Former President Donald Trump is planning significant changes to the federal government if he returns to the White House, including deporting millions of immigrants, abolishing government agencies, and replacing tens of thousands of workers with loyalists.
Liberal organizations are backing President Joe Biden but are quietly working to limit Trump’s power if he wins. Activists, advocates, and legal experts are pushing for new federal rules to curb presidential power and protect Biden’s accomplishments.
They are also urging Biden to issue executive orders to limit the domestic use of the military, which Trump has hinted at. One key focus is limiting the number of government workers a new administration can remove and potentially replace with loyalists.
Trump (Credits: Las Vegas Sun)
Trump sought to reclassify thousands of federal employees at the end of his term, but Biden revoked that order. Trump says he will revive it if he wins, and conservatives are preparing to fire employees to make room for Trump appointees.
The Office of Personnel Management is finalizing a rule against reclassifying workers, which would make it harder to fire them. This rule has been endorsed by 27 advocacy organizations.
However, Trump supporters, including the Heritage Foundation, are strategizing on how to fire employees to make room for appointees.
Federal rules, once in place, can be difficult to undo and can be the basis for lawsuits. Congress has also passed changes to respond to issues that arose during the Trump administration, such as barring unilateral withdrawal from NATO.
Biden has options to thwart a potential Trump administration, such as promoting collective bargaining agreements with federal personnel and designating more government posts as policy-dedicated, making workers harder to fire.
Overall, the efforts by liberal organizations aim to limit Trump’s power and protect Biden’s accomplishments in case Trump wins a second term.
