Paul R. Pillar
President Donald Trump showed his admiration for Andrew Jackson when, eight years ago, he hung a portrait of the seventh president in the Oval Office. Now, Trump has installed the portrait once again. The act is symbolic of how Trump is shoving the nation back into the Jacksonian era’s “spoils system,” in which the appointment of public officials was based on political loyalty rather than merit.
Although attention has been given to how Trump’s obsession with personal fealty has produced several cabinet-level appointees with meager qualifications for the job, the Trump-led attack on public service goes much deeper than that. By “public service,” I mean not any position that receives a government paycheck but rather a commitment—especially a career-long commitment—to serving the interests of the entire nation and not just a single party, ideology, or leader.
The new administration is wasting no time in mounting the attack. Even before Trump was sworn in for his second term, his incoming national security advisor declared career civil servants to be personae non gratae. At the State Department, numerous experienced members of the foreign service, serving at various levels and not just presidential appointees, were told to leave.
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