New House GOP Rule Lets Lawmakers Fire Individual Federal Workers

[whitehall]

What was it about the term "drain the swamp" did you not understand? The sooner lefties realize that the federal government is not a freaking employment agency the better off their mental stability will be.

 

[Coyote]

What was it about the term "drain the swamp" did you not understand? The sooner lefties realize that the federal government is not a freaking employment agency the better off their mental stability will be.

 

[teapartysamurai]

Trump’s transition team has been asking for names of specific government employees.

WASHINGTON ― House Republicans resurrected a decades-old provision in their new rules package that allows lawmakers to lower the salary or eliminate the job of individual federal employees.

Rep. Morgan Griffith (R-Va.), a member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, championed the arcane provision, called the Holman Rule for the Indiana congressman who created it in 1876, as a tool to allow lawmakers to make targeted spending reductions or eliminate positions they deem unnecessary. In an interview with The Washington Post, Griffith said he would like members to use the Holman Rule like a sniper rifle instead of like a shotgun.

Democratic lawmakers representing districts in the Capitol region, where many federal employees work, said in a statement that the rule would “undermine civil service employee protections by stripping away necessary safeguards.” Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.) called the measure “the Armageddon Rule,” and said it’s “a backdoor way for Republicans to dismantle the federal workforce.”

Democrats also said they feared the rule gives Republicans the tools to root out individual federal workers who hold views or perform work that is not favored by the incoming administration. President-elect Donald Trump’s transition team reportedly asked for the names of individual Department of Energy employees who worked on the Paris climate accord.

“The Republican Rules package provides them with the surgical tools necessary to reach into the inner workings of the federal government and cut away each part and employee that runs afoul of their ideological agenda,” Connolly said in a statement. “This, coupled with the President-elect’s proposed federal hiring freeze and the nomination of individuals to head agencies they openly oppose, could be devastating to the critical mission of the federal government.”

Rep. John Sarbanes (D-Md.) called the rule “political theatre.”

“With the inclusion of the Holman Rule in the House rules package, House Republicans have made it clear that they plan to continue their assault on our nation’s civil servants and to subject hardworking federal employees to the ideological and political whims of Congress,” Sarbanes said in a statement.

Congress has always held the power to appropriate or cut funds for executive-branch agencies. What makes the Holman Rule unique is that it allows individual members of Congress to cut the salaries or entirely eliminate the jobs of individual workers. These targeted cuts would override existing federal workplace protections.

More: New House GOP Rule Lets Lawmakers Fire Individual Federal Workers

I feel sorry for government workers who will now be subjected to this McCarthyism bullshit.

Good!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hallelujah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That is excellent news. Only a liberal who believes in an all powerful (Soviet) state wants otherwise,

Thank you Jesus Christ our Lord Trump won!

The news just keeps better and better.

(The hilarious part is the op thinks this news is going to outrage us!)

 

[teapartysamurai]

Funny. The side that is supposed to be about "bringing back jobs" now shows it's true colors - it's about making people jobless.

Making bureaucrats (that make it harder for us to have jobs) jobless is a good thing!

 

[bripat9643]

Trump’s transition team has been asking for names of specific government employees.

WASHINGTON ― House Republicans resurrected a decades-old provision in their new rules package that allows lawmakers to lower the salary or eliminate the job of individual federal employees.

Rep. Morgan Griffith (R-Va.), a member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, championed the arcane provision, called the Holman Rule for the Indiana congressman who created it in 1876, as a tool to allow lawmakers to make targeted spending reductions or eliminate positions they deem unnecessary. In an interview with The Washington Post, Griffith said he would like members to use the Holman Rule like a sniper rifle instead of like a shotgun.

Democratic lawmakers representing districts in the Capitol region, where many federal employees work, said in a statement that the rule would “undermine civil service employee protections by stripping away necessary safeguards.” Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.) called the measure “the Armageddon Rule,” and said it’s “a backdoor way for Republicans to dismantle the federal workforce.”

Democrats also said they feared the rule gives Republicans the tools to root out individual federal workers who hold views or perform work that is not favored by the incoming administration. President-elect Donald Trump’s transition team reportedly asked for the names of individual Department of Energy employees who worked on the Paris climate accord.

“The Republican Rules package provides them with the surgical tools necessary to reach into the inner workings of the federal government and cut away each part and employee that runs afoul of their ideological agenda,” Connolly said in a statement. “This, coupled with the President-elect’s proposed federal hiring freeze and the nomination of individuals to head agencies they openly oppose, could be devastating to the critical mission of the federal government.”

Rep. John Sarbanes (D-Md.) called the rule “political theatre.”

“With the inclusion of the Holman Rule in the House rules package, House Republicans have made it clear that they plan to continue their assault on our nation’s civil servants and to subject hardworking federal employees to the ideological and political whims of Congress,” Sarbanes said in a statement.

