Just
yesterday, Axios carried a piece provocatively entitled “A radical plan for
Trump’s second term.”
The following are key
excerpts of
the article:
“The heart of the
plan is derived from an executive order known as “Schedule F,” developed and
refined in secret over most of the second half of Trump’s term and launched 13
days before the 2020 election.”
“Trump signed
an executive order, “Creating Schedule F in the Excepted
Service,” in October 2020, which established a new employment category for
federal employees. It received wide media coverage for a short period, then was
largely forgotten in the mayhem and aftermath of Jan. 6 — and quickly was
rescinded by Biden.”
“If Trump were
elected to a second term, he would immediately reimpose it.
Tens of thousands of
civil servants who serve in roles deemed to have some influence
over policy would be reassigned as “Schedule F” employees. Upon reassignment,
they would lose their employment protections.”
“Schedule F could
apply to upwards of 50,000 junior and mid-level government workers.
Even if Trump did not
deploy Schedule F to this extent, the very fact that such power exists could
create a significant chilling effect on government employees."
"It would
effectively upend the modern civil service, triggering a shock wave across the
bureaucracy. The next president might then move to gut those pro-Trump ranks —
and face the question of whether to replace them with her or his own loyalists
or revert to a traditional bureaucracy.
Such pendulum swings
and politicization could threaten the continuity and quality of service to
taxpayers, the regulatory protections, the checks on executive power, and other
aspects of American democracy.
To sum it up, this is Trump’s plan to take on the Washington Democrat Establishment that Trump refers to as the swamp. To sum it up, this is Trump’s plan to take on the deep state bureaucracy, purging it of the sort of partisan officials who torpedoed many of his initiatives in his first term.
The swamp is the core of every problem within the US political
system.
It begins with
elections.
If a relatively
unknown but well-meaning candidate wants to run
for office, the swamp places numerous impediments before him.
The first impediment
is funding. The candidate first needs to raise millions to fund a
campaign, for which the swamp is the facilitator. If the candidate chooses
to circumvent the swamp and fund a campaign on small donations from regular
individuals, there are challenges.
Firstly, few donate
to unknown candidates. Secondly, his swamp-funded opponent either during the
primary or the main electoral contest runs attack advertisements while the
regular candidate has no means to respond.
Hence candidates
intending to win have no option but to plunge into the swamp. This enables
millions of dollars for their campaign, favorable media coverage, and a few
coveted endorsements.
Back in 1974, during
his first term in the Senate, Joe Biden talked about the need for Campaign
Finance reforms.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VIZmZe7fe3E
Once candidates are
elected, they follow diktats from the swamp. For instance, they vote for bills
that send $55
billion to defend Ukraine and grant
billions in subsidies to manufacturers of silicon microchips all based
on the orders.
Do they care about
Ukraine?
Not really.
Multimillion-dollar contracts to aid and defend Ukraine are awarded to swamp
loyalist free-lancers and corporate houses. The bills purposefully have no
tracking mechanisms for the funds.
Any act of rebellion
and the swamp retaliates with viciousness. They either run a primary campaign to
unseat the elected representative. They fund a malicious media campaign to
defame. In extreme cases, investigative agencies are deployed where the probe
itself is conflated with guilt.
The relationship
between elected officials and the swamp is symbiotic. In exchange for obeying
diktats, there are multiple means of enrichment.
Shady quid pro quo
deals are stuck behind closed doors when the swamp votes for sending billion to
Ukraine or grants subsidies to the private sector.
The campaign is also
used as an expense account. Close relatives are
‘employed’ by the campaigns and are paid
handsome salaries. The Daily Caller recently revealed that both House
majority whip James
Clyburn of South Carolina and Rep.
Jahana Hayes from Connecticut use their campaign funds to enrich
family members. Obviously, there are many more who do this.
There also are
lucrative jobs for close relatives in the private sector or shady business
deals with hostile foreign nations. In exchange, the private sector receives
government contracts while the hostile foreign nation receives ‘gifts’ and
their crimes are overlooked. Perhaps Joe Biden’s sale of the US Strategic
Petroleum Reserves to
a Chinese company linked to Hunter Biden’s investment firm was in
exchange for Hunter profiting
dealings in China. The swamp specializes in legalizing corruption.
If any swamp member
were to lose an election or retire, the swamp ensures lucrative post-retirement
positions, rewarding book contracts, handsome speaking fees, etc.
While the might of
the law never spares regular citizens, swamp members always get a pass. Trump’s
former campaign manager Steve Bannon was found guilty of
contempt of Congress and could face two years of imprisonment while
swamp member Eric Holder who
was held guilty of a similar offense faced no consequences.
The swamp members
also get a pass in exchange for a favor done in the past or favor that
will be done in the future. Clyburn
endorsed Biden during the primary which enabled him to win the
nomination. In exchange Clyburn misusing his campaign fund will be ignored.
The symbiotic
relationships cultivated owing to decades of shady deals are labyrinthine and
complex.
The swamp’s influence
spread beyond Governmental powers. International organizations, corporate
houses, big tech, think tanks, charity foundations, climate and environmental
bodies, academia, and above all members of the legacy media are all members.
Despite thriving on
public money, the well-being of the public is the least of the swamp’s
concerns. In fact, they frequently exhibit disdain for regular people calling
them pejorative names such as deplorable or Neanderthals.
Those who challenge them are branded as extremists and domestic
terrorists. Swamp members even display Mary Antoinette-like behavior in
response to the struggles of regular people.
Back to the Axios
piece.
The piece is intended
to be a companion to the January 6th Stalinist propaganda
trials. The goal is to make Trump appear like a dictator who will impose
martial law upon being elected, crush every dissenting voice, and purge rebels
within the civil service.
The sanctimonious
seldom have self-awareness. The description of Trump’s “Schedule
F,” is identical to what the swamp is currently doing by targeting its
opponents.
The authors also fail
to understand most people suffering on myriad fronts due to the misgovernance
and the apathy of the Biden administration that has been propped up by the
swamp. When these people read of a plan to contain the monopoly of the swamp
they will celebrate.
What Axios thinks is
a hit job will read like an important section of Trump’s 2024 campaign
manifesto.
It will be a huge
vote-getter for the GOP during the mid-terms and President Trump in 2024.
Also appears on American Thinker
Comments
Post a Comment