 In " The Master Plan , " state auditors Chris Traeger ( Rob Lowe ) and Ben Wyatt ( Adam Scott ) arrive in Pawnee and announce that due to the city 's crippling budget problems , they have to slash each department budget by up to 50 percent and briefly shut down the government completely . While Leslie is horrified , the anti @-@ government Ron is delighted by the idea , becoming so giddy that he asks the auditors what cuts they will be making and if he can be allowed to " watch while eating pork cracklins . " In the season finale , " Freddy Spaghetti , " Ron is assigned to a committee tasked with identifying budget cuts , a job which he enjoys thoroughly . However , when Ben and Chris reveal they are considering firing Leslie , Ron passionately defends her and insists they should fire him instead . During the final scene of the episode and season , Tom spots Ron and Wendy together in city hall and realizes with horror that they are now dating . 
