Episode 592 Show Notes- America is Back as the Battle Against the Swamp Begins
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Episode Description
As Donald Trump is inaugurated as the 47th President of the United States, America is back, and our long national nightmare under President Joe Biden comes to an end. But the swamp remains, and even with Trump’s inauguration, he faces a monumental challenge in confronting an out-of-control bureaucracy that has morphed into an unaccountable fourth branch of government. In this episode of The P.A.S. Report Podcast, Professor Nick Giordano breaks down how the Founding Fathers never intended for such unchecked power, the failures of Congress and past administrations that allowed the bureaucracy to grow, and the concrete steps President Trump and Congress must take to reclaim control. This is a must-listen for anyone concerned about government accountability, transparency, and restoring the balance of power.
Episode Highlights:
- Why the Founding Fathers designed a limited government and how today’s bureaucracy defies their vision.
- How Congress and past presidents enabled the rise of an unaccountable federal bureaucracy.
- Concrete steps President Trump and Congress can take to reassert control and hold bureaucrats accountable as the battle against the swamp begins.
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Show Notes- America is Back as the Battle Against the Swamp Begins
Timestamps
00:00 Historic Inauguration and Leadership Challenges
08:07 The Bureaucratic Overreach: A Threat to Democracy
09:32 The Founders’ Vision and How America’s Bureaucracy Defies Their Intent
19:44 Congressional Abdication and Presidential Weakness: How the Bureaucracy Gained Power
30:06 Solutions to Reclaiming Government Accountability
Welcome to The P.A.S. Report Podcast
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Hello everyone, and welcome to The P.A.S. Report Podcast. I’m your host, Professor Nick Giordano. Be sure to subscribe and follow the podcast so you never miss an episode. Also, visit The P.A.S. Report website at https://pasreport.com. And I encourage you to share this podcast with your family and friends. We talk about a lot of important issues on this podcast and this week is no different.
This week marks a truly historic moment in American history. Something that’s happened only one other time in American history. Donald Trump has been inaugurated as the 47th President of the United States. And for the first time since Grover Cleveland became the 22nd and 24th President in the late 19th century, we witness a President return to the White House to serve two non-consecutive terms. But this isn’t just another inauguration. It’s a pivotal moment filled with hope, opportunity, and enormous challenges.
President Trump’s second term comes at a time when America is in desperate need of leadership and a revitalization on multiple fronts. Over the last four years, we’ve seen an economy that has failed to deliver for middle-class Americans, particularly younger generations who increasingly feel that the American dream is slipping out of reach. We’ve watched chaos unfold on the international stage, border security deteriorate, and bureaucratic bloat that has stifled innovation and efficiency with burdensome regulations. But with his reelection, there is a sense of optimism that these challenges can be met head-on. But I don’t want to make it like everything suddenly collapsed under Biden’s watch. The truth is that America has been in decline for the last couple of decades.
But now, President Trump returns to the Oval Office with something he didn’t have the first time: experience. He now fully understands how Washington works – or, more accurately, how it doesn’t work. He understands the mindset, the personalities, the processes, and he has spent the last four years outside of power planning, strategizing, and learning. With this knowledge, the Trump administration has the potential to cut through the red tape strangling American businesses. He will seek to reestablish stability on the international stage which has been remarkably unstable, the likes we haven’t seen since pre-WWII. He will reestablish control over our borders.
And just as important, he has the opportunity to implement policies that give the middle class and younger generations a fighting chance to succeed. Let’s be honest, that’s why tens of millions of people voted for him.
However, we cannot be naïve. While there is enormous optimism, it doesn’t erase the monumental challenges ahead. Joe Biden may have exited the political stage, and Democrats may have lost control of the Senate, but that’s just one part of it. We are working with the slimmest of majorities in the House, and the Senate is a complex legislative body that requires compromise. Certainly, getting things through the legislative body is going to be a challenge.
But the bigger challenge is the swamp as it remains very much intact. In fact, over the past four years, the swamp has only grown more emboldened, despite the election being a major slap in the face. The federal bureaucracy – what I am starting to deem the “fourth branch of government” – has become an entity unto itself. It operates as if it’s independent of the executive branch and untouchable by congressional oversight.
There are people embedded within this vast bureaucracy who see themselves as the self-anointed guardians of democracy, and they are already plotting to undermine President Trump’s second term. Some have openly stated they will refuse to carry out orders they personally disagree with, even if those orders come from the duly elected president. Others have vowed to leak information. Some will try to sabotage the Trump administration’s initiatives as we have already seen plans for ICE raids leak out, and it’s all designed by them to use their positions to stymie the administration’s agenda.
