Suchergebnisse

The conception of court politics provides an alternative to classic notions of bureau cracy. Many staffs in large organizations are expected to operate in contradistinction to bureaucratic norms—to carry out the wishes of the top man, to fit his purposes, conveniences, and so on. Courts may often be necessary; at any rate, they are often inevitable, simply because of the leaders' convictions that they must have "instru ments" and the fact that they must have surplus "resources" of manpower which they can direct as they choose. This paper is devoted to analyzing this conception in general and showing how and why, in particular, it is likely that the White House will often consist of a "court" team.

The public interest and tactical considerations require (and should require) a public official to control his friendships, though friendship as well as merit can and perhaps should be taken into consideration in political appointment. In general, the person in public life may find that he hears only one point of view from his friends; if he wishes to appear unbiased and be less biased he should deliberately include persons of divergent viewpoints among his acquaintances. The author finds a limited meaning in "guilt by association" and states his preferences. Dr. Dexter is an independent consultant and researcher in political science who has worked for both Republican and Democratic candidates; his address is 536 Pleasant St., Belmont, Mass.