Lessons Learned

We were brought in to brief Governor-elect Jesse Ventura shortly after the November 1998 election when he beat the Democratic and Republican candidates in a close three-way race. We remember those first days clearly. The room was unexpectedly small, and he was unexpectedly large. He swaggered into the room wearing a fringed leather jacket. We swallowed hard, passed around our briefing papers, and dove in to one of the more interesting periods in Minnesota’s political history.

As state budget managers, and civil servants, we were needed to quickly bridge the experience deficit for a definitively nontraditional politician and a third party administration. Governor Ventura often said that those briefings were like going back to school for him, but we learned a few lessons too. Chief among those was that public service sometimes means transcending your individual political and policy priorities. Simply put, there’s value and honor in devoting your energy to improving the policy debate, rather than just winning it. Not as sexy, not as high profile, but pretty satisfying just the same.

Those early days were tough on our pride. The Kennedy School prepared us for many things, but working for a former pro wrestler with limited government experience wasn’t among them. Our budget office has four Kennedy School graduates along with a few from Humphrey, Wilson, and other Schools-Named-for-Expired-Leaders. We anticipated more politicians in this “Great Leader” mold — learned in policy and experienced in governing. The incoming governor had modest government experience, and the only things we heard on the campaign trail were about lower taxes and unlimited use of motorized personal watercraft. We had an uneasy feeling that this might be a long and frustrating four years. After all, our learned allusions to Essence of Decision and Stokey and Zeckhauser just weren’t going to win us many points with this crowd.

Now we recognize how badly we misread the opportunity that the Ventura administration offered. That mistake was rooted in an idea that many policy wonks and political junkies casually accept — that it’s best to work in government for the “right person” or the “right administration.” Even at a place like the Kennedy School, some would suggest that public service can be politically incorrect if you work for the “wrong” or “unpopular” administration or candidate. Better to wait it out, some say, because a time will come when you can be appointed to a high-ranking post and then you can fix the problems…
implement your ideas…make a difference!

But after these four years, we recognize that it just isn’t that simple. It’s far better to get involved, early on, sometimes lower down, and make your own niche.

You never really know when the time is right for you to influence public policy. In our case, we found an administration that was open to ideas and eager to question established policy. Nearly every meeting opened with the admonition, often from the governor himself, that “there is no dumb question.” We found that few issues were closed to debate, and we often helped shape the discussion by bringing in new information and perspectives.

Governor Ventura encouraged this “no dumb questions” approach, but his top staff sustained the attitude. They had substantial impact and demonstrated that no matter how popular or visible the leader, influence in government is very widely dispersed. The top jobs set the general course, but their success in getting the job done is highly dependent on the attitudes and skills of their immediate staff. And those staff rely on the functioning of key program directors. And so on.

Without the buy-in from all levels of government, it is very difficult to implement programs successfully. If you are truly concerned with public policy, then management and implementation need to be part of the discussion and also part of your work. If not, your departure from your high-ranking post may mark the end of your influence.

When he was elected, Jesse Ventura may not have been our “right person.” But the opportunity to work for him has been educational and colorful, and provided opportunities that may never have been available with a traditional politician. Whatever this next election brings, we’ll approach the transition with a keener sense of the many people who contribute to an informed debate and a successful
administration.

Stephanie Andrews MPP 1992 and James Schowalter MPP 1988 are managers in the budget office at the Minnesota Department of Finance.