Federal Prisons Try To 'Make BOP Great Again' While Staff Vanish Into Thin Air

KEY POINTS

•Deputy Director Josh Smith posted a July 2024 video vowing to 'make the BOP great again' amid severe staffing issues.
•On January 20, 2021, the Bureau of Prisons director was fired the same day Trump took office, triggering turmoil.
•Bonuses were canceled, union contracts scrapped, and prison staff shortages worsened, pushing many officers to join ICE for better pay.
•Smith announced a plan to attract staff with one-time bonuses funded partly by savings from the canceled union contracts.

Last week, Deputy Director Josh Smith dusted off the MAGA slogan in a heroic 7-minute video promising to "make the BOP great again," despite the Bureau of Prisons firing its director the very day Trump took office. Staff bonuses were axed, union contracts scrapped, and prison toilet paper shortages rivaled a Netflix outage panic. Hundreds of officers bolted for ICE, lured by better pay — apparently, freedom from chaos pays more. In true "we fixed it by cutting everything" style, Smith now offers one-time bonuses paid by cancelling the union contract, because nothing says morale like rewarding yourself with your victim's savings. Union reps were less than thrilled, calling the videos "narrative creation." Meanwhile, ProPublica's KeriB is asking for insider dirt to see if America’s prisons can both retail Costco staples and stable staffing.