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GOP Officials Privately Admit Trump’s Federal Buyout Plan Violates Federal Law

NNPA NEWSWIRE — While congressional Republicans have remained largely silent, GOP officials privately admit that the Trump administration’s offer to pay federal employees beyond the government’s mid-March funding deadline violates federal law

Published

1 year ago

February 4, 2025

Stacy M. Brown

By Stacy M. Brown
NNPA Newswire Senior National Correspondent
@StacyBrownMedia

Federal employees across the country received an unsettling email Monday morning—a directive from the Trump administration’s Office of Personnel Management (OPM) outlining a so-called “deferred resignation program” that offers workers guaranteed pay and benefits until September 30, 2025—months beyond the government’s current funding deadline. Legal experts, state attorneys general, and labor organizations are warning that the administration’s move is not only legally dubious but outright illegal. It violates the Anti-Deficiency Act, which bars the government from spending money that Congress has not authorized.

GOP Officials Acknowledge Buyout Program Is Illegal

While congressional Republicans have remained largely silent, GOP officials privately admit that the Trump administration’s offer to pay federal employees beyond the government’s mid-March funding deadline violates federal law. “This is an outright violation of federal law,” one Republican official told CBS News. “Anybody else would be walked out of an agency for going $1 beyond appropriated dollars. The back-of-the-napkin math on this offer—paying all federal employees for 6.5 months beyond current appropriations—comes out to about $50 billion. Even if only a fraction accepts, the obligation is still incurred.” Despite these warnings, few expect congressional Republicans to challenge the administration’s move, leaving the program’s legality in limbo.

State Attorneys General Warn Federal Employees to Avoid the Scheme

Maryland Attorney General Anthony Brown joined 11 other states in cautioning federal employees against the Trump administration’s proposal, calling it an attack on the government’s ability to serve the public. “The terms of this vague, so-called ‘deferred resignation’ put federal employees in an ambiguous position and risk straining essential government resources that people across the state and country rely on to live full, healthy lives,” Brown said in a statement Monday. Unions representing federal workers have also condemned the move, warning that it is nothing more than an attempt to dismantle the civil service under the guise of cost-cutting.

“The number of civil servants hasn’t meaningfully changed since 1970, but more Americans than ever rely on government services,” the American Federation of Government Employees (AFGE) said. “Purging the federal government of dedicated career civil servants will have vast, unintended consequences that will cause chaos for the Americans who depend on a functioning federal government.”

The Deferred Resignation Offer: A Legal and Logistical Mess

The latest email from OPM, titled “Fork in the Road”, is the third communication sent to federal employees regarding the resignation plan. The message, according to CBS News, reads:

Q: The current funding bill for the federal government expires on March 14. Will I still receive full pay and benefits if the money runs out?

A: Any government shutdown could potentially affect an employee’s pay regardless of whether he or she has accepted the deferred resignation offer. Moreover, if you accept the deferred resignation offer, you would still be entitled to backpay under the Government Employee Fair Treatment Act.

Legal experts have pointed out that the Administrative Leave Act only allows agencies to place employees on 10 workdays of paid leave in a calendar year—nowhere near the eight months of paid leave that OPM is now offering under the Trump administration’s directive.

“This email is another ill-motivated effort to get as many federal employees to quit as soon as possible,” said Peter Jenkins, senior counsel for Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER). “OPM has no legal authority to reliably claim that the Trump administration will put everyone who quits in the next eight days on paid administrative leave throughout the next eight months.”

According to PEER’s analysis, OPM’s website explicitly states that the maximum incentive for voluntary resignations is capped at $25,000—a stark contrast to the months-long compensation the administration promises.

Further, PEER’s executive director, Tim Whitehouse, said federal employees should be extremely skeptical of the buyout offer.

“The country needs a strong civil service to help address these threats, something this administration seems determined to destroy,” Whitehouse told NPR. “Federal employees should be very skeptical about accepting this offer.”

History Shows Buyouts Lead to Higher Costs and Workforce Instability

Buyouts and workforce reductions have been tried before, with disastrous consequences. A Government Accountability Office (GAO) report on similar buyouts during the Clinton administration in the 1990s found that many agencies granted buyouts without a clear strategy, leading to a loss of institutional knowledge and forcing the government to hire back many of the same employees as higher-paid consultants. Experts warn that this time’s effects could be even worse, particularly given the Trump administration’s efforts to sideline federal employees working in diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) and environmental justice roles.

“In a cruel twist, the administration has arbitrarily sidelined employees across the government who work on diversity, equity, inclusion, and environmental justice issues,” PEER reported. These employees, who were already placed on administrative leave and denied access to their emails, cannot even respond to this offer. Despite the administration’s claims that the buyout will save money, economists say it is unlikely to deliver the promised results.

“The government spends about $350 billion a year on federal employees—just 5% of the total budget—yet this administration is determined to gut the civil service as if it’s some bloated bureaucracy,” said Josh Bivens, chief economist at the Economic Policy Institute, in an interview with CBS News.

