How did the Hatch Act reinforce reforms initiated under the Pendleton Act? When were these acts passed?What event precipitated the Pendleton Act?
What will be an ideal response?
An ideal response will:
1, Explain that the Pendleton Act was passed in 1883, initiating the process of replacing the spoils system, in which federal employees were hired on the basis of party loyalty, with a merit system, whereby employees were hired on the basis of merit.
2, Mention the assassination of James Garfield as precipitating the Pendleton Act, and the expansion of federal bureaucracy under the New Deal as precipitating the Hatch Act.
3, Explain that the Hatch Act, passed in 1939 and amended most recently in 1993, further restricted political influence on the bureaucracy by preventing on-duty federal employees from engaging in partisan political activities, such as campaigning, fund-raising, or contributing money to partisan causes.