TRUMP DRAINS BIG PART OF
WHITE HOUSE SWAMP, 'There's
going to be a respect for taxpayers in this administration', by Alicia Powe,
7/3/17, WND
WASHINGTON – Fulfilling his campaign
promise to the American people, President Trump is “draining the swamp,” at
least partly, by dramatically cutting the budget of the White House payroll,
ultimately saving American taxpayers a projected $22 million.
According to the Trump
administration annual report to Congress on White House personnel, the
president is reducing “czar” and “fellowship” posts President Obama had in
place and is refusing his presidential salary. The report includes the name,
status, salary and positions of all 377 White House employees.
Adam Andrzejewski, president of the
government watchdog group OpenTheBooks.com, compared
the Trump administration’s payroll data to
the Obama administration’s of the last two years.
“If the White House payroll is a
leading indicator of the president’s commitment to shrink government then
voters have a reason to cheer,” Andrzejewski writes in Forbes.
Obama appointed 50 czars through the
span of his administration, 39 of which were unconfirmed by the Senate and
largely unaccountable to Congress.
As government watchdog Judicial
Watch pointed
out, most of the “czar” activities
were often outside the reach of the Freedom of Information Act, “creating a
veil of secrecy about their precise role in the administration.”
In 2011, Congress – including 13
Democrats – voiced
its disapproval over Obama’s use of czars to
undermine government accountability by introducing a bill intended to eliminate
funding for czars.
The then-Democratic-controlled
Senate did not pass the bill. While the Obama administration was heavily
criticized for using czars as a mean to circumvent Congress, the Trump
administration has yet to employ a single “czar,” according to Trump’s 2017
budget.
Trump also eradicated Obama’s
“fellowship” position. “Fellowship” candidates of the Obama
White House managed special programs, including Michelle Obama’s “Let Girls
Learn” initiative. The Obama administration’s fellowship program comprised
$158,000 of the former president’s annual budget.
Melania and Barron Trump officially
moved into the White House on June 12. However, prior to that, the first lady
was widely criticizing for using taxpayer dollars to continue living in New
York City in Trump Tower until Barron Trump, 10, finished the fourth grade at
his Upper-West Side school year in Manhattan.
In fact, Change.org created a
petition in March demanding Melania Trump to “move to the White House, or
pay for your New York City security expenses yourself.” Yet, the Trump
administration has drastically reduced the White House workforce by cutting the
amount spent on the first lady’s budget.
Melania Trump has a staff of just
five, compared to Michelle Obama’s 24, according to Andrzejewski’s analysis.
Michelle Obama entered the White House with 22 staff members, whose salaries
annually amounted to approximately $2 million, $1.4 million more than that of
her predecessor, Laura Bush.
There are 110 fewer in employees in
the White House under President Trump than there were under that Obama
administration, Andrzejewski points out, saving nearly $5 million alone.
Throughout the course of the
presidential campaign, then-candidate Trump said he would turn down any salary
as president. Left-leaning Think Progress lambasted
the newly elected president in March
for receiving at least one paycheck.
“The White House tweaked the promise
in February, with spokeswoman Sarah Huckabee Sanders explaining to Politifact,
‘He is required to get a paycheck but will be giving it back to (the) treasury
or donating,'” wrote Zack Ford of Think Progress. “But there has been no
evidence to support this claim, and this week the White House refused to
provide NBC with any documentation that he’s taken such actions.”
The president’s apportioned salary,
nonetheless, is not listed in the budget as a line item. Adhering to his
campaign promise, Trump is foregoing his $569,000 annual presidential salary,
including extras and amenities.
When pressed in February on how
whether Trump administration cutbacks will create difficulty for already
overstretched White House staffers, Press Secretary Sean Spicer assured that
President Trump will review all aspects of government for potential savings.
“There’s going to be a respect for
taxpayers in this administration, so that whether it’s salaries or actual
positions or programs, he’s going to have a very, very tough look at how we’re
operating government, how many positions they’re in, what people are getting
paid,” Spicer said.
http://www.wnd.com/2017/07/trump-drains-big-part-of-white-house-swamp/
No comments:
Post a Comment