WASHINGTON _ Federal employees turned their backs in silent protest against Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue as he addressed employees Thursday about relocating their jobs from Washington to Kansas City.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture's selection of Kansas City as the new home for 550 federal research jobs has been a major victory for policymakers in Kansas and Missouri. But for USDA employees with family and professional ties to the D.C. region, the Trump's administration's plan to move their jobs from Washington to the Midwest is bitter news.
Dozens of USDA staff turned their backs as Perdue touted Kansas City's food and arts scenes, praised the region's school districts and promised employees that their importance to the federal government would not be lessened by the move.