Evening star., 1937-07-30

matters and hardly qualify as presi-
dental advisers.
When President Roosevelt asks for
six 000-a-year men, he is asking
Tor something every President before
him for the last 80 years should have
mad. 1t is true that members of the
House of Representatives when the
proposal to give Mr.. Roosevelt six
administrative assistants" was being
debated poked fun at the proposal and
call 1t Kitchen cabinet" and wanted
to know what the new officials would
do except to help to entrench bureau
cracy still further.
1t has always been my desire how
ever, to look effectively at legislative
measures and to give the President
support when he is right and criticism
when he is wrong. The proposal to
reorganize the Federal establishment
Is, on the whole, meritorious, and the
real objection to it is the suggestion
that the controller-genera office be
abolished and that quasi judicial COM
missions be made subordinate to Gov
ernment departments. Neither of
these Objectionable provisions seems
to have a chance of passage and the
problem of giving Mr.. Roosevelt the ad-
ministratlve help he needs to admin
lister the huge responsibilities of his
Office is. as separate and distinct re-
form, wholly desirable.
True Significance.
Unless one is familiar with the slip
shod way in which Government busi-
ness is conducted due to the fact that
appointments are made by political
pull rather than merit, the true sig
nificance Of MI. Roosevelt's request
for six $40 0,000-a-year men will not be
Immediately apparent.
What Mr.. Roosevelt frankly realizes,
no doubt, is that he cannot abolish
the cabinet and yet every President is
compelled to recognize political service
In the campaign or to the party in the
past in selecting cabinet officers. The
social prestige and so-called rank"
in official circles is one of the main
reasons why cabinet portfolios are
sought after, but when the modern
President, be he Democrat or Repub-
lican, looks around the cabinet table
he sees men of limited knowledge,
experience and background And if
they have intelligence and ability they
soon become immersed in routine tasks
NOT a small part Of which is paying
attention to Congressman who want
jobs for their friends in the vast Gov
ernment bureaus. The result Is that
as general advisers on administration
policy they are useless. This is largely
because they cannot give time to study
the facts and details of matters out
side their own departments.
The system results in one-man
advisers to the President. If the cabi-
net officer happens to be a man of
vision, the particular recommendation
he makes may have merit, but, on the
other hand, the recommendations of
other cabinet officers may be mediocre
or subject to criticism Other cabinet
onicers hesitate in cabinet meeting to
butt in on the affairs of their COL
leagues departments.
Makes for Inefficiency.
All this makes for inefficiency and
certainly gives the overWorked Presi-
dent no help. BY selecting six admin
istrative assistants, the presumption is
that President will not have to con-
slider party politics or service but can
select men who have special quali1ca-
tions. 1t should not be forgotten that
nowadays there are 12O agencies Of
the Government and that many of
these have grown up outside the 10
major departments as emergency"
bureaus.
With six assistants a President
can assign two Government depart
ments to each assistant and some
executive agencies besides. Thus a
cabinet officers recommendations will
pass through the assistant who is
delegated to watch certain things.
1t has been suggested in a formal
report that the President should
choose six men with a passion for
anonymity" BY this is meant, men
who will work hard and keep out
Of the newspapers and will act really
as confidential advisers to the Presi-
dent. 1t Is assumed they will not
receive callers, though the President