This is not only unacceptable – it’s dangerous and potentially criminal. But even if it’s not criminal, it is certainly unconstitutional and undermines the intent of our foudners. If unelected bureaucrats can defy the president and openly subvert the will of the American people, our system of government is fundamentally broken.
Let’s not forget, the executive branch, where the bureaucracy is housed, exists to serve the president, who was elected by the people. These bureaucrats were not elected, nor are they accountable to the public. Their role is to implement the policies of Congress and the administration. They do not get to act as a shadow government or a fourth branch of power.
So, as we begin this new chapter in American history, the Trump administration must prepare to confront this out-of-control bureaucracy head-on. If left unchecked, it will continue to grow more powerful. It will continue to erode the authority of not just the presidency but also Congress, which has long abdicated its oversight responsibilities. It will continue to signify the end of the Republic.
Today’s episode will explore the roots of this bureaucratic overreach and the ways it undermines the principles upon which this nation was founded. We’ll delve into how Congress and past administrations allowed this crisis to fester, and we’ll discuss what President Trump and Congress must do to reassert control.
This is a battle for our republic. The stakes couldn’t be higher, but there is reason to hope. With his experience, determination, and a clear understanding of the obstacles ahead, President Trump has a unique opportunity to restore balance and accountability to our government. And let’s be honest, he is the only one with the personality and the cojones to do just that.
Stay tuned, as we explore the past, present, and future of America’s struggle to reclaim a government of the people, by the people, and for the people. Hang tight, and we’ll be right back after this quick break.
Break
The Founders’ Vision and How America’s Bureaucracy Defies Their Intent
Welcome back to The P.A.S. Report Podcast. In this segment, we’re diving into a critical question: how did we get here? How did we arrive at a point where an unelected bureaucracy, a self-anointed fourth branch of government, wields such immense power that it defies the very principles on which this country was founded?
To understand where we went wrong, we must return to the founding of our nation and examine what the Founding Fathers envisioned when they designed the framework of our government. It is clear that the current state of affairs was never part of their plan. They never wanted and even warned about a bloated, unaccountable bureaucracy operating with near-independence.
The Founders were deeply concerned about centralized power. They had seen firsthand the dangers of tyranny under British rule, and they worked tirelessly to create a government that would prevent any one person, group, or institution from wielding unchecked authority. James Madison, the Father of the Constitution, articulated this concern in Federalist No. 51, writing:
“Ambition must be made to counteract ambition. The interest of the man must be connected with the constitutional rights of the place.”
Here, Madison was arguing for a system of checks and balances. A government in which each branch would serve as a check on the others and ensure no single branch or group could dominate. But what we’re seeing today is a breakdown of that balance, as the bureaucracy acts as if it exists above the executive branch, beyond congressional oversight, and immune to the judiciary.
The Founders also emphasized limited government. The Constitution itself was designed to clearly delineate the powers of each branch and limit the scope of federal authority. In Article I, we see the difficulty of simply pushing through law after law. We have a bicameral legislative body, that would be a deliberative body, and getting things through would be difficult because the intent was debate, not government intervention or bureaucracy.
In Article II of the Constitution, it explicitly vests executive power in the President of the United States. The framers were clear that the executive branch would be led by one individual, not a committee or an unchecked administrative state.
Alexander Hamilton, in Federalist No. 70, argued for a single executive because it would ensure “decision, activity, secrecy, and dispatch.” In other words, a strong and accountable presidency is essential for effective governance. Yet today, we see a bureaucracy that operates as if it is independent of the president, often obstructing or outright defying the administration’s policies.
George Washington, in his farewell address, warned against this kind of unchecked influence. He cautioned:
“It is important, likewise, that the habits of thinking in a free country should inspire caution in those entrusted with its administration, to confine themselves within their respective constitutional spheres.”
Washington understood the importance of respecting the boundaries of power, something today’s bureaucrats have forgotten entirely.
At the Constitutional Convention in 1787, there were extensive debates about how to structure the executive branch. Some delegates, like Hamilton, argued for a strong, centralized executive, while others, like George Mason, feared such a system would lead to tyranny. The compromise they reached was a presidency empowered to lead but constrained by checks and balances. Nowhere in their deliberations do we see support for a sprawling administrative state that could act independently of the president or the will of the people.
Thomas Jefferson, in his personal letters, frequently warned about the dangers of centralized power. In a letter to Edward Carrington in 1788, he wrote:
“The natural progress of things is for liberty to yield, and government to gain ground.”