Widespread Fallout Looms as Buyout Deadline Nears

With the February 6 deadline fast approaching, federal workers nationwide are being forced to decide whether to accept an offer that could leave them without legal recourse if the administration fails to follow through on its promises. Meanwhile, Congressional Republicans remain silent, despite growing concerns from legal experts, state officials, and workers. According to Max Stier, president and CEO of the Partnership for Public Service, many of these federal workers are veterans and professionals who have dedicated their lives to serving the country.

“Most people don’t understand that lots of people in the military go into civil service because they want to continue to serve,” Stier told NPR.

Stacy M. Brown

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#NNPA BlackPress

Poll Shows Support for Policies That Help Families Afford Child Care

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — New national polling shows persistent voter concern about the affordability and availability of child care for working parents, alongside broad support across key demographic groups for federal child care policies that help families afford care.

Published

22 hours ago

March 2, 2026

Oakland Post

By First Five Years Fund

New national polling shows persistent voter concern about the affordability and availability of child care for working parents, alongside broad support across key demographic groups for federal child care policies that help families afford care.

The national survey was conducted by UpOne Insight on behalf of the First Five Years Fund from January 13–18, 2026.

Key findings include:

• Parents need help: 80% of voters say the ability of working parents to find and afford child care is either in a state of crisis or a major problem.

• This is an affordability issue: 82% believe federal child care funding will help lower costs for working families — including 69% of Republicans, 84% of Independents, and 94% of Democrats.

• And there continues to be strong support (62%) for the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG), a federal program that makes it possible for hundreds of thousands of families to afford safe, quality care for their children while parents work or go to school, including a majority of Republicans, 63% of Independents and 72% of Democrats.

• Support for funding child care programs remains strong: 75% believe child care funding should be increased or kept at current levels — including 75% of Republicans, 85% of Independents, and 97% of Democrats.

• 74% say funding for child care is an important and good use of tax dollars, including a majority of Republicans, three-quarters of Independents, and nine in ten Democrats.

FFYF Executive Director Sarah Rittling said, “Voters across the country are sending a clear message: federal child care and early learning programs work. These investments help parents stay in the workforce, strengthen families, and support healthy child development. They have also long had strong bipartisan support in Congress. At a time when affordability is top of mind for families, continued federal funding is essential to ensure child care remains accessible and within reach.”

First Five Years Fund works to protect, prioritize, and build bipartisan support for quality child care and early learning programs at the federal level. Reliable, affordable, and high-quality early learning and child care can be transformative, not only enhancing a child’s prospects for a brighter future but also bolstering working parents and fostering economic stability nationwide.

We work with Congress and the Administration to identify federal solutions that work for families with young children, as well as states and communities. We work with policymakers to identify ways to increase access to affordable, high-quality child care and early learning programs for children. And we collaborate with advocacy groups to help align best practices with the best possible policies. http://www.ffyf.org

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Trump’s MAGA Allies are Creating Executive Order Plan to Steal the 2026 Midterms

NNPA NEWSWIRE — The document that could lead to an executive order proposes using the claim that China interfered with the 2020 elections as grounds to “declare a national emergency.” The move would be an unprecedented step that would grant Trump new authority over the voting systems in the U.S.

Published

4 days ago

February 27, 2026

Oakland Post

By Lauren Victoria Burke, NNPA Newswire Correspondent

A group of MAGA pro-Trump activists, who say they are working in coordination with the White House, are circulating a 17-page draft executive order that would claim without evidence that China interfered with the 2020 presidential election. Donald Trump lost the 2020 presidential to President Joe Biden by over 7 million votes. Since Trump lost to Biden in 2020, he has repeatedly claimed that the election was “stolen” without evidence. The report of a group of “Trump allies” preparing an executive order to give Trump power over elections was first reported by The Washington Post.

The lies around the right-wing campaign that pushed falsehoods that the 2020 election was stolen was trafficked through right-wing media, particularly Fox News. Fox News was then sued for defamation for the claims by Dominion Voting Systems. Fox lost the case and had to settle for the largest defamation amount on record of $787.5 million in April 2023.

The document that could lead to an executive order proposes using the claim that China interfered with the 2020 elections as grounds to “declare a national emergency.” The move would be an unprecedented step that would grant Trump new authority over the voting systems in the U.S.

The story in The Washington Post arrives as Trump increasingly signals that he may take actions that would alter the result of the 2026 midterms. The Republicans are widely expected to lose as their approval ratings plummet as a result of a failing economy under Trump. Over 50 members of Congress have announced they will retire this year and not return in 2027.

The Trump Department of Justice, which now has a large image of Trump on the side of it, “sued five new states Thursday [Feb. 26, 2026] demanding access to their unredacted voter rolls — escalating a campaign that has been rejected by multiple federal courts and faces resistance from Republican-led states as well,” according to Democracy Docket, a group that works to protect voting rights.

Trump claimed back in late 2020, the last year of his first term, that he had the authority to issue an executive order related to mail-in voting for the 2020 elections — which he would then lose. But the Constitution states that control of elections lies with the states. As the GOP works to place hurdles in front of voting, Democrats worked to make voting easier.

