Compromising is an honest process indispensable to free men governing themselves.
"Civil Service" is frequendy a mask for a shameless spoils system. Patronage is a political liability to the politician who has to dispense k.
Public Office is usually scandalously underpaid; this is the fault of the public and a frequent cause of corruption in public life. Nevertheless, most officials are too honest and too patriotic to succumb to the temptations placed before them. For that reason we have better government than the people deserve.
It is both virtuous and efficient to be partisan and party regular, but it requires both moral courage and clear thinking to accomplish it
CHAPTER IV Field and Club Organization
Four Thumb Rules:
1. Your purpose is to win elections, not arguments.
2. Elections are won with votes and the votes are in the precincts.
3. You win by persuading your own voters to register and vote.
4. Don't waste time trying to convert a man who has already made up his mind.
The above four rules are applied successfully through organized field activity based on personal calls and begun long before the election.
Doorbell-busking: Always work from a list. Don't be aggressive. Cut the visit short. Record all information on a file case for follow-up.
Political clubs contain very few votes but they are indispensable (a) for organization and liaison of precinct workers (b) to keep up the morale of precinct workers by
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giving a "team" feeling. They also constitute seminars in democratic government.
How and When to Form a Club: Your party needs a club in any area that does not have one, but you should not found one unless you are prepared to do the working of leading it
Leadership comes to him who works - the tedious, routine work of organization is the only "secret."
The easiest way to make people like you is to like them-and say so!
To associate names with faces, ask the owner, on being introduced, to pronounce and spell the name - then use it immediately.
You don't have to be perfect in parliamentary law to handle the gavel successfully. A moderate knowledge of Roberts' Rules of Order, common sense, and fairness will get you by with the aid of this rule: The assembly itself is the final judge of the rules; make your rulings prompdy and inform anyone you overrule of his right to appeal to the house. If he appeals, take a vote on the appeal without debate.
Use your power as chairman to divert matters of personal bitterness into committee where you can arbitrate them in private.
A motion to adjourn is always in order and is not debatable - but, as chairman, you may remind the house of any pertinent fact before calling for a vote.
Your new dub must have a chairman who can keep the business moving without antagonizing people. It is better to be floor leader than chairman, but you may have to take the gavel if you can't find such a person.
Learn to be a penny-pincher with club funds. Votes, not dollars, win elections.
Note: The word "precinct" is used throughout to indicate an area which one person can campaign successfully, say from 100 to 400 registered voters depending on population density.
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Robert A. Heinlein
CHATTER V Club Meetings and Speech Making
The First Meeting of a New Club:
(a) To get a crowd use personal invitations primarily, plus cheap methods of local publicity.
(b) Use a small hall and fill it with loud music, card tables, not too many chairs. Start with group singing. Have a dynamic speaker and some entertainment. Limit business to plans for next meeting and discussion of purpose of club. Serve simple refreshments afterwards and let the kids dance.
(c) Record on file cards all possible information about all persons present-then follow up. This file is your basic political weapon.
Speaking in Public:
Be brief. Don't worry about eloquence. Funny stories are not necessary.
You can get past your first appearance as a principal speaker by using an audience-participation quiz. This gag can be used over and over again until you gain confidence.
CHAPTER VI Political Influence, Its Sources, Uses, and Abuses
Claims of "controlling a district" are usually nonsense. There are two major ways in which a politician controls votes (a) by being the active leader of a live precinct organization (b) by the gradual and unconscious acquisition of a following who depend on him for reliable political information and advice.
Be prepared to furnish advice to your acquaintances by doing your studying of candidates and propositions early. Thus you may expect to influence the votes of about 250 people.
A fool-proof method of marking a sample ballot without previous study is to mark it against the choices of the newspaper you despise most.
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Patronage: Policy positions, except under extraordinary conditions, should go only to active partisans, but non-policy jobs should be filled without respect to partisanship.
When Called on to Dispense Patronage:
(a) Accept the responsibility.
(b) Refuse to countenance a "spoils" attitude.
(c) Be frank with the applicant.
(d)Be warm-hearted and helpful. Remember his human dignity.
(e) Don't try shenanigans with the federal civil service.
(f) There are many temporary non-certified federal jobs. Know the details about them so that you can advise people how to apply for them.
(g) Keep party politics out of Annapolis, West Point, and Coast Guard Academy recommendations. Instead be prepared to help applicants with accurate information and advice.
Moving in on a Party Organization: In cities where a corrupt machine is well entrenched the "official" opposition party organization is usually a clandestine part of the Machine. (Warning: Do not assume that a "machine" is necessarily a "corrupt machine.") Tb take over your own party machinery when it is owned by such a false-front group you must first take over the "reform" wing of your party and then win a primary for control of the official party machinery.
In taking over the reform group be extremely careful to preserve the prestige of its titular leaders. The process of taking over consists merely in joining and being more active than the titular leaders.
After winning control of party machinery in the primary make no compromises nor concessions of any sort under any circumstances at all to the group you have displaced, if you have certain knowledge that they have been in the business of selling out to the other side -but be sure of your facts!
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Robert A. Hemiein