Trump Call to Bring Back Federal Workers Sets Agencies in Motion

A White House Office of Management and Budget memo telling federal agencies to begin the reopening process after coronavirus closures is consistent with the administration’s push to get the U.S. back to normal as soon as possible, though some are calling for a slower startup.

The memo from OMB Acting Director Russell Vought rightly tells agency leaders to follow state and local orders intended to curb the Covid-19 pandemic as they look to return employees to their workplaces where that’s feasible, said Robert Shea, an OMB official during the George W. Bush administration. But it’s “troublingly vague,” Shea said.

The ...