3 Jun 2025

OPM Unveils “Merit Hiring Plan” That Includes Essay on Loyalty to DJT

by Bonnie | | 0

The Office of Personnel Management unveiled its new “Merit Hiring Plan” which features a new requirement for roles at GS-5 or higher pay grades to write essay responses to questions that include how they plan to support Donald Trump’s executive orders and policy priorities.

OPM says federal hiring previously relied too heavily on “elite universities and credentials.” Federal hiring will now focus more on people from “state and land-grant universities, religious colleges and universities, community colleges, high schools, trade and technical schools, homeschooling groups, faith-based groups, American Legion, 4-H youth programs, and the military, veterans, and law enforcement communities.”

Higher levels of education correlate with a greater proportion of liberal political and societal attitudes. The new policy aims to draw more people from backgrounds that trend more conservatively, and the essay questions provide a loyalty test to discard anyone who is not deemed sufficiently dedicated to doing whatever Trump wants.

Click here for more details.

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