Draining the Washington swamp wasn’t a four-year job, and a four-year interregnum between Trump administrations allowed the unelected bureaucracy in the District of Columbia to retrench itself.
Thus, we shouldn’t be surprised that the deep state is resisting President Donald Trump yet again. This time, however, they seem to have adopted a new tactic: “malicious compliance.”
In at least two instances so far, career bureaucrats have gone above and beyond to make the new administration look bad by taking unnecessary and spiteful steps in regard to executive orders that weren’t spelled out by those orders.
The first involved a move by the Air Force to pause a course on the Tuskegee Airmen, the first unit of black pilots in military history, who flew with extreme distinction during World War II.
The reason for the pause, according to Fox News? Officials say they only wanted to be in compliance with the new administration’s ban on diversity, equity, and inclusion programs in the federal government.
“Lt. Gen. Brian Robinson, Air Education and Training Command commander, said in a statement that the segment that included videos on the Tuskegee Airmen was temporarily yanked on Jan. 23 because a section of it that included DEI material was directed to be removed,” Fox News reported.
“A video on the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP), a paramilitary group of female pilots in World War II, was also temporarily removed.”
“We believe this adjustment to curriculum to be fully aligned with the direction given in the DEI executive order,” Robinson said.
“No curriculum or content highlighting the honor and valor of the Tuskegee Airmen or Women Air Force Service Pilots has been removed from Basic Military Training.”
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Alabama GOP Sen. Katie Britt — who represents the state where the Tuskegee Airmen were based — called the decision to halt the training “malicious compliance,” a phrase one gets the feeling will catch on in the coming weeks and months.
“I have no doubt [Defense] Secretary [Pete] Hegseth will correct and get to the bottom of the malicious compliance we’ve seen in recent days. President Trump celebrated and honored the Tuskegee Airmen during his first term,” Britt said.
I have no doubt Secretary Hegseth will correct and get to the bottom of the malicious compliance we’ve seen in recent days. President Trump celebrated and honored the Tuskegee Airmen during his first term, promoting legendary aviator Charles McGee to Brigadier General and pinning…
— Senator Katie Boyd Britt (@SenKatieBritt) January 26, 2025
“Amen! We’re all over it, Senator. This will not stand,” Hegseth responded.
Amen! We’re all over it Senator. This will not stand. https://t.co/Hii282f1d8
— Pete Hegseth (@PeteHegseth) January 26, 2025
And reverse it he did:
This has been immediately reversed. Thank you @SenKatieBritt. https://t.co/bmoJ4obPNL pic.twitter.com/fXCP3lisLN
— Pete Hegseth (@PeteHegseth) January 27, 2025
So, who was responsible for this decision?
Of course, nobody wants to take responsibility; an anonymous official speaking to Reuters for a Saturday piece “said the video on the Tuskegee Airmen and other historical materials had been pulled as the Air Force conducts a review of course curriculum at Joint Base San Antonio-Lackland, where new recruits get basic training.”
On Sunday, another report from Reuters confirmed that the materials had passed muster — as indeed they should have in the first place, since they had nothing to do with DEI.
“No Airmen or Guardians will miss this block of instruction due to the revision. However, one group of trainees had the training delayed,” Robinson said.
Some quick review, that.
Speaking of “malicious compliance,” even more malicious was the takedown of Medicaid reimbursement portals in all 50 states after Trump’s freeze on federal grants and loans, according to CNBC.
“The shutdown in access to the Medicaid system came a day after acting OMB Director Matthew Vaeth issued a memo ordering a ‘Temporary Pause of Agency Grant, Loan, and Other Financial Assistance Programs,’” CNBC reported.
“The memo requires federal agencies to identify and review all federal financial assistance programs and supporting activities consistent with President Donald Trump’s policies.”
Cue Democrat meltdowns:
NEW: My staff has confirmed reports that Medicaid portals are down in all 50 states following last night’s federal funding freeze. This is a blatant attempt to rip away health insurance from millions of Americans overnight and will get people killed. https://t.co/6cqzQpyOoz
— Ron Wyden (@RonWyden) January 28, 2025
Can confirm. Connecticut’s Medicaid payment system has been turned off. Doctors and hospitals cannot get paid. Discussions ongoing about whether services can continue.
Medicaid covers health care for millions of seniors and covers 40% of births in America. https://t.co/AjSdEF4Mh1
— Chris Murphy 🟧 (@ChrisMurphyCT) January 28, 2025
Multiple states locked out of Medicaid portal. This is a Trump shutdown, except this time it’s unlawful.
— Brian Schatz (@brianschatz) January 28, 2025
These are all Democratic senators from Oregon, Connecticut, and Hawaii, respectively. And they’re all engaged in fake news, because the Office of Management and Budget made it clear these entitlement programs would continue without pause:
More malicious “compliance” at HHS https://t.co/R9V7iwSSOh pic.twitter.com/CVdlfaY3g9
— Emily Kopp (@emilyakopp) January 28, 2025
This time, it wasn’t just Britt talking about “malicious compliance” — although anti-Trumpers are trying to spin it already, like American Enterprise Institute senior fellow Stan Veuger, who said it was their way of explaining away “the unintended or unpopular consequences of the administration’s aggressively chaotic and ill-intentioned management of the federal government.”
“Malicious compliance” is the term Trump supporters have started to use for the unintended or unpopular consequences of the administration’s aggressively chaotic and ill-intentioned management of the federal government. https://t.co/CGnaFD8MN8
— Stan Veuger (@stanveuger) January 28, 2025
In what universe does this pass muster?
The OMB was quite clear on the effects on the Medicaid portal by the freeze — as well as food stamps, Head Start, Pell Grants for college students, small business assistance, and rental aid, according to a memo.
As for the implication that education regarding the Tuskegee Airmen was somehow wrapped up in DEI efforts in the military, one would have to be willfully ignorant of American military history to take this seriously. Of course, one suspects this wasn’t seriously believed by the people who were responsible for this. Either way, whoever was behind this has made themselves easy candidates for federal government downsizing.
Make no mistake: These two disparate incidents are a preview of how the #Resistance to Donald Trump and Beltway outsiders is going to happen this time: Not with the with bang of the Russiagate hoax, the Mueller investigation, and the Vindman impeachment, but with a thousand needless paper-cuts of “malicious compliance.”
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