The temporary Cabinet and vacancy-riddled government

By Abby Phillip, Manu Raju and Aaron Kessler, CNN
Updated 1:13 PM ET, Fri January 11, 2019

... As the Trump administration begins its third year, a quarter of the President's Cabinet is filled by acting department heads. On top of that, across the government, almost 40% of key leadership positions that require Senate confirmation are vacant, according to the Partnership for Public Service, a nonprofit focused on good governance.

With the partial government shutdown on the verge of becoming the longest in history, an executive branch filled with temps and riddled with leadership vacancies is another sign that the federal government is not functioning as it should.

The President has sought to put a positive spin on the situation, telling reporters last Sunday that acting department heads give him more "flexibility," yet there's a downside to that. Not only does it strip Congress of its oversight role in approving the President's top officials, experts say interim officials are limited in their ability to make long-term and strategic decisions because they are not likely to hold their positions.

"People underestimate the corrosive effect it has," said Max Stier, president and CEO of the Partnership for Public Service. "It's like when you have a substitute teacher in your classroom. They aren't going to take on the tough issues" ...

https://www.cnn.com/2019/01/11/politics/temps-and-vacancies/index.html