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Lippmann, Walter, 1889-1974

"Public Opinion"

It is there that the political scientist would find the
real nuts to crack and the real researches for his students to make.
The work need not all be done in Washington, but it could be done in
reference to Washington. The central agency would, thus, have in it
the makings of a national university. The staff could be recruited
there for the bureaus from among college graduates. They would be
working on theses selected after consultation between the curators of
the national university and teachers scattered over the country. If
the association was as flexible as it ought to be, there would be, as
a supplement to the permanent staff, a steady turnover of temporary
and specialist appointments from the universities, and exchange
lecturers called out from Washington. Thus the training and the
recruiting of the staff would go together. A part of the research
itself would be done by students, and political science in the
universities would be associated with politics in America.
7
In its main outlines the principle is equally applicable to state
governments, to cities, and to rural counties. The work of comparison
and interchange could take place by federations of state and city and
county bureaus. And within those federations any desirable regional
combination could be organized. So long as the accounting systems were
comparable, a great deal of duplication would be avoided.


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