Rep. Clay Higgins, a Republican from Louisiana, confronted former Social Security Administration Commissioner Martin O’Malley Thursday over telework policies at the agency that he says enables inefficiency, and he had quite a powerful way to prove his point.
O’Malley, the former Maryland governor and 2016 Democratic presidential candidate who is now seeking the chairmanship of the Democratic National Committee, testified before lawmakers and blamed Congress for cutting staff levels at the agency.
But a hot topic during the hearing was telework, especially since O’Malley oversaw a new contract with the American Federation of Government Employees to ensure that Social Security employees have telework options for the next four years, according to a report from The Hill.
Higgins chose a rather memorable way to show the dangers of that policy.
The lawmaker dialed into the Social Security help line during the hearing, and by the time he had a chance to ask questions of O’Malley, he had been waiting for a response for nearly 90 minutes.
“This is what our elders have to listen to,” he said after holding up his cell phone, which was still on hold. “The reason our elders call for help is because they need help, not because they want to listen to elevator music. They want to talk to a human being.”
Higgins described the nightmare that he endured while calling the hotline.
“The first five minutes of this hour and a half, Mr. Chairman, was instructions to get to various websites, which our elders have difficulty doing. I have difficulty doing it,” he said.
🔥🔥🔥
Rep. Clay Higgins (@RepClayHiggins) called the social security line during the hearing today.
He was still on hold after 1 HOUR & 28 MINUTES!
But Martin O’Malley said telework was increasing quality of care 🤔 pic.twitter.com/lTEZ0jSOZ3
— Oversight Committee (@GOPoversight) January 15, 2025
Have you had difficulties dealing with the Social Security Administration?
Yes: 93% (138 Votes)
No: 7% (11 Votes)
“Our elders are frequently confused and alone and scared. They don’t have … laptops and apps and things. They have a telephone. They want to talk to a human being,” Higgins repeated.
Ironically, those who would rather set up an appointment and travel to an office to speak with an actual person, which is also often not easy for seniors, are told to call the hotline anyway.
“Listen to this. America, pay attention to what’s happening to our elders,” Higgins continued. “If you need in-person help, you must first make an appointment, and you make an appointment on the telephone. You know who answers the phone? Nobody.”
This display shows how government telework only makes the problem of government inefficiency much worse.
Much of corporate America is currently asking employees to return to the office, because even the sharpest professionals in the private sector are simply more efficient when they are managed in the office, at least in most cases.
How much more must that be true of employees in the public sector?
Our federal government has absorbed many responsibilities over the past century, from educating our youth to taking care of our grandparents in their old age.
The consequences of a bureaucratic labyrinth running the country are 80-year-olds waiting for 90 minutes or more on the phone to even begin handling issues that directly impact their well-being.
We need to severely downsize the federal bureaucracy. But in the meantime, we can insist on basic standards for the bureaucrats therein.
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