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Obama seeks power to shrink the federal government

(CBS/AP)

WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama will ask Congress on Friday for greater power to shrink the federal government, and his first idea is merging six sprawling trade and commerce agencies whose overlapping programs can be baffling to businesses.

Obama will call on Congress to give him a type of reorganizational power last held by a president when Ronald Reagan was in office. The Obama version would be a so-called consolidation authority allowing him to propose mergers that promise to save money and help consumers. The deal would entitle him to an up-or-down vote from Congress in 90 days.

It would be up to lawmakers, therefore, to first grant Obama this fast-track authority and then decide whether to approve any of his specific ideas.

Obama is scheduled to announce the proposal around 11:20 a.m. ET in the East Room of the White House.

Why Obama is seeking to merge agencies

In an election year and a political atmosphere of tighter spending, Obama's motivation is about improving a giant bureaucracy, but that's hardly all of it.

To voters sick of dysfunction, Obama wants to show some action on making Washington work better. Politically, his plan would allow him to do so by putting the onus on Congress and in particular his Republican critics in the House and Senate, to show why they would be against the pursuit of a leaner government.

Obama also has an imperative to deliver. He made a promise to come up with a smart reorganization of the government in his last State of the Union speech. That was nearly a year ago.

At the time, Obama grabbed attention by pointing out the absurdity of government inefficiency. In what he called his favorite example, Obama said: "The Interior Department is in charge of salmon while they're in fresh water, but the Commerce Department handles them when they're in saltwater. And I hear it gets even more complicated once they're smoked."

The White House said the problem is serious for consumers who turn to their government for help and often do not know where to begin.

Not in decades has the government undergone a sustained reorganization of itself. Presidents have tried from time to time, but each part of the bureaucracy has its own defenders inside and outside the government, which can make merger ideas politically impossible. That's particularly true because "efficiency" is often another way of saying people will lose their jobs.

Obama hopes to enhance his chances by getting Congress to give him the assurance of a clean, relatively speedy vote on any of his proposals.

There is no clear sign that Obama would get that cooperation. He spent much of 2011 in gridlock with Republicans who control the House and can halt votes in the Senate.

Should he prevail, Obama's first project would be to combine six major operations of the government that focus on business and trade.

They are: the Commerce Department's core business and trade functions; the Small Business Administration; the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative; the Export-Import Bank; the Overseas Private Investment Corporation; and the Trade and Development Agency. The goal would be one agency designed to help businesses thrive.

The official said 1,000 to 2,000 jobs would be cut, but the administration would do so through attrition; that is, as people routinely leave their jobs over time.

The administration said the merger would save $3 billion over 10 years by getting rid of duplicative overhead costs, human resources divisions and programs.

The point, the official said, is not just making the government smaller but better by saving people time and eliminating bureaucratic nightmares. The idea for the consolidated business agency grew out of discussions with hundreds of business leaders and agency heads over the last several months.

The administration official presented Obama as the CEO of an operation who should have more power to influence how it is designed. According to the White House, presidents held such a reorganizational authority for about 50 years until it ran out during Reagan's presidency in 1984.

During census periods, federal employment fluctuates drastically, increasing during census administration and returning to previous levels at the conclusion of the census. These changes are represented above by blue peaks. Indeed, during the summer of 2010, seasonally adjusted federal employment reached 3.4 million employees, the highest level of federal employment since May 1990. However, at the conclusion of this census, federal employment returned to a higher level than before the census hiring. In fact, at the end of the 2010 census, federal employment was even higher than it had been at the beginning of the recession. Even controlling for the effects of census employment, federal employment has increased constantly throughout the recession and into today. Since January 2008, net of census hiring, the federal government has grown by 3.5 percent, gaining 98,000 jobs.

Should he prevail, Obama's first project would be to combine six major operations of the government that focus on business and trade.

They are: the Commerce Department's core business and trade functions; the Small Business Administration; the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative; the Export-Import Bank; the Overseas Private Investment Corporation; and the Trade and Development Agency. The goal would be one agency designed to help businesses thrive.

The official said 1,000 to 2,000 jobs would be cut, but the administration would do so through attrition; that is, as people routinely leave their jobs over time.

According to the White House, presidents held such a reorganizational authority for about 50 years until it ran out during Reagan's presidency in 1984.

ASUG8 wrote:Didn't he just ask for another $1.2 trillion added to the debt ceiling today as well?

AZGrizFan wrote:http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/25 ... ue-de-rugy

During census periods, federal employment fluctuates drastically, increasing during census administration and returning to previous levels at the conclusion of the census. These changes are represented above by blue peaks. Indeed, during the summer of 2010, seasonally adjusted federal employment reached 3.4 million employees, the highest level of federal employment since May 1990. However, at the conclusion of this census, federal employment returned to a higher level than before the census hiring. In fact, at the end of the 2010 census, federal employment was even higher than it had been at the beginning of the recession. Even controlling for the effects of census employment, federal employment has increased constantly throughout the recession and into today. Since January 2008, net of census hiring, the federal government has grown by 3.5 percent, gaining 98,000 jobs.

Should he prevail, Obama's first project would be to combine six major operations of the government that focus on business and trade.

They are: the Commerce Department's core business and trade functions; the Small Business Administration; the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative; the Export-Import Bank; the Overseas Private Investment Corporation; and the Trade and Development Agency. The goal would be one agency designed to help businesses thrive.

The official said 1,000 to 2,000 jobs would be cut, but the administration would do so through attrition; that is, as people routinely leave their jobs over time.

