THE POWER GAME REVIEW NOTES Shadow Government: The Power of Staff Although decision-making is in their hands, Congressmen

rely on staff heavily Anecdote- Bob Packwood allowing his staff member David Brockway to speak on policy breaking an unwritten code of Congress Brockway, chief of staff of Joint Committee on Taxation, nonpartisan committee Brockway proposed a new tax-system canceling tax deductions Packwood staff option revealing how much he leans on staff Packwood was also using political buffer If negative response, he could blame it on Brockway If positive, he could take all the credit for it, which he did 2 Brockway features were important to cleaning up tax code 1) He eliminated special low rate for capital (investment) gains 2) He eliminated passive-loss loophole (escaping taxes by subtracting losses from a non-active involvement from your total income) The staffers are the ones who deal with the fine print of legislation, the details Moynihans Iron Law of Emulation In the old-breed staff game, the staff could shape entire tax bills and negotiate Now, sunshine laws force Congress to operate more openly, power dispersed Brockway now has to toe more careful nonpartisan line, less power Overall staff power has grown despite individual power decrease Congress increased its bureaucracy in response to executive branch distrust (Vietnam War and Watergate) Staff has become not only instrument of power but also a measure the more you have the stronger you are Senator David Patric Moyniham iron law of emulation Whenever any branch of govt acquires new technique to enhance its power, other branches will adopt that technique as well Congress formed CBO, intelligence committee, etc. 2 important institutional engines of staff growth in Congress 1) Dispersal of power more power to subcommittee, staff demand increase 2) Dramatic increase in constituent casework helps answer mail Politicians are now spokesmen instead of hands-on their staff can fill them in on votes, fundraise, do casework the powers are delegated heavily Most staffers choose not to run for office due to chaos & the lack of control Stafflation in Congress Staff is a politicians extension, alter ego But the more they do, the more power surrendered to them e.g. Senator Tony Coelho has no time to read drafted articles he has to trust staff Hopeless for lobbyist to approach congressman until they have laid out plan to staff But staff aides talk more freely and less politically, and know substance better On voting floor, senators have aides beside them to help if they miss a page/idea Staff aides understand Senate rules better Chief of staff Crommelin helped Senator Easts filibuster on a gasoline tax bill

Staff as Policy Entrepreneurs Staffers often battle for visibility, turf, agenda, and credibility e.g nuclear accident at Three-Mile Island, Pennsylvania, Senator Ed. Kennedy deployed largest staff and got to be the first to organize a hearing on the accident Staffers know that turf is important to bosses and themselves Steve Bell, staff director of Senate Budget Committee budget reconciliation Would provide blueprint for Congress passing separate appropriations bills It would require single up or down vote on Reagan budget, and then other committees would have to bring the cost of programs n line Bell suggested having this at the beginning of the budget process IN other cases, staff aides have initiated policy agendas David Sullivan, former CIA analyst, ghostwrote speeches and letters of protest urging Reagan to revoke Arms Limitation Treaties Leon Fuerth helped Al Gore form single-warhead missile rationale over MX Bird-Dogging the Executive Branch Some congressional agencies challenge white house more e.g. Congressional Budget Office before creation, presidential monopoly on economic forecasting CBO provides independent economic analysis Head at time Rudolph Penner was stuck in the political crossfire He gave optimistic forecasts in regards to the Gramm-Rudman Bill, which Democrats were unhappy about this, tried to force Penner to give in Penner clashed with Reagan admin, but he stood his ground CBO gained credo Usually, though, staffers work behind the scenes anonymously few stand out Tony Battista is an exception R&D Subcommittee of House Armed Services Respectd and feared by Pentagon officials and contractors He has backed defense spendings, but has criticized parts of Reagan space prog He is kind of like a whistleblower- fought with top military brass Delayed the Maverick air-to-surface missile project faulty heat seeking The problem the military has with Battista is that he makes years of work go to waste, compromising jobs for thousands of people Congress, however, love him because he is honest and smart and doesnt let anything get past him Reagans Staff Presidency Congress and cabinet have lost power at gain of the staff Staff power concentrated near apex: chief of staff, national security adviser, budget director, and one or two aides E.g. Iranian hostage crisis handled by security advisers Poindexter and McFarlane Presidents try to reinstate cabinet to power over staff but usually not realistic 1st term- Reagans troika - Reagan used 7-vote presidency, with him having 4, and Baker/Meese/Deaver each having one reluctant to decide when Baker/Meese divided The day Reagan was shot, the troika managed everything so well that they did not need to instate VP Bush as temporary leader

2nd term, Donald T. Regan took over main levers of White House power almost more powerful than VP Bush Reagan presidency is a staff presidency because so much authority and latitude was give to his senior staff aides Reagan bypassed obstacles using staff who were immune from Congress laws Since FDRs death, presidency has been bureaucratized The more the public wanted an activist presidency, the more powers the staff assumed This is a personal bureaucracy to the executive bureaucracy Under Reagan, budget bureau became main instrument for bringing cabinet members to heel White House political and propaganda apparatus gained in size under Reagan Aggressively centralized appointment process the litmus test of Reaganite ideology, screening all appointees Appointees were handpicked to be competitive and wanting to advance