It's Official: Trump's Swamp-Draining Begins

Investor's Business Daily ^ | 4/13/2017 | Staff

[IBD editorial writer]

Bureaucracy: With surprisingly little fanfare, President Trump has set about doing something that has evaded presidents of both parties for decades: reshaping, resizing and reforming our vast, dysfunctional federal bureaucracy. If he succeeds, all Americans will be the better for it.

It's not an easy task. But it is a vital one.

Last Wednesday, the ball really got rolling when Trump ended his temporary freeze on federal hiring, and announced a plan to "resize" the government to make it less costly, more productive and more responsive to average citizens. It's the kind of thing that private businesses do all the time, but that Big Government with its 2.9 million workers does almost never.

"The president of the United States has asked all of us in the executive branch to start from scratch — a little blank piece of paper, and if you were going to rebuild the executive branch, what would it look like?" Office of Management and Budget Director Mick Mulvaney told reporters.

To that end, Mulvaney has sent a letter to all federal agencies telling them to expect major funding cuts and that calls on them to "reorganize governmental functions and eliminate unnecessary agencies" as part of a plan to make government leaner and more efficient.

Though the bureaucracy makeover is part of the laundry list of items Trump wanted to get done in his first 100 days, Mulvaney notes the actual budget cuts won't happen until the 2019 budget. "One of the reasons this is so difficult to do is that you just can't wave a magic wand in the Oval Office and do these things," Mulvaney told RealClearPolitics.

[Jimmy Valentine]

The audit of the rat hole HUD and its results points the way.

[Starboard]

Relocating many federal agency headquarters outside of Washington DC is essential to breaking up the elitist culture that permeates that place.

***********

That is an insightful and profound comment my FRiend. The DC bureaucracy is permeated with elites who think they are intellectually and morally superior to the “little people” they are supposed to humbly serve. There is kind of a country club like atmosphere in DC; instead of golf they play political games.

Unfortunately, people outside the DC Beltway have no idea how isolated these arrogant bureaucrats are from the rest of the country. I think moving them outside the liberal echo chamber of DC would be very healthy and transformative. Make them live amongst the people they are supposed to serve.

[i_robot73]

SHRINKING Fedzilla, like 0’ing out the budget, never STAYS shrunk (nor 0). Only ELIMINATING agencies/dept/etc. will save the day.

Or, better yet, announce all govt will be conducted from their new digs...above the Artic Circle. Those that don’t wish to move can quit. /s

[varon]

Might be a fun thread to have FReepers each choose one to eliminate, and provide their justification for the elimination.

I nominate the Department of Dumb for elimination. My justification is that Dumb doesn't require government subsidies or oversight as it is thriving quite well in all sectors of our society. Perhaps some of the savings could be allocated to the fledgling Department of Common Sense..........

[GOPJ]

Last Wednesday, the ball really got rolling when Trump ended his temporary freeze on federal hiring, and announced a plan to "resize" the government to make it less costly, more productive and more responsive to average citizens. It's the kind of thing that private businesses do all the time, but that Big Government with its 2.9 million workers does almost never.

THIS IS A HUGE WIN! THANK YOU PRESIDENT TRUMP.

[New Jersey Realist]

Damn! $3 billion budget and 7/8 thousand employees! Get rid of that too. Perhaps I should have used 1805 as my starting place.

[Fireone]

Best post on this thread! Thank you!

[central_va]

The hated IRS is one of the agencies spread out all over the USA.

[wintertime]

It reminds me of the Capitol in The Hunger Games.

[Noumenon]

How about Death Valley?

[minnesota_bound]

The EPA is about 50% bigger since 2009
At the very least he needs to cut the budget by 50%

[tiki]

Get rid of their union, run it like a business and let go of anyone who doesn’t perform and we could very easily let 25% go within one month.

[KC_Conspirator]

Relocating many federal agency headquarters outside of Washington DC is essential to breaking up the elitist culture that permeates that place.

That would do wonders for this place. Another idea is to push new offices and jobs out of the Beltway so these people actually have to go out and see what the rest of America is like.

[thirst4truth]

Wow, even Senate is included, lets start there!!

[Walrus]

Thanks, Maine, for your posting of federal agencies.

I would start the re-build by sorting the departments and agencies into three tiers.

Tier 1 - constitutionally required (e.g., Senate, Patent Office, Armed Forces)

Tier 2 - probably needed (e.g., US Military Academy, FAA, DARPA

Tier 3 - probably unnecessary (e.g., AbilityOne Commission, Indian Arts and Crafts Board, Arthritis and Musculoskeletal Interagency Coordinating Committee)

[yetidog]

I was a federal manager who left at first chance for early retirement. I was recruited frequently for movement to “headquarters” with the admonition that “nothing important happens west of the Mississippi.” What vanity and arrogance.

[Paladin2]

The EPA needs to have it’s grant programs terminated with prejudice. Defund the Left.

[Paladin2]

My (at the time) 5-yr old son noted that there were not many bathrooms west of the Missouri.

[IBD editorial writer]

Maybe a third?