What Is a Bureaucrat To Do?

“It’s no surprise that the governed are not happy with their government. Yet it would be naive for state and local officials to think this attitude ends at the federal level. Governmental agencies are pressed to meet the conflicting expectations of elected officials and competing interests of a socio-economic diverse society. Bureaucracy’s overly narrow focus on perfecting the rules of governance fail to address or satisfy the democratic needs of the people.“

Nearly 10 years ago, I wrote an article entitled: “What’s a Bureaucrat to Do?” It would be even more appropriate today. The “Administrative State” or better yet, the “Deep State” is squarely in the cross hairs of a large swath of society. What can public servants do in such an environment? How can the public and not-for-profit sectors continue to attract the best and brightest? What is the role of higher education, especially programs specializing in public affairs? Although the conversation is dominated by arrogant and never ending diatribes at the federal executive level, the officials at both the state and local levels need to take heed. Going back 250 years and more, there has always been an underlying anti-liberal, anti-government sentiment in American society. It begs the question, “What is a Bureaucrat to Do?”

Since asking the question, I’ve had nearly a decade to think about it. One place to start, is with our educational system. It needs to take more than a fair share of blame for the accusation: “The nation is civically ignorant.” There is a plethora of scholarship backing up this assertion. Unfortunately, this contention is evidenced by a number of those working in government that came to their positions with this same lack of knowledge. Steeped in the 35-year belief that government should run like a business, for most its been a democratic learning curve based upon experience and not from the classroom. That may be all well and good. However, I would posit that those in government should be versed not just in the practice of government, but in the purpose, philosophy, and legality behind it. Public servants need to be reminded as to the emotional, cultural, social, and economic ties American’s have with their political system. They are not just customers, clients, and stakeholders. They, we, are above all, citizen stockholders. This understanding often gets lost in translation.

“This image of education in civics, government and history as dry, dull and irrelevant, indeed an indoctrination that whitewashed our past and much of our present, led in the 1960s to a reaction against the field. This resulted in the elimination of widespread requirements for civic education in our schools and a reduction of attention to political history in texts in favor of such topics as social history, the history of the labor movement, civil rights history and the like. While many of the new emphases were improvements, the reduction of attention to civics and government and political history was not.”

Charles N. Quigley, Executive Director of the Center for Civic Education

With all of this in mind, my next essay will specifically focus on the education of current and future public servants. Knowing his/her role as a citizen, let alone as a public servant, comes from a sense of responsibility. That responsibility is internally inspired but reinforced with the knowledge garnered from formal education. Even with the best of intentions, governance is more than a compilation of methods, applications and best practices. It is up to the schools of political science, public affairs, public policy, and public administration to frame the mechanics of government within the context of the nation’s unique democratic republic. The business like applications espoused by the “New Public Management” need to share equal time with the concepts of citizenship and the democratic principles of the “New Public Service.” Government needs to continue with, but look beyond, efficiency, balancing the books, and good customer service. Performance in and of itself is inadequate in garnering the public’s trust. If the bonds between government and the governed are to be connected, then let’s start with an understanding of “Who Government Works For.” By just declaring oneself as a “Humble Public Servant” does not make it so. I’ve never understood what’s humble about such a self-serving statement in the first place. Regardless, where the emphasis needs to be placed is on the word “Public.” At the very least, It needs equal billing with the meaning behind “Servant.” Otherwise, it begs the question: “Is it about the public or the servant?”

Click the link below:

http://patimes.org/whats-bureaucrat-do/