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Winnipeg Free Press
24-07-2025
- Winnipeg Free Press
Trump's USDA to scatter half its Washington staff to field offices. Critics see a ploy to cut jobs
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. (AP) — The U.S. Department of Agriculture will move thousands of employees out of the nation's capital in a reorganization the agency says will put them closer to customers while saving money, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said Thursday. Around 2,600 workers — more than half the Washington, D.C. workforce — will be moved to five hubs stretching from North Carolina to Utah, Rollins said. The union representing federal workers immediately criticized the plan as a ploy to cut federal jobs, pointing out that some 95% of the department's employees already work outside Washington. The move is part of President Donald Trump's effort to make the federal government slimmer and more efficient, which received a Supreme Court boost this month. 'American agriculture feeds, clothes, and fuels this nation and the world, and it is long past time the department better serve the great and patriotic farmers, ranchers, and producers we are mandated to support,' Rollins said in a statement. The goal is to re-size the department so that costs don't outstrip available finances, as well as eliminate layers of management and consolidate redundant functions, the statement said. The department expects the plan to take several months. The five hubs are in Raleigh, North Carolina; Kansas City, Missouri; Fort Collins, Colorado; Indianapolis and Salt Lake City. Although it's important to be closer to farmers and ranchers, Chad Hart, a professor of agricultural economics at Iowa State University, said taking those employees out of Washington risks losing an important connection to Congress. 'You want that balance' to ensure effective farm policy, Hart said. Much of the government savings could come from employees who choose not to relocate, Hart said. He added that the agricultural community is concerned about a 'bumpy transition' reminiscent of similar action during Trump's first term, when it took relocated Agriculture offices months to get up and running again. Everett Kelley, national president of the American Federation of Government Employees, the labor union representing federal workers, had a sharper critique. He said about 85% of all federal employees already work outside the capital, but insisted Washington 'is the center of our nation's government for a reason.' Workers at headquarters help coordinate between senior leaders and field offices, Kelley said, and they ensure the agency has a 'seat at the table' when lawmakers and the White House make decisions that affect farmers nationwide. 'I'm concerned this reorganization is just the latest attempt to eliminate USDA workers and minimize their critical work,' the union leader said. The Agriculture Department reported that its headcount grew by 8% over the past four years, with salaries increasing by 14.5%. The statement from Rollins said the 4,600 employees in and around Washington are 'underutilized and redundant' and housed in underused buildings with billions of dollars in deferred maintenance. In the Washington region, the department will vacate three buildings and examine the best use of three others. One building set to be abandoned has $1.3 billion in needed but delayed maintenance and has room for 6,000 employees while only housing 1,900. Wages will fall too, Rollins promised. The capital region is among the nation's costliest to live, and department employees there are paid a surcharge of 34% to keep ahead of the cost of living. The surcharges range from 17.1% in Salt Lake City to 30.5% in Fort Collins. ___ Raza reported from Sioux Falls, South Dakota.
Calgary Herald
19-06-2025
- Calgary Herald
Mixing business with pleasure: Pomeroy bartender serves special cocktails to G7 leaders
Article content Now that the 2025 G7 Summit has ended, Graham Hart can finally talk publicly about what he's been up to for the past few months. And as the head mixologist at Pomeroy Kananaskis Mountain Lodge, where this year's G7 was held, he has a few stories. Article content Working closely with Global Affairs Canada, he and his team created the G7 Global Cocktail Series, seven cocktails inspired by each G7 country, plus one non-alcoholic option and one for the group as a whole. Article content Article content Article content 'I've never had the federal government weigh in on the ingredients I've used in a cocktail until now. Every ingredient had to be discussed,' says Hart, who began crafting the special menu for the hotel in September 2024. Article content Article content 'There's been a lot of pressure. But I like to say: no pressure, no diamonds. We had one opportunity to do something fantastic, so there's no point messing around.' Article content The nod to Germany? A Berliner Sommer beer cocktail with raspberry and dill. France? La Fille en Rose, a floral martini. Article content And Japan's special drink paid a nod to kintsugi, the Japanese idea of embracing imperfections by repairing broken pottery. Hart hand-cracked and carved ice spears, then put the cubes back together with 24-karat gold to serve to Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba. Article content Article content 'I do. It's about finding strength and beauty in things that are broken.' Article content Article content Served as part of the offerings to the G7 delegates, the cocktails weren't the only drinks imbibed by the world leaders this past week. Article content Turns out that French President Emmanuel Macron is a big scotch fan – in particular, Lagavulin. Hart poured him a rare Lagavulin 12-year-old Fireside Tales, and Macron liked it so much, his delegation came over to take photos and to ask where they could buy more. 'Macron requested the moustache guy – that's me. I had a big white cowboy hat on and a white shirt. I looked a little like Yosemite Sam,' Hart said with a laugh.
