Open Letter on Trump Administration Management Practices

Dear Fellow Citizens,

We write this letter out of a sense of grave urgency about the future of democratic government in our wonderful country. We do not write on behalf of, or as representatives of, the many organizations and institutions to which we belong, or where we are employed. We write as individuals who have devoted our professional careers through practice, teaching and research -- to improving the quality of governmental management and the delivery of public services at the local, state and national levels. Some of us have been involved in government in a partisan manner, working both in Republican and Democratic administrations. The majority of us have not. In many cases, we have not previously been involved in any political campaign activity, but we have long been involved in working to enable government to deliver critically important public services to all of the American people ever more effectively and equitably.

We feel compelled, however, to speak out against something that we have never before seen in our professional careers: specifically, the intentional degradation and weaponization by many Trump administration appointees of bad public management as a purposeful strategy to influence and shape public policy. We will be the first to acknowledge that since the 1970s, Federal government management, as directed by succeeding Presidential administrations, has seen both its ups and its downs, but never has there been such blatantly irresponsible and intentionally incompetent management, utilized to achieve specific political ends, as the country has witnessed during the past three and a half years. 

Too many sad and tragic examples of this can be found in the numerous federal agencies led by political appointees—dealing with matters of the nation's health and welfare, its homeland and international security, its justice system and the environment—to list them all in detail here. However, these include many efforts to undermine traditional institutions of accountability; frequent efforts to control and manipulate scientific data and objective facts in a clearly deceptive manner for short term political ends; concerted efforts to undermine effective personnel and management practice to achieve narrow partisan goals; and a degree of senior leadership turnover truly unmatched in American history. Of particular concern regarding  the instability created by the rapidly revolving door of senior leadership is the steady, sometimes stunning, decline in the professional qualifications and competence of each succeeding Trump appointee.

In conclusion, we would note that we write this letter not simply because of our concern about the immediate consequences of grievously negative, and often incompetent, politically appointed managers upon public services that are desperately needed in a time of pandemic. Nor is our greatest concern the obvious likelihood that such practices might actually become far worse in the next four years. Our gravest concern is the way that what has now become routine and intentional administrative malpractice by many Trump appointees serves to jeopardize long term public confidence in both the nation's democratic institutions and its political stability and thus undermines American democracy.

Allan Rosenbaum    

President-elect, American Society for Public Administration.     

Distinguished University Professor, Dept of Public Policy and Administration

Steven J Green School of international and Public Affairs

Florida International University

Don Moynihan

Past President, Public Management Research Association                          

McCourt Chair and Professor

McCourt School of Public Policy 

Georgetown University

Kendra Stewart

President, American Society for Public Administration 

Professor, Political Science

Director, Joseph Riley Center for Livable Communities 

College of Charleston, South Carolina

Meredith Newman       

Past President, American Society for Public Administration

Fellow, National Academy of Public Administration                                                                                              

William Shields, Jr.

Executive Director, American Society for Public Administration          

Fellow, National Academy of Public Administration

James C. Scott

Sterling Professor of Political Science, Anthropology, and Environmental Studies

Founder and Co-director of the Program in Agrarian Studies

Yale University

Chris Ansell

Professor and Chair

Department of Political Science

University of California, Berkeley

Colm O’Muircheartaigh

Professor Harris School of Public Policy

University of Chicago

Don Klingner

University of Colorado Distinguished Professor 

School of Public Affairs, 

University of Colorado, Colorado Springs

Marc Holzer Past President, American Society for Public Administration

Distinguished Professor, 

Institute of Public Service 

Suffolk University, Boston

Stuart Shapiro

Associate Dean of Faculty

Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy

Rutgers University

Dan Honig

Assistant Professor

Johns Hopkins SAIS

Deborah A. Carroll

Associate Professor

University of Central Florida

Camilla Stivers

Albert A. Levin Professor of Urban Studies and Public Service (retired)

Cleveland State University

Edward Jennings

Professor Emeritus

Provost's Distinguished Service Professor of Public Policy and Administration

Martin School of Public Policy and Administration, University of Kentucky

Parris N. Glendening

Governor of Maryland (1995-2003)

Prince George’s County, MD County Executive (1982-1994)

