I will talk about Woodrow Wilsons’ theory of dichotomy of politics and public administration some of the strengths and weaknesses associated with the theory and apply it to the Columbia accident where politics played a major role. Woodrow Wilson theory of the separation of politics and public administration is a necessary part of public administration to stick to task of enforcing public policy and operate efficiently. The dichotomy of an agency is a necessary to allow it to run properly without interference. After all, as Theodore Roosevelt said, “the best executive is the one who sense enough to pick good men to do what he needs done, and self-restraint enough to keep from meddling with them while they do it” (Maxwell 36). I will talk
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Dichotomy is essential for a public agency to operate efficiently and to remain consistent throughout the political changes, “the field of administration is a business field that must be removed from the hurry and strife of politics” (Stillman 10). Politics purpose is to look at society and create a policy to fit the whole, while public administration is the specialized force that carries out the policies created. Civil service reform is only the prelude to administration and must be kept that way to keep the public trusts and remain unpartisan in its implementation. An agency will not operate efficiently if it has political entities involving themselves in the operation of the agency. In the Columbia case NASA was overseen by politicians to ensure the project was moving according to plan. This oversight caused the agency to act under pressure and stress, ignoring the foam issue that caused the loss of billions of dollars and seven lives. If NASA was allowed to follow their protocol and operate without quid pro quo, the specialized scientist may have been able to get the needed work done to prevent the accident or even create a plan incase the foam fire was …show more content…
Politics need public administration in order to both function and carry out policies. Public administration on the other hand depend on the need of enforcement created by policies. In the Columbia case, their jobs and the organization itself was being threatened with further budget cuts (Casamayou 107). Without taking into consideration the risks associated with not completing the mission would be naive, “ U.S. government agencies are subseptable to the slightest shifts in their external environment. NASA’s political support is particularly vulnerable to the dictates of Congress, the White House, client groups, and the America public . . .” (Casamayou 107). A public agency’s purpose is to simply carry out a policy, but they do have a significant amount of power over how it is carried out and enforced. In some way or another through the process the agency does create policies. At times being political can work to the agencies advantage, but the directors of the agencies must work for the public and the employees well being. In the Columbia case, NASA wanted more funding and Congress wanted good publicity and research. If they would have completed the mission successfully NASA may have received more funding helping both NASA and Congress, inherently
Dichotomy is essential for a public agency to operate efficiently and to remain consistent throughout the political changes, “the field of administration is a business field that must be removed from the hurry and strife of politics” (Stillman 10). Politics purpose is to look at society and create a policy to fit the whole, while public administration is the specialized force that carries out the policies created. Civil service reform is only the prelude to administration and must be kept that way to keep the public trusts and remain unpartisan in its implementation. An agency will not operate efficiently if it has political entities involving themselves in the operation of the agency. In the Columbia case NASA was overseen by politicians to ensure the project was moving according to plan. This oversight caused the agency to act under pressure and stress, ignoring the foam issue that caused the loss of billions of dollars and seven lives. If NASA was allowed to follow their protocol and operate without quid pro quo, the specialized scientist may have been able to get the needed work done to prevent the accident or even create a plan incase the foam fire was …show more content…
Politics need public administration in order to both function and carry out policies. Public administration on the other hand depend on the need of enforcement created by policies. In the Columbia case, their jobs and the organization itself was being threatened with further budget cuts (Casamayou 107). Without taking into consideration the risks associated with not completing the mission would be naive, “ U.S. government agencies are subseptable to the slightest shifts in their external environment. NASA’s political support is particularly vulnerable to the dictates of Congress, the White House, client groups, and the America public . . .” (Casamayou 107). A public agency’s purpose is to simply carry out a policy, but they do have a significant amount of power over how it is carried out and enforced. In some way or another through the process the agency does create policies. At times being political can work to the agencies advantage, but the directors of the agencies must work for the public and the employees well being. In the Columbia case, NASA wanted more funding and Congress wanted good publicity and research. If they would have completed the mission successfully NASA may have received more funding helping both NASA and Congress, inherently