{"id":33045,"date":"2026-06-11T10:29:36","date_gmt":"2026-06-11T10:29:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/2026\/06\/11\/why-trump-keeps-avoiding-senate-confirmation-for-top-government-roles\/"},"modified":"2026-06-11T10:29:36","modified_gmt":"2026-06-11T10:29:36","slug":"why-trump-keeps-avoiding-senate-confirmation-for-top-government-roles","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/2026\/06\/11\/why-trump-keeps-avoiding-senate-confirmation-for-top-government-roles\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Trump keeps avoiding Senate confirmation for top government roles"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div data-editable=\"content\" itemprop=\"articleBody\" data-reorderable=\"content\">\n<div data-editable=\"aiSummary\" class=\"article__ai-summary-wrapper\">\n<div data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/ai-article-summary\/instances\/cmq8c5qnx001h3b6rvuh4c4ka@published\" class=\"ai-article-summary hidden  \" data-article-gutter=\"true\" data-selector-brand=\"accent-ai\">\n    <button class=\"ai-article-summary__toggle\"><br \/>\n        <strong class=\"ai-article-summary__title\"><br \/>\n            <span class=\"ai-article-summary__stars-icon\"><svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" width=\"24\" height=\"24\" viewbox=\"0 0 24 24\" fill=\"none\">\n    <path d=\"M16.7322 12.6297L14.7237 12.0545C13.8192 11.7989 12.9952 11.315 12.3307 10.6491C11.6662 9.98311 11.1834 9.15741 10.9284 8.25095L10.3544 6.23807C10.3255 6.16765 10.2764 6.10741 10.2133 6.06502C10.1502 6.02263 10.076 6 10 6C9.92403 6 9.84978 6.02263 9.78667 6.06502C9.72357 6.10741 9.67446 6.16765 9.6456 6.23807L9.07163 8.25095C8.81662 9.15741 8.33377 9.98311 7.66926 10.6491C7.00476 11.315 6.18084 11.7989 5.27634 12.0545L3.26781 12.6297C3.19069 12.6516 3.12281 12.6982 3.07448 12.7623C3.02615 12.8264 3 12.9045 3 12.9848C3 13.0652 3.02615 13.1433 3.07448 13.2074C3.12281 13.2715 3.19069 13.3181 3.26781 13.34L5.27634 13.9152C6.18084 14.1708 7.00476 14.6547 7.66926 15.3206C8.33377 15.9866 8.81662 16.8123 9.07163 17.7187L9.6456 19.7316C9.66749 19.8089 9.71393 19.8769 9.77789 19.9254C9.84185 19.9738 9.91983 20 10 20C10.0802 20 10.1581 19.9738 10.2221 19.9254C10.2861 19.8769 10.3325 19.8089 10.3544 19.7316L10.9284 17.7187C11.1834 16.8123 11.6662 15.9866 12.3307 15.3206C12.9952 14.6547 13.8192 14.1708 14.7237 13.9152L16.7322 13.34C16.8093 13.3181 16.8772 13.2715 16.9255 13.2074C16.9738 13.1433 17 13.0652 17 12.9848C17 12.9045 16.9738 12.8264 16.9255 12.7623C16.8772 12.6982 16.8093 12.6516 16.7322 12.6297Z\" fill=\"currentColor\"\/>\n    <path d=\"M19.8852 5.84129L19.0244 5.59477C18.6368 5.48524 18.2837 5.27786 17.9989 4.99245C17.7141 4.70705 17.5072 4.35317 17.3979 3.96469L17.1519 3.10203C17.1395 3.07185 17.1185 3.04603 17.0914 3.02787C17.0644 3.0097 17.0326 3 17 3C16.9674 3 16.9356 3.0097 16.9086 3.02787C16.8815 3.04603 16.8605 3.07185 16.8481 3.10203L16.6021 3.96469C16.4928 4.35317 16.2859 4.70705 16.0011 4.99245C15.7163 5.27786 15.3632 5.48524 14.9756 5.59477L14.1148 5.84129C14.0817 5.85069 14.0526 5.87064 14.0319 5.89811C14.0112 5.92558 14 5.95907 14 5.9935C14 6.02794 14.0112 6.06143 14.0319 6.0889C14.0526 6.11637 14.0817 6.13632 14.1148 6.14572L14.9756 6.39224C15.3632 6.50176 15.7163 6.70915 16.0011 6.99455C16.2859 7.27996 16.4928 7.63383 16.6021 8.02231L16.8481 8.88498C16.8575 8.9181 16.8774 8.94725 16.9048 8.96801C16.9322 8.98877 16.9656 9 17 9C17.0344 9 17.0678 8.98877 17.0952 8.96801C17.1226 8.94725 17.1425 8.9181 17.1519 8.88498L17.3979 8.02231C17.5072 7.63383 17.7141 7.27996 17.9989 6.99455C18.2837 6.70915 18.6368 6.50176 19.0244 6.39224L19.8852 6.14572C19.9183 6.13632 19.9474 6.11637 19.9681 6.0889C19.9888 6.06143 20 6.02794 20 5.9935C20 5.95907 19.9888 5.92558 19.9681 5.89811C19.9474 5.87064 19.9183 5.85069 19.8852 5.84129Z\" fill=\"currentColor\"\/>\n<\/svg><br \/>\n<\/span><br \/>\n            <span>Summary<\/span><br \/>\n        <\/strong><br \/>\n            <span class=\"ai-article-summary__toggle-caret-up\" aria-label=\"Toggle Article Summary\"><svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"icon-ui-caret-up\" width=\"24\" height=\"24\" viewbox=\"0 0 24 24\"><path d=\"M12.478 6.21a.637.637 0 00-.946 0L2.206 16.229c-.225.243-.28.633-.093.91.237.355.7.385.975.089l8.917-9.579 8.878 9.537c.225.243.589.301.847.101a.721.721 0 00.082-1.048L12.478 6.211z\"\/><\/svg><br \/>\n<\/span><br \/>\n            <span class=\"ai-article-summary__toggle-caret-down\" aria-label=\"Toggle Article Summary\"><svg xmlns=\"http:\/\/www.w3.org\/2000\/svg\" class=\"icon-ui-caret-down\" width=\"24\" height=\"24\" viewbox=\"0 0 24 24\"><path d=\"M12.478 17.218a.637.637 0 01-.946 0L2.206 7.2c-.225-.242-.28-.632-.093-.91a.613.613 0 01.975-.088l8.917 9.579 8.878-9.538c.225-.242.589-.3.847-.1.33.255.357.752.082 1.048l-9.334 10.027z\"\/><\/svg><br \/>\n<\/span><br \/>\n    <\/button><\/p>\n<div class=\"ai-article-summary__collapsible\">\n<ul class=\"ai-article-summary__items\" data-editable=\"settings\">\n<li class=\"ai-article-summary__item\">President Trump&#8217;s appointment of housing official Bill Pulte to temporarily lead intelligence agencies has drawn criticism from government reform advocates.