Remember the myth about the Hydra? According to Greek legend, the Hydra is a giant water snake that grows multiple heads every time one of its heads is cut off. More recently, the Marvel comics used the creature as the basis for its evil empire of the same name.
The Swamp in Washington is kind of like the Hydra. Every time a politician goes in with plans to cut down the size and scope of the federal government, the Swamp monsters find a way to keep growing and getting bigger.
A recent report from Open the Books highlights that supernatural ability. According to their auditors, even while President Trump cut federal regulations, the federal government hired more taxpayer-funded lawyers than ever before:
...new analysis by our forensic auditors at OpenTheBooks.com shows that the effort to scale back regulations did not result in fewer federal lawyers.
By 2019 - the latest year available- the number of federal attorneys increased to 35,940, and taxpayer costs topped $5.2 billion in salaries and bonuses alone. We found that 200 federal agencies employed at least one lawyer—including at the National Foundation On The Arts and Humanities, which employed eight.
Even the Marine Mammal Commission employed a lawyer who made $166,500 in basic pay.
Here are some other key statistics:- The average federal lawyer earned $200,000 when adding in the cost of benefits.
- If the feds were a private law firm, they would employ more lawyers than the top-10 largest domestic law firms combined.
- More than 37% of federal lawyers work in Washington, D.C.
- The Justice Department employs about one of every three federal lawyers while another 198 agencies employ two-thirds of all federal attorneys.
- Growth in positions could be attributable to new laws. During 2017-2019, Congress passed 443 laws, the most since the 2007-2009 period (460). (Lawyers help agencies implement legislation.)
President Trump should be given credit for at least trying to follow through on his campaign promise. He cut the size of the regulatory state by reducing the number of federal regulations, but his efforts were, unfortunately, short-lived: President Biden began reversing Trump's policies on the first day in office, and federal lawyers retained and added even more high-paying positions.
We need a better solution to the out-of-control federal government. We need a way to reduce the size and power of the Deep State in one fell swoop, and that's exactly what we can do with a Convention of States.
A Convention of States is called and controlled by the states and has the power to propose constitutional amendments. Once ratified by 38 states after the Convention, these amendments can limit the power of some federal agencies and eliminate others altogether.
Amendments could be written, for example, that prohibit Washington from regulating any topic not expressly mentioned in the Constitution. The states could regulate those issues, but the feds could not. Since everything from education to energy to the environment isn't included in our founding document, these amendments would immediately eliminate all the agencies that purport to regulate those topics.
We'll never effectively limit Washington by working around the edges. We must get at the root of the federal government's power, and we can make those necessary reforms and restore our founding principles with a Convention of States.
Sign the petition below to join the movement!
