The effort by President Donald Trump and his billionaire ally Elon Musk to purge the federal workforce with a so-called buyout program is filled with ambiguity and fraught with two major problems, according to CNN legal analyst Elliot Williams.
The analysis came Thursday when Williams, a former federal prosecutor, was asked about the legality surrounding the program that the White House is calling a “buyout” – which has drawn skepticism from lawmakers on Capitol Hill and threw several federal agencies into chaos.
“It's just massive legal questions that they've left open,” Williams said Thursday. “And I just don't see it working out well for the president right now.”
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To start with, the CNN analyst said open questions surrounding the specifics of the plan “simply have not been answered by the federal government.”
“Number one, what happens if somebody is working and seeks another form of employment while they're waiting to get their money?" Williams asked. “What happens if they want to get benefits during that period?”
Williams next offered Trump a reality check on how government functions with a nod to the iconic 1970s cartoon musical famous for “How a bill becomes a law.”
“And then number two, basic ‘Schoolhouse Rock!’ questions about who works in the government and how it spends its money,” Williams told viewers. “Congress appropriates funds – salaries are money – Congress has not dictated how this money is going to be spent. All of these payouts that the president is saying that people are going to get, where is it going to come from? That's an open legal question as well. “
Watch the clip below or at this link.