Associate Professor of Government and Politics, University of

Maryland, College Park (1967-1994)

Executive Visiting Professor, Johns Hopkins University,

Carey Business School  

Sylvester Murray

Professor Emeritus, Cleveland State University

Fellow, National Academy of Public Administration

Past President, International City Management Association

Past President, American Society for Public Administration

Past President, Conference of Minority Public Administrators

Robert B. Denhardt

Past President, American Society for Public Administration 

Fellow, National Academy of Public Administration

Patricia S. Florestano

ASPA Past President 

Past Chairperson, State of Maryland Board of Regents

NAPA Fellow

Susan T. Gooden

Fellow, National Academy of Public Administration

Past President, American Society for Public Administration

William G. Resh

Associate Professor

Sol Price School of Public Policy

Naomi B. Lynn

Past President, American Society for Public Administration

Fellow, National Academy of Public Administration                                                                                              

Alejandro Rodriguez

Associate Professor of Public Administration

The University of Texas at Arlington

Department of Public Affairs and Planning

Deborah Le Blanc

Professor of Public Administration

College of Professional Studies

National University

Wynne Moskop

Professor of Political Science

Saint Louis University

Mary E. Guy

Past President, American Society for Public Administration

Fellow, National Academy of Public Administration

Professor, University of Colorado Denver

Terry L. Cooper

Fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration

Professor Emeritus of Public Policy

The Sol Price School of Public Policy

University of Southern California

Uday Desai

Former Director and Professor Emeritus

School of Public Administration

University of New Mexico

William Voorhees

Director Revenue and Tax, Retired

Baltimore City

N. Joseph Cayer

Professor Emeritus

Arizona State University

Jonathan P. West

Professor of Political Science

Director, MPA/MPP Program

University of Miami

Akhlaque Haque

Professor of Public Administration 

University of Alabama at Birmingham

Guy B. Adams

Professor Emeritus

Harry S Truman School of Public Affairs

University of Missouri

Carmine Scavo

Professor Emeritus of Political Science

East Carolina University

Thomas Vocino

Professor and Department Head Emeritus

Auburn University at Montgomery

Robert Cropf

Professor of Political Science,

Saint Louis University

Philip M. Dodd-Nufrio

Professor of Public Policy and Administration

Metropolitan College of New York

Aziza Zemrani

Professor

University of Texas Rio Grande Valley

James S. Bowman

Professor Emeritus

Askew School of Public Administration and Policy

Fellow, Academy of Public Administration

Danny L. Balfour

Professor of Public Administration

Grand Valley State University

Daniel A. Mazmanian

NASPAA, Past President

USC Sol Price School of Public Policy, Past Dean

Professor, Price School

Craig W. Shinn

Professor Emeritus

Mark O. Hatfield School of Government

Portland State University

Donald F. Norris

Professor Emeritus and former Director

School of Public Policy

University of Maryland, Baltimore County, MD

Louise K. Comfort

Fellow, National Academy of Public Administration

Faculty Affiliate, Policy Lab, CITRIS, University of California, Berkeley

Professor, Graduate School of Public and International Affairs

University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 

Bok Gyo Jeong

Assistant Professor

Department of Public Administration, Kean University

President, Nonprofit Section, American Society for Public Administration

Norma M. Riccucci

Past President, Public Management Research Association

Board of Governors Distinguished Professor

School of Public Affairs and Administration

Rutgers University, Newark

Wendy Haynes

Professor

Fellow, National Academy of Public Administration

Associate Dean

College of Graduate Studies

Stephen E. Condrey  

Past President, American Society for Public Administration 

Fellow, National Academy of Public Administration 

Past Chair, Federal Salary Council 

James L. Perry 

Distinguished Professor Emeritus

Chancellor’s Professor of Public and Environmental Affairs Emeritus

Paul H. O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs

Indiana University, Bloomington

Krishna K. Tummala

Professor Emeritus 

Kansas State University

William Earle Klay

Professor Emeritus

Askew School of Public Administration & Policy

The Florida State University

William L. Waugh

Professor Emeritus

Department of Public Management and Policy

Andrew Young School of Policy Studies

Georgia State University

RaJade M. Berry-James

ASPA Life Member

Nancy Stutts

Associate Professor, Master of Public Administration Program & Director, Nonprofit Studies

