Milford chronicle. [volume] (Milford, Del.) 1878-1974, 1954-02-05
POLITICAL PATRONAGE IS
NOT WRONG


ant word. 1t cOnnOtes cynical political
bosses, meeting secretly in smoke-filled
rooms, and passing out taxpayer-supported
jobs to men and women whose sole quail
fication in many cases is that they have serv-
ed the political ends of the party-in-power
There is some truth in that. But patron
age, which is as old as this government it.
self has another side. 1t is means whereby
q party's policies are put into effect all down
the line; where people who have worked
hard and without previous recOmpense for
party success are properly rewarded; where
che party's position is strengthened and sol
ldlhed; and where an effective, loyal organ
lzatlon with common purpose is created.
q. S. News and World Report recently
devoted long article to the current patron
age problem in the government And it's
quite problem indeed-numbers of Repub-
lican members of Congress and other Off
Gals are openly grumbling that the Eisen-
hover administration has been way too slow
and too careful in getting rid of Truman
followers and putting in the COPS own de-
serving people. The figures, as u. S. News
gives them, certainly lend weight to this
cOmplaint-Of the $500 Jobs in the federal
establishment which pay $4,000 a year or
more and are on an executive, policy MAX
ing level, Eisenhower appOintees hold only
1,0OO. The remaining 5000 are a heritage
from the Democratic past.
To take a specific instance, an Eisenhow-
er appointee to the important Labor ReIa-
tons Board said in a speech made January
18th that 1t would be Clearly misleading
to imply that the Board "has come under
the effective control of the present admin
lstratlOn. He added that virtually all the
Boards top people, including the solicitor
and all division heads, were appointed dur
ing or prior to the Truman period.
Administration spokesman have answers
to all this One is that change in the civil
service law, made by President Truman in
an executive order in 1913, greatly added to
the legal difficulties of getting rid of large
classes OF jobholders. President Eisenhower
cancelled this with an executive order of his
own, but the matter was taken to court and
Mr.. ElsenhoWer's authority to do so has
Just been affirmed. Still another is that this
administration is trying hard to cut ex-
penSeS-Which naturally means fewer iOhs
A third is that requirements are being made
az reasonable rate Of speed but that in
many cases qualified people are hard to find
fourth IS that Overly-quick personnel
changes would be enormously Wasteful. rnea-
Sufed Doth IN terms of money and govern
mental etticiency--ex in govern
mental routine and administration is a val
liable, asset, whether the man is a Democrat
Or RepuDhcan. fifth is that when a vet
eran employee is fired for cause, he has legal
right to review, and this can take months
and months.
Perhaps the biggest reason lies in the
TACT that the Democrats were in power so
long That Just normal deaths, retirements
ana designations made it inevitable that thew
would staff the whole government. u s.
News quotes a Republican official as saving
IN this regard, what do personally see as
the answer to the Republicans problems on
patronage and policy-making personnel
That's easy-eight years of Eisenhower. Il
takes time to get control of these things. It
cant be done in few months, or the first
year. The Democrats had 20 years." Della
ware Republicans are finding out that this
IS true. Only four years of Democratic rule
mere put men and women in Office who are
hard to Gust.