I (obviously, if you are familiar with my views) think government should be a lot smaller. But shrinking government by simply indiscriminately firing people or encouraging them to retire, so government can't do *any* of its tasks well is crazy. First, there are some things even I *want* the government to do, and do well. Second, most things I think government shouldn't be doing, if they are going to be done, should be done competently. I don't want an incompetent IRS that doesn't answer phone calls, makes mistakes processing returns, etc. I don't want an incompetent Department of Education that disburses student loans too late to meet tuition bills, or disburses them to the wrong people. Etc. I'm quite sure every federal agency has lazy people and incompetents who are protecting by the way the civil service system and the plethora of antidiscrimination rules make it a huge burden to fire anyone. Indiscriminate firings will get rid of them proportionally, but only proportionally. Voluntary separation incentives will get rid of proportionally *fewer* of them, because they are exactly the people who know they wouldn't be able to get alternative employment.
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