Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1953-07-18
The Political Mill
Administration Eusinu
Patronage Headaches
Chairman HoII Doing Out
Political PIums by Stotes
The Political Mil
By Gould Lincoln

By Gould Lincoln
The Federal patronage headache,
which has confronted the Eisenhower
administration ever since it took over
last January 20. is finally being licked.
There are still screams and howls from
Republican leaders out in the States
and even from some members of Con-
greSs-but they do not have the ma
chlne-gun rapidity of the complaints
early in the year. The answer lies in
the fact that the job of handling pa
tronage has been turned over to Re-
publican National Chairman Leonard
w. Hail. who has worked out prac-
tical as well as fair system of handling
the problem.
Patronage means, in this case, Fed
eral jobs The hungry Republicans, out
OF control of the Federal Government
for 20 years, began demanding these
jobs even before President Eisenhower
took ofice. At first. everything was
haphazard. There was no central
clearing house. Department and agency
heads, when they were appointed by
the President and confirmed by the
senate. undertook to pick the people
they wanted to put to work in their
own particular fields of operations.
Either they did not know about the de.
mands made by the politicos for Fed
eral Office. or they didn't care. The
results. while satisfactory perhaps to
the agency heads. caused lot of crit
iciSm from the Republican organization
heads out in the States, and from SEN
atorS and Representatives. The last
feel particularly that they are entitled
to consideration whenever appoint
mentS are made from their States and
districts.
Procedure Halted.
Chairman Hall has called a halt on
this kind Of procedure. He has been
given authority in this matter. and
gradually, in tactful manner, he has
been able to impress upon department
heads that appointments to Office must
be cleared through the National Com
mittee, which really means the chair
man. So today. instead of rushing
out and making personal selections for
appointment. the department and
agency heads are asking the chairman
to make recommendations for appoint.
ment. or are submitting their recon-
mendations for appointment to the
chairman. in order to get the proper
political clearance.
Chairman Hall, Of course, insists
that candidates for appointment to
Federal jobs have proper qualifications
for the work to which they may be
assigned. They must have something
beyond mere political appeal OF the
support of politicians back home. And
that's as it should be- But-and it's
big but-all other things being equal,
the man or woman who has the biggest
and best political support is likely to
have the job. That's the political sys-
tenn.
One thing Chairman Hall insists
upon is fair distribution of Federal
jobs among the States. With that in
mind, he calls upon the political pa
tronage committee-which may be
headed in one State by a Republican
Senator, as in Massachusetts,, or by
Republican State chairman, as in New
Yorkr-for recommendation for an inn
portant Office. This may be Midwest
State. The next time he calls upon the
patronage committee in an Eastern. or
Far Western or Southern State. In
this way, the chairman is able to spread
the political plums This applies. of
course, to Federal jobs in Washington
The thousands of Federal jobs now To-
Gated within the States usually 60 to
candidates from the States in which
these officials operate.
Nothing New.
The patronage headache hits every
new administration which takes over
in Washington after change Of party
control of the Government. The crit
icisms were Just as loud in 1888, when
the Democrats came into power under
Franklin D. Roosevelt after IL years of
Republican rule. Indeed, 1t develops
that the Republicans of the Eisenhower
administration have been able to shift
Democrats and replace them with Re-
publicans in some departments more
rapidly than did the Democrats 20
years ago. In one department, the
Republicans nave made an almost two
to one better showing in this kind of
turnover of personnel.
Some Democrats are getting jobs
from the Republican administration,
and some are holding on to jobs they
have had. The first are from the
States of the solid South"-solidly
Democratic-which cast their electoral
votes for Eisenhower last Novem Der
Texas, Virginia, Tennessee and Florida
and from some of the other Southern
States which gave Eisenhower strong
support though not their electoral votes.
Occasionally there is a Democrat in
Office whose removal for the sake of
appointing a Republican might back
fire. Then 1t is always a question
whether the replacement should be
made. Take the case of the Boston
postmaster. for example. He IS
Democrat. and there has been talk Of
his removal and the substitution of
Republican. There is an election next
year. with a Republican Senator and q
Republican Governor up for reelection.
Both will need some of that big Demo-
cratic vote in Boston. Also. there's
always the chance that Senator or
q Governor who is faced with the task
of making a nomination for high Fed.
eral Office will make more enemies for
himself-the unsuccessful candidates
for the office and their friends
Republicans in the Southern States
have been critical, in some cases, Of the
Democrats appointed-but they admit
the justice Of caring for Ike supporters.
A Anuse lie Ruilf