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Donald Trump would fire tens of thousands of civil servants and bring his key Jan. 6 allies to the White House in a move that would fundamentally redesign the government to suit his agenda if he is elected to a second term, according to a new report.
After speaking with close allies of the former president, Axios reports Trump would purge staff at the Justice Department, State Department, and Pentagon in his early days back in the Oval Office in 2025. The outlet’s investigation says the plan would be based around an executive order called “Schedule F,” which was secretly developed and then publicly launched in October 2020 before being rescinded by President Biden.
The order established a new category of employment for federal workers. Trump would resurrect the order if he returns to the White House, which would see thousands of workers who have an influence on policy reassigned as “Schedule F” employees. After being reassigned, the staff would lose their employment protections. An estimate from a Trump official who worked on the order said that as many as 50,000 workers could be subject to such a reassignment. If he became president again, Trump could theoretically fire tens of thousands of them without the employees having any ability to appeal their sacking. He could then fill the vacancies with people he deems more loyal to him and his “America First” program.