Jefferson’s words are especially relevant today, and yet, that’s exactly what we have today, and we are partly to blame. The bureaucracy, once a tool to execute the laws of the land, has morphed into a power center of its own, where the unelected create regulations, interpret legislation, and enforce policies without accountability. This growth of government was precisely what Jefferson feared – a government gaining ground at the expense of liberty and we allowed it to happen as we look to the government to solve every single problem that exists. We are a nation that never educated the generations on the concept of federalism and why limited government is essential. We were warned repeatedly about the dangers of centralized power, with history being our best guide, but failed to heed those warnings.
Another vital principle from the Founding Fathers is the idea of accountability. John Adams famously stated:
“A government of laws, and not of men.”
The intent was clear: no one, regardless of their position, is above the law, and every public servant must answer to the people. Yet the modern bureaucracy operates in a gray area where accountability is scarce. Just look at the last two decades. The abuses of power. The lawfare. The constant leaks of classified information or the refusal to implement lawful orders because they go against a bureaucrat’s political ideology.
This should not be tolerated, nor should it be accepted as the norm. You cannot have a bureaucracy that creates policies through administrative decree without legislative approval. This completely undermines the principles of a republican form of government.
Perhaps the most poignant warning comes from Benjamin Franklin. When asked what kind of government the Constitutional Convention had created, he famously replied:
“A republic, if you can keep it.”
A that phrase is essential to the issue. A republic requires vigilance, active participation, and a commitment to the principles of limited government, accountability, and the rule of law. It was never meant to function with an unaccountable bureaucracy dictating policies and subverting elected leadership.
So, as we look at the challenges facing President Trump and his administration, it’s clear that reining in this out-of-control bureaucracy isn’t just a matter of political necessity. It’s about survival. It’s about preserving the foundations of our republic.
The Founders gave us a blueprint for governance that prioritizes freedom, liberty, accountability, and balance. They understood human nature, with all its flaws, and built a system to prevent the concentration of power. We wither honor their vision and demand a government that operates within the constitutional boundaries they carefully crafted or we ignore it, and what comes next will be far worse.
We need to take a quick break, but when we get back, I’ll talk about how Congress has abdicated their responsibilities, how past Chief Executives have ceded power and failed to exert their executive authority over the bureaucracy, and what the Trump administration and Congress must do to reverse the trend. So hang tight, and we’ll be right back.
Break
Congressional Abdication and Presidential Weakness: How the Bureaucracy Gained Power
Welcome back to The P.A.S. Report Podcast. In this segment, I want to explore how we got to the point where unelected bureaucrats operate with impunity. Where they believe they are above Congress and executive authority. To understand the rise of this unaccountable bureaucracy, we need to examine two key failures: Congress’s abdication of its oversight responsibilities and presidents ceding their authority to the administrative state.
The Founding Fathers envisioned Congress as the primary branch of government. It has the most checks within the system, and Congress is endowed with the powers to legislate, conduct oversight, and hold the executive departments and agencies accountable. However, over the last few decades, Congress has largely abandoned these duties, allowing agencies to grow unchecked and abuses to go unpunished.
Take, for example, the revelations about multiple intelligence agencies, many of the alphabet agencies, spying on the American people. From he NSA’s mass data collection programs to the Postal Services ICOP program. It reveals how deeply embedded surveillance practices have become that they have even infiltrated the Postal Service. These programs operated with little to no meaningful oversight from Congress, even as they blatantly violated the privacy of millions of Americans.
And sure, Congress held hearings. They feigned outrage, but not a significant reform followed. The bureaucracy continued its work, largely undeterred because they know that there are no consequences.
Just think how the CIA was caught spying on members of the Senate Intelligence Committee. In 2014, it illegally accessed the computers of Senate staffers investigating the agency’s interrogation practices. Think about that for a moment. An intelligence agency spying on the very lawmakers tasked with overseeing it. While this should have led to immediate consequences, including firings and prosecutions, what happened instead? Virtually nothing. The CIA leadership faced no real penalties, and the scandal was quietly swept under the rug.
When bureaucrats have no fear of those empowered to watch over them and hold them accountable, something has seriously gone awry.
But it’s not just about spying on We the People or duly elected members of Congress. It goes to the very top as we saw during the Crossfire Hurricane investigation. This was the FBI’s probe into alleged ties between Donald Trump’s 2016 campaign and Russia. Despite no substantial evidence of collusion, the investigation continued for years. It undermined public trust, handcuffed the 45th President, and tore this country apart. Even worse, it was revealed that key officials involved knew early on that there was no credible evidence to justify the probe, but they didn’t care. They believed the American people made a mistake in 2016, and so the self-anointed guardians of democracy swung into action and tried to correct what they deemed was the American people getting it wrong.
