Shutdown Latest Insult for Already Miserable Federal Workforce
President Donald Trump’s increasingly erratic and nonsensical tweet storms during this lingering government shutdown has distracted from an uncomfortable truth: the federal government was already in shambles and the partial shutdown has only further demoralized an already strained workforce.
After two years in office – and before the lights were flipped off in 25 percent of federal agencies – only 380 out of 707 senior federal posts that require Senate confirmation had been filled. While the administration blames Senate Democrats for blocking or slow walking many of those nominees, the criticism rings hollow when one considers that 126 senior positions – close to 20 percent of those that depend on a Senate vote – are still awaiting a nominee.
That’s not including the confirmed nominees the administration has simply shuffled around, like Mick Mulvaney who was confirmed to head the Office of Management and Budget, only to then be tapped to also head the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and is now the president’s acting chief of staff – a post that does not require Senate confirmation.