Donald Trump, the President-elect of the United States, strongly criticized the Biden administration’s decision to allow federal employees to continue working remotely during a press conference held at his Mar-a-Lago residence on the 16th (local time). He emphasized that in the new administration, this would not be permitted.
At the press conference in Palm Beach, Florida, Trump stated, “If people under the federal government don’t return to work in the office, they will be fired.” He criticized someone in the Biden administration for granting federal employees a five-year exemption benefit from returning to the office, calling it “nonsense and a gift to the unions.”
The contract between the American Federation of Government Employees, which represents 42,000 workers, and the Social Security Administration (SSA) includes a regulation that requires officials to be in the office 2-5 days a week depending on their job, allowing up to three days of remote work during the weekdays.
This clause has also been criticized by Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and co-head of the Government Efficiency Bureau (DOGE), an institution established by Trump.
Trump also expressed his willingness to file a lawsuit, if necessary, to eliminate this clause.
Regarding vaccine skepticism surrounding Robert Kennedy Jr., nominee for Health and Human Services Secretary, Trump conveyed his stance that he doesn’t distrust vaccines themselves but hinted that mandatory vaccinations could be abolished. In answering a question about mandatory vaccinations in schools, Trump said, “I don’t like mandates.”
Earlier, CNN reported that lawyers for Kennedy Jr.’s nominee had submitted a petition to the FDA to revoke the approval of vaccines used in the United States. In response, Trump stated, “You will not lose the polio vaccine. It won’t happen.”
He also reacted to the recent assassination of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, highlighting online praise for the shooter, saying, “It’s really horrible,” and describing it as a “cold-blooded and terrible murder.”
Additionally, Trump announced intentions to respond legally to the Biden administration’s actions last year which allowed for the disposal or sale of unused parts of the southern border wall, initiated during the first Trump administration.
He criticized it as “almost a criminal act” and urged Joe Biden to stop the sale of the wall.