This story appeared in The Logoffa daily newsletter that helps you stay informed about the Trump administration without letting political news rule your life. Register here.
Welcome to The Logoff: The Trump administration wants federal employees to sign new nondisclosure agreements.
Why do you do this? President Donald Trump and members of his administration have long criticized leakers and media organizations for revealing information about their actions, starting with US-Iran war situation to FBI Director Kash Patel’s alleged drinking habits in recent months. A blanket NDA would create a new way to stop such disclosures and could prevent government employees from making them.
What would the NDA cover? In short, the proposed NDA doesn’t do much. According to the Office of Personnel Management, it “will document Federal employees’ acknowledgment of, and agreement to comply with, current legal obligations to protect nonpublic, confidential, or proprietary information.” In context, though, it will be another tool for the Trump administration to clamp down on leaks.
Currently, the plan is still in draft form and will need to clear a 30-day public comment period before it can be implemented. Each agency would then decide whether to use an NDA.
What is the context? The public has often learned important information about government programs and operations through the disclosure of the kinds of material the NDA wants to suppress, both historically and during the current Trump administration. If implemented, it would be another step by the Trump administration toward less transparency.
what is the main picture? The story of Trump’s second term has been his privatization of government. His former lawyers in top roles at the Department of Justice, a UFC fight at the White House to celebrate his birthday, his decorated taste bypassing the Oval Office, and much more.
Potential NDAs — a nice private-sector approach tailored to workers whom Trump sees as serving him, rather than the American people — are another example of a similar impulse.
And so, it’s time to leave…
I’m not a New York Knicks fan myself — my particular basketball fandom is on the way until we get the Seattle SuperSonics — but that doesn’t mean I can’t appreciate the joy of sports from the long-suffering franchise, and you can, too. I enjoyed Rodger Sherman’s journal on the Knicks’ epic trip to the NBA Finals, as well this piece from Defector’s Israel Daramola.
Thanks for reading, have a good evening, and we’ll see you back here tomorrow!
