The call to service is alive and well

Dr. Gilbert N. Kahn,
a professor of political science at Kean University in Union

In January 1961, when John F. Kennedy delivered his famous presidential inaugural address, he called upon all Americans to “ask not what your country can do for you — ask what you can do for your country.” Over the next few years and indeed for more than a generation, this clarion call from America’s youngest president sent hundreds of thousands of Americans in search of ways to devote, at least part of their lives, to some sort of public service.

While some joined the military, many joined the Peace Corps or became VISTA volunteers. Others joined the new Kennedy administration. Personal goals were deferred — at least for a few years — while they answered the new president’s call “to serve.”

Historically, America’s privileged class always saw itself “selected” to serve the nation. It was common in all administrations for business and legal elites to join the government — in the party of their preference — to participate in public affairs for at least a period of their working life. It was part of the way that the governing elite perpetuated its power and control of the affairs of the nation. What Kennedy achieved most emphatically was to throw down the gauntlet to all classes of American society and convince them that they, too — not only those born with a silver spoon in their mouth — had a place in governance.
Three figures who have moved most recently on to the public stage again point to the continued vestiges of this tradition, although their entry into government service has not been solely for altruistic purposes. They are Treasury Secretary-designate Henry Paulson, Gov. Jon Corzine, and newly elected Newark Mayor Cory Booker.

Hank Paulson was convinced after weeks of apparent cajoling to join the sinking Bush administration. He left the secure quarters of the Wall Street powerhouse Goldman Sachs to try to resurrect the policies of, as well as the American public’s waning confidence in, President Bush’s economic policies. While an acknowledged lifetime Republican, having taken his first job out of business school in the Nixon administration, Paulson nevertheless has an established record of economic priorities which in certain substantive areas are in clear disagreement with his new boss. In addition, while admittedly at 60 years of age he had no need to accumulate additional wealth, it must have struck many as strange that he should have taken the challenge to join in the effort to salvage this administration. For the son of a Midwestern farmer, at the end of the day it must have just been the “right thing to do.”

Corzine’s road to power also demonstrates the American ethic “to serve.” In many ways, Corzine’s career showed a very early desire to give to his nation as much as he has been fortunate to receive. Like Paulson, a product of a small farm, Corzine joined the Marine Corps Reserve while in college and subsequently served in Vietnam. After completing his education, he coincidentally preceded Paulson as the chief executive officer of Goldman Sachs. Corzine spent more than $60 million of his own money to win a U.S. Senate seat. Corzine has said it is a way to return to his country a little bit of what he had personally achieved.

Booker’s commitment to public service came directly after completing his education. As an African-American success story, he might have been expected to trade his Stanford and Yale law degrees, as well as his Rhodes scholarship, for a secure post in finance or law. Instead, he plunged himself directly into the less-than-glamorous world of Newark politics. Although he was quickly elected to the city council, he failed in his first bid to become mayor in 2002 despite a huge campaign war chest. With the retirement of longtime incumbent Mayor Sharpe James, Booker was elected to begin the task to turn around the city. The challenge is staggering, the opportunity exciting, and the commitment unequivocal.

All three of these personalities suggest different aspects of a model to serve. They also suggest that, at a time when one sees so many people, especially young college graduates, looking at life as a series of stepping stones toward wealth, the spirit to serve is still alive in America. It is rewarding to consider that while all young graduates and highly accomplished business people may not opt for careers in public service, many fine, qualified individuals are continuing to make participating in public affairs an integral part of their life’s work.