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Welcome to this week’s edition of Receipts. Some of the Trump’s administration’s lawbreaking and corruption happen in plain sight. But much of it is known only because there are patriots who witness it and then come forward. The administration has been doing its utmost to cow them into submission—most recently, by proposing that every government employee submit to a gag order, which would stay in effect even after they leave public service.
That’s what this week’s newsletter is about. Because this isn’t just a federal workforce issue. It’s a democracy issue.
Muzzling the federal workforce, upon threat of job loss and criminal penalties, is poisonous to the rule of law. Trump’s NDAs change the incentives not only for would-be whistleblowers, but also for those considering criminal acts—like doling out contracts to well-connected donors and family members—that might merit more whistleblowing.
I remain grateful to all those still working hard to hold this government accountable, both from within and without. That means everyone who shares evidence of corruption or lawbreaking with journalists and other watchdog organizations, sometimes at great personal risk. It also includes everyone who supports this pro-democracy work.
If you’d like to support it too, I hope you’ll consider joining our growing Bulwark+ community. We even have a special deal this week—new members can get a year of Bulwark+ for half price by clicking right here:
FLASH SALE: A full year of sanity in your inbox at half the price.
–Catherine
Trump Wants a Gag Order for Every Single Government Worker
You can’t divorce the demands for secrecy from the corruption itself.
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Amid widespread, flagrant corruption happening throughout the government, Donald Trump is trying to impose a gag order on everyone who works in the executive branch.
Every. Single. Person.
This week, the Trump administration proposed a rule for a uniform, government-wide nondisclosure agreement. The draft version of the NDA is supposed to be opted into agency by agency. And while it says signing is “voluntary,” it concludes with a warning that employees can be fired and barred from future government jobs if they do not do so.¹ The gag orders would be effective even after civil servants have left government employment—for five years post-departure—and violations come with the threat of criminal charges.
In short, in all but name it would be a loyalty oath to Trump.
Government workers are already bound by strict legal prohibitions against disclosing things like classified or privileged information, personal tax records, and other private administrative data. This vaguely written NDA, by contrast, would bar disclosure of all “non-public, confidential, or proprietary information” or “any sensitive, pre-decisional or deliberative material” that’s not already publicly available and shouldn’t be released under “applicable law.”
Which sounds quite a bit like: Don’t you dare say anything that might be unflattering to this president—or else.
Given the other things the administration has done to eliminate sources of accountability, this gag order seems designed to hide and ultimately enable even more law-breaking across our federal government. It’s among the more alarming documents the Trump administration has produced, once you understand the context. Stick with me as I explain why...
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