The director who never was

During its often rocky history, the Roman Empire had more than its share of leadership problems. Depending on which historians you favor, there were times when it had two, three, four, five and six emperors in a one-year period. The U.S. has had one president elected to four terms (FDR) and another who was elected once, then defeated for reelection, then elected for a second non-consecutive term. Hint, his name is similar to a big city in Ohio.

Now official Washington is dealing with a situation where Beth Cobert, acting director of the Office of Personnel Management, has been told she doesn’t exist officially. She is alive and kicking (at least I would be) but everything she’s done since taking office in mid-2015 is null and void. It never happened, even if it happened.

While it is an important agency, OPM is little-known outside of Washington and the federal workforce. Its director usually makes national headlines once or twice each winter. Whether it is a blizzard (like we had earlier this year) or a dusting, OPM makes the final call. And that call whether federal offices are open or closed is usually criticized by politicians, many locals and by folks from the real world further north where federal agencies are never closed by cold weather. Except when they are.

The fact that Cobert doesn’t exist (officially) was first reported by FederalComputerWeek.

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