Chapter 11

This chapter has detailed the nature and role of the federal bureaucracy across time in the United States. After attention was given to the contrasting notions of patronage vs. merit-based systems of bureaucratic administration, the four successive stages of the American bureaucratic state were discussed. These stages included initiation of the bureaucratic establishment in the three nascent cabinet Departments of State, Treasury, and War; the employment of the bureaucracy to promote economic development; the development of the government as a regulator of the macro-economy; and the employment of the government as a disseminator of wealth and opportunity through social programs’ creation and later expansion under FDR and LBJ as well as their restriction and decrease under Reagan and Clinton. 

Then we covered the structure of the bureaucracy as cabinet departments, regulatory commissions and agencies, as well as government corporations, boards, and commissions. Bureaucratic policy making was addressed according to its three-pronged process of rulemaking, administrative adjudication, and implementation phases.

Finally, methods of presidential and congressional bureaucratic control were portrayed through devices such as appointment and oversight. Also, judicial and even citizen oversights were looked at as further checks on bureaucratic intransigence and maintaining transparency over the policy implementation process as conducted by the federal bureaucracy. The chapter ended with an exemplifying case, the creation, early development, and problems of the Bush administration’s Department of Homeland Security in 2003 as a direct response to the 9/11 tragedy.

Quizzes

Critical Thinking Exercises

This is how bureaucracies work?

Bureaucracies have several key characteristics that define them: a chain of command, a mission statement, and a promise to treat all fairly under the rules.

In order to learn more about the national bureaucracy,

Visit this website, which contains the links to U.S. Government Departments and Agencies. (https://www.usa.gov/federal-agencies) Now, visit two different organizations and compare these three characteristics.

Can you draw the chain of command for this organization? Who is at the top? What qualities in his or her background seem to justify this person’s position? What is the mission statement of the organization? What programs or actions does the bureaucracy advertise on its website that fall in line with this mission? Are there programs that seem outside of the scope of the mission?

How does this organization promise to treat all fairly under the rules? Is there an Equal Employment Opportunity Statement visible and present? Are their statements or other evidence of the equal treatment of citizens on this website? What other common characteristics do you notice between these two organizations?

Useful Links

Links to further content exploring the themes covered in this chapter

USA.gov

This site provides links to the various federal government departments, agencies, commissions and corporations. This is the basic site for the federal government with access points for all three branches.

Our Government

From the White House Web page, this site provides a gateway into the complex array of executive branch entities. The Web page is user friendly and updated regularly.

FedWorld

This site provides a more user friendly access point to federal entities. It is sponsored by the U.S. Department of Commerce and updated regularly.

Structure of the U.S. Government   

This is a private site that discusses the basic structure of the U.S. government, including details on the organizing features of the federal bureaucracy.

U.S. Government Manual

This site provides access to the U.S. Government Manual detailing issues of concern related to bureaucratic structure, operation, and administration.

How Bureaucracy Affects Public Policy

This video discusses the role of government bureaucracies in the making of public policy.

FedEx versus Bureaucracy

This is a speech clip by former House Speaker Newt Gingrich (R-GA) making the case that private sector service providers do a better job than the federal civil service in disseminating public services.

Florida Senatorial Candidate Rubio takes on the bureaucracy

This is a campaign advertisement by Republican candidate for Florida U.S. Senator Marco Rubio who calls for reductions in spending and corresponding decreases in the size and scope of the federal bureaucracy.

Thinkwell–Lesson on the Federal Bureaucracy

This is a video lesson on the American federal bureaucracy; it is limited in that you must purchase the video to get access to the lesson in its entirety, but it provides a nice overview in the beginning clip.

USA JOBS

This is website provides information on the procedures for applying for a federal job.

Policy, Data, Oversight: Diversity & Inclusion

The US Office of Personnel Management discusses the importance of diversity in both private and public sectors. 

Guide to Disability Rights Laws

This document from the US Department of Justice, Civil Rights Division, provides useful contact information and a careful description of the rights due the disabled under the law. 

CBO

This link is the website for the Congressional Budget Office that provides objective and nonpartisan analyses to aid in economic and budgetary decisions. This is a great site to access for questions regarding the federal budget.

National Archives

This website is sponsored by NARA, an independent federal agency in charge of filing and providing federal records, historical documents, speeches, and government photos. The public may access this information per the Freedom of Information Act of 1966.

OMB

This is the site for the Office of Management and Budget which sets budget priorities and provides legislative clearance for the federal budget. It is good to utilize this site in juxtaposition to the CBO for executive-legislative relations analysis relative to the federal government. It contains access to videos, live streams, and a blog.

GAO

This is the main Web page for the Congress’ Government Accountability Office which conducts investigations that assist the Congress in conducting oversight on federal agencies. It contains videos of congressional committee oversight hearings across the panoply of executive and judicial bureaucratic topics.

Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget

The Committee for a Responsible Federal Budget is a bipartisan, non-profit organization committed to educating the public about issues that have significant fiscal policy impact.

U.S. Government Watchdog Agencies

This website contains a list of U.S. Government watchdog agencies prepared by the Washington and Lee University Library in Lexington, Virginia.