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Obama Orders Fed Agencies to Stop Asking Job Applicants about Criminal History
Judicial Watch ^ | May 3, 2016

Posted on 05/03/2016 1:42:19 PM PDT by jazusamo

To make public-sector jobs more accessible to convicts, President Obama has issued a new order prohibiting federal agencies from asking candidates about criminal history when applying for positions. It’s part of the commander-in-chief’s mission to reduce barriers to reentry and employment for incarcerated individuals once they leave jail. The new measure, announced in a Friday media dump, will affect tens of thousands of federal government positions funded with taxpayer dollars.

Government often tries to escape fallout by burying controversial or bad news right before the weekend, but it’s difficult to keep this outrageous development below the radar. At the president’s order the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) is publishing a proposed rule that would prohibit federal agencies from asking those applying for competitive service and career senior executive service positions about criminal and credit history. People with criminal records are already eligible to compete for the vast majority of federal jobs, a White House announcement states, and the proposed rule ensures that hiring managers are making selection decisions based solely on qualifications. “Early inquiries into an applicant’s criminal history may discourage motivated, well-qualified individuals who have served their time from applying for a federal job,” the announcement says, adding that “early inquiries could also lead to the disqualification of otherwise eligible candidates.”

The administration refers to criminal background checks as “barriers to employment” that “unnecessarily narrow the pool of eligible and qualified candidates for federal employment while also limiting opportunities for those with criminal histories to obtain the means to support themselves and their families.” If a candidate’s criminal record becomes known, they’re not be eliminated but rather evaluated via a “suitability determination” that considers character and conduct as well as the following factors; “relevance of any past criminal conduct to the job; the nature, seriousness, recency, and circumstances of any criminal conduct; the age of the individual at the time of the conduct; contributing societal conditions; and whether any efforts have been made toward rehabilitation.” This can easily be interpreted as a mandate to look the other way when evidence of a criminal record surfaces in the federal workforce.

The new directive is part of a broader effort by the administration to slash recidivism among ex-cons by providing them with tools to maximize their likelihood of success after prison. It’s called the Roadmap to Reentry and the president is pushing it hard in the aftermath of his sentencing reduction plan that resulted in the early release of tens of thousands of federal inmates, mostly serving time for drug-related crimes. To prepare criminals for life after prison Uncle Sam will provide a series of perks , including education, employment and life skills training in jail as well as substance abuse and mental health plans and programs to build family relationships behind bars. Once the cons are released, the government will help them find jobs and housing and provide a number of other programs to facilitate the reintegration process under Obama’s Roadmap to Reentry.

Years ago the administration tried slamming the private sector with a ban on job applicant background checks by claiming that they discriminate against minority candidates. The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC), the federal agency that enforces the nation’s workplace discrimination laws, wasted taxpayer dollars suing companies for checking criminal histories asserting that it violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. The apparent intent was to discourage other businesses from checking criminal histories out of fear of getting sued by the government, but it didn’t quite work out that way. A federal judge eventually blasted the EEOC’s claims, calling them laughable, distorted, cherry-picked, worthless and an egregious example of scientific dishonesty. Of interesting note is that the EEOC conducts criminal background checks as a condition of employment.


TOPICS: Crime/Corruption; Government; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: backgroundchecks; criminalhistory; criminals; excons; federaljobs; jw; obama
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0bama is succeeding with his undermining of America beyond his wildest dreams, he first orders tens of thousands on cons released early and now uses his pen to forbid criminal background checks for federal jobs.
1 posted on 05/03/2016 1:42:19 PM PDT by jazusamo
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To: jazusamo

Criminals in government jobs.

What could go wrong?


2 posted on 05/03/2016 1:44:28 PM PDT by BenLurkin (The above is not a statement of fact. It is either satire or opinion. Or both.)
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To: jazusamo

This is the Mike Tyson re-employment executive order. ;-)


3 posted on 05/03/2016 1:44:42 PM PDT by SubMareener (Save us from Quarterly Freepathons! Become a MONTHLY DONOR!)
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To: jazusamo

Cuz if they run a background, and they rap sheet come up, bam, they caught lyin too.


