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Article: The Hatch Act: `A Tangled Jungle'
- Article from:
- The Washington Post
- Article date:
- September 16, 1988
CopyrightThis material is published under license from the Washington Post. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Washington Post. (Hide copyright information)
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James J. Kilpatrick is wrong is his estimation of the Hatch Act
and its impact on federal employees' political activity {op-ed, Sept.
13}. The Hatch Act is broken and in urgent need of repair.
There is no valid reason for federal employees to "sacrifice"
their political rights "in exchange for the benefits of federal
employment," as Mr. Kilpatrick stated. Nor is there is there any
reason for Mr. Kilpatrick to fear that political activity by federal
workers will lead to coercion and a return to the spoils system.
Forty-one states now enable their public employees great
latitude to participate in the political process. Many states give
their employees much more political freedom than ...