From a press release:
Today, House Ways and Means Social Security Subcommittee Chairman John B. Larson (D-CT), Worker and Family Support Subcommittee Chairman Danny K. Davis (D-IL), and Oversight Subcommittee Chairman Bill Pascrell, Jr. (D-NJ) called for the immediate removal of the Commissioner of Social Security, Andrew Saul, and the Deputy Commissioner, David Black, who were both appointed by former President Trump. ...
Sending out press releases is nice but any of these Subcommittee heads can hold an oversight hearing and demand that Saul testify so he can be roasted. Firing him is one way of getting rid of him. Pressuring him to quit is another.
I wonder what’s going on behind the scenes. Is the Biden Administration torn about what to do about Saul? Is this press release just a meaningless bow to employee unions?
Saul won't quit no matter how much they pressure him. The only way SSA will get a new commissioner is if he voluntarily resigns. In yesteryear, if a new president asked for a resignation, it was tendered out of courtesy for the office. Those days are long gone.
ReplyDeleteNo matter what others say, Saul hasn't done anything that rises to the level where he can be fired. All the things he did (or, allowed to be done in his name seeing as how he didn't seem to be around much or even be viscerally aware of how the agency he was supposed to be head of worked) were political (sure, toxically political, but that is how all politics are these days with nobody having any respect for anyone else) in nature and don't rise to the level of malfeasance.
The only way Biden will be able to get rid of him is to give Saul an order that he categorically refuses to follow. I personally don't know that it would happen as Saul really doesn't seem to give a crap. I suspect he'll just do what he is told like all the little lapdogs do.
The President can remove the commish for neglect of duty. I would say quite literally not doing the job would qualify as neglect of duty.
DeleteOPM forces SSA to reopen ALL union contracts finalized under Trump and revert back to previous agreements. Telework is coming back!!!!!
ReplyDeletehttps://www.govexec.com/management/2021/03/opm-instructs-agencies-reopen-trump-era-union-contracts/172485/
Saul and Black should be forced to leave two years from now - at the latest. Trump gamed the system by appointing them late in his term. The six year term clock should start ticking at the beginning of the president's term to prevent such nonsense in the future.
ReplyDeleteI think initial claims sitting for months before going to DDD is malfeasance. I have claims that have sit for four to six months before opening and going to DDD for workup. While we have been focusing on shrinking numbers at the hearing level we have ignored the major smash up disaster at the District level. I don't care about the COVID excuse these claims could still be prioritized and worked. Also I suspect a stealth policy of ignoring reps totally until after the first denial has also come down from the top. I noticed things in my area completely falling apart about mid summer 2020. I also find it interesting how money seemed to be flowing through this system after the Covid economic crash after it had dried up in the fall of 2019, just to come to a stop again after Trump lost the election. I think there's plenty of reason for Saul to lose his job. Congress just needs to start digging.
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