Trump administration is slower to fill jobs and has higher turnover than any other administration
From the Justice Department to Veterans Affairs, vast swaths of the government have top positions filled by officials serving in an acting capacity — or no one at all. More than two years into Trump’s term, the president has an acting chief of staff, attorney general, defense secretary, Office of Management and Budget director and Environmental Protection Agency chief.
To deal with the number of vacancies in the upper ranks of departments, agencies have been relying on novel and legally questionable personnel moves that could leave the administration’s policies open to court challenges.
The lack of permanent leaders has started to alarm top congressional Republicans who are pressing for key posts to be filled.
“It’s a lot. It’s way too many,” Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.) said of the acting positions in Cabinet agencies. “You want to have confirmed individuals there because they have a lot more authority to be able to make decisions and implement policy when you have a confirmed person in that spot.” [Continue reading…]