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Rader Allegedly Delivered Political Jobs, Favors
The Oklahoman, February 18, 1982
Lloyd E. Rader, director of Oklahoma's Department of Human Services, in 1981 "delivered political patronage jobs . . . and a wide range of other personnel favors" in the agency "at the rate of three-quarters favors per business day," the Gannett News Service reported Wednesday. Advertisement
GNS reported that during its five-month investigation of abuses within Oklahoma's juvenile-care system, Rader's "patronage log" for 1981 had been obtained.
Within Rader's office, the log was referred to as the "Legislative Control File," GNS said.
"It's not unusual for a legislator to call me on the phone and ask why you dismissed so-and-so," GNS quoted Rader as saying. "Or a legislator will call and want to know why his constituents couldn't be kept on."
The files, Rader told GNS, are kept "so I can say, you've got the known facts, and here's why that's all that file's set out there for."
GNS said Rader's 130-page log showed he had delivered 921 "political patronage jobs, transfers, pay raises, and a wide range of other personnel favors . . . for a select list of powerful politicians, ranging from obscure but important legislative committee heads all the way up to Gov. George Nigh and U.S. Sen. David L. Boren."
Included on the list, GNS said, were 75 percent of the Senate Appropriations Committee, 11 of 15 members of the Senate Human Resources Committee, 14 of 17 members of the Senate Executive Nominations Committee and three of the nine members of the Oklahoma Commission for Human Services, which under the state Constitution is the only body that can fill or vacate Rader's post.
Other names appearing on the list, according to GNS, were: U.S. Rep. James R. Jones, D-Tulsa; U.S. Rep. Michael L. Synar, D-Muskogee; state Treasurer Leo Winters; Supreme Court Justice John B. Doolin; Lt. Gov.
Spencer T. Bernard; former governor and U.S. Sen. Henry Bellmon; state Sen. John D. Luton, D-Muskogee, vice chairman of the Senate Human Resources Committee; state Sen. E. Melvin Porter, D-Oklahoma City, chairman of the Senate Human Resources Committee; and state Sen. Gene Stipe, D-McAlester, Rader's personal attorney.
George Miller, secretary to Rader, said he had never heard of a "Legislative Control File" in the department.
He said of the Gannett allegations, "that whole thing is blown completely out of proportion. . . . I would say the majority of those types of requests cannot be met . . . because either there is no position available or the person cannot qualify.
Hiring of people recommended by legislators and other officials is "absolutely not" political patronage "because these people aren't hired unless they're qualifed or they're on the register," Miller said.
Jones and Synar were in Washington on Wednesday.
However, an aide to Jones said the congressman has never asked Rader to give anyone a job although applications have been forwarded.
Jerry Conrey, administrative assistant to Jones in Tulsa, said requests for a job or financial help are routinely forwarded to the proper officials or departments, without recommendation. Jones' office asks the inquirer to send along a resume.
When the Gannett series began last week, Porter and Stipe were the only senators to rise on the floor of the House and defend the department director, the story said.