Missouri Senator Eric Schmitt Introduces Legislation to Abolish DEI Offices in At Least 40 Federal Agencies

On November 8, 2023, Missouri Senator Eric Schmitt put forward legislation that would get rid of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) offices in at least 40 federal government entities.

The legislation in question is entitled the Abolish Government DEI Act. The bill would specifically abolish DEI programs in government agencies, that are funded by US taxpayers.

“Joe Biden has poisoned traditionally non-partisan government entities with divisive DEI politics, and these programs have done nothing more than waste taxpayer money and sow division among federal employees,” Schmitt said to the Daily Caller prior to introducing the bill. 

The list of government agencies that will be abolished under this bill include the following:

• The Office of Diversity and Inclusion of the Department of State
• The Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Civil Rights of the Department of the Interior
• The Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility of the Department of the Treasury
• The Office of Civil Rights and Equal Employment Opportunity of the Department of the Treasury
• The Office of Civil Rights of the United States Agency for International Development
• The Office of Scientific Workforce Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion of the Department of Energy
• The Chief Diversity Officers Executive Council
• The Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility of the Office of Personnel Management
• The Office of Minority Health of the Department of Health and Human Services.
• The Office of Equal Employment Opportunity, Diversity and Inclusion of the Department of Health and Human Services.
• The Office of Resolution Management, Diversity and Inclusion of the Department of Veterans Affairs.
• The Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility of the Department of Housing and Urban Development.
• The Office of Civil Rights Diversity and Inclusion of the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service of the Department of Agriculture
• The Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer of the Department of Agriculture
• The Diversity and Inclusion Office of the United States Air Force Academy
• The Office of Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion of the Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau of the Department of the Treasury
• The Office of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion of the National Institutes of Health
• The Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Civil Rights of the Small Business Administration
• The Privacy and Diversity Office of U.S. Customs and Border Protection
• The Office of Civil Rights of the Department of Commerce
• The Office of Inclusion and Civil Rights of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
• The Office for Civil Rights, Diversity, and Inclusion of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission
• The Office of Energy Justice and Equity of the Department of Energy.
• The Diversity, Equity, and Inclusivity Office of the National Institute of Standards and Technology
• The Office of Racial Equity of the Office of the City Administrator for the District of Columbia
• The Office of Equity and Civil Rights of the National Science Foundation
• The Office of Diversity and Inclusive Workforce Management of the United States Fish and Wildlife Service
• The Director of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility of the National Security Agency and the Central Security Service
• The Office of Diversity and Civil Rights of U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement
• The Office of Equal Employment Opportunity of the Securities and Exchange Commission
• The Intelligence Community Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility Office of the Office of the Director of National Intelligence
• The Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Office of the Defense Threat Reduction Agency
• The Equal Employment Opportunity and Diversity Office of the Defense Logistics Agency
• The Army Equity and Inclusion Agency of the United States Army.
• The Office of Equal Employment Opportunity, Diversity and Inclusion of the Bureau of the Census
• The Office of Equal Employment Opportunity and Diversity of the United States Patent and Trademark Office
• The Affirmative Employment and Diversity Management Program of the Nuclear Regulatory Commission
• The Office of Diversity Inclusion and
• Equal Opportunity of the United States Military Academy
• The Office of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion of the Internal Revenue Service
• The Office of Health Equity of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

“America is the greatest meritocracy the world has ever seen, and DEI officers, made-up buzzwords, and feel-good initiatives authored by Biden and bureaucrats undercut the very foundation of our country. I will work to counter inherently unfair and wasteful DEI initiatives in our federal government,” he continued. 

The US government is simply too big. Over the last century, politicians have worked hard to create government agencies and laws that go against the spirit of the US constitution. Abolishing DEI programs would be a good first step towards rolling back such constitutional transgressions

However, right-wingers need to be relentless in their efforts to downsize the state. They can’t just settle for marginal reforms.