The US president and his allies continue to work to dismantle the institutions that have long been seen by rage by conservatives.
President Donald Trump’s administration has ordered federal agencies to work with Elon Musk’s Government Efficiency (DOGE) to prepare for mass firing of federal workers.
In a memo released Wednesday, the Human Resources Administration (OPM) and the Management and Budget Office (OMB) said the layoffs will be part of the restructuring plan scheduled for March 13th.
Trump also quickly subsequently teased the shooting at his first cabinet meeting, selecting the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as one target under administrator Lee Zeldin.
“I spoke to Lee Zeldin and he thinks he’ll cut about 65% of people out of the environment,” Trump said.
The memo is the latest in Trump and Musk’s efforts to dismantle government agencies and programs that have long been hated by conservatives.
Trump claims they work to reduce the bloated bureaucracy and save taxpayers money, but critics point out that tax bills promoted by Republicans will lead to a massive increase in the deficit.
Before returning to the White House in January, Trump and his allies spoke about the need to wipe out governments of workers they deemed poorly loyal.
At the rally on the first day of his second term, Trump renewed his sentiment and called for the removal of what he called “Biden bureaucrats.”
However, experts point out that many federal workers are nonpartisan civil servants who help maintain stability among various presidential administrations.
The central immigration and law enforcement agencies were exempt from the layoffs sketched in Wednesday’s memo.
The legality of the large-scale layoff efforts is being challenged in courts where critics argue that critics have no authority to dismantle agencies created and funded by the US Congress.
These legal challenges have been successful in a variety of ways.
Some judges issued temporary restraint orders for the Trump administration’s fundraising and staffing shake-up, while others have allowed Trump to proceed with his plans.
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