4 posted on 05/03/2016 1:45:29 PM PDT by showme_the_Glory ((ILLEGAL: prohibited by law. ALIEN: Owing political allegiance to another country or government))
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To: SubMareener

“””””The administration refers to criminal background checks as “barriers to employment” that “unnecessarily narrow the pool of eligible and qualified candidates”””””Here’s an idea. STOP BREAKING THE LAW if you want to get ahead in life.


5 posted on 05/03/2016 1:46:46 PM PDT by shelterguy
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To: jazusamo

They’re also getting the right to vote restored.

What’s next?

Prohibiting federal agencies from asking questions about an applicants criminal history on a fire arm purchase?


6 posted on 05/03/2016 1:46:51 PM PDT by thinden
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To: BenLurkin

“Criminals in government jobs.

What could go wrong?”

Will we notice any difference?


7 posted on 05/03/2016 1:50:14 PM PDT by Kozak (ALLAH AKBAR = HEIL HITLER)
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To: jazusamo

So a criminal who stile state secrets and has served his time, can work for the State Department. Oops I think we have likely done this already.


8 posted on 05/03/2016 1:50:31 PM PDT by stocksthatgoup (GOPe/MSM - "When we want your opinion, we will give it to you)
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To: jazusamo

The article didn’t say if this presidential edict by the usurper affects the military. I don’t know how much more of this I can take.


9 posted on 05/03/2016 1:51:04 PM PDT by Menehune56 ("Let them hate so long as they fear" (Oderint Dum Metuant), Lucius Accius (170 BC - 86 BC))
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To: BenLurkin

Would this include the FBI, CIA and the Secret Service? Gotta get more felons and Muslims in there; that’s the ticket! /sarcasm


10 posted on 05/03/2016 1:51:08 PM PDT by Frank_2001
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To: BenLurkin

Secret Service, FBI, TSA......no problems there....


11 posted on 05/03/2016 1:51:22 PM PDT by cincinnati65
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Please bump the Freepathon or click above to donate or become a monthly donor!

12 posted on 05/03/2016 1:52:04 PM PDT by jazusamo (Have YOU Donated to Free Republic? https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
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To: jazusamo; All

Patriots, please bear in mind that Congress has always had the constitutional authority to stop Obama dead in his tracks. Corrupt Congress is letting last-term Obama do its dirty work for it so that lawmakers can keep their voting records clean to be reelected.

Remember in November!


13 posted on 05/03/2016 1:53:32 PM PDT by Amendment10
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To: jazusamo
It's already true in the IRS (land of income equality)
I wonder where else OBungler can crap on the citizenry ?
Notice ... no one, in either party, calls him a patriot !!
14 posted on 05/03/2016 1:54:14 PM PDT by Tilted Irish Kilt ( British historian Arnold Toynbee - Civilisations die from suicide, not by murder.)
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To: Menehune56

My thought also, I would guess that the military is a federal agency that the CinC is in charge of.


15 posted on 05/03/2016 1:54:30 PM PDT by jazusamo (Have YOU Donated to Free Republic? https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
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To: jazusamo; All

That’s a Big, Wet, Smelly, Load of crap Obama.


16 posted on 05/03/2016 1:56:27 PM PDT by SandRat (Duty - Honor - Country! What else needs said?)
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To: jazusamo
More faithful execution of the law?

-PJ

17 posted on 05/03/2016 1:56:34 PM PDT by Political Junkie Too (If you are the Posterity of We the People, then you are a Natural Born Citizen.)
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To: BenLurkin

I’m less concerned about the criminals on the bottom than I am about the criminals on the top.

At least 90% of elected officials in DC belong in jail for public corruption, or worse.


18 posted on 05/03/2016 1:58:08 PM PDT by thoughtomator
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To: jazusamo

“My Manager? He’s a convicted Mass Murderer. One Nursery School shoot out after the other before they caught him. The company’s Treasurer? She’s a convicted embezzler of Cancer Charities. Oh, And have you met my Doctor? Let’s just say he has a past in Family Planning that makes Dr. Gosnell look kind and compassionate.” But boy, are we ‘diverse’!!


19 posted on 05/03/2016 1:59:32 PM PDT by lee martell
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To: BenLurkin

Criminals in government jobs.

What could go wrong?


Not like it’s any different than it is already.


20 posted on 05/03/2016 2:00:13 PM PDT by kaehurowing
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