Collaborative model in Calif. town could give Trump guidance
“Partnership, not conflict,” were the words spoken by President-elect Donald Trump during his acceptance speech. That collaborative approach is what my scholarship on good governance shows is required for effective public administration.
That is also what effective and sustainable leadership demands of the Republican Party, which is now in a position to govern with a majority in both the House and Senate.
Some of Trump’s recent actions, such as the selection of Stephen Bannon for White House strategist and his urge to respond to critics on Twitter, have continued to elicit concern among his detractors. Nevertheless, he has shown signs that he’s willing to work out differences by mending fences with his most vocal critics, such as Mitt Romney and Nikki Haley.
From my experience as a mayor and council member, I have learned successful governance is all about the quest for the win-win.
This strategy focuses on the integration of needs, desires, concerns and fears that are important to each side. Take for example, the governance model of the Lakewood Plan in Lakewood, Calif. — a city of just over 81,000 people outside of Los Angeles. Public and private organizations collaborated to solve public policy and administration problems based on interests. For example, a trash hauler in the private sector collecting municipal waste; private lawyers acting as city attorneys; private arborists trimming city trees.
In the postmortem of this highly contested and polarized elections, Trump and the GOP can decide whether they will become irrelevant through ideological competition or succeed through collaboration.
Rust Belt voters expect to be “great again.” But four years isn’t much time to change the fate of the neglected living in the Rust Belt. If the city-educated elites and urban global politics remain the priority, I believe the Rust Belt will vote for change again in 2018 and 2020 in larger numbers.
As an outsider, Trump is not burdened by GOP party ideology. I believe this makes him well-suited to set the tone for interest-based negotiations to address both short- and long-term goals. A simple page out of local collaborative governance may serve this presidency and the American people.