The best-managed, most effective institutions recognize that their employees are their biggest assets. It should be no different for government. Government workers ensure that the air we breathe is clean. They make sure the toys our children play with are safe. They are on the scene to respond to emergencies and to protect us from harm. Yet a trend towards funding cuts, more private contractors, and less support for professional government puts public interest at risk.
Join the Center for American Progress, Paul Verkuil, author of Valuing Bureaucracy: The Case for Professional Government, and a distinguished panel as they discuss the importance of a professional government workforce and the best ways to make it as effective as possible.
Introductory remarks:
Paul Verkuil, Senior Fellow, Center for American Progress
Distinguished panel:
Paul Verkuil, Senior Fellow, Center for American Progress
Norm Ornstein, Resident Scholar, American Enterprise Institute
Elissa McBride, Secretary-Treasurer, American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, AFL-CIO
Mustafa Ali, former Senior Advisor for Environmental Justice and Community Revitalization, Environmental Protection Agency
Moderated by:
Liz Kennedy, Director, Democracy and Government Reform, Center for American Progress