Elect a Clown, Expect the Circus

lousubcap

Monday Clown Show summary:

"The Department of Veteran Affairs plans to cut as many as 35,000 health care positions this month, according to an internal memo and U.S. officials. The agency hopes that the cuts will reduce the health care workforce by around 10 per cent, according to the memo. A VA spokesperson said that the “move will have no effect on VA operations or the way the department delivers care to Veterans, we are simply eliminating open and unfilled [positions].” Thomas Dargon Jr., deputy general counsel for the American Federation of Government Employees, said the union had not been consulted by the agency about the cuts, adding that “the VA has been chronically understaffed for years, and employees are obviously going to be facing the brunt of any further job cuts.” Meryl Kornfield, Hannah Natanson, and Lisa Rein report for the Washington Post.

The Trump administration ordered the National Park Service to remove any merchandise related to diversity, equity, and inclusion from its gift shops by Dec.19, according to an Interior Department memo last month. The memo did not provide any examples of which merchandise should be removed. The Interior Department said in a statement on Friday that the review of retail items would “ensure our gift shops remain neutral spaces that serve all visitors” and “do not promote specific viewpoints.” Ashley Ahn reports for the New York Times."