<\/li>\n<li class=\"ai-article-summary__item\">Pulte lacks national security expertise and did not have a security clearance when announced for the role.<\/li>\n<li class=\"ai-article-summary__item\">Trump is increasingly relying on acting officials across multiple agencies as his Senate confirmation power weakens ahead of November&#8217;s election.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>\n            <span class=\"ai-article-summary__disclaimer-text\">AI-generated summary was reviewed by a CNN editor.<\/span><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/editor-note\/instances\/cmq5nyukb00043b6rxaejfrvl@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"editor-note\" class=\"editor-note-elevate vossi-editor-note_elevate inline-placeholder \" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n    <em>A version of this story appeared in CNN\u2019s What Matters newsletter. To get it in your inbox, sign up for free <\/em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/newsletters\/what-matters?source=nl-acq_article\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\"><em>here<\/em><\/a><em>.<\/em>\n<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq5nue4l000x2dpc40nog5j2@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            It feels odd that President Donald Trump tapped a housing expert to oversee the American intelligence community.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq8bwg8w00073b6rc5pfn6n3@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            But Trump is dug in on his temporary appointment of Bill Pulte, the housing official he wants to start next week and shake things up and clean house during a temporary assignment overseeing the intelligence community. Democrats, to protest the hiring move, could let a key foreign surveillance law lapse and Republicans on Capitol Hill are scrambling, according to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2026\/06\/09\/politics\/trump-johnson-pulte-fisa\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">CNN\u2019s most recent report<\/a>.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq8bwg8w00083b6r5i1b6v8b@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            It feels like a similar problem that qualified leaders of both the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Food and Drug Administration were pushed out and have not yet been replaced. The role of surgeon general has not yet been permanently filled during Trump\u2019s second term.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq8bwg8w00093b6r4u9gl2gz@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            Trump\u2019s power to push nominees for key roles through the Senate is waning as his party braces for an election in November in which his low approval ratings could be a drag on other Republicans.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq8bwg8w000a3b6r1drogbv9@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            In a retread of his first administration, Trump seems likely to rely more and more on \u201cacting\u201d heads of certain agencies, at least for as long as the law allows. Meanwhile, he will continue to test the same law \u2014 the Federal Vacancies Reform Act of 1998 \u2014 by giving a few close aides vast responsibility over multiple agencies.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq8bwg8w000b3b6rl3xns0oa@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            This is not a novel concept in Trump\u2019s administration, where Secretary of State Marco Rubio <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2026\/02\/05\/politics\/marco-rubio-national-archives\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">was also acting archivist<\/a>, or where the administrator of the Social Security Administration is doing double duty in the invented position of <a href=\"https:\/\/www.irs.gov\/about-irs\/ceo-frank-bisignano\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">CEO of the IRS<\/a> since the director position at the tax collection agency can no longer legally be filled on a temporary basis.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq8bwg8w000c3b6rrmudesuo@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            The throughline for Pulte, the soon-to-be \u201cacting\u201d director of national intelligence and Senate-confirmed head of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, is neither housing nor intelligence, but rather, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2026\/06\/02\/politics\/trump-pulte-director-intelligence-election\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">as CNN reported<\/a>, his track record of using his federal job to target Trump\u2019s political enemies.