February 09, 2007     

The True Size of Government

In President George W. Bush's second term, changes are roiling the federal government, and Wagner Professor Paul C. Light is much in demand to help the media and public make some sense of them. The lead article in the February 4, 2007, edition of the New York Times picked up on Professor Light's extensive research into the hidden and growing contractor work force and the true size of the government. And on February 8, he was interviewed on ABC-TV's World News Tonight about challenges at the enormous Department of Homeland Security. "You've got to slim down this beast; it's just too big, too many missions, too many employees, too much turnover, not enough leadership, the list of problems goes on and on," he said. NPR, too, turned to Professor Light to illuminate the reasons behind the rapid turnover in sub-Cabinet positions where much of the hands-on work of government goes on.

To listen to the NPR interview, go to http://www.npr.org/. To read what Light had to say to World News Tonight, click on http://abclocal.go.com/. The New York Times article can be found at http://wagner.nyu.edu/performance/files/True_Size.pdf. Light is also the author of 18 books, including the award-winning Thickening Government and The Tides of Reform.