White House Politicization of Federal Agencies
In 2005, Mehlman Declared He Wanted To Create “The George Bush Empire.” “One of the things that can happen in Washington when you work in an agency is that you forget who sent you there,” Mehlman explained. “And it’s important to remind people you’re George Bush peopple. You work for the secretary, but you are George Bush people. And it’s very important becasue Washington becomes a town where it’s very easy for everyone to build their own little empries. If there’s one empire I want built, it’s the George Bush empire.” [One Party Country, p. 102]
Bush White House Sets Record for Politicization of Cabinet Agencies. “Never before has the White House inserted electoral priorities into Cabinet agencies with such regularity and deliberation. Before the 2002 midterm elections, for instance, Rove or Mehlman visited with the managers of many federal agencies to share polling information and discuss how policy decisions might affect key races,” state Tom Hamburger and Peter Wallsten, who also wrote One Party Country: The Republican Plan for Dominance in the 21st Century. [LA Times, 6/25/06]
Rove Briefed Interior Department Officials On How to Secure Sen. Gordon Smith’s Election. In 2002, Republican leaders in Oregon “wanted to support their agricultural base by diverting water from the river basin to nearby farms, and Mr. Rove signaled that the administration did, too.” Rove made a presentation to the Interior Department, complete with “poll results” and “critical constituencies.” Rove “visited the 50 Interior managers attending a department retreat at a Fish and Wildlife Service conference center in
Rove’s Presentation to Interior Department to Help Gordon Smith Resulted In Devastating Environmental Consequences. “In 2002, Rove told Interior Department officials of the importance of helping farmers in
White House Held Political Briefings At Commerce Department. “At the Commerce Department, briefings by White House political officials were conducted in 2002, in March 2004, and in April 2006, according to department spokesman E. Richard Mills, who described them as ‘purely informational,’ legal and appropriate. More than 100 political appointees at the department were invited to each one, and they were held in the headquarters building’s main auditorium.” [
Sec. Carlos Gutierrez Received Private Briefing from White House. “A smaller White House briefing was also conducted every two years for what Mills described as the department’s senior political staff, including Secretary Carlos M. Gutierrez. He could not explain why that meeting was separate from the others.” [
Twenty-Eight EPA Appointees Attended Briefing At White House in July 2006. “Twenty-eight political appointees at the Environmental Protection Agency attended such a briefing last July 17 at the White House executive office complex, and an unknown number attended one at those offices the following month, according to EPA spokeswoman Jennifer Wood. She said that
Several Other Agencies Report Attending Political Briefings. “Spokesmen at the departments of Veterans Affairs and Transportation also confirmed that their political appointees received such briefings at their headquarters. Stanzel confirmed that they were also given at the departments of Health and Human Services, Interior, Labor, Housing and Urban Development, Treasury, Education, Agriculture and Energy, as well as NASA, the Small Business Administration, the Office of Science and Technology Policy, the Office of National Drug Control Policy and the U.S. Agency for International Development…. all of those describing the briefings on the record had adopted a uniform phrase in response to a reporter’s inquiries: They were, each official said, “informational briefings about the political landscape.” [
Rove’s Politicization Was Unparalleled. A document review conducted by the Washington Post in August 2007 revealed that Rove “pursued the goal far more systematically than his predecessors.” Rove held a political briefing with federal officials as early as March 12, 2001, on “How We Can Work Together.” Even the Department of Justice, “traditionally considered to be above the elections,” sent representatives to the meetings. The subjects — which involved at least 18 agencies — ranged from “a political update” and “mid-term election trends” to “outreach” and “coalition activities/organization.” Rove’s outreach also helped embattled Rep. Chris Shays (R-CT) win re-election, in part through visits from administration officials and “at least 25 new federal grants or projects totaling more than $46 million” between April and November 2006. [Washington Post, 8/19/07]
OTHER FORMS OF POLITICIZATION
Under Bush Appointee, OSHA Constituencies Have Donated $650 Million to Republicans. “Under Edwin Foulke, a Republican Party operative, OSHA, responsible for worker safety, has shifted from enforcement to taking industries’ word that they will play nice. Perhaps not coincidentally, the three largest fields regulated by OSHA — agribusiness, construction and transportation — have off-loaded $630 million into GOP coffers during Bush’s run so far.” [
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