Trump nixes federal pay raise

[mystery-ak]

Trump nixes federal pay raise
By Niv Elis - 08/30/18 01:17 PM EDT

President Trump on Thursday announced that he would cancel a scheduled 2.1 percent across-the-board pay increase for federal workers, as well as locality pay increases.

"In light of our Nation's fiscal situation, Federal employee pay must be performance-based, and aligned strategically toward recruiting, retaining, and rewarding high-performing Federal employees and those with critical skill sets," Trump wrote in a letter to the Speaker of the House and the President of the Senate.

The proposal sets up a fight with Congress, which could effectively overturn the act in upcoming spending legislation. Without such intervention, the move would affect most of the 2.1 million federal employees around the nation, about 1.7 million of which live in areas outside of the Washington, D.C. metro area.

Members of the military, on the other hand, are on schedule to receive a 2.6 percent pay increase.

more
http://thehill.com/policy/finance/404398-trump-nixes-federal-pay-raise

[Sanguine]

 

[ABX]

Generally this action is Constitutionally limited to Congress oversight. Trump is citing a national emergency clause usually reserved for wartime situations to try to make this happen with a 'pen and phone' to bypass Congress. I wonder if Congress will stand up on this and many other unconstitutional things the president is doing (such as tariffs- also under Congress jurisdiction) and take back their authority.

[txradioguy]

Generally this action is Constitutionally limited to Congress oversight. Trump is citing a national emergency clause usually reserved for wartime situations to try to make this happen with a 'pen and phone' to bypass Congress. I wonder if Congress will stand up on this and many other unconstitutional things the president is doing (such as tariffs- also under Congress jurisdiction) and take back their authority.

I'm curious as to what he would say the "national emergency is".

[ABX]

I'm curious as to what he would say the "national emergency is".

Anything can be called a national emergency these days. He could declare everything an emergency and just scrap that pesky Constitution altogether. It just gets in the way anyway. I bet the trains would even run on time if we got rid of it.

[ABX]

I'm curious as to what he would say the "national emergency is".

Btw, this article has his letter to Congress telling them he is bypassing them due to a 'fiscal emergency'.

http://www.fox4news.com/news/president-trump-cancels-pay-raises-for-federal-employees-set-for-january

[Frank Cannon]

LOL. God Bless Trump.

[INVAR]

Btw, this article has his letter to Congress telling them he is bypassing them due to a 'fiscal emergency'.

http://www.fox4news.com/news/president-trump-cancels-pay-raises-for-federal-employees-set-for-january

What is the national emergency?  That he signed a budget that spends us into oblivion and insolvency or the fact that if the GOP loses the House, his ass is impeached?

[ABX]

What is the national emergency?  That he signed a budget that spends us into oblivion and insolvency or the fact that if the GOP loses the House, his ass is impeached?

I'm not saying it shouldn't be cut, it just isn't his job to dictate these things. (After all, we just got off a Democrat who loved to declare crisis after crisis so he could bypass Congress).

But your point is true, he is signing massive spending bills then makes a show out of this tiny cut. I wonder how much this compares to his space force expense?

[INVAR]

I'm not saying it shouldn't be cut, it just isn't his job to dictate these things. (After all, we just got off a Democrat who loved to declare crisis after crisis so he could bypass Congress).

But your point is true, he is signing massive spending bills then makes a show out of this tiny cut. I wonder how much this compares to his space force expense?

Yeah, I'm perfectly fine with cutting all raises of all government employees.

I'm just curious what his excuse is to bypass Congress.

[SirLinksALot]

SOURCE: NBC NEWS

URL: https://www.nbcnews.com/politics/white-house/trump-cancels-scheduled-pay-raises-most-federal-employees-n905151

by Adam Edelman


In a letter to House and Senate leaders, Trump claimed "federal agency budgets cannot sustain such increases."

President Donald Trump announced Thursday that he was canceling pay raises for most federal employees that had been set to go into effect in January, citing government budget concerns.

In a letter to House and Senate leaders, Trump wrote that he’d decided “across-the-board” pay raises as well as locality pay raises for civilian federal workers in 2019 would be frozen.

“I have determined that for 2019, both across‑the‑board pay increases and locality pay increases will be set at zero,” he wrote. “These alternative pay plan decisions will not materially affect our ability to attract and retain a well‑qualified Federal workforce,” Trump added.

