OR Advocates AcademyOctober 12, 2010

Supporting Government’s Role in Tea Party Times

Patrick Bresette – pbresette@demos.org

Public Works: the Dēmos Center for the Public Sector

www.publicworkspartners.net

Dēmos: A Network for Ideas & Action www.demos.org

This is about:• Recognizing the

unique role of government in society

• Aspiring to create the government we need & deserve

• Public systems and structures that are essential to quality of life

• Management & Stewardship

This is not about:

• “Liking” the government we have

• Making excuses for government when it does not work

• “Big” government or “small” government

• Government vs. business

• Politics

“A new Pew Research Center survey finds a perfect storm of conditions associated with distrust of government -- a dismal economy, an unhappy public, bitter partisan-based backlash, and epic discontent with Congress and elected officials.”

- Pew Research Center, April 18, 2010

The Washington Post/Kaiser Family Foundation/Harvard University

Role of Government Survey – 10/2010

The Washington Post/Kaiser Family Foundation/Harvard University

Role of Government Survey – 10/2010

The Great Disconnect, Circa 2006How Public Confusion Impedes Political Solutions to

Some of Our Biggest Problems

Condition #1: public cynicism, negativism, and skepticism about government . . . at the highest levels in 30 years of doing quantitative and qualitative research in Oregon.

Condition #2: decreasing awareness and knowledge about government . . . about 30% of the general public cannot name a single tax that is used to help pay for public services.

- Adam Davis, City Club Speech, May 12, 2006

When we try to talk about government . . .

GOVERNMENT

A Shared Cultural Joke"More Americans can name the three stooges than the three branches of government.Well, that's because the three stooges are more likely to get something done." - David Letterman

• Dominant and Resilient images consistently misdirect thinking.

• Concrete images of the systems and structures of government are missing.

• Consumerist thinking narrows understanding and responsibility.

The Challenge

The Good News• The “idea” of government is not lost

• Responsible citizenship is still valued

• A desire for collective action, respecting consensus, and problem-solving

• Stewardship and planning for the future – roles for government

a partisan blowhard spectator sport“Bi-Partisan”

Steve Benezue

Just Politics

Mission and Purpose

Mission & Purpose

VALUES• Common Good

• Quality of Life

• Community Wellbeing

• Public Purpose

ROLE• Protector

• Manager & Planner

• Steward

• Consensus-Builder

Critiquing, Not Undermining

Focusing on the inherent value of government – on the unique and essential roles of government programs and services – can offer a way to critique government action or performance while upholding its essential role.

Once again the actions of our city housing department show that its all about who you know if you want to get anything done. If you don’t have some big money political clout you can’t get any response out of that bureaucratic mess of an agency. As always our neighborhoods of working-class people of color are just overlooked. But we are taxpayers too! We paid our share into the city coffers and we should be getting some attention and services in return.

One of the most important roles of our city government is to help create clean and safe neighborhoods were residents can live, work and play. Unfortunately, our housing department is not living up to that essential responsibility. The system seems to pay more attention to developers with money than the many neighborhoods and residents that create our thriving city. It is time for all of us to work together to get this important public agency back on track and focused on community needs.

blurry and undefined; only dimly understood

Systems and Structures

Systems and Structures

Mindless Bureaucracy

Systems & Structures

•Concrete and vivid images

•The public systems we have created

•How they work

•Why they are important

Government as our Public Structures

The main advantages that make America so successful come from the Public Structures it has created. These Public Structures include the physical structures (highways, airports, and communications grids) and the organizational structures (the postal system, courts) we need to get things done, and the social support systems that help to ensure the health and well-being of our communities. It is our well-functioning and supported Public Structures that are essential for overall success.

Responses to the Public Structures description –

•What are they?

•Why are they important?

•Can you name some of the important public structures we rely on?

Rounding Out the Story

What’s in it for me, and what is it going to cost?

Consumer Stance

Governmentas Vending

Machine Citizen Stance

OurGovernment

Citizen Thinking

• Interdependence

• Working together

• Problem-solving

• Everyone has a role to play

• “Our” Government

• The Common Interest

Just Politics

Dominant Stories

Bureaucracy Vending Machine

. . .can’t solve anything . . . not my responsibility

Access to health care, good nutrition and cash assistance is vital to low-income families. Yet, enrolling in programs like Food Stamps and Medicaid has gotten harder and harder over the last year. The new computer eligibility system is riddled with problems. And, turnover in state workers means untrained workers are often ill-prepared to help families get the benefits for which they qualify.

Which model is being triggered?

Of every tax dollar collected by the state of Minnesota, roughly 80 cents is returned to communities and individuals in the form of aid and grants. The remaining 20 cents pays for such things as state highways, appropriations to colleges and universities, prisons, state parks and state government. Some areas receive less than their citizens pay in, while other areas receive more.

Which model is being triggered?

Our children deserve better. They need an education accountability system that provides fair, accurate and understandable information on the effectiveness of our schools. But, rather than debating the merits of our accountability system our Governor and Legislature are slugging it out in that legislative boxing ring we call the Capitol.

Which model is being triggered?

Mission & Purpose

New Stories

Systems & Structures

Citizen-Thinking

. . . our tool for solutions & the common good . . .

