Display:
That's been the case in the past,
the real structure of government consists of the 95% career civil servants who really comprise the "works", and who make day to day policy- and have a powerful say in the real strategy.
where administrations put in their figurehead ambassadors and what-not, leaving the civil servants in situ to run the place.

However, Bushco has systematically destroyed and dismantled that model, installing its sycophants in bureaus and agencies, for several layers down, well into the mundane workings. Read any of the pieces written about how the intellectual lightweights of Liberty University were installed by Rove/Bush/Gonzales and have pretty well ruined the credibility of the justice department.

The next president, assuming a Democrat is allowed to win, will have a LOT of housecleaning to do, from the bottom up.

by Mnemosyne on Sat Dec 1st, 2007 at 07:02:23 PM EST
[ Parent ]
I agree, and I have read many of the pieces you speak of. The real questions are these:

-How deep is the infection? I think the patient still has levels of resistance. Hansen, at NASA is a good example. The focus was on politically useful slots- the rest seem to have been muzzled, but not "liquidated".  If that were not the case, it would be a terminal disease. It may still be:

-Do the democratic doctors truly want to do the surgery needed?

I worry more about that-- I don't see it. Hillary will keep the bases in Iraq, --and the stolen oil.  If she does, she must keep the empire, and empire and a democratic republic are mutually exclusive.

Useful talking follows experience, the more experience the better. Talking that precedes experience is known as bullshit.

by geezer in Paris (risico at wanadoo(flypoop)fr) on Sun Dec 2nd, 2007 at 05:57:20 AM EST
[ Parent ]
How deep is the infection? I've heard that it goes down five or six layers into the bureaucracy. That's pretty deep and enough to cause fundamental change in the way a department functions.

As to your other question, je ne sais pas.

I fear that the bases in Iraq will stay, just as a function of inertia. Once the massive machinery lumbers into activity, it's very hard to turn it aside or, especially, to undo what's been done. That will/would require massive amounts of change, and barring externally-imposed disaster, I'm not sure the comfortable American body politic is up to confronting that.

by Mnemosyne on Mon Dec 3rd, 2007 at 07:29:34 PM EST
[ Parent ]

Display:
Login
. Make a new account
. Reset password
Recommended Diaries
Debates
Campaigns
Occasional Series
Agriculture
by afew - Aug 7

Anglo Disease
by Migeru - Aug 3