In the letter, Trump said a 25.7-percent pay raise for localities, as well as a 2.1-percent pay increase for across-the-board pay, both scheduled for January 2019, would add billions to the federal deficit. Specifically, he pointed to the scheduled locality pay raise as costing $25 billion.

“We must maintain efforts to put our Nation on a fiscally sustainable course, and Federal agency budgets cannot sustain such increases,” Trump wrote in the letter.

He cited Title 5 of the U.S. Code of Laws, as the basis for making the change, saying that the measure allows such decisions when a “national emergency or serious economic conditions” affect “the general welfare."

(Excerpt) Read more at above link...

[SirLinksALot]

OK Folks, Before the sob stories begin, remember they’ll be getting what they got this year, which is much more than comparable civilian office workers get.

If a significant portion of them were fired, the nation wouldn’t notice. In fact, it may improve the efficiency of the remaining ones,as it may reduce the amount of internet surfing on the job.

[dfwgator]

I'm just curious what his excuse is to bypass Congress.

Maybe it could be because he knows they'll never do it.

[Applewood]

But he was perfectly fine with a military parade that would have cost $92 million. 

Actually, I have no problem with freezing pay for government workers and I agree with @SirLinksALot that we could do without a goodly number of government employees.  But it's going to look like he's ok with spending on things he wants, but willing to cut everyone else. And by the way, since I keep hearing how wonderful the economy is under Trump, what are these "serious economic conditions of Title 5 that he is using to justify the wage freeze?

I can hear the squawking from the unions now. 

[ABX]

Maybe it could be because he knows they'll never do it.

Too bad we don't have someone who was touted as the 'best deal maker'  who could go make that deal within the lawful process.

[INVAR]

Maybe it could be because he knows they'll never do it.

Well by that reckoning he should just disband Congress and the courts and declare himself dictator.  I guess that will make some people very happy.

[SirLinksALot]

But he was perfectly fine with a military parade that would have cost $92 million. 

I don't think he was, he cancelled it didn't he?

[MOD8]

Merged topics.

[ABX]

Well by that reckoning he should just disband Congress and the courts and declare himself dictator.  I guess that will make some people very happy.

 Now hold on, they may have a good point. There is no reason for Congress or the Constitution to get in the way. If they don't act or it doesn't follow the Constitution, just write a mandate around it. We are always complaining Congress is enept, so bypass them completely for everything. Write all the budgets and tax bills. Declare all treaties ratified without them. Appoint all judges and other positions without them. If they will be a roadblock, run over them.

Just don't worry if the next guy decides to use that power to dissolve the 2nd Amendment,  trample on the 1st, and kill the 14th. That's for the grandkids to worry about.

;)

[corbe]

   This is good, Military gets a pay raise, and the worthless, redundant Federal Employees take a hit. 
   I'd be more impressed if he fired at least a third of them, but I'll take what I can get.

[ABX]

What's overlooked here- Obama froze federal employee pay starting in 2010.

https://www.nytimes.com/2010/11/30/us/politics/30freeze.html

..and the right, rightfully so, threw a fit that he bypassed Congress with his pen and phone.

https://www.heritage.org/the-constitution/report/executive-unbound-the-obama-administrations-unilateral-actions

But I guess it is OK now when the only difference is a letter behind the name and a comb-over?

[txradioguy]

But I guess it is OK now when the only difference is a letter behind the name and a comb-over?

Different President...different set of rules.

[Applewood]

I don't think he was, he cancelled it didn't he?

Yes, but he WAS fine with squandering taxpayer money on a parade UNTIL the staggering cost forced cancellation.

And I keep bringing up his rock star tour (the never-ending campaign) and how much those trips cost the taxpayers.  My point is that he spends money like it's no tomorrow, but he's going to catch hell for freezing government employee wages.  You know the unions will have a fit.  And I would not be surprised if this move turns up in Dem campaign ads for the midterms. 

[dfwgator]

Yes, but he WAS fine with squandering taxpayer money on a parade UNTIL the staggering cost forced cancellation.

And I keep bringing up his rock star tour (the never-ending campaign) and how much those trips cost the taxpayers.  My point is that he spends money like it's no tomorrow, but he's going to catch hell for freezing government employee wages.  You know the unions will have a fit.  And I would not be surprised if this move turns up in Dem campaign ads for the midterms.

DC and surrounding areas like Virginia are a lost cause, anyway for the GOP.

[roamer_1]

But I guess it is OK now when the only difference is a letter behind the name and a comb-over?

Well, to be fair, you're going to have to look pretty far to find a better or more relevant comb-over.