Title: PrunesOnline: a Guide to Presidential Appointments

Source/Sponsoring Agency: Council for Excellence in Government

URL: http://www.excellenceintransition.org/

Date Checked: 12/9/2008      Status: Active

Date Annotated: 12/9/2008

Topics: Constitutional Law; Politics

Other keywords: Presidential transition; White House transition; United States Federal government; Plum Book; Prune Book; Survivor's Guide for Presidential Nominees; Presidential Appointee Roadmap

Contents: PrunesOnline, provided by the Council for Excellence in Government, is a thorough, interactive resource designed to provide guidance to everyone involved on all sides of the Presidential appointment process. The two primary resources provided by the site are the Prune Book and the Plum Book. The Plum Book serves as the official version of the list of presidentially appointed positions and is rarely referred to by its formal name – United States Government Policy and Supporting Positions. It is published alternatively after each presidential election by the U.S Senate’s Committee on Governmental Affairs and the U.S. House Committee on Government Reform, with data provided by the U.S. Office of Personnel Management. It lists more than 7,000 noncompetitive national appointments, and includes information about agency heads, their immediate subordinates, policy executives, and their advisors, together with the aides who report to these positions. Originally geared toward the incoming presidential administration, the Prune Book series was initially developed in 1988 to profile the “toughest management jobs in government” and offer insight into the staffing process. Its audience has broadened over the years and the 2008 version is the first to be published entirely online in html as a self-described “Prunes 2.0.” Updated to reflect the changing governmental priorities, such as homeland security and financial regulation, the current Prune Book provides links to the Office of Personnel Management, the Office of Government Ethics, Congress, and a wealth of other resources. The Prune name originally developed in response to the notion that political appointments are “plum jobs.” According to the Council, Prunes are “plums hardened by experience.” The site also includes an updated, electronic version of A Survivor’s Guide for Presidential Nominees, a popular book developed as a collaboration between The Presidential Appointee Initiative, the Brookings Institution (funded by Pew Charitable Trust), and the Council for Excellence in Government. The new version of the Guide includes an interactive Presidential Appointee Roadmap, which offers a thorough explanation of the difference between a political appointment and a career position in the Federal Government, then provides a four step process through which one may learn about the types of jobs and the requirements of each; assess the likelihood of being considered for a position; navigate the application and interview process, and gain an understanding of the nomination and confirmations processes. The site is searchable and a site map is available. PruneOnline also provides an interesting link to a video in which Martha Kumar, current Director of the White House Transition Project, provides a first-hand account of the current Presidential Transition process.

Author of Annotation: A. Emerson