Congress has always held the power to appropriate or cut funds for executive-branch agencies. What makes the Holman Rule unique is that it allows individual members of Congress to cut the salaries or entirely eliminate the jobs of individual workers. These targeted cuts would override existing federal workplace protections.

More: New House GOP Rule Lets Lawmakers Fire Individual Federal Workers

I feel sorry for government workers who will now be subjected to this McCarthyism bullshit.

That's a good rule to use for any of the useless ticks who worked on the EPA's recent energy regulations. Their services are no longer needed since we won't be destroying the fossil fuel industry.

 

[FA_Q2]

I know plenty of federal workers who work hard and do a good job. If it's about making it easier to fire non-performing workers, that is one thing. If it's all about firing for ideological reasons, then that is another.

The fact that people are gleeful that they will be losing their jobs is a bit disgusting. They are just as worthy of respect as workers as the people in manufacturing.

The fact that you have to purposefully misrepresent how people are taking this is also rather 'disgusting.'

They are not gleeful that someone is losing a job - they are happy that the government might actually do something to cut some of its excess. I do not think that this measure is going to achieve that at all though - congress is not going to be able to investigate and eliminate positions that would truly make a difference in the grand scheme of things. They just do not have the time or expertise. They might be able to eliminate some positions that are rather redundant or asinine though. We will see. It would not surprise me in the least if they never actually used the rule at all.

 

[Moonglow]

Too bad US citizens can't fire dead weight Congressional members and staff...

 

[thereisnospoon]

I know plenty of federal workers who work hard and do a good job. If it's about making it easier to fire non-performing workers, that is one thing. If it's all about firing for ideological reasons, then that is another.

The fact that people are gleeful that they will be losing their jobs is a bit disgusting. They are just as worthy of respect as workers as the people in manufacturing.

"I know plenty"....Here we go....
Stop it.
Anyway, as you say " I know plenty"...Then you are well aware that these are 'the best and the brightest'...That means they should be a rather significant advantage when applying for jobs in the private sector, no?

 

[thereisnospoon]

I know plenty of federal workers who work hard and do a good job. If it's about making it easier to fire non-performing workers, that is one thing. If it's all about firing for ideological reasons, then that is another.

The fact that people are gleeful that they will be losing their jobs is a bit disgusting. They are just as worthy of respect as workers as the people in manufacturing.

BTW, federal employment is NOT an entitlement

 

[thereisnospoon]

I know plenty of federal workers who work hard and do a good job. If it's about making it easier to fire non-performing workers, that is one thing. If it's all about firing for ideological reasons, then that is another.

I couldn't agree more if the right is selectively firing workers based solely on their political affiliation then they are the ones that need to be fired, but we do have ideological government rules governing the work place involving both hiring and firing, not only are they being fired but they are assigned to re-education classes as well i.e. anger management, sensitivity training, etc. etc...these are Soviet style tactics being employed...I would like to hear some condemnation of those as well...if none is forth coming then what the heck, carry on GOP

The fact that people are gleeful that they will be losing their jobs is a bit disgusting. They are just as worthy of respect as workers as the people in manufacturing.

I don't feel strongly enough about it to call it disgusting, but it is certain cause for pause, if them losing their jobs is important enough to be happy about it for some, then please do not label them as lazy since it is not their fault they are out of work, and they should also be financially rewarded for having their jobs taken away.

you are reading far too much into this.
There is a dire need in Washington for a general cleansing of the system.

 

[Coyote]

I know plenty of federal workers who work hard and do a good job. If it's about making it easier to fire non-performing workers, that is one thing. If it's all about firing for ideological reasons, then that is another.

The fact that people are gleeful that they will be losing their jobs is a bit disgusting. They are just as worthy of respect as workers as the people in manufacturing.

BTW, federal employment is NOT an entitlement

No one said it was. Read what I wrote.

 

[AnCap'n_Murica]

I thought all people deserve jobs.

Everybody does deserve a job.

BTW, you getting minimum wage here?

 

[thereisnospoon]

Too bad US citizens can't fire dead weight Congressional members and staff...

Sure they can. At the voting polls.
As far as staff are concerned, I could not agree more. There are far too many assistants to the deputy undersecretary of the blah blah blah departments. Members of Congress also are assigned too many staff people. And their job descriptions are too vague.

 

[Moonglow]

Too bad US citizens can't fire dead weight Congressional members and staff...

Sure they can. At the voting polls.
As far as staff are concerned, I could not agree more. There are far too many assistants to the deputy undersecretary of the blah blah blah departments. Members of Congress also are assigned too many staff people. And their job descriptions are too vague.

Oh, I mean in the fashion that the House is debating...

