouch. John Bolton, one of the cheapest whores in Washington, got called out directly for his malfeasance. Gotta hurt.

I could go on. And on. And on. And on. But this word hole is already more than twice as long as it should be. Trump had a very busy first day, and all of it is extremely promising. A substantial amount of it - at least six EOs - are directly related to reining in the federal workforce and bringing them to heel.

One of my biggest questions has been the one in the opening paragraph: how will Trump wrest control of the renegade bureaus (that is, all of the bureaus) from the Party apparatchiks packed into them from bottom to top? We're seeing part of the strategy now.

All of this will be challenged. Most of it will be delayed. Much of it will probably be overturned. But he's taking a page out of the Party's book and flooding the zone, hitting from all sides and hammering it hard. This is a promising start and a strong opening play in what will be a very, very long game to contain and excise the metastatic Party cancer in the bureaus.