When raising a child, it is crucial to set clear boundaries and enforce them. This ranges from not eating sugar past 4 p.m. to not repeatedly smacking the family dog in the face while figuring out the whole “petting” thing, and more.
The same approach must be taken with federal workers, with restrictions on who has access to the cookie jar (read: taxpayer dollars) being a top priority to prevent waste, fraud, and abuse. As such, when directives are given from the president to curtail overzealous spending, they must be followed.
Recent reporting saw federal officials expose their attempts at keeping progressive initiatives afloat, despite the administration’s orders to shut them down. These workers, mainly government researchers and scientists, bragged to an outlet that they simply rework the language of their projects to subvert the president’s priorities.
And, naturally, government unions are at the center of this disservice to the American people. National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research union president Ethan Roberts said that when the USDA Agricultural Research Service sent a memo telling staffers not to use certain “banned” words and phrases, his team brainstormed different ways to get around the administration’s anti-woke orders.
Instead of complying, the government workers decided to reframe their research and rephrase the terms that would show the true nature of their projects to get them through. For example, “climate change” became “elevated temperatures.”
Yet again, we are seeing the entrenched bureaucracy at work. Not only are these actions a direct repudiation of the president’s constitutional authority, but they’re also a middle finger to the American voter, whose electoral will is stymied by unelected bureaucrats who believe they know better than them.
This situation further shows the dangers that the entrenched, unelected bureaucracy poses to our government. When federal employees openly brag about getting around the president’s authority by touting a change in “focus” of their projects on the chopping block, the problem has metastasized. And, without swift action, the problem will quickly hit Stage IV.
This is merely the latest weapon of deep state insubordination wielded against this administration. Since the beginning of Trump’s second term, resistance warriors in the federal government have orchestrated and participated in massive anti-Trump protests, leaked internal agency documents to the liberal media, launched anti-Trump social media campaigns, recorded private meetings, and resigned in protest of the president’s agenda.
Others have filed lawsuits to generate headaches for the administration. Recently, one such lawsuit led to a U.S. District Court judge ruling that over 1,000 Voice of America employees fired by a Trump executive order last year had to be reinstated. Though that decision was ultimately stayed by another court days later, it shows how determined the unelected bureaucracy is in subverting Trump’s agenda and the will of the American people. Major federal workers' unions, like the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE), have sued Trump over many of his government-cutting executive orders and show no signs of relenting.
Federal employees are willing to undermine the president to keep the money flowing to their precious woke pet projects. Unfortunately, it raises the question: can Americans even claim to have a representative government when the representatives they elect are undermined by unelected bureaucrats with their own political agendas?
Thankfully, there is hope. It’s clear that President Trump is making significant strides in shrinking the federal government. Still, this is no easy feat, and that’s evident by the incredible pushback we are seeing from the entrenched bureaucracy every step of the way.
The administration must keep its wits about it if it wants to accomplish its goal of cultivating a government that works for We, the People. It must be vigilant against those who play childish games with language to keep their hands in the federal funding cookie jar.
Houston Keene joined Democracy Restored after a career working in Congress and as a nationally syndicated journalist covering politics, including the executive branch and government ethics. Houston was born in Austin, Texas, and is a proud father, husband, and Baylor Bear.