A new report has slammed former president Barack Obama for failing to curb the number of "burrowed" political appointees before he left office.
According to a document obtained by the Washington Times from the Government Accountability Office (GAO), by the time Obama's presidency ended in January 2017, 78 of his appointees had "burrowed" into government jobs over the course of six years.
"Burrowing" is the term given to a process in which appointees are provided with career-level jobs to shield them from being fired once a new president takes office.
The Republicans warned he should implement a hiring ban
The former president was advised in his final year against providing political appointees with career jobs. The Republicans warned he should have implemented a hiring ban to avoid retaining workers who opposed President Trump's policies.
Senators Thom Tillis, R-N.C., and Ron Johnson, R-Wis, wrote to Obama, saying "burrowing in" is unfair to applicants without prior connections, but it also provides a platform to federal workers to thwart the policies of the new president.
The GAO report identified seven appointees had swapped to career jobs without first receiving adequate approval from the Office of Personnel Management. Four were later refused jobs and three later resigned.
The department with the most number of conversions was the Department of Homeland Security, with nine appointees burrowing in. The Department of Justice came second with eight conversions.
By the time George W. Bush left office, at least 26 conversions were approved during his final year in power, much less than Obama.
Since stepping down in January, Obama has been raking in money from Wall Street appearances. Last month, he addressed clients of Northern Trust Corporation in New York to a tune of $400,000, according to Bloomberg.
He has also met with private equity firm the Carlyle Group, which was unreported, and spoke about his time as president. He will soon deliver a keynote speech at a Cantor Fitzgerald healthcare conference.
His speeches have been true to his values
Ken Lewis, Obama's spokesman, told Bloomberg his speeches have been true to his values. He said they have allowed the former president to donate $2 million to Chicago programs providing job training and employment opportunities to low-income youth.
Another spokesman informed FBN that Obama - as a candidate - raised more funds than any previous candidate and introduced the strongest reforms on Wall Street since FDR. In 2009, he referred to bankers as fat cats.