This wasn’t just a failure of oversight, It was a gross abuse of power. One of the worst in American history. Yet again, those responsible faced no real accountability.
Congressional inaction is a recurring theme. Our Lawmakers may make fiery speeches against the abuses. They may launch investigations and hold hearings, but nothing changes. They rarely take the next step and penalize or sanction agencies for their abuses. They don’t issue criminal referrals to the Department of Justice, and so, the bureaucracy has learned that it can act with impunity because there are no real consequences for wrongdoing. Imagine what would happen if Congress issued criminal referrals, and with that froze funding for the DOJ until the Attorney General brought charges against the abuses of power. Do you think the overzealous bureaucrats would think twice before they abused their power.
But I don’t want to make it like its just Congress that has failed. Presidents, too, have ceded significant authority to the bureaucracy over the years, either out of convenience or a lack of political will. Consider the explosion of administrative rulemaking, where agencies create regulations that carry the force of law without any input from elected officials. This process has allowed the bureaucracy to grow in power and shield presidents from direct accountability.
The Obama administration’s use of executive agencies to implement controversial policies offers a clear example. When Congress failed to pass cap-and-trade legislation, the administration directed the Environmental Protection Agency to impose sweeping regulations on carbon emissions through its rulemaking authority. Similarly, we saw the same thing with DACA. The same thing with the Department of Education where it implements major changes to Title IX in an attempt to bypass Congress entirely. While these actions may have aligned with the administration’s policy goals, they further entrenched the bureaucracy’s ability to act autonomously.
Even the Trump administration, despite its “drain the swamp” mantra, struggled to rein in the bureaucracy the first time around. The entrenched nature of the administrative state meant that even as President Trump attempted to dismantle regulations, his efforts were often slowed or obstructed by career officials within agencies who opposed his agenda and attempted to obstruct and undermine the administration any chance they got.
And then there’s the role of lawfare. Bureaucrats and their allies in outside organizations have become adept at weaponizing the legal system to block policies they dislike. The judiciary, in turn, has sometimes enabled these tactics, creating an additional barrier to accountability.
The result is a federal government where unelected officials wield immense power, often without fear of reprisal. When wrongdoing is exposed, whether it’s spying on Americans, misleading Congress, or targeting political opponents, bureaucrats are never held accountable.
We just had a President in name only for the last four years. Biden was a nonfunctional President and the bureaucracy attempted to conceal his obvious cognitive decline. It was the bureaucracy, the nameless and faceless bureaucrats who didn’t receive a single vote, that were making all the policy decisions. This culture must come to an end, and bureaucrats need to be reminded of who really wields the power in this country. We the People through our elected representatives.
If Congress and the presidency are to reclaim their rightful roles, they must act decisively. Congress must reassert its oversight powers, not just through investigations but by imposing real consequences on agencies and individuals who abuse their authority. Presidents must stop ceding power to the bureaucracy and instead serve as the Chief Executive Officers of the government. They must hold government bureaucrats accountable.
The Founding Fathers warned against unchecked power for a reason. As James Madison wrote in Federalist No. 47, “The accumulation of all powers, legislative, executive, and judiciary, in the same hands, whether of one, a few, or many… may justly be pronounced the very definition of tyranny.” If we are to preserve our republic, this trend must be reversed, and I will explain just how we do that when we get back from a break. So everyone, hang tight and we will be right back.
Break
America is Back: How Trump and Congress Can Rein in the Bureaucracy
Welcome back to The P.A.S. Report Podcast. As we’ve explored in this episode, the rise of an unaccountable bureaucracy is one of the gravest threats to the principles of limited government and out republic. In this final segment, I want to focus on the solutions: the concrete steps President Trump can take to reassert control over the bureaucracy and what Congress must do to restore its oversight authority.
Let’s begin with the executive branch. As President, Trump is uniquely positioned to take immediate and impactful action to rein in the administrative state. And he is the only one that has the cojones and personality to do it. The Constitution vests executive power in the President, meaning he has both the authority and the responsibility to ensure that the bureaucracy operates within its constitutional boundaries.
