Will the next four years be DAD or SFTAPP time?

In politically correct, watch-your-mouth Washington circles, the word “interesting” can mean anything from Dull-As-Dishwater (DAD) to the other extreme: SFTAPP , which stands for Send-For-The-Adult-Pampers™ Please! So will SFTAPP fizzle and fade away when the dust settles or will it be a battle/warning cry for the next four years?!

It’s impossible to guess what thousands of senior, career federal bureaucrats are thinking. Even the sagest of sages can’t know for sure. Even for those who have undergone and survived many other transitions, this one may be one for the books. The pundits have already shown how repeatedly wrong they were predicting that President-elect Donald Trump couldn’t get the nomination and then, when he did, that he couldn’t win. And those who have outlined the Trump blueprint for government are likely to be just as surprised as time goes by. But events of the last couple of weeks must have some veteran feds wondering what’s next and what’s coming down the road. Maybe worrying as well. About their jobs and their agencies.

In addition to some of the things the President-elect has said or tweeted, some of his appointments have gotten people’s attention. Big time. And the events of the last couple of weeks (Russian meddling in the election, maybe a new China policy) have rocked lots of folks’ worlds, not necessarily in a good way. The appointment of so many retired generals, and people with no government experience should make for an “interesting” transition. And maybe next four years.

Although the federal government is a major employer of veterans — compared to most private sector organizations — most feds have not had military service. Civil servants, especially career Senior Executive Service who work closely with political appointees, may be in for a jolt when the ex-generals shake things up and streamline operations. Their new bosses (after a lifetime of military command and discipline) may be in for a surprise when not everybody immediately salutes with enthusiasm.

Opponents of the President-elect say he’s a thin-skinned narcissist who believes he’s the smartest guy in the room (any room) who thinks he knows more about just about any subject — war or peace, or politics — than the generals, professionals, even the CIA.

Backers say he is a very, very smart deal-maker who made the media make him a winner, and that there may be a good reason (like containing nuclear North Korea?) that he’s got China super riled up by upgrading the status of Taiwan.

So what do you think? How is your agency likely to change under a Trump administration? Get better, worse, or keep-on-keeping-on?

Most of us in the pundits club never held a government job and, expertise notwithstanding, most of us don’t have a clue what you do, whether you are a top career executive, part of the CIA team that got Bin Laden or are a Park Ranger in Montana.

Is it gonna be DAD, or STAPP? Or a combination of both?

Love to hear from you. All replies confidential unless you want us to use your name. Send them to me: mcausey@federalnewsradio.com.

Can’t wait! For real!

Nearly Useless Factoid

By Michael O’Connell

The reason the White Rabbit was always late in Disney’s version of Alice in Wonderland, according to the Mad Hatter, was that his watch was two days late.*

Source: Disney Trivia

* Special tip of the NUF hat to Rebecca Hoff-Young of the IRS who noted that today’s factoid was not just late but missing. An appropriate factoid was quickly found and the guilty parties have been sacked – M.O’C.

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