Pendleton's Civil Service Reform Act
https://archives.nbclearn.com/portal/site/k-12/browse/?cuecard=993
General Information
Source:
NBC News
Resource Type:
Creator:
N/A
Copyright:
Event Date:
Air/Publish Date:
1880 - 1899
09/28/2007
Copyright Date:
Clip Length
Video MiniDocumentary
NBCUniversal Media,
LLC.
2007
00:02:11
Description
The Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act is a reaction against the spoils system, which rewarded political
support with jobs.
Keywords
George Pendleton, Civil Service Reform Act, Spoils System, Corruption, Political System, Campaigns,
Patronage, President James Garfield, Congress, Civil Service Commission, Campaign Contributions,
Business Interests, Civil Service, Merit System
Citation
MLA
© 2008-2015 NBCUniversal Media, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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"Pendleton's Civil Service Reform Act." NBC News. NBCUniversal Media. 28 Sep. 2007. NBC Learn.
Web. 20 March 2015
APA
2007, September 28. Pendleton's Civil Service Reform Act. [Television series episode]. NBC News.
Retrieved from https://archives.nbclearn.com/portal/site/k-12/browse/?cuecard=993
CHICAGO MANUAL OF STYLE
"Pendleton's Civil Service Reform Act" NBC News, New York, NY: NBC Universal, 09/28/2007.
Accessed Fri Mar 20 2015 from NBC Learn: https://archives.nbclearn.com/portal/site/k12/browse/?cuecard=993
Transcript
Pendleton's Civil Service Reform Act
NARRATOR: The Pendleton Civil Service Act was aimed at eliminating the rampant corruption in the
federal government in the late 1800s. It addressed a method that had developed to finance costly political
campaigns called the spoils system.
Professor ERIC FONER (Columbia University): Jackson is said to introduce the spoils system, although,
certainly there was nothing new about politicians appointing their friends and supporters to office But the
phrase comes from William Marcy, a Jacksonian leader in New York: “To the victor belongs the spoils.”
And what that means is, when the president comes in, he can kick out all the office holders and put in his
own.
NARRATOR: Make a contribution during the campaign and you could essentially “buy” a federal job for
yourself or a family member.
Prof. FONER: They used public office as a way of building up the political party in a much more effective
and full way than previous politicians have done.
NARRATOR: This practice diluted the federal bureaucracy. Politicians wrangled over who would get
these patronage jobs, and appointees were often unqualified or incompetent.
In 1881, when President James Garfield, an advocate of reform, was assassinated by a man who had failed
to get a patronage job, there were calls for change.
In January 1883, Congress finally passed the Pendleton Act, named for its Democratic Senate sponsor,
George Pendleton. It established a Civil Service Commission to make sure that federal employees were
hired based on merit rather than on political connections.
The Pendleton Act required job applicants to pass competitive exams to obtain certain jobs. By 1897, it
covered 86,000 jobs, or almost half of all federal workers.
The Act resulted in a more competent government workforce, but it had the unintended consequence of
leading the political parties to rely more heavily than ever on contributions from business interests to fund
their campaigns, an issue that remains at the forefront of politics today.
© 2008-2015 NBCUniversal Media, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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© 2008-2015 NBCUniversal Media, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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