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Here are why public services are not better in America. I am a professor of public management and I am going to explain this secret to you. Are you ready?
Because one political party wants government to suck. https://twitter.com/JYuter/status/1322767416468869121
Because one political party wants government to suck. https://twitter.com/JYuter/status/1322767416468869121
I mean, I can go on and offer some caveats. Granted, there are some things government does not do well. And there are some functions, like national security, that are inherently hard for anyone to do well because success is hard to measure.
Is it possible for America to have great public services? Sure. Look at Social Security. Both parties mostly agree its a legitimate function and try to improve service quality.
I spend a lot of time in Denmark. There, even conservatives basically agree everyone should have healthcare. So the focus is on how to deliver it well.
In the US, we don't agree on that. So one party spends a decade trying to undermine what was already a less-than-optimal design.
In the US, we don't agree on that. So one party spends a decade trying to undermine what was already a less-than-optimal design.
There are absolutely cases where Dems have dominance and run elections poorly. But in a democratic system they should, over time, be responsive to complaints about that. If your goal is not view more participation as illegitimate, you will instead celebrate those complaints.
It is harder to manage in the public sector: there are multiple and competing goals, and there are good reasons to constrain the power of managers since they might abuse that power. But we could do a lot more if agreed on the basic stuff, like what rights governments served.