Reagan's Terrible Swift Sword: An Insider's Story of Abuse and Reform Within the Federal Bureaucracy

National Review, March 2, 1992 by Allen Randolph

Appointed by Ronald Reagan to cut the federal payroll and to reform the federal bereaucracy, Donald Devine was successful enough to be called "Reagan's terrible swift sword"--hence the title of his book--in a Washington Post profile (Reagan's Terrible Swift Sword: An Insider's Story of Abuse and Reform withn the Federal Bureaucracy, Jameson Books, 228 pp., $19.95). His success disrupting the entrenched bureaucracy cost him reconfirmation by the Senate.

Swift Sword blames the "Troika"--Baker, Deaver, and Meese--for undermining Reagan's mandate to shrink the Federal Government. The three, along with other "smarties" at the White House, believed domestic policy was best conducted in reaction to the morning's newspaper clippings. As a result, Mr. Devine found it impossible to get the President's imprimatur on reforms to unclog bureaucracy and save taxpayers millions of dollars.

The frustrations Mr. Devine encountered are familiar enough, but, with White House "pragmatists" still holding sway, bear repeating nonetheless. The White House press corps, we're told, passes judgment on nearly all policies and proposals within the West Wing. A few in the Administration dared ignoring the media, and were dealt with accordingly. Mr. Devine recounts the efforts of five--James Watt, Raymond Donovan, James Miller, Gerald Carmine, and Thomas Pauken--and the various "gaffes" and scandals which led to their undoing.

Mr. Devine also makes nuts-and-bolts recommendations on how the federal bureaucracy can be reformed in order to best take advantage of the experience of career bureaucrats, while balancing their power with that of political appointees. The careerists, he cautions, should not placed in decison-making positions;and political appointees should be carefully chosen, with a view not only to government experience, but to loyalty to the President. The pragmatism Mr.Devine describes has led to the sorry situation in which current Administration finds itself. Mr. Bush lacks the resolve of Ronald Reagan, who, when determined, made sure "the smart guys ended up regarded as trivial, focusing on image and nuance, whereas the President focused upon substance and spoke to the people's deeply held values." And for reasons Mr. Devine makes clear, now it's the President who gets trivialized, and he has the smart guys to thank for it.