Wilder School of Government & Public Affairs

Virginia Commonwealth University

B.J. Reed

Past President, Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration

Past Board Member, National Academy of Public Administration

Edward A. Kolodziej

Emeritus Research Professor of Political Science

University of Illinois, Urbana-Chamapaign

Behnaz Z. Quigley

Professor of Accounting

College of Business and Technology

Marymount University

Pamela Ransom

Associate Professor 

School of Public Affairs and Administration

Metropolitan College

Dennis Coates

Professor of Economics

UMBC

Todd R. La Porte 

Professor Emeritus of Political Science 

and Professor of the Graduate School

University of California, Berkeley, California

Dennis M. Daley

Professor of Public Administration

North Carolina State University

Tom Barth

National Council, American Society for Public Administration

Professor and MPA Director

The University of North Carolina at Charlotte

Robert Roberts

Department of Political Science 

James Madison University

Steven E. Aufrecht

Professor Emeritus

University of Alaska Anchorage

Claire Connolly Knox

Chair, ASPA’s Section for Emergency and Crisis Management

Associate Professor, School of Public Administration, University of Central Florida

Ralph S. Brower

Professor of Public Administration and Policy

Florida State University

E. Philip Morgan

Emeritus Professor

Graduate School of International Policy & Management

Middlebury Institute of International Studies, Monterey, CA

Gretchen Arnold

Associate Professor

St. Louis University

Brian J. Cook

Editor, Administration & Society 

Professor Emeritus

Center for Public Administration & Policy

Virginia Tech

Cheryle A. Broom

Past President, American Society for Public Administration

Fellow, National Academy of Public Administration

Jennifer Alexander

Associate Professor

Department of Public Administration

University of Texas at San Antonio

Orion F. White

Professor Emeritus 

Virginia Tech University

Center for Public Administration and Policy

Cynthia J. McSwain

Professor Emerita

The George Washington University

School of Public Policy and Public Administration

Dale Krane

Professor Emeritus

School of Public Administration

University of Nebraska, Omaha

Sherman Wyman

Professor (retired)

School of Urban and Public Affairs 

University of Arlington

Carolyn Ban

Past President, National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration

Former Dean and Professor Emerita,

Graduate School of Public and International Affairs

University of Pittsburgh

Stephen R. Rolandi

Adjunct Professor of Public Administration,

Pace University & John Jay College of Criminal Justice, C.U.N.Y.

Former Deputy Commissioner, State of New York

Division of Human Rights

David Coursey

Interim Chair, MPA Director

Department of Public Affairs and Planning

College of Architecture, Planning, and Public Affairs

Univ of Texas – Arlington

Nadia Rubaii

Professor of Public Administration

Co-Director, Institute for Genocide and Mass Atrocity Prevention

Binghamton University, State University of New York

Past President, Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration

Avrum J. Shriar

Associate Professor (Emeritus)

Distinguished Career Professor

Urban/Regional Studies and Planning

L.D. Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs

Virginia Commonwealth University

Janet R. Hutchinson

Professor Emerita

College of Humanities and Sciences

Former Director, Dept. of Public Administration

Wilder School of Government and Public Affairs

Virginia Commonwealth University

Sharon S. Dawes

Professor Emerita, Rockefeller College of Public Administration and Policy

University at Albany

Fellow, National Academy of Public Administration

Rex L. Facer II

Associate Professor

Romney Institute of Public Service & Ethics

Brigham Young University

National Council Representative District V

American Society for Public Administration

Evan Mistur

Assistant Professor

Department of Public Affairs and Planning

The University of Texas at Arlington

Roseanne Mirabella

Past President, Association for Research on Nonprofit Organizations and Voluntary Action