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq8bwg8w000d3b6rlq6xexg4@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            In the Oval Office on June 4, the president made clear that Pulte would not have the job too long: \u201cIt\u2019s an acting position, it\u2019s not a permanent,\u201d Trump said.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq8bwg8w000e3b6r810k5bz3@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            And, rather than citing a need to coordinate intelligence at a time of war, the president expects that with Pulte in the role, \u201cHe may find out some things about the rigged elections.\u201d\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq8bwg8w000f3b6rkcwkp7zd@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            \u201cIt\u2019s a layer cake of mismanagement,\u201d said Max Stier, CEO of the Partnership for Public Service, a nonpartisan group that lobbies for effective government.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq8bwg8w000g3b6r69xsu75v@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            A civil service that has already been cowed by efforts to cut positions and root out what Trump believes is a deep state set against him is also dealing with leaders who have no background in the agencies they are leading.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq8bwg8w000h3b6roqqlzhdf@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            \u201cIt is a recipe for waste, corruption, incompetence, and bad outcome for the American people,\u201d Stier said.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq8bwg8w000i3b6r78tibgol@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            Pulte\u2019s ascendance in particular raises two distinct issues in how Trump has run the US government:\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq8bwg8x000j3b6r7ewt1v55@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            \u25ba The first issue is Trump\u2019s use of \u201cacting\u201d officials as a way to end-run, temporarily, the Senate confirmation process, which can be acrimonious and political in the best of circumstances. Every president has done this, but Trump does it much more frequently and openly. In his first term, he talked about liking the \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2019\/06\/23\/politics\/trump-cabinet-vacancies-apprentice\/index.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">flexibility<\/a>\u201d avoiding the confirmation process gave him. Never mind that it\u2019s required in the Constitution.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq8bwg8x000k3b6rnv7cqf3a@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            \u25ba The second issue is the smushing of unrelated responsibilities into the cadre of trusted Trump aides, which has created multiple odd job combos.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq8bxcln000n3b6re5m3x8cv@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            Both issues ultimately run into laws.\n    <\/p>\n<div data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/image\/instances\/cmq5p9vk700003b6roakzrp2b@published\" class=\"image_large-elevate vossi-image_large-elevate  image_large__hide-placeholder\" data-image-variation=\"image_large\" data-name=\"GettyImages-2202323606.jpg\" data-component-name=\"image\" data-observe-resizes=\"\" data-breakpoints=\"{\" image_large--eq-extra-small=\"\" data-original-ratio=\"0.666875\" data-original-height=\"1067\" data-original-width=\"1600\" data-url=\"https:\/\/media.cnn.com\/api\/v1\/images\/stellar\/prod\/gettyimages-2202323606.jpg?c=original\" data-editable=\"settings\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n<div class=\"image_large__container \" data-image-variation=\"image_large\" data-breakpoints=\"{\" image_large--eq-extra-small=\"\">\n       <picture class=\"image_large__picture\"><source height=\"undefined\" width=\"679\" media=\"(max-width: 479px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/media.cnn.com\/api\/v1\/images\/stellar\/prod\/gettyimages-2202323606.jpg?c=original&amp;q=w_679,c_fill\/f_webp\" type=\"image\/webp\"><source height=\"undefined\" width=\"967\" media=\"(min-width: 480px) and (max-width: 767px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/media.cnn.com\/api\/v1\/images\/stellar\/prod\/gettyimages-2202323606.jpg?c=original&amp;q=w_967,c_fill\/f_webp\" type=\"image\/webp\"><source height=\"undefined\" width=\"860\" media=\"(min-width: 768px) and (max-width: 1023px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/media.cnn.com\/api\/v1\/images\/stellar\/prod\/gettyimages-2202323606.jpg?c=original&amp;q=w_860,c_fill\/f_webp\" type=\"image\/webp\"><source