The first four months of the Trump administration have seen the largest destruction of our federal government’s capacity in history, with the reckless and illegal dismantling of agencies, the arbitrary slashing of the workforce, and the elimination of countless programs and critical public services.
President Trump has literally set the house on fire, requiring a public response to this five-alarm emergency that shouldn’t involve only the political process and the courts. The fight must involve foundations, philanthropists, nonprofits, and state and city governments, which either fund or become the home for the abandoned federal initiatives, services, and civil servants.
There’s no way, of course, to replace the depth and breadth of the federal government’s brazenly and often illegally discarded work, but even saving some of the contents of the burning house will have value.
