News: The State Employs Loyalists
The New York Times is reporting that the Bush administration is giving away jobs to people who are Bush fanatics and dedicated Republican loyalists, while striking people off the list who are not. I know this isn't news, but when you consider that the whole ghastly apparatus of the civil service and its appointed division was created by the progressives who believed that these agencies would be staffed by socially minded scientists who served the public rather than private interests, the irony is striking. Is there any theory that has gone as wrong in practice as the theory of government?
In any case, what kind of fool would take a political job in the executive branch right now, at the tail end of one of the most disastrous presidencies in modern history? Well, I guess the answer is: a Bush fanatic and dedicated Republican loyalist.
Comments (5)
jason4liberty
Reading "Democracy: The God that Failed". Would alter the last sentance of the first paragraph to read "... as the theory of democratic republicanism."
At least everyone knew what monarchies were. The reality of democratic republicanism does not even resemble the rhetoric and the dreams that guided it
Published: July 31, 2008 12:19 AM
John
"...what kind of fool would take a political job in the executive branch right now, at the tail end of one of the most disastrous presidencies in modern history?"
To that question, I would say that in modern democratic world you can actually read the future like an astrologist. You just have to take a peek and see what is behind your borders.
In Polish government it has become a normal routine to fire all the staff hired by your political enemies (or rather by any predecessors despite their sympathies), and hire your political base. But sometimes few jobs are left to people which are more competent than others, and to those which built their own small political bases over the years (and because of this they are practically untouchable). But when the democratic circus kicks in and ruling party leaves, it is in their political interest to fire all those competent or politically backed people and install their own friends. There are at least two reasons to do this: (1) Next political force will certainly fire all those men, and they will get the severance pay (sometimes they can become millionaires just getting it!); (2) They simply leave a mess for the next parasite to come. In democracy, leaving chaos which your political enemies have to deal with is just a brilliant idea, which greatly increases your chances in the next elections.
Published: July 31, 2008 2:27 AM
Dave
The scariest and most depressing part of this to me is the idea that there are "Bush fanatics."
Is this, then, an incurable illness? It's not contagious, is it?
Published: July 31, 2008 10:55 AM
Chad
Dave, you would be surprised at how many "Bush fanatics" are willfully ignorant of Bush's antics and wish to remain that way. They have put so much faith and trust in the man as someone who will always do the right thing and who will protect the country from all those terrorists (not understanding that U.S. military interventionism breeds terrorism) that they cannot mentally accept any facts that might contradict that image.
It is like a person being in denial over their spouse's repeated infidelity because they do not want to mentally acknowledge that their trust was misplaced and betrayed; in other words, they were played for a complete fool. To accept those facts is to undergo a paradigm shift of sorts, and paradigm shifts do not come easily for most people.
I know because I used to be one of those Bush fanatics, and I have close friends who still are. However, I am sure there are plenty of Obama fanatics or McCain fanatics (probably more of the former) who will have similar wake-up calls some day depending on which one ends up getting elected.
Published: July 31, 2008 2:02 PM
Walt D.
There are far more "Franz Liebkind" Democrats than Republicans. You will at least hear some Republicans criticize Bush.
Published: July 31, 2008 2:21 PM