 

[thereisnospoon]

Funny. The side that is supposed to be about "bringing back jobs" now shows it's true colors - it's about making people jobless.

The PRIVATE sector.....Fewer public sector workers means revenue actually is spent on essentials.

I thought all people deserve jobs.

Deserve?...No...That would presuppose the notion of entitlement

 

[Frankeneinstein]

I know plenty of federal workers who work hard and do a good job. If it's about making it easier to fire non-performing workers, that is one thing. If it's all about firing for ideological reasons, then that is another.

I couldn't agree more if the right is selectively firing workers based solely on their political affiliation then they are the ones that need to be fired, but we do have ideological government rules governing the work place involving both hiring and firing, not only are they being fired but they are assigned to re-education classes as well i.e. anger management, sensitivity training, etc. etc...these are Soviet style tactics being employed...I would like to hear some condemnation of those as well...if none is forth coming then what the heck, carry on GOP

The fact that people are gleeful that they will be losing their jobs is a bit disgusting. They are just as worthy of respect as workers as the people in manufacturing.

I don't feel strongly enough about it to call it disgusting, but it is certain cause for pause, if them losing their jobs is important enough to be happy about it for some, then please do not label them as lazy since it is not their fault they are out of work, and they should also be financially rewarded for having their jobs taken away.

you are reading far too much into this.
There is a dire need in Washington for a general cleansing of the system.

I don't disagree with you, but it is the folks creating this system [white liberals] that needs to be cleansed immediately, not the ones working to put food on the table, at best/worst they should be grandfathered out...how can the ones fighting to keep their jobs be classified as lazy?

 

[whitehall]

Why would Americans think that federal employees are better than private sector employees who can be fired for a dozen reasons including downsizing and lack of performance? The crazy dichotomy is that liberals celebrate the firing of private sector corporate drones but they think that the bureaucratic federal drones with salaries paid by taxpayers are immune from being canned. What the hell is so special about federal employees?

 

[Billy_Kinetta]

Funny. The side that is supposed to be about "bringing back jobs" now shows it's true colors - it's about making people jobless.

The PRIVATE sector.....Fewer public sector workers means revenue actually is spent on essentials.

I thought all people deserve jobs.

You deserve what you earn.

 

[danielpalos]

Trump’s transition team has been asking for names of specific government employees.

WASHINGTON ― House Republicans resurrected a decades-old provision in their new rules package that allows lawmakers to lower the salary or eliminate the job of individual federal employees.

Rep. Morgan Griffith (R-Va.), a member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, championed the arcane provision, called the Holman Rule for the Indiana congressman who created it in 1876, as a tool to allow lawmakers to make targeted spending reductions or eliminate positions they deem unnecessary. In an interview with The Washington Post, Griffith said he would like members to use the Holman Rule like a sniper rifle instead of like a shotgun.

Democratic lawmakers representing districts in the Capitol region, where many federal employees work, said in a statement that the rule would “undermine civil service employee protections by stripping away necessary safeguards.” Rep. Gerry Connolly (D-Va.) called the measure “the Armageddon Rule,” and said it’s “a backdoor way for Republicans to dismantle the federal workforce.”

Democrats also said they feared the rule gives Republicans the tools to root out individual federal workers who hold views or perform work that is not favored by the incoming administration. President-elect Donald Trump’s transition team reportedly asked for the names of individual Department of Energy employees who worked on the Paris climate accord.

“The Republican Rules package provides them with the surgical tools necessary to reach into the inner workings of the federal government and cut away each part and employee that runs afoul of their ideological agenda,” Connolly said in a statement. “This, coupled with the President-elect’s proposed federal hiring freeze and the nomination of individuals to head agencies they openly oppose, could be devastating to the critical mission of the federal government.”

Rep. John Sarbanes (D-Md.) called the rule “political theatre.”

“With the inclusion of the Holman Rule in the House rules package, House Republicans have made it clear that they plan to continue their assault on our nation’s civil servants and to subject hardworking federal employees to the ideological and political whims of Congress,” Sarbanes said in a statement.

Congress has always held the power to appropriate or cut funds for executive-branch agencies. What makes the Holman Rule unique is that it allows individual members of Congress to cut the salaries or entirely eliminate the jobs of individual workers. These targeted cuts would override existing federal workplace protections.

More: New House GOP Rule Lets Lawmakers Fire Individual Federal Workers

I feel sorry for government workers who will now be subjected to this McCarthyism bullshit.

What a drag. Now democrats may have precedent, when they get into office.

 

[Seawytch]

Let's wait and see who they start firing.

Imagine if this had been a rule that Obama had put into place at the onset of his administration. I can just hear the cries of "partisan witch hunt".

In the game of politics, Republican hypocrisy will rule supreme.