In March 2021, President Biden signed an executive order calling on federal agencies to expand voting access as part of the Biden Administration’s effort “to promote and defend the right to vote for all Americans who are legally entitled to participate in elections.”

Trump’s focus is clearly on altering the November 2026 midterm elections. Trump’s polling numbers and the elections and special elections that have taken place around the U.S. over the last year clearly indicate that Republicans are about to be hit by a blue wave of Democratic victories.

Lauren Victoria Burke is an independent investigative journalist and the founder of Black Virginia News. She is a political analyst who appears on #RolandMartinUnfiltered and hosts the show LAUREN LIVE on YouTube @LaurenVictoriaBurke. She can be contacted at LBurke007@gmail.com and on twitter at @LVBurke

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PRESS ROOM: NBA Hall of Fame Nominee Terry Cummings Joins 100 Black Men of DeKalb County to Launch Victory & Values Initiative

NNPA NEWSWIRE — NBA Hall of Fame nominee and Basketball Legend Terry Cummings was administered the official member’s oath and ceremonially pinned during a special induction ceremony held on Friday, February 20th.

Published

4 days ago

February 27, 2026

admin

Cummings becomes an honorary member, joining other role model sports stars

NBA Hall of Fame nominee and Basketball Legend Terry Cummings has officially become an honorary member of the 100 Black Men of DeKalb County, marking a powerful new chapter for the 100 Black Men and youth development across the region.

Cummings was administered the official member’s oath and ceremonially pinned during a special induction ceremony held on Friday, February 20th. The moment signified more than membership — it marked the launch of the organization’s transformative new platform, the Victory & Values Initiative.

The Victory & Values Initiative is a groundbreaking youth development program designed to empower elementary and middle school students through a dynamic blend of sports, mentorship, and STEM exposure. The initiative focuses on building health, discipline, character, leadership, and access to opportunity — creating pathways for long-term academic and personal success.

“This is about more than sports,” said Cummings during the ceremony. “It’s about using the platform of athletics to teach life lessons, create access, and build the next generation of leaders.”

The induction ceremony also featured notable guests including NASCAR’s newest Star Driver, Lavar Scott and NASCAR Director of Athletic Performance, Phil Horton, who joined Cummings for a powerful Victory & Values Town Hall discussion. The Town Hall was moderated by renowned Sports Emcee John Hollins and focused on leadership, resilience, discipline, and the importance of mentorship in shaping young lives.

A “Day at NASCAR” for 75+ Youth

Cummings wasted no time getting to work. On his first full day as an honorary member, he joined his new brothers of the 100 Black Men of DeKalb County to host a “Day at NASCAR,” escorting more than 75 youth to a once-in-a-lifetime experience at EchoPark Motor Speedway (formerly Atlanta Motor Speedway).

The youth participants received behind-the-scenes access including: an exclusive tour of Pit Row, access to the Garage Area and exploration of the interactive Fan Zone.

The experience culminated with a surprise meet-and-greet and Q&A session with NASCAR Superstar Bubba Wallace, who shared insights on perseverance, preparation, and breaking barriers in professional sports.

The day served as a living example of the ‘Victory & Values’ Initiative in action — exposing youth to new industries, expanding their vision for the future, and connecting them directly with high- level mentors and role models.

Building Leaders Through Access and Mentorship

The 100 Black Men of DeKalb County – a chapter of the largest, national mentoring organization in the county – continues to expand its footprint with programs focused on academic excellence, economic empowerment, leadership development, and health & wellness.

The launch of ‘Victory & Values’ represents a strategic expansion of the organization’s impact

intentionally integrating athletics and STEM to engage youth at an early age while reinforcing core principles such as integrity, accountability, teamwork, and perseverance.

“Our mission has always been to mentor the next generation,” said Vaughn Irons, President-Elect of the 100 Black Men of DeKalb County. “With Terry Cummings joining the brotherhood, along with partners in NASCAR and professional sports, we are creating unprecedented access and exposure for our youth. Victory & Values is about turning inspiration into structured opportunity.”

By connecting elementary and middle school students to professional athletes, executives, STEM professionals, and community leaders, the initiative aims to:

Increase youth exposure to careers in sports business, engineering, and performance science
Strengthen mentorship pipelines
Promote physical wellness and mental resilience
Build character-driven leadership at an early age

Open Invitation to Youth and Families

All youth are invited to participate in the Victory & Values Initiative, along with the other countless, impactful programs offered by the 100 Black Men of DeKalb County.

Parents and guardians seeking mentorship, leadership development, academic enrichment, and transformative exposure opportunities for their children are encouraged to connect with the organization.

As NBA Legend Terry Cummings’ induction demonstrates, Victory & Values is more than a program — it is a movement designed to build champions in life, not just in sports.

For more information about the Victory & Values Initiative or to enroll a student, contact: 100 Black Men of DeKalb County at Phone at 404.241.1338, info@100bmod.org or Tee Foxx at 404.791.6525,