Posted October 25, 2006 by Meredith McGehee

A Referendum on Cronyism?

It has been widely reported that a number of individuals were placed in important positions in the Iraq provisional authority due more to their ideological loyalty to the Bush Administration and the Republican Party than to their skills or professional competence for the positions they filled.  When things were still going well in Iraq they were often portrayed as young go-getters.  But as the situation under their watch tragically worsened, so did their press clippings.

And, a year ago, the nation watched as government at all levels failed to effectively respond to the disaster that was Hurricane Katrina.  We learned that the head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), Michael Brown, was not well qualified for his job.  Rather, he appeared to be yet another example of partisan patronage trumping qualification.  This was not the typical payoff of an ambassadorship for a generous donor or ally and the results were tragic.

Of course, political cronyism is not news.  And it is certainly not exclusive to the Republican Party.  It’s just that the party in power has more to give away.  Rewarding political supporters and contributors with government jobs, contracts and other valuable perquisites is as old as government itself.  Tammany Hall and the Chicago machine are only two examples of the entrenched patronage systems that have marked U.S. history.

What is new is that, with all three branches under the control of Republicans, ideological loyalty is now being used as a cover to disguise the political cronyism that is coming to light.  With the help of Hill allies like former Majority Leader Tom DeLay, the Bush Administration elevated ideological loyalty tests to new heights – whether in the form of awarding high-level jobs in Iraq to loyalists or in the form of the K Street Project which pressured private interests to hire loyal ideologues to key lobbying and association positions.

The book, The K Street Gang by self-proclaimed conservative and Weekly Standard staff writer Matthew Continetti lays out a convincing case of how Jack Abramoff along with Rep. DeLay and others constructed for themselves an ideological framework to justify the insidious relationship they developed with groups like the sweatshop industry leaders from the Marianas Islands.  Providing exceptions to federal minimum wage laws for the Marianas was reinterpreted and spun as an exercise in free market economy rather than protection for an exploitative and dehumanizing industry.  

What is particularly interesting is that those individuals engaged in this process – from President Bush and Tom DeLay on down -- have in all likelihood convinced themselves that there is no cronyism going on.  Rewarding fealty is often justified as a means to ensure one’s agenda is followed to the letter though the practice is never a hallmark of a healthy democracy.   The cost of placing loyalty above competence is injurious to our nation and a failure to uphold their compact with the American people to provide competent government. 

A democracy depends on citizens’ confidence not only in the integrity of government decisions, but also faith in the competence of that government. It doesn’t take long for incompetence and petty corruption to change the American people’s perceptions of government workers from dedicated public servants to unresponsive petty bureaucrats. 

With the upcoming elections just days away, the candidates and parties will be spending much time and attention on how best to differentiate themselves on issues.  The press will in all likelihood follow along with bated breath. 

But there may be a growing number of Americans who don’t care so much about positions on hot button issues as much as simply getting politicians in power who can get things done efficiently and with some degree of integrity.  Partisan gridlock is one thing.  The American people are clearly fed up with it, especially in Washington, and it is feeding a dangerous and growing apathy and cynicism that eats away at the heart of our democracy.  But cronyism and incompetence loom just as large these days and deserve equal time.