Toronto Sun
13-06-2025
- Toronto Sun
B.C. Ferries contract plays to China's military aspirations, expert warns
B.C. Ferries has hired Weihai shipyards to build roll-on, roll-off ships. An expert says China's interest in such ferries is military An aerial view of the China Merchants Industry Weihai Shipyards in Weihai, Shandong. Photo by China Merchants Industry An expert in Chinese state influence operations is warning that B.C. Ferries' contract with a Chinese shipyard to build four large ferries might help China prepare to invade Taiwan. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. SUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada. Unlimited online access to articles from across Canada with one account. Get exclusive access to the Toronto Sun ePaper, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment on. Enjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalists. Support local journalists and the next generation of journalists. Daily puzzles including the New York Times Crossword. REGISTER / SIGN IN TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account. Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments. Enjoy additional articles per month. Get email updates from your favourite authors. THIS ARTICLE IS FREE TO READ REGISTER TO UNLOCK. Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience. Access articles from across Canada with one account Share your thoughts and join the conversation in the comments Enjoy additional articles per month Get email updates from your favourite authors Don't have an account? Create Account Brian Hart, deputy director and fellow of the China power project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington D.C., says China wanted to become an expert in roll-on, roll-off passenger ferries because they can be used as troop transports in any military action. 'They've started to adapt some of those roll-on, roll-off passenger ferries to be able to support military operations, including amphibious landing operations,' he said. China, which insists Taiwan is an integral part of China, has long been feared in the West to be preparing to seize the island by military force. However, Hart said China Merchants Industry Weihai Shipyard, while state controlled, is not owned by the China State Shipbuilding Corporation, which has been tasked with building China's navy, making it 'less problematic' than other shipyards in China. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. He is also glad to see that B.C. Ferries has taken the step to install all of its IT and vessel software in Canada after the ships are built, because not doing so could have left the corporation open to cybersecurity risks. 'I think that's a good best practice if a company is still buying from a Chinese shipyard,' said Hart. 'It helps, not with just cybersecurity, but also potentially with technological transfer to to China, which is an issue in itself.' Benjamin Fung, a professor in McGill's school of information studies, said that allowing China access to the internal systems of the ferries could have given the country the ability to plant a Trojan horse that could be used to stop them from working in a moment of geopolitical crisis. Your noon-hour look at what's happening in Toronto and beyond. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Please try again This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. He said this has been evidenced in Russia's attack on Ukraine where Vladimir Putin's army used cyberattacks in the lead-up to the invasion. 'Given the geopolitical tension, it is difficult to guarantee the security of the ferries during 'critical moments', such as military action in the Taiwan Strait,' said Fung in an email to Postmedia. 'China may not have much interest in the confidentiality of the ferries, but it is possible to make the ferries stop functioning.' Part of the problem for companies like B.C. Ferries is that China has come to so thoroughly dominate the global shipbuilding industry, building roughly 60 per cent of all ships worldwide, that the ferry company didn't have much choice when going through the procurement process. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Although B.C. Ferries has used shipyards in countries like Poland, Romania and Germany in the past, this isn't always possible, according to Hart. 'I think it's a challenge where China's rise and dominance has undercut other players in the industry, like Japan and Korea. It's also undercut U.S. and other countries ability to kind of maintain their own domestic shipping industry.' The head of the union representing B.C. Ferries workers is pushing both the provincial and federal governments to spend more on domestic shipping so that issues like this don't arise in the future. Eric McNeely, president of the B.C. Ferry and Marine Workers' Union, said it isn't that companies like Seaspan in B.C. don't have the capacity, but that they can't compete with Chinese firms that have massive state subsidies and cheap labour. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. 'Society has become a little accustomed to trying to seek out the most cost-effective method, right off the kick and not really looking at what that means long-term,' he said. 'That's okay, maybe for an iPhone that you have for two years. But it's a little different when you're looking at ships that are going to be in service, carrying humans for 40, 50 or 60 years.' McNeely acknowledged that building the ships at home would likely take longer and cost more, but said it could benefit B.C. by creating thousands of jobs and developing a world class shipbuilding industry in a country with one of the world's largest coastlines. He said he worries about the safety of his members who will be sent to China to oversee the project given the arrests of Canadians Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor in 2018 after Canada detained Huawei executive Meng Wanzhou. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Neither B.C. Ferries CEO Nicolas Jimenez or board chair Joy MacPhail were available for comment Thursday. Postmedia asked the corporation whether it knew the reasoning for why China has come to specialize in roll-on, roll-off ferries and what the added time and cost would be if it were to build the ferries domestically. The corporation was also asked who it had consulted in the provincial and federal governments about the contract offer to Weihai and whether the province could force B.C. Ferries to retract the contract if it wanted to. It didn't answer the questions, but said its contract is 'consistent with established practice across the Canadian marine sector' noting that over 100 ships have been constructed in China over the past decade for companies such as Seaspan, Canada Steamship Lines and federal ferry corporation Marine Atlantic. This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. B.C. Transportation Minister Mike Farnworth has been critical of the deal but there is no indication he plans to intervene to force B.C. Ferries to build elsewhere. In a statement to Postmedia on Thursday, his ministry said it had been informed of the decision ahead of time, at which point Farnworth put his concerns to the ferry service about signing a contract actively engaged in a trade war with Canada. 'While it's disappointing there could not be more Canadian content in this contract, it's clear B.C. needs these new boats and needs them quickly,' said Farnworth. The ministry disputed the notion that the government can do anything about the contract, despite the fact that the provincial government is the corporation's only shareholder and MacPhail is a former NDP cabinet minister. Read More Toronto Maple Leafs Columnists Columnists Toronto & GTA Sunshine Girls
