A coda to my endless continuing series of posts on academics and policymaking.
Last week the Economist had a fascinating story about the professional backgrounds of world leaders. On the one hand, with regard to the United States, they discovered an insularity that would have appalled Joseph Nye:
The emergence of politics as a career choice has been made possible, argues Peter Oborne in his book “The Triumph of the Political Class”, by a penumbra of quasi-political institutions—think-tanks, consultancies, lobbying firms, politicians’ back offices. They have increased job opportunities for would-be politicians. Increasingly, therefore, the road to a political career leads through politics itself, starting as an intern, moving to become researcher in a parliamentary or congressional office, with a spell in a friendly think-tank or lobby group along the way.
Mr Oborne says this is producing an inbred class that lacks proper connections to the outside world. Perhaps. But the trend is unlikely to stop. The intrusive demands upon aspiring members of any American administration make it harder for outsiders to enter politics. (The Obama team asked applicants, “If you have ever sent an…e-mail, text message or instant message that could…be a possible source of embarrassment to you, your family or the President-Elect if it were made public, please describe.”) For good or ill, politics is becoming its own profession.
On the other hand, according to the article, the country that has the largest share of academics in high policymaking positions is... Egypt.
Which -- no offense -- is not exactly a ringing endorsement for having professors go into government.
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