Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, December 16, 1993 TAG: 9403180046
SECTION: EDITORIAL PAGE: A18 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE:
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
From the in-your-face confrontation with Republican Party Chairman Pat McSweeney, to his early appointments, to his plans, presumably, to make hundreds of un-appointments, Allen has been shaking things up in Richmond.
Which isn't necessarily bad - though it would be more reassuring if the transition weren't beginning to resemble a Demolition Derby.
The effort to oust McSweeney, by some readings, was a signal that Allen wants to purge rigid-right ideologues from the inner circles. OK, then he goes and appoints abortion foes Kay Coles James and Mike Thomas as his secretaries, respectively, of health and human resources and administration. Confused? Then he appoints solid, practically apolitical education officials.
But the point isn't that Allen is sending garbled messages. It's that he is suffering avoidable embarrassments. The leader who couldn't fire his own party's chairman moved, within a week of McSweeney's defiance, to rid state government of hundreds of bureaucrats appointed by Democrats - only to discover he can't get rid of all of them, either.
The initial move, by some readings, was a signal that Allen didn't intend to repeat the alleged error of Linwood Holton. Holton, elected in 1969 as Virginia's first Republican governor in nearly a century, sorely vexed the state GOP with his nonpartisan approach to governing. In particular, he refused to turn his office into an employment agency for power-post-hungry party activists - a noble deed for which the party never quite forgave him.
It was predictable that Allen - the first Republican governor in 12 years - would want to sweep out political appointees of the Robb-Baliles-Wilder administrations and install hungry-again Republicans in their place.
And no one should blame his transition team members too much for moving with the finesse of the ancient Gauls sacking a Roman city. The problem is that they bungled it.
In their haste to houseclean, they sent requests for resignations to many mid-level bureaucrats - career employees - who technically are subject to dismissal for political reasons. As it happens, they are so by virtue of a controversial law put on the books in 1985 to increase the clout of then-Gov. Charles Robb. Allen is using what Democrats wrought.
And his call for massive resignations is consistent with practice in Washington, where political appointees submit their resignations almost automatically when power is handed from one party to the other.
The problem is that Allen's hit list included several individuals who aren't technically under the governor's thumb. These people - including, for instance, the executive director of the State Council of Higher Education - had no place on the list of heads to roll because they answer to special boards rather than to the governor. Allen has had to send "Oops!'' letters to them, rescinding the request for their resignations.
Allen's staff blames Gov. Wilder for the screw-up. Wilder's office submitted the names of those subject to political firing. "It really appears that after 12 years the party in power has lost all accountability of just how large state government has grown," says Allen's spokesman Ken Stroupe.
There's a point there, but accountability also rests with the incoming administration. Allen's directive deals with people's jobs and careers and livelihoods. It was his team's responsibility to check the accuracy of the list submitted by Wilder - before pink slips went out, rattling much of state government.
Allen says his mandate for change includes ending 12 years of bloated government and runaway bureaucracy. Very well: Slim it down and rein it in. The responsible approach, though, would be to give some consideration of performance and morale, and to seek productivity, efficiency and loyalty among career workers via better management and employee input.
A shake-up may be in order. But, if it is, the next governor should take care in performing it.
Fortunately, none of the mistakes he has made thus far precludes that possibility. If Allen has been hasty, haste also should be avoided in forming judgments of his leadership.
Transitions, always a learning experience, rarely are smooth. All this clamor will pass, and Allen will have time to demonstrate he's prepared for the challenges ahead.
by CNB