Woke the New Federal Workforce Ethic

Is it worse to be dense, or just outright incompetent?

We seemingly are stuck with an administration tone deaf to the genuine needs of Americans, and concurrently lacking ability to follow through on commitments made to them.

The failings of the Biden administration's "diversity at all costs" political appointments have been on horrifying display. For example, a judicial nominee stumped by basic constitutional questions seems quite quaint compared to Pete Buttigieg's weekly attack on our nation's transportation infrastructure.

How far will Team Biden's unique blend of incompetence and questionable activities burrow themselves into the federal bureaucracy? It’s a question more than worth asking.

The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) released a proposed amendment to the federal code on Valetine's Day, which would allow hiring and firing in the federal workforce based on entirely subjective readings of an individual's "character and conduct."

Now for those outside the Beltway, OPM is an independent agency of the U.S. federal government that manages the civilian service, providing human resources policy, oversight, retirement benefits, and so on.

While the agency has always had its shortcomings, as any organization might, it has done a mostly good job of insulating the federal workforce from the vagaries of the election process. The Presidential Personnel Office (PPO) handles matters for explicitly political appointees — those in leadership positions overseeing the actions of the federal bureaucracy — but that's it.

This was to correct the mistake of the "spoils system" introduced into the government labor force 200 years ago by President Andrew Jackson. This has been widely regarded as one of his many shortcomings (along with the Trail of Tears and founding the Democratic Party).

PPO and OPM are intended to be separate so that career bureaucrats don't have to worry about politics threatening their career.

But if this new policy is adopted, eligibility for employment will open the door to discrimination based on someone's politics, social media use, church affiliation, and ideological leaning.

Now of course if Sen. Joseph McCarthy, R-Wis., had suggested 70 years ago that the American government shouldn't be hiring actual, out-of-the-closet Communists while we were at literal war with Communists, it would still be a source of hand-wringing and teeth-gnashing to this day.

But this level of ideological discrimination is par for the course under our current "woke before work" regime.

This follows a recent string of highly publicized problems for OPM, such as The Washington Post expose that cast light on apparent serial-harasser Frederick Tombar III. While working previously in Louisiana, Tombar ran afoul of workplace sexual harassment guidelines, and basic decency, with (at least) two female subordinates, one of whom was awarded a $90,000 settlement for his behavior.

Furthermore, OPM Director Kiran Ahuja has gotten in trouble for institutionalized hiring preferences for former Obama administration officials. Seems like actual capabilities should be the priority, as OPM received an F on its latest FITARA scorecard. The agency's unanswered security flaws were responsible for the largest breach in government history that hurt 21 million federal employees and others, with a settlement reached in 2022 for $63 million.

Oof!

OPM isn't an innovator or expert in HR. It's nothing more than an outdated and inefficient creature of government.

Indeed, OPM's operation of USA Staffing, the government's one-sized fits all talent acquisition system, clashes with the government's technology-acquisition standards set by the Clinger Cohen Act. USA Staffing bypasses the competitive-bidding process with Interagency Agreements, which is a disservice to federal agencies, job seekers and the industry.

Part of the idea of the contractor world is to introduce competition into government services. Giving OPM more power is the wrong move when what the U.S. taxpayer needs from its federal workforce is private-sector expertise. President Donald Trump tried to break up this monopoly, but D.C. is just about as willing to give up power to America as George III was 250 years ago.

Americans have until April 3 to challenge the highly politicized proposed subjective "suitability and fitness" criteria for selecting federal employees.

Make sure the Biden administration knows how you feel!

Jared Whitley is a longtime politico who has worked in the U.S. Congress, White House and defense industry. He is an award-winning writer, having won best blogger in the state from the Utah Society of Professional Journalists (2018) and best columnist from Best of the West (2016). He earned his MBA from Hult International Business School in Dubai. Read Jared Whitley's reports — More Here.