THE lights are on, but is anyone home?

More than two months into President Trump’s administration, hundreds of critical government positions remain empty, effectively hamstringing the White House’s ability to get things done.

That’s according to the Partnership for Public Service which is keeping track of the more than 1200 confirmations needed in conjunction with the Washington Post.

Of the 553 positions regarded as critical that require Senate confirmation, just 20 have been done while 38 are pending. There are still 495 awaiting nomination including undersecretaries, deputies, chief financial officers and ambassadors that are essential to the day-to-day running of government machinery.

In many cases the top figure has been announced but there is no one underneath them. For example, while Rex Tillerson has been named Secretary of State there is no deputy, legal adviser, chief financial officer to support him.

Of the politically appointed ambassadors, designations have only been made for a handful of countries including China, Russia, Israel and the UK. Australia, Argentina, Canada, Germany and Ireland are still waiting.

The Partnership for Public Service has previously urged the President to crack on with the job of “nation’s new chief executive”. It told news.com.au the new administration is lagging behind confirmations submitted by former presidents within the same time frame.

President Trump has submitted 42 nominations so far, 20 of which have been confirmed taking an average of 24 days. One has been withdrawn and one is still pending.

Obama had submitted 94 nominations in the same time frame, 37 of which were confirmed taking an average of 16 days.

George W Bush had submitted 40 with 24 confirmed taking an average of four days, while Bill Clinton had submitted 50 nominations with 29 confirmed at the same stage.

LENGTHY DELAYS

While Trump’s administration was quick to announce many of his top picks for cabinet roles, just two of those were approved by Inauguration Day, fewer than Obama and George W Bush who both had seven each.

That’s partly because some of his business-world picks had interests to divulge, but also due to delays from the Democrats and the sheer amount of paperwork and background checking involved.

One of his choices for Labour Secretary, Andrew Puzder, withdrew his nomination after coming under fire for previously employing an undocumented immigrant as a housekeeper and his previous positions on overtime on minimum wage.

President Trump has previously blamed Democrats for holding up the confirmation process, saying it was “so pathetic” that his full cabinet had not been approved.

He has also made clear he wants to reduce government jobs and spending with a budget that could slash 200,000 positions and a recent executive order aimed at reducing government waste.

Critics say the “slowest transition in decades” has left government departments devoid of critical leadership, according to a former State Department worker quoted in The New York Times.

United States Studies Centre analyst Nicole Hemmer also said the “absentia mode of governance is proving disastrous”.

“The problem for Trump is that an effective imperial presidency requires both understanding the inner workings of the vast bureaucracy under his command and staffing it with competent, trustworthy leaders who can effectively translate his ideas into policy. Trump has neither,” she wrote.

“He lacks the knowledge necessary to leverage the bureaucracy and the patience to learn about it. Entry to his inner circle is gained through nepotism, patronage or loyalty. Skill falls further down on the list of desirable qualities, and experience doesn’t seem to appear on it at all”