Abstract
Federal bureaucracy is a source of concern in America. In the decision-making process, the average citizens have always been ignored. Most decisions are made by senior officials without taking into account the needs of the citizens. Because of this, there is need to give the citizens a chance to participate in decision-making processes.
In the United States of America, federal bureaucracy is a norm rather than an exception. The decision-making process has been left for state officials, contrary to the rules of democracy. As a democratic country, it is surprising that citizens and their elected leaders do not participate in making decisions that are important. Democracy dictates that the government should be for the people and by the people. This gives a feeling that involving the average citizens in going opinion is basic (Lorenzo, 2010). As such, there are always concerns as to what role the citizens and the leaders they elected play in making decisions. Such a situation calls for a keen analysis on what the average Americans should do to influence policymaking at the federal level.
In any country, citizens participate in governance in various ways. First, every citizen has a right to contest for any public position provided they have the required credentials. Second, citizens exercise their power through the vote system whereby they choose the people they want to represent them in the government. Through these two ways, America’s average citizens can dictate and determine who their leaders are. By electing vocal and strong leaders, the citizens play a big role in influencing the government policy. Failure to do this means that the citizens will forever remain in a position where they cannot participate in making decisions.
In America, there are several cases where decision-making has been preserved for the federal officials without the citizens getting a chance to get involved. Thus is what promotes federal bureaucracy (Nadroo, 2012). A good example of this is through analyzing the Food and Drug Administration. This department arose because of the need to oversee the validity of the drugs that were being sold in America. Although its core mandate is to safeguard the supply of the nation’s food and drugs, the Administration has always been manipulated for the interests of the top government officials. For instance, there are several cases where FDA has been pressured to approve certain products. A good example was when the FDA bowed to pressure from the government officials to restrict beef producers from advertising their ‘hormone-free’ meat. The FDA was also under pressure to approve food products from cloned animals. These examples show how federal bureaucracies have influenced major decision-making in America (Rosener, 2003). Whereas this is beneficial to specific officials in the government who are self-centered, it poses a major threat to the health of the nation. This calls for immediate reforms to give the citizens an opportunity to take part.
The above examples show that average citizens do not play a significant role in policymaking in America. In order to participate and take part in decision-making, average citizens should lobby their elected leaders to take responsibility and be accountable. This is the only way through which they can influence the decision-making process. By advocating for transparency and accountability in government offices, federal bureaucracy will be minimized in a major way. By putting the government up to task, the belief is that decision-making will be based on the interests of the people. Through this, citizens would have taken part in the federal policymaking process.
References
Lorenzo, D. (2010). Countering Popular Misconceptions of Federal Bureaucracies in American Government Classes. PS: Political Science & Politics, 743-747.
Rosener, J. (2003). Making Bureaucrats Responsive: A Study of the Impact of Citizen Participation and Staff Recommendations on Regulatory Decision Making. Public Administration Review, 339-339.
