Obama pledges massive overhaul of government

[Babylonsister]

Obama pledges massive overhaul of government
By Emily Long elong@govexec.com January 25, 2011


In addition to a five-year discretionary spending freeze, President Obama on Tuesday night announced a reorganization effort to consolidate duplicative federal programs and reduce government waste.

Government hasn't undergone a major restructuring in decades, leaving agencies with overlapping responsibilities, the president said during his State of the Union address. Efforts to cut waste haven't gone far enough, and administration officials in the coming months will develop a proposal to merge and reorganize the federal government, he said.

"There are twelve different agencies that deal with exports. There are at least five different entities that deal with housing policy. Then there's my favorite example: the Interior Department is in charge of salmon while they're in fresh water, but the Commerce Department handles them in when they're in saltwater. And I hear it gets even more complicated once they're smoked," said Obama.

The president also highlighted the role of technology in streamlining government. "We have made great strides over the last two years in using technology and getting rid of waste," he said. "Veterans can now download their electronic medical records with a click of the mouse. We're selling acres of federal office space that hasn't been used in years, and we will cut through red tape to get rid of more. But we need to think bigger."

more...

http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0111/012...y&oref=rss

[Cha]

(01-27-2011 10:52 PM)Babylonsister Wrote:  "There are twelve different agencies that deal with exports. There are at least five different entities that deal with housing policy. Then there's my favorite example: the Interior Department is in charge of salmon while they're in fresh water, but the Commerce Department handles them in when they're in saltwater. And I hear it gets even more complicated once they're smoked," said Obama.

more...

http://www.govexec.com/dailyfed/0111/012...y&oref=rss

Whoever wrote the Smoked Salmon joke was brilliant..wonder if it was the Prez?

[TheWraith]

It sounded like the sort of thing that was probably born as an offhand comment someone made when the issue of the salmon was originally being proposed for an example of redundant policy. Then they realized it was good, and stuck it in there.

[Willinois]

It's funny how none of the references mention who the last President to work on this was. Someone more recent may have, but I know this kind of reorganization was one of FDR's major initiatives in his first term. Maybe people are getting burned out on the FDR comparisons.

[Dimwitted Fool]

Good article here. Answers why it never happens AND where the salmon joke came from:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/con...07655.html

And, for those of you who enjoy a little light reading...

http://www.businessofgovernment.org/repo...et-it-done