Steps for the President:
- Reform Civil Service Protections:
One of the biggest obstacles to accountability in the federal government is the difficulty of firing career bureaucrats. President Trump can push for reforms to civil service protections, and make it easier to remove employees who fail to perform or allow their political ideology to infect their job and actively defy lawful orders. During his first term, Trump issued Executive Order 13957, which sought to reclassify certain federal positions to make it easier to hold employees accountable. While this order was rescinded under Biden, it serves as a blueprint for similar actions moving forward. - Streamline the Chain of Command:
The federal government is bloated with layers of middle management, which slows decision-making and obscures accountability. We need to restructure agencies and consolidate authority so that leadership is more directly accountable for the failures and abuses of power within their respective agencies. - Move agencies outside of Washington DC:
Moving federal agencies outside of Washington, D.C., is a bold and effective way to drain the swamp by decentralizing power and disrupting the entrenched bureaucratic culture. Relocating agencies to other parts of the country would force many of the swamp rats to resign and these are some of the most pretentious people who love the DC power center. This would open the door for fresh talent and perspectives that better reflect the American people. This move would also bring government closer to the people it serves reduce the groupthink mentality that thrives within the D.C. bubble. It would be a win-win-win across the board, and this decentralization can stimulate local economies and spread opportunities in states that desperately need it. Most importantly, it breaks the monopoly of power concentrated in the nation’s capital. - Executive Orders to Cut Red Tape:
President Trump made significant progress in reducing regulatory burdens during his first term through the “two-for-one” rule, which required agencies to eliminate two regulations for every new one introduced. He can build on this success by further limiting the scope of administrative rulemaking and requiring stricter congressional oversight for major regulatory actions.
Steps for Congress:
While the President can take significant steps, Congress has an equally vital role to play. After all, it is Congress’s job to legislate, appropriate funds, and provide oversight. To reclaim its authority, Congress must take the following actions:
- Pass the REINS Act:
The Regulations from the Executive in Need of Scrutiny (REINS) Act would require Congress to approve any major regulation before it can take effect. This would put a significant check on the bureaucracy’s ability to create rules without congressional input and restore the balance of power between Congress and the executive branch. - Enforce Budgetary Consequences:
Congress controls the power of the purse, and it’s time to use it. Lawmakers should impose budgetary penalties on agencies that overstep their bounds or fail to comply with oversight requirements. For example, if an agency engages in illegal surveillance or defies congressional subpoenas, its funding should be reduced until accountability is achieved. And its not just about accountability, it’s about prevention. We must remove the tools that have allowed the bureaucracy to thrive. For example, the FBI. Its time to eliminate the intelligence component to the FBI where much of the abuses have happened. The FBI was created as a law enforcement agency, and that’s where it’s sole function should be. - Strengthen Whistleblower Protections:
Whistleblowers play a crucial role in exposing corruption and abuse within the government and whistleblowers like Garret O’Boyle, Marcus Allen, Steve Friend, Gary Shapely, and Joseph Ziegler, should be protected, not punished for exposing abuses of power and corruption. By strengthening protections for whistleblowers, Congress can encourage more federal employees to come forward with evidence of wrongdoing, providing an additional layer of accountability. And members of Congress need to stop using whistleblowers as photo ops for congressional investigations only to ignore them once the cameras are turned off. - Reassert Congressional Oversight:
Congress must go beyond holding hearings and issuing reports. Lawmakers need to impose real consequences, such as subpoenas with teeth, contempt citations, and penalties for noncompliance. This includes holding individuals personally accountable for misconduct, not just issuing vague reprimands to agencies. - Reform the Administrative Procedures Act:
The Administrative Procedures Act (APA) governs how agencies create and enforce regulations. While it was originally intended to ensure transparency and fairness, it has been exploited to expand bureaucratic power. Congress should reform the APA to limit the scope of agency rulemaking and require congressional authorization for any type of expansion.
Changing the Culture of Bureaucracy:
Structural reforms must be accompanied by a cultural shift within the federal government. Bureaucrats need to be reminded that they exist to serve the American people, not to impose their own agendas or act as a shadow government. This requires consistent messaging from both the President and Congress, as well as tangible consequences for those who defy their constitutional responsibilities.
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We need an unwavering commitment to the principles of accountability and limited government, and President Trump’s second term presents an opportunity to confront these issues head-on, but success will require bold leadership, cooperation with Congress, and the support of the American people.
The bureaucracy may be a powerful force, but it is not invincible. With the right reforms, we can restore a government that truly serves us, We the People.
Thank you for joining me on this episode of The P.A.S. Report Podcast. If you enjoyed today’s discussion, be sure to subscribe, share, and leave a review on any podcast platform that allows it. Also, share this episode with your family and friends so that they can be informed and we can reclaim our government.
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Click here to read Professor Giordano’s latest piece at Campus Reform
Ending Lawfare: John Eastman on How Trump Can Reform DOJ
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