Nepotism in Washington poses a threat to institutional integrity.

[Dave Farber <dave () farber net>]

------ Forwarded Message
From: "Robert J. Berger" <rberger () ibd com>
Date: Sat, 18 Jan 2003 12:14:30 +0900
To: Dave Farber IP <dave () farber net>, Dewayne Hendricks
<dewayne () warpspeed com>
Subject: Nepotism in Washington poses a threat to institutional integrity.

 http://www.latimes.com/news/opinion/commentary/la-oe-turley13jan13,0,445106
2.story?coll=la%2Dnews%2Dcomment%2Dopinions

COMMENTARY
Public Payroll: a Family Affair
Nepotism in Washington poses a threat to institutional integrity.
By Jonathan Turley
Jonathan Turley is a law professor at George Washington Law School.

January 13 2003

In Washington, the battle line is drawn between the forces of conservatism
and liberalism. While patriotism is often cited as a shared value, there is
only one "ism" that truly unites members of both parties in a common cause:
nepotism. In the last two years, nepotism has flourished in Washington to a
point that would make the most inbred potentate blush.

Just last week, former Sen. Frank Murkowski's handpicked successor was
introduced to the nation. (Murkowski was elected governor of Alaska and, as
such, was entitled to appoint his Senate replacement.) The new senator
immediately assured the public that she "shared the same vision for
[Alaska], the same values." She should: She also shares his DNA. Lisa
Murkowski is the daughter of Frank Murkowski. It appears that the former
Republican senator scoured the entire state of Alaska for a suitable
replacement, only to find the best candidate in his own family. Imagine
that.

Frank Murkowski's extreme variation on "Bring your Daughter to Work Day"
follows a long, dubious tradition of nepotism in Washington.

The current list of family appointments is too long to recount in its
entirety. Vice President Dick Cheney's daughter was made a deputy assistant
secretary of State. Cheney's son-in-law was given the plum position of chief
counsel for the Office of Management and Budget. Secretary of State Colin
Powell's son was made chairman of the Federal Communications Commission.

The administration has not neglected key members of the Supreme Court in
access to the public trough of appointments. Both Chief Justice William
Rehnquist and Associate Justice Antonin Scalia (who voted with the majority
in favor of President Bush in the 2000 election challenge) have watched
their children sworn in to high-ranking positions. After a contentious
confirmation hearing, Scalia's son Eugene was made the top lawyer at the
Department of Labor. He has since resigned.

Rehnquist's daughter, Janet, was made inspector general at the Health and
Human Services Department. (President Bush's father had given her a job on
his White House staff.) In her short tenure, Janet Rehnquist has triggered
an array of scandals, ranging from her storing a gun -- without a trigger
lock and not in a gun safe -- in her office to more serious allegations of
intervening in departmental cases to assist personal and political friends.
She is under federal investigation and, most recently, was hit with
allegations of shredding incriminating documents relevant to that
investigation.

Congress has proved particularly eager to respond to Bush's call for greater
family values in government. Elaine Chao, the wife of Sen. Mitch McConnell
(R-Ky.), is secretary of Labor. (Chao can claim experience to justify the
position.)

Sen. Jim Bunning, a Kentucky Republican, was not willing to rely on
experience alone in securing an appellate judgeship for his son, David.
Rather than recuse himself, Bunning interviewed 11 finalists for the
position and, with McConnell, reduced them to three. Amazingly, Bunning's
son made his dad's cut. He didn't make the American Bar Assn.'s cut. It
found young Bunning to be unqualified, due to his lack of experience and the
"serious doubts by respected members of the bench and bar" as to his
intellectual and professional abilities. Bunning's colleagues confirmed him
anyway.

Former Sen. Strom Thurmond (R-S.C.) was able to secure confirmation of his
son, Strom Jr., as U.S. attorney in his home state, despite the fact that
the 28-year-old Strom Jr. barely outranked a Justice Department intern in
experience.

Of course, many politicians in Washington do not try to appoint sons and
daughters to high positions: Many do not have eligible sons or daughters.

The father of Rep. Charles W. "Chip" Pickering Jr. (R-Miss.) was nominated
for an appellate judgeship and, after being denied confirmation by the
committee, has just been renominated. Republican Rep. Jim Ramstad of
Minnesota is pushing his sister, Sheryl Ramstad Hvass, for a judgeship.

The list goes on and on. Ultimately, the problem is less about individual
qualifications (or the lack thereof) as it is institutional integrity. With
branches of government swapping siblings, spouses and offspring, our
constitutional checks and balances become mired in personal debts and
alliances.

Perhaps the election of the son of a former president inspired the shift
toward a more aristocratic system of government. It could be worse. In the
year 40, the Emperor Caligula appointed his favorite horse, Incitatus, to
the Roman Senate. Incitatus proved to be lacking in the temperament or tact
for public service. Of course, Incitatus had one positive characteristic: He
was a gelding who could neither produce nor appoint offspring.
-- 
Robert J. Berger - Internet Bandwidth Development, LLC.
In Tokyo as Glocom visiting research fellow through April 2003
Cell: +81 80-3121-6128 Work: +81 3-5411-6613 http://www.glocom.ac.jp
eFax: +1-408-490-2868 rberger () ibd com http://www.ibd.com


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