textbook notes for exam 2.docx - Chapter 7 The Executive...

Chapter 7- The Executive Branch
 The bureaucracies of the executive branch are the administrative heart and
soul of government- necessary for the maintenance of order in a large society.
 They are where the policies formulated and passed into law by elected
officials are interpreted, implemented, and ultimately delivered into a
nation’s citizens.
 Government touches the lives of ordinary citizens most directly in their
interactions with bureaucratic agents
o At the DMV when obtaining a driver’s license
o When filing an income-tax return with the Internal Revenue Service
o At the recruiting center when enlisting
o At the Board of Elections when registering to vote
 Public bureaucracies are powerful
o Legislatures, chief executives, and the people delegate them vast
power to make sure a particular job is done- leaves the rest of us freer
to pursue our private ends.
o Examples:
1. After September 11- revealed underlying appreciation of public
bureaucracies- public supported giving the federal government
responsibility for airport security even though this meant
expanding the federal bureaucracy
2. In 2008 and 2009- Americans looked to the federal
bureaucracy to help solve the financial crisis
o Americans have often been suspicious of bureaucracy because…
1. Concern about organizational bias
 Agency executives are often concerned with their
budget, power and autonomy compared to other
institutions and political forces.
 An organization’s internal politics.
 Just as organizations vie with one another,
factions within an agency compete with rival
groups for money, power, and prestige.
 Main Points:
o The size of the federal bureaucracy is large but has not been growing
faster than the economy or the population as a whole.
o By implementing the laws and policies passed by elected officials,
bureaucrats can be seen as agents of Congress and the presidency. As
in any principal-agent relationship, the agent (the bureaucracy) is
delegated authority and has a certain amount of leeway for
independent action.
o Bureaucrats have their own goals and thus exercise their own
influence on policy. Congressional committees use oversight to make
the bureaucracy accountable.
 How Does Bureaucracy Work?

 Bureaucratic Organization Enhances Efficiency
o Core of bureaucracy is the division of labor
o Key to bureaucratic effectiveness is the coordination of experts
performing complex tasks
o Bureaucracies become hierarchical, and often pyramidal
 Bureaucracies Allow Governments to Operate
o By diving up tasks, matching them to a labor force that develops
appropriately specialized skills, routinizing procedures, and providing