ABSTRACT
This chapter presents the first steps in the development of a normative theory of public service leadership. By public service leadership, I mean leadership exercised by unelected public servants occupying administrative posts at every level of government in the United States. The conception of leadership I offer bears some resemblance to, but is distinct from, the concept of “public leadership” gaining currency in some scholarly and practitioner circles (e.g., Getha-Taylor et al. 2011; see also chap. 18 in this volume). It goes beyond even the “polity leadership” idea explored in chapter 12 of this volume. Specifically, this public service leadership theory under development concerns the preservation and enhancement of the foundations and particulars of the regime. It centers on crafting a leadership role that unelected public servants can and should fulfill and that transcends internal boundaries—what American statesman James Madison called “parchment barriers” (The Federalist No. 48)—not just to amplify and improve coordination and cooperation, but to preserve and enhance the integrity of the American regime.
