President-elect Donald Trump has announced the return of James Sherk, a senior White House official who played a key role in the administration’s efforts to streamline the process of firing civil servants. Sherk, who previously served as a special assistant on domestic policy during Trump’s first term, will now join the White House Domestic Policy Council.
Sherk was instrumental in the Trump administration’s push to create a new classification called Schedule F, which aimed to make it easier to dismiss certain federal employees. This initiative faced backlash from civil servants and was promptly reversed by the Biden administration. However, Sherk believes that this effort could be revisited under a different president, as he expressed in a recent op-ed for the Wall Street Journal titled “The President Needs the Power to Fire Bureaucrats.”
With the incoming Trump administration signaling a commitment to overhauling the federal workforce, Sherk is expected to play a central role in shaping these reforms. Trump has been vocal about his intentions to dismantle the “deep state” and eliminate obstacles to removing “rogue bureaucrats.”
During the Biden administration, Sherk has been actively seeking information on career staffers through Freedom of Information Act requests, particularly focusing on emails mentioning Trump or President Biden around the time of the 2020 election and 2021 inauguration. In a statement to POLITICO’s E&E News, Sherk emphasized the importance of understanding how federal employees’ political views align with those of the American electorate.
As the Trump administration gears up for significant changes to the federal workforce, James Sherk’s return to the White House signals a continued focus on reforming the civil service. His expertise and experience are expected to play a key role in shaping the administration’s approach to addressing bureaucratic challenges.
