Progressive critics are raising alarm over Russell Vought's nomination to head the White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB), citing his history of promoting policies that undermine the civil service and expand executive power.
As a U.S. Senate committee held a confirmation hearing for Russell Vought —Republican President-elect Donald Trump 's pick to head the White House Office of Management and Budget—progressive critics underscored what they called the extremism of the controversial nominee, who played a key role in crafting a proposed initiative to expand executive power and purge the federal civil service.
Vought—who was questioned Wednesday by members of the Senate Homeland Security Committee—served as both acting director and director of the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) during Trump's first term. He currently leads the think tank Center for Renewing America, whose motto is 'For God. For Country. For Community.' The defender of Christian nationalism recently co-authored the policy portion of Project 2025, which includes dramatic cuts to critical public programs, abolishing or gutting essential government agencies, a national abortion ban, and a litany of additional far-right wish list items. While Trump has tried to distance himself from the deeply unpopular proposal, at least 140 people who worked in his first administration—including six former Cabinet secretaries—have been involved with Project 2025. Tapped to oversee an agency that plays a key role in managing civil servants, Vought was secretly recorded saying he wants government officials to be 'traumatically affected' by his reforms 'because they are increasingly viewed as the villains.' Debra Perlin, policy director at the watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility in Washington, submitted written testimony to the Senate committee in which she warned that 'should he be confirmed, it is abundantly clear that Mr. Vought intends to misuse his authority as director of OMB to harm civil servants, and as a result, endanger the American public.' Perlin continued:During his tenure as OMB acting director and then director from January 2019 to January 2021, Mr. Vought was a central figure in attempting to implement Schedule F, President Trump's executive order that would have upended the merit-based civil service system by stripping employment protections away from thousands of career civil servants had President Biden not rescinded it. Mr. Vought has called for reinstating Schedule F and was a key architect of Project 2025, the Heritage Foundation's sweeping—and wildly unpopular—conservative policy plan that advocates for dismantling the civil service. If Schedule F is reinstated, it would not only harm federal employees but would also cause catastrophic harm to government services, as well as causing deep economic impacts in places with significant populations of government workers including California, Texas, Virginia, Maryland, and Washington, D.C., among others. In addition to Mr. Vought's intention to dismantle the civil service, he has pushed extreme strategies to consolidate presidential power under the banner of 'radical constitutionalism.' He supports the president withholding congressionally appropriated funds in violation of the Impoundment Control Act, bypassing the advice and consent of the Senate to push recess appointments, invoking the Insurrection Act to deploy the military on the American public, and abusing emergency powers. These plans to expand presidential power are even more troubling taken with Mr. Vought's stated desire to reduce the independence of federal agencies such as the Department of Justice, in part by purging agencies of career civil servants that are seen as standing in the way of the president's agenda. Mr. Vought has called for 'an army of investigators' to prosecute current and former government officials who sought to hold President Trump accountable. 'These are just some of the ways Mr. Vought intends to misuse his own authority and craft plans for the president to subvert the law and, in the process, American democracy,' Perlin added. In a statement coinciding with Wednesday's hearing, Lisa Gilbert, co-president of the consumer advocacy group Public Citizen, said: 'Vought has no business going back to OMB. His extreme ideological opposition to regulations that protect consumers, workers, our environment, and public health and safety will lead to more deregulatory disasters that harm all of us.' 'He wants to slash funding for critical government agencies and services, interfere with agencies that are supposed to be politically independent, exclude the benefits of regulation from cost-benefit analysis, and fire vast numbers of civil service employees simply for doing their jobs,' Gilbert added. 'In addition, he abused his power during his last tenure at OMB to override agency experts, repeatedly endangering public health and safety. The Senate should reject this dangerous and extreme nomination.' Congressman Jared Huffman (D-Cali
CIVIL SERVICE OMB RUSSELL VOUGHT PROJECT 2025 SCHEDULE F DONALD TRUMP EXTREME IDEOLOGY RADICAL CONSTITUTIONALISM PRESIDENTIAL POWER
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
OMB Nominee Russ Vought: We Will ‘Labor to Make the American Government Work Again’Source of breaking news and analysis, insightful commentary and original reporting, curated and written specifically for the new generation of independent and conservative thinkers.
Read more »
Johnson Calls Vought's OMB Nomination 'Crucial' for Spending ControlSenator Ron Johnson (R-WI) highlights the significance of Russ Vought's nomination to lead the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), emphasizing Vought's ability to reduce government spending and control its growth.
Read more »
Vought Faces Scrutiny at OMB Confirmation HearingRussell Vought, President-elect Trump's nominee for OMB Director, appeared before the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs. His hearing focused on his previous role during Trump's first term, particularly regarding military aid to Ukraine and his views on the Impoundment Control Act.
Read more »
The Vought Problem: When Big Tech Becomes Too PowerfulThis article explores the parallels between the fictional company Vought International from the TV show The Boys and real-life big tech companies developing AI technology. It argues that both entities, driven by profit and a desire for dominance, pose a potential threat if their unchecked power is not addressed.
Read more »
Ohio Senator Defends Trump Nominee for OMB, Criticizes EV PushU.S. Senator Bernie Moreno, a Republican from Ohio, defended President-elect Donald Trump's nominee for the Office of Management and Budget, Russell Vought, against Democratic concerns. Moreno also criticized the Biden administration's focus on electric vehicles, arguing that it benefited China and harmed American automakers.
Read more »
Dem Rep. Connolly to Pro-AOC Progressives: I’m Progressive, Not ‘Outside that Camp’Source of breaking news and analysis, insightful commentary and original reporting, curated and written specifically for the new generation of independent and conservative thinkers.
Read more »