Sunday Issues-January 26, 2025
The ominous launch of Trump 2.0
Less than a week into President Trump’s second term, things seem to be falling apart or, I worry, falling into place. Cabinet and other top administration nominees seem purposeful middle-fingers to common sense. Pronouncements like restoring the name of Denali to Mt. McKinley and renaming the Gulf of Mexico are gestures one might expect of a buffoon or a fictional president in a comedy movie. Then, there is the elimination of DEI officers and, just this weekend, the firing of more than a dozen Inspector Generals across the government.
What is going on? Is Trump 2.0 the handiwork of a madman who hasn’t been identified as one yet? Or, right before our eyes, has a purpose-driven, even disciplined Trump appeared and started the work of dismantling government as we know it and replacing it with the first cousin of a dictatorship? I’m starting to worry that the latter is the case.
On Friday evening, the U.S. Senate Democrats could not stop a Trump appointment that should never have been made. Pete Hegseth appears not to have shared his sordid personal history with Trump, who apparently liked how he looked as a weekend anchor on Fox News.
Trump could have nominated a horse as Secretary of Defense and still received 47 Republican “aye” votes.
The nominations of Tulsi Gabbard, the most dangerous nomination of them all, and crazy-man Kash Patel to head the FBI are on deck. Given what happened with Hegseth, both are likely to be approved.
Why did Trump fire 17 Inspectors General? To avoid the embarrassment and nuisance of having independent watchdogs call out instances of financial or HR abuses and illegal actions by the underqualified or MAGA-mission-driven obsessed people he has put in office. Trump fired the IGs without an explanation or providing Congress with the required 30-day notice, which is worrisome. Will Congress do anything about it?
President Trump may be on his way to becoming the most powerful president in post-Civil War history. That bodes poorly for America because Trump is 78 years-old, vengeance-obsessed, narcissistic, and undisciplined.
So, the issue of the week is what Trump’s first week in office is telling us about the 207 weeks remaining in his term. Fasten your seatbelt. We have not seen the worst of Trump 2.0 yet.
Kill FEMA?
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is not perfect, but it has saved hundreds of lives since it was created in 1979. It is designed to provide expertise, leadership, and resources to states to respond to disasters when the scope of the disaster is greater than what the state can manage.
Trump commented in California that it may be time for FEMA “to go.” Under what appears to be a developing Trump plan, the federal government would give money to States if they needed it. FEMA would cease to exist.
Expect significant Congressional pushback to this hair-brained idea. Many states don’t want to be responsible for cleaning up after natural disasters. And what will happen if a state’s governor is incompetent or corrupt? If FEMA were abolished, what would “plan B” be?
Why competent, independent Inspector Generals are a problem for Trump 2.0.
Why did Trump fire more than a dozen Inspectors General? To avoid the embarrassment and nuisance of having independent watchdogs call out instances of financial or HR abuses and illegal actions by the underqualified or MAGA-mission-driven obsessed people he has put in office. Trump fired the IGs without an explanation or providing Congress with the required 30-day notice, which is worrisome. Will Congress do anything about it?
Trump will fill these posts with loyalists who are not likely to have the experience and expertise necessary to be effective. Why? Good whistle-blowers blow whistles. Autocrats don’t like that.
Trump is establishing a pattern of ignoring laws he dislikes. One example is allowing TikTok to continue operating despite a deadline for its sale or outlawing in the U.S. Another is how Trump fired the IGs.
As agency watchdogs, IGs report not only on corruption, the success or failure of programs, cost overruns, and compliance with Congressional mandates. All these things are potential problems for Trump. He will not want any Trump initiative to be declared a failure by an IG or want a determination that an action he (or the relevant agency) took was contrary to the law.
More later.
There are other issues to consider today, but I am limiting today’s Sunday Issues to those I found most disturbing.
I am focused this week on OMB and Trump's plans to dismantle the “administrative state.” I recommend “Who is Russell Vought? Probably the most important person in Trump 2.0.”
Thank you for reading today’s Sunday Issues. Have a good week.
You are right to focus on the Office of Management and Budget. It’s director has tremendous power in any administration, but with a President determined to exercise authority (whether granted by law or not) and an inexperienced collection of cabinet members, the role of OMB is larger than ever.
Thank you for your wisdom, observations and perspective. Please keep writing!