Parallel Challenges

Government

The Economy

• Mission and purpose obscured

• No system awareness

• Limited sense of personal role

Economy Defaults

?How does the Public

Understand the Economy?

A “Natural Economy”Based on this latest survey, most Americans believe that the U.S. economy won't reach placid waters for some time. But as they struggle to steer through the rapids, each major group in society increasingly appears to be piling into its own boat. And more and more of us feel as if we are paddling alone.

Paddling Alone On The Economic RapidsAllstate/National Journal Poll - Saturday, Oct. 10, 2009

The Individual Actor Economy

Implications:•Moral qualities and personal

choices shape economic actions and outcomes

•A broadly shared model

Inequality Happens

Tough Times Don’t Help

For some time now, many families have felt squeezed between high hopes and declining prospects. Most Americans strongly believe in working hard and moving up the ladder of success. They "identify up" with people more rich, famous, and lucky than they, rather than "identifying down" with people more poor, obscure, and unlucky.

— Arlie Hochschild, The Chauffeur's Dilemma

Suspicious of Governmental Role

•Last Resort

•Creates Dependency

•Stifles Business

Limited Vision of Government’s Role

• Policing the “Bad Actors”

• Protecting the Deserving . . . and after the fact.

Limited Vision for Our Role

ConsumerWorker

The Desired Transformation

Default• The economy is “free” &

“natural” – have to adapt.

• Individual character/luck determine outcomes.

• Everyone competes for their own interests.

• The strength of the overall economy – GDP, Stock Market – matters.

• Government’s role is minimal and reactive.

Goal• The economy is man-

made and intentional.• Systems & Structures

affect outcomes.• Everyone’s interests are

connected and interdependent.

• The economic wellbeing of average people matters.

• Government’s role is fundamental and proactive.

Connecting the Dots

Purpose•What is the Economy for?

Intentionality•How do we create the Economy we desire?

A Powerful Mythology

The American Dream

“ . . . life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement . . . regardless of the fortuitous circumstances of birth or position . . .

- James Truslow Adams, 1931

An Intentional Middle Class

A strong middle class – the engine that drives our economy – doesn’t arise by accident, but is the result of deliberate and proactive policy choices.

“Having a strong middle class is an indicator of a healthy country.”

53-year old Democratic woman, Oklahoma

“The middle class drives the economy, so government economic policy should be crafted to allow for a broad middle class that can succeed through hard work.”

30-year old Independent man, New York

“As the middle class goes, so does the economy and that it is important for the government to make policy that reflects that.”

28-year old Republican man, Ohio

The Middle Class is No Accident

Public Structures asEconomic Foundation

Public Structures (like the FDIC, community colleges, & Social Security), that have been created and maintained by government are foundational to prosperity, opportunity, economic stability, and a strong middle class.

“Although there are more ways to promote economic growth and stability, one of the most important ways is the use of public structures.”

34-year old Republican man, South Carolina

“The average middle class person relies on these systems and structures to maintain a healthy, productive lifestyle. These systems allow Americans to save money, and continue on with their lives at a productive pace. Without these systems the quality of life for Americans would greatly diminish.”

25-year old Democratic woman, Maryland

Public Structures are Essential

A New Conversation about the Economy

•Context: protecting our core public functions is essential to our successful recovery & future prosperity

•Values: protecting and promoting opportunity, prosperity and the Common Good.

•Systems & Structures: the public systems and structures we create and maintain are the foundations of our economy and quality of life.

•“Civic” Thinking: our economic outcomes are interconnected; we are the stewards of the common good and the future of our state.

Elements of the New Story

Citizen Managers:we shape the economy we need

A New View - A New Role

The only thing that has ever created a good economy is the hard work, ingenuity and smart choices of our people. Government involvement just creates dependency and stifles personal initiative.

The foundation of our economy rests on the health and stability of our public systems and structures. Economic activity depends on our transportation systems, energy and communications grids and it is supported by the courts, the postal system and our educational institutions. Business activity and private enterprise would be impossible without these essential public functions. America’s strong investments in public structures in the past have been the keys to building our economy, creating jobs and paving the way for innovation.

State Budget &

Tax Debates are

Crucibles for

Attitudesabout

Government

Government in anEconomic Downturn

Dominant Story• Budget Crisis means Cuts are the

answer

• So taxpayers can keep more of their money

• Government Spending must be controlled

• Taxes will Make Things Worse

A Standard Budget Crisis Narrative

The proposed budget cuts will leave thousands of the most vulnerable among us without the critical government services they need to live, work and thrive. The reason we are in this situation is because our tax system lets the wealthy and big corporations off the hook. We need to restore these budget cuts and get the wealthy and big business to pay their fair share.

A Bigger StoryThe quality of life we enjoy in our state is directly connected to the public structures we have created over many decades. Our parks, community colleges, social services and infrastructure are what make our communities good places to live and work. The proposed cuts to state programs and services will undermine the public systems we rely on every day. It is time to focus on finding new revenue to keep our state functioning well, now and into the future.

“. . . while the solutions won't come easy, priorities should. As policymakers tackle another shortfall in a still-sputtering economy, they should support the public structures that have long been the backbone of our economic prosperity – our world-class universities, community colleges and schools – and help those Californians hardest hit by the economic downturn. To do that, they must choose a balanced approach over ideological rigidity.

- Jean Ross, California Budget Project