J. Bernard Burnham on bureaucratic failures Don Crinklaw reviews Jason & Medeia

Implementation By Jeffrey L. Pressman and Aaron B. Wildavsky University of California, 182 pp., $7.50 Case histories of bureaucratic failure are generally far more instructive than histories of success. But since bureaucrats and their politician superiors defend the files of failure with the zeal of crown jewel guardians, we rarely see how the visions of yesterday’s press releases are transformed into the molehills of today. This book is a rare glimpse into that process.

Oakland, California, late 1965. Widespread fears of “urban unrest” sweep the country and Oakland is considered a potential powderkeg. Enter an ambitious Assistant Secretary of Commerce, Eugene Foley, heading a heretofore rural-oriented public works agency, the Economic Development Administration. Foley has $300 million burning a hole in his pocket (which must be obligated before the fiscal year is over), an urge to “do something,” and a cadre of young, idealistic administrators. He thinks that providing jobs for minorities is the way to defuse an apparently explosive urban situation. No matter that his agency’s charter and experience provide little authority for taking on the task. The ghetto’s where the action is, and Foley means to get his share.

JB

About the Author

James Burnham

Featured Tags

Implementation By Jeffrey L. Pressman and Aaron B. Wildavsky University of California, 182 pp., $7.50 Case histories of bureaucratic failure are generally far more instructive than histories of success. But since bureaucrats and their politician superiors defend the files of failure with the zeal of crown jewel guardians, we rarely see how the visions of yesterday’s press releases are transformed into the molehills of today. This book is a rare glimpse into that process.

Oakland, California, late 1965. Widespread fears of “urban unrest” sweep the country and Oakland is considered a potential powderkeg. Enter an ambitious Assistant Secretary of Commerce, Eugene Foley, heading a heretofore rural-oriented public works agency, the Economic Development Administration. Foley has $300 million burning a hole in his pocket (which must be obligated before the fiscal year is over), an urge to “do something,” and a cadre of young, idealistic administrators. He thinks that providing jobs for minorities is the way to defuse an apparently explosive urban situation. No matter that his agency’s charter and experience provide little authority for taking on the task. The ghetto’s where the action is, and Foley means to get his share.