height=\"undefined\" width=\"860\" media=\"(min-width: 1024px) and (max-width: 1279px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/media.cnn.com\/api\/v1\/images\/stellar\/prod\/gettyimages-2202323606.jpg?c=original&amp;q=w_860,c_fill\/f_webp\" type=\"image\/webp\"><source height=\"undefined\" width=\"860\" media=\"(min-width: 1280px)\" srcset=\"https:\/\/media.cnn.com\/api\/v1\/images\/stellar\/prod\/gettyimages-2202323606.jpg?c=original&amp;q=w_860,c_fill\/f_webp\" type=\"image\/webp\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/media.cnn.com\/api\/v1\/images\/stellar\/prod\/gettyimages-2202323606.jpg?c=original&amp;q=w_860,c_fill\" alt=\"Bill Pulte testifies at a hearing of the Senate Banking Committee on February 27, 2025 at the Dirksen Senate Building in Washington, DC.\" class=\"image_large__dam-img image_large__dam-img--loading\" onload=\"this.classList.remove('image_large__dam-img--loading')\" onerror=\"imageLoadError(this)\" height=\"1067\" width=\"1600\" loading=\"lazy\"\/><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n    <\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq8bxg6a000p3b6rcn09bl88@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            The law that set up the DNI role, for instance, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.law.cornell.edu\/uscode\/text\/50\/3023\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">requires<\/a> that anyone nominated \u201cshall have extensive national security expertise.\u201d When the announcement was made, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2026\/06\/05\/politics\/pulte-intelligence-chief-security-clearance\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Pulte did not even have a security clearance<\/a>, although he also has not been nominated for the permanent role. But another part of the law stipulates that if a vacancy occurs, the principal deputy director of national intelligence \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.law.cornell.edu\/uscode\/text\/50\/3026\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">shall act for<\/a>\u201d the DNI during a vacancy. The current principal deputy director of national intelligence is an experienced former CIA officer named <a href=\"https:\/\/www.dni.gov\/index.php\/who-we-are\/leadership\/principal-deputy-dni\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Aaron Lukas<\/a>.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq8bxonq000r3b6rrgjc3two@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            But there\u2019s another law at play here.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq8bxonq000s3b6robzh8v8m@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            The Federal Vacancies Act of 1998 was passed on a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.washingtonpost.com\/archive\/opinions\/1998\/11\/03\/the-vacancies-reform-act\/b99649f6-b1a6-417d-b860-a0b1be04fe58\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">bipartisan<\/a> basis to clip President Bill Clinton\u2019s ability to avoid seeking lawmakers\u2019 blessing for key political appointments that require Senate approval. The Washington shorthand for these jobs is PAS.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq8bxonq000t3b6rw8dgwrpc@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            The Vacancies Act lays out a somewhat complicated system for filling vacancies. First, it requires that PAS roles only be filled by their top deputies, other top officials in their agency, or another Senate-confirmed official. Pulte is a Senate-confirmed official.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq8bxonq000u3b6rdi0ew7ua@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            But there are also time limits. An acting official can only serve for 210 days after a vacancy occurs. If the president nominates a permanent replacement, that 210-day clock stops during the nomination process. The president gets another 210-day period for an acting official if the first nomination fails or is withdrawn. But they don\u2019t get a third.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq8bxonq000v3b6rmugez79l@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            Presidents of both parties have routinely violated this law, according to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.gao.gov\/legal\/federal-vacancies-reform-act\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Government Accountability Office<\/a>.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq8by1jj000z3b6r9hk7cz3x@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer was already busy with Trump\u2019s trade war when he was also tasked to lead the Office of Government Ethics, which is supposed to guard against conflicts of interest in the government, and the Office of Special Counsel, which plays an important role aiding government whistleblowers.