Government watchdog groups are calling on congressional committees to release the names of Trump political appointees who have “burrowed” into career civil service positions over concerns they may attempt to “sabotage” the Biden administration.
Former President Donald Trump signed an executive order in October that stripped career civil servants of employment protections and opened the door for political appointees to “burrow” into career positions inside the government. The move came as Trump Cabinet members like Education Secretary Betsy DeVos urged staffers to “be the resistance” to the incoming Democratic administration. President Joe Biden rescinded the order in his first days in office, but it remains unclear how many such appointees may have burrowed into career positions inside their departments.
Trump installed at least 26 political appointees in career civil service jobs in the first 10 months of 2020, according to data provided by the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) to Congress, but most conversions likely happened in the final months of Trump’s presidency and those reports have not yet been turned over to Congress. The Washington Post reported last month that the White House was reviewing 425 officials that might move to career positions, but the Trump administration likely ran out of time to install all of them before Biden took office. Continue reading.