Professor, Political Science and Public Affairs

Executive Director, Center for Community Research and Engagement

Seton Hall University

Laurie N. DiPadova-Stocks

Professor of Public Administration

Hauptmann School of Public Affairs

Park University

Beverly A. Cigler

Distinguished Professor Emerita of 

Public Policy and Administration, Penn State

Fellow, National Academy of Public Administration

Robert L. Bland

Endowed Professor of Local Government

Fellow, National Academy of Public Administration

Honorary member, International City/County Management Association

University of North Texas

Marilu Goodyear

Associate Professor

School of Public Affairs and Administration, University of Kansas

Fellow, National Academy of Public Administration

Christopher Horne

Professor of Public Administration

University of Tennessee at Chattanooga

John Clayton Thomas

Michael and Enid Mescon Endowed Chair and Professor 

Department of Public Management & Policy

Andrew Young School of Policy Studies

Georgia State University

Genie Stowers

Professor of Public Administration

School of Public Affairs and Civic Engagement

San Francisco State University

Stuart C. Gilman

Senior Partner

Global Integrity Group

Ellen Schall

Dean Emerita  

NYU Robert Wagner Graduate School of Public service

Jeffrey A. Raffel

Former President, Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs and Administration

Messick Chair Emeritus of Public Administration

University of Delaware

Goktug Morcol

Professor of Public Policy and Administration

School of Public Affairs

Penn State Harrisburg

Elizabeth S. Overman

Professor, Public Policy & Administration

University of Central Oklahoma  

Richard Huff

Faculty, Public Policy & Administration

Virginia Commonwealth University

Terry Murphy

Professor of Public Administration

University of Miami

J. Paul Blake

District IV Representative, National Council, American Society for Public Administration

Former Director of Media and External Relations, 

Daniel J. Evans School of Public Policy & Governance, University of Washington

James Nordin

Adjunct Professor

Sonoma State University, Golden Gate University

Life Member, ASPA

Richard Callahan

Professor, University of San Francisco

Editor-in-Chief, International Journal of Public Leadership

Fellow, U.S. Academy of Public Administration

Mary R. Hamilton 

Senior Executive in Residence

University of Nebraska at Omaha School of Public Administration

David S. Birdsell 

Marxe Dean, Austin W. Marxe School of Public and International Affairs

Baruch College, City University of New York

Fellow, National Academy of Public Administration

Past-President, Network of Schools of Public Policy, Affairs, and Administration

Justin Bullock

Assistant Professor

Public Service & Administration Department

The Bush School of Government & Public Service

Texas A&M University

Sean McCandless

Assistant Professor

University of Illinois Springfield

Anne Osborne Kilpatrick

Professor Emerita 

Medical University of South Carolina 

Leonard Axelrod

Professor of Public Administration

Dakota County Technical College

Ann Keller

PhD Health Policy Expert

Berkeley, California

Patria de Lancer Julnes

Associate Dean of Academic Programs and Professor

City University of New York

Charles Goodsell

Professor Emeritus of Public Administration

Virginia Tech

Blacksburg, Virginia

Roger E. Kanet

Professor Emeritus of Political Science, University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign

Professor Emeritus of Political Science, University of Miami

Former Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Director of International Programs and Studies, University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign

Former Dean, Graduate School of International Studies, University of Miami

Gerald Pops

Professor Emeritus

Dept of Public Administration

West Virginia University

Paul Schulman

Professor, Political Science

Mills College, Oakland California

Angela M. Eikenberry

President, ARNOVA

Christine Reed

Professor Emeritus

School of Public Administration

University of Nebraska at Omaha

Robert S. Kravchuk

Fellow, National Academy of Public Administration

Professor of Public Affairs

O’Neill School of Public & Environmental Affairs

Indiana University

Sandra O. Archibald

Dean Emerita and Professor Emerita

Evans School of Public Policy & Governance

University of Washington

G. David Garson

Professor of Public Administration

School of Public and International Affairs

North Carolina State University

Laurie N. DiPadova-Stocks

Professor of Public Administration

Former Dean, Hauptmann School of Public Affairs

Park University

Michael L. Hall 

Immediate Past Director

MPA and MS in Leadership Program

Roger Williams University

Zhirong Zhao

Professor of Public Administration

Hubert H. Humphrey School of Public Affairs

University of Minnesota, Twin Cities

Barton Wechsler

Dean Emeritus 

Truman School of Public Affairs

University of Missouri

Fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration

Renee A. Irvin

Associate Head, School of Planning, Public Policy & Management

University of Oregon

President, Nonprofit Academic Centers Council

Thomas Lynch

Past President, American Society for Public Administration

Cynthia Lynch

Professor of Public Administration (retired)

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