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq8by1jj00103b6r0uvsbntw@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            Trump doesn\u2019t seem to have much use for either office during his second term. Neither has a permanent leader at the moment.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq8by1jj00123b6rmirq40z3@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            The Federal Election Commission, which is supposed to be bipartisan, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.fec.gov\/about\/leadership-and-structure\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">doesn\u2019t currently have enough commissioners<\/a> to launch investigations.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq8by1jj00133b6rsnc2a0re@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            The <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/2025\/05\/22\/politics\/supreme-court-trump-firing-power\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">US Merit Systems Protection Board<\/a>, which is tasked with hearing complaints of federal workers, sort of has a quorum, but only because its Senate-approved chairman, Henry Kerner, is also acting vice chairman.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq8by1jj00153b6rmyl21dc1@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            There are about 1,300 Senate-approved positions, according to Stier\u2019s Partnership for Public Service. The group is <a href=\"https:\/\/ourpublicservice.org\/build-better-government\/leadership\/political-appointee-tracker\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">tracking more than 800 key roles,<\/a> and more than 270 of those have no nominee from the Trump administration. About 100 roles have a nominee that has not yet been confirmed by the Senate. This is actually a slightly higher confirmation rate for Trump 2.0 than either the Biden administration or the first Trump administration.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq8by1jj00163b6rtcdgv411@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            But the way Trump is relying on acting officials tests laws that set out how vacancies are supposed to be filled and the spirit of the Constitution, which tried to force compromise between lawmakers and the president by requiring the \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cnn.com\/interactive\/2025\/politics\/trump-presidency-vs-us-constitution-dg\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">advice and consent<\/a>\u201d of the Senate for top officials in the government.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq8by1jj00173b6rfrwqg4ql@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            \u201cThis appears to be the primary lesson he learned from his first term, which is choose people who will do whatever he wants, no matter what, as opposed to choosing people who will stand up for the Constitution, the rule of law, and be capable of running these very important, complex organizations that have had huge impact on the American public,\u201d Stier said.\n    <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph-elevate inline-placeholder vossi-paragraph_elevate\" data-uri=\"cms.cnn.com\/_components\/paragraph\/instances\/cmq9clm8s00053b6r09gjdjba@published\" data-editable=\"text\" data-component-name=\"paragraph\" data-article-gutter=\"true\">\n            <em>This headline has been updated.<\/em>\n    <\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Summary President Trump&#8217;s appointment of housing official Bill Pulte to temporarily lead intelligence agencies has drawn criticism from government reform<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":33046,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_animmysite_disable_animation":false,"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/media.cnn.com\/api\/v1\/images\/stellar\/prod\/2026-04-13t023553z-1331780203-rc2xnkaiqt4a-rtrmadp-3-usa-trump-20260608210419067.jpg?c=16x9&q=w_800,c_fill","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[214],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-33045","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-usa-politics"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33045","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=33045"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/33045\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/33046"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=33045"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=33045"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trendifyhubusa.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=33045"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}