ONLY in a Donk world can you increase the size of government by almost 100,000 people, then boldly announce a reorganization plan in which less than 2% of the ADDED jobs are being cut and call that a SHRINKING of government.

Big, fat, huge swing and a miss, Analjelly. Better go back to the drawing board.

CID1990 wrote:every fed agency needs another fat ass

Skjellyfetti wrote:

CID1990 wrote:every fed agency needs another fat ass

this coming from a fat ass federal empoyee.

rich irony.

Skjellyfetti wrote:

CID1990 wrote:every fed agency needs another fat ass

this coming from a fat ass federal empoyee.

rich irony.

AZGrizFan wrote:http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/25 ... ue-de-rugy

During census periods, federal employment fluctuates drastically, increasing during census administration and returning to previous levels at the conclusion of the census. These changes are represented above by blue peaks. Indeed, during the summer of 2010, seasonally adjusted federal employment reached 3.4 million employees, the highest level of federal employment since May 1990. However, at the conclusion of this census, federal employment returned to a higher level than before the census hiring. In fact, at the end of the 2010 census, federal employment was even higher than it had been at the beginning of the recession. Even controlling for the effects of census employment, federal employment has increased constantly throughout the recession and into today. Since January 2008, net of census hiring, the federal government has grown by 3.5 percent, gaining 98,000 jobs.

Should he prevail, Obama's first project would be to combine six major operations of the government that focus on business and trade.

They are: the Commerce Department's core business and trade functions; the Small Business Administration; the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative; the Export-Import Bank; the Overseas Private Investment Corporation; and the Trade and Development Agency. The goal would be one agency designed to help businesses thrive.

The official said 1,000 to 2,000 jobs would be cut, but the administration would do so through attrition; that is, as people routinely leave their jobs over time.

ONLY in a Donk world can you increase the size of government by almost 100,000 people, then boldly announce a reorganization plan in which less than 2% of the ADDED jobs are being cut and call that a SHRINKING of government.

Big, fat, huge swing and a miss, Analjelly. Better go back to the drawing board.

AZGrizFan wrote:

Skjellyfetti wrote:
this coming from a fat ass federal empoyee.

rich irony.

Classic donk response, analjelly. Thanks for not letting us down.

Can't refute the facts, so attack the messenger.

CID1990 wrote:

AZGrizFan wrote:http://www.nationalreview.com/corner/25 ... ue-de-rugy





ONLY in a Donk world can you increase the size of government by almost 100,000 people, then boldly announce a reorganization plan in which less than 2% of the ADDED jobs are being cut and call that a SHRINKING of government.

Big, fat, huge swing and a miss, Analjelly. Better go back to the drawing board.

Spot on, Bubba.

Want to know where the majority of those new fed jobs are? Homeland Security, and fat ass civil service clerk jobs.

Big sis needs more internetz monitors, and every fed agency needs another fat ass clerk collecting parking fees outside the building.

Skjellyfetti wrote:

CID1990 wrote:every fed agency needs another fat ass

this coming from a fat ass federal empoyee.

rich irony.

GrizFanStuckInUtah wrote:This story sounds like it was taken straight from the Obama administration and not written by a news agency. As I read it, it doesn't sound like he wants to do anything except have more power and act like he is trying to do something while really doing nothing.

SeattleGriz wrote:While I can't find the quote in the CBS article, I did read a different version in which Obama stated the terrible inefficiency of the government. When I read that, I quickly remembered how Obama tried to vilify anyone who mentioned that little fact back when he was trying to get support for Obamacare. Funny how the spin is now going the other way. Can you imagine how badly Obamacare is going to be managed?

kalm wrote:

SeattleGriz wrote:While I can't find the quote in the CBS article, I did read a different version in which Obama stated the terrible inefficiency of the government. When I read that, I quickly remembered how Obama tried to vilify anyone who mentioned that little fact back when he was trying to get support for Obamacare. Funny how the spin is now going the other way. Can you imagine how badly Obamacare is going to be managed?

I get what you're saying and I'm not a fan of Obamacare either but how efficient is the current for-profit system? At least medicare and the VA can manage their systems for less money than private insurance.

kalm wrote:

SeattleGriz wrote:While I can't find the quote in the CBS article, I did read a different version in which Obama stated the terrible inefficiency of the government. When I read that, I quickly remembered how Obama tried to vilify anyone who mentioned that little fact back when he was trying to get support for Obamacare. Funny how the spin is now going the other way. Can you imagine how badly Obamacare is going to be managed?

I get what you're saying and I'm not a fan of Obamacare either but how efficient is the current for-profit system? At least medicare and the VA can manage their systems for less money than private insurance.

Cap'n Cat wrote:Conk clowns gotta start thinking about 2040, or something. We're gonna be on a long Democratic jag. Twentieth century Capitalism and Conk-servatism have laid the country bare for abuse and only Dems can adapt to the requirements the New World demands. The United States is the new Spain.



The future's so bright, Michelle Obama's gotta wear shades.

ASUG8 wrote:

Cap'n Cat wrote:Conk clowns gotta start thinking about 2040, or something. We're gonna be on a long Democratic jag. Twentieth century Capitalism and Conk-servatism have laid the country bare for abuse and only Dems can adapt to the requirements the New World demands. The United States is the new Spain.



The future's so bright, Michelle Obama's gotta wear shades.

C'mon Cappy, even you can't believe the US will still be a country under Dem rule for another 20+ yrs.