Federal DEI spending explodes under Biden-Harris administration

By Casey Harper
The Center Square

President Donald Trump has promised to reduce government waste and employed wealthy businessmen Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy to lead the charge.

So far, spending on federal Diversity, Equity and Inclusion policies are prime targets for Musk and Ramaswamy, and a recent report shows just how widespread federal DEI spending has become.

The report from Do No Harm shows 500 ways the Biden-Harris administration “infused DEI into the federal government.”

Those examples include federal agencies starting dozens of equity training programs, doling out federal contracts and jobs based on race and gender, and teaching Americans more about their country’s racism, both past and present.

The DEI explosion took off after Biden issued executive orders on his first day in office as well as another in June of 2021. The first executive order “established that affirmatively advancing equity, civil rights, racial justice, and equal opportunity is the responsibility of the whole of our government.”

The second order established “that it is the policy of my Administration to cultivate a workforce that draws from the full diversity of the nation.”

Biden also issued other executive orders, including around gender and sexuality, to the same effect his first year in office. Those orders gave federal bureaucrats not only permission but actually direct orders to embrace DEI policies across the board.

And Do No Harm’s report shows they did, full-throttle, citing 80 “Equity Action Plans” submitted by agencies that promised over 500 taxpayer-funded actions.

Some of the actions are seemingly mild, such as the U.S. Social Security Administration tracking more racial data.

Other examples of DEI policies, though, made the federal government the nation’s teacher. For example, a blog for the U.S. Treasury Department lectures Americans on racial inequality.

More directly, the federal government began implementing training programs for many federal employees that fully embrace racial ideology labeled “woke” by its opponents. For instance, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission invested in training for employees to consider equity more in its regulatory decisions.

“Training will address how equity and environmental justice involves removing barriers underserved communities may face in the context of the Commission’s practices, processes, and policies,” FERC said in its Equity Action Plan. “Training also will address how, consistent with FERC’s mission and statutory duties, the Commission considers the impact of its actions on such communities. More specific trainings geared toward the responsibilities of different program offices and issue areas also may be identified or developed and offered.”

Other actions seem to favor some groups over others. Changing the “percentage” of benefits received necessarily requires giving contracts, grants, or other federal resources to certain groups, almost always at the expense of white Americans, even more often white men.

For example, the American Battle Monuments Commissions in its Equity Action Plan called for “expanding the percentage of U.S.-based contracted goods and services awarded to minority-owned, women-owned, and service disabled veteran-owned enterprises.”

In fact, the ABMC pledged to pay a worker for this sole purpose.

In another instance, the Smithsonian Institute pledged to recruit more Black and indigenous interns.

“One of the simplest ways to ensure equity and accessibility in internships is to provide a livable stipend and advertise it clearly in promotion materials,” the federal group said in its Equity Action Plan. “Many units include a statement directly in their internship description about their commitment to equity. They also are intentional about making the application process simple and transparent, offering access services for interviews and allowing for multiple formats in place of a required essay.”

The Smithsonian Institution, the federal steward of America’s past, also promised to begin promoting a historical framework that emphasizes American racism in the past and today.

The federal group pledged to “Address the historical roots and contemporary impacts of race and racism in the United States and globally through interdisciplinary scholarship, creative partnerships, dialogue, education, and engagement.”

The Center Square has reported on other examples of DEI policies and grants becoming the norm in recent years as well, though much of this kind of spending began before the Biden-Harris administration took power.

Those include:

• $2.6 million in taxpayer dollars to train students to promote critical race theory.

• Millions to train school teachers in DEI ideology around race and gender.

• A portion of New York's $9 billion in federal COVID funding was spent training staff in ‘privilege’ and to recognize ‘equity warriors,’ among other related themes.