I read this piece about David Hager a long time ago, when I was first becoming very concerned with politicization of the FDA via appointments of ideologues to scientific positions. Its is deeply disturbing. I came across it again recently, and decided to post it.
Here's a great read. It's a few quick case studies in the appointment of incompetent, but politically loyal, hacks to important positions in the Iraq reconstruction. Here's a peak:
To pass muster with O'Beirne, a political appointee who screens prospective political appointees for Defense Department posts, applicants didn't need to be experts in the Middle East or in post-conflict reconstruction. What seemed most important was loyalty to the Bush administration.
O'Beirne's staff posed blunt questions to some candidates about domestic politics: Did you vote for George W. Bush in 2000? Do you support the way the president is fighting the war on terror? Two people who sought jobs with the U.S. occupation authority said they were even asked their views on Roe v. Wade .
Many of those chosen by O'Beirne's office to work for the Coalition Provisional Authority, which ran Iraq's government from April 2003 to June 2004, lacked vital skills and experience. A 24-year-old who had never worked in finance -- but had applied for a White House job -- was sent to reopen Baghdad's stock exchange. The daughter of a prominent neoconservative commentator and a recent graduate from an evangelical university for home-schooled children were tapped to manage Iraq's $13 billion budget, even though they didn't have a background in accounting.
Makes you
Time for some comic relief: Al Franken vs. Bob Jones University. Hilarious.
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