The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton

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Americans may disagree on politics, but they seem to have a clearer picture of what they want government to do than many leaders assume Aug 28, 2026

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Trust in government has been declining for decades. A new Partnership for Public Service study asked a different question: What would a government that works for people actually look like? The answers revealed some unexpected common ground around responsiveness, effectiveness and problem solving. Here with more insight is the director of public engagement at the Partnership for Public Service, Lindsay Laferriere.

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The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton - - Friday, August 28, 2026 Aug 28, 2026

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Today on the Federal Drive with Terry Gerton

Americans may disagree on politics, but they seem to have a clearer picture of what they want government to do than many leaders assume
The most important retirement conversation you can have with your spouse may be the one neither of you wants to have
Better care often starts with someone noticing that an old solution doesn't work for every patient. One Navy nurse turned that observation into a change that could improve trauma care across military medicine.

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Army moving ahead to put nuclear microreactors on military bases Aug 27, 2026

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The Army is moving ahead with a major effort to put nuclear microreactors on military bases, with about $2.2 billion going to five companies. The goal is to get at least one reactor to provide useful electricity to an Army installation by the end of September 2028. Federal News Network's Rachel Cohen joins me with more on the announcement.

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Unions challenge Trump admin overhaul of suitability, performance rules Aug 27, 2026

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The Trump administration is facing a new lawsuit, after overhauls to federal employee suitability and performance standards. Four federal unions argue that the Office of Personnel Management exceeded statutory authority and violated the Civil Service Reform Act when it issued final regulations earlier this summer. Taken together, the unions say the changes will make it easier for OPM to fire employees. Here with details, Federal News Network’s Drew Friedman.

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Getting help to disaster survivors takes more than good weather forecasts Aug 27, 2026

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For the latest Data Dish conversation, we're taking a look at the information that helps government respond to and recover from disasters. When a hurricane approaches, weather data is only the beginning. Joining me are Denice Ross and Christopher Marcum of the Federation of American Scientists.

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Everyone agrees federal hiring and firing can take a long time, we look at what's actually causing the delay Aug 27, 2026

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When federal employee accountability cases drag on, attention usually turns to rules and protections. A new report looks at what happens inside the process itself and where delays are most likely to occur.

It's one thing to identify problems in the accountability process. It's another to build consensus around solutions. In the second half of our conversation, we're discussing tradeoffs, implementation, and what meaningful reform might actually look like with Maureen Klovers and April Harding of We the Doers, a fiscally-sponsored project of The Fund for Constitutional Government

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The Federal Drive with Terry Gerton - - Thursday, August 27, 2026 Aug 27, 2026

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Today on the Federal Drive with Terry Gerton

Everyone agrees federal hiring and firing can take a long time, we look at what's actually causing the delay
Getting help to disaster survivors takes more than good weather forecasts

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Losses keep piling up for Trump administration over handling of RTO mandate Aug 26, 2026

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Add the employees of the Agriculture Department's Foreign Agriculture Service to the growing list of federal workers who have successfully challenged the Trump administration's return to work policies. A third-party arbitrator on Monday sustained the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees' grievance that USDA violated the collective bargaining agreement and the Telework Enhancements Act when ending telework without negotiations. With more on this latest case and what the growing list of loses means for the administration, Federal News Network executive editor Jason Miller joins me now.

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TSA to replace ‘Gold+’ in privatization push Aug 26, 2026

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The Transportation Security Administration is replacing its short-lived “Gold-plus” privatized screening concept, Instead, TSA’s new leader wants to build on the agency’s existing private screening program. For more, Federal News Network’s Justin Doubleday joins me.

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September could bring answers on several issues federal employees have been tracking for months Aug 26, 2026

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The fall could bring clarity on several issues that affect federal employees and retirees directly, from government funding to next year's pay raise to the handling of FEHB claims data. John Hatton of NARFE is here to walk through what comes next.

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