It is my resolution, and the resolution of those associated with me in
the task, to pursue with vigor and determination our goal of good govern-
ment, efficient government, effective government, during the year 1962.

And now, to conclude, Mrs. Tawes and I extend to all of you our
sincere best wishes for a very happy, healthy and prosperous New Year.

ADDRESS, JOINT SERVICE CLUBS DINNER
COLLEGE HEIGHTS ESTATES

March 29, 1962

We are in the midst of a political campaign here in Maryland, as you
all know very well, and it is therefore an exceedingly busy season for me.
All the same, I assure you that it was a delight to me to accept non-
political billing for this evening to join with my friends at this annual
Joint Service Clubs Dinner in Prince George's County....

I hope, with this assurance of my intentions, that nothing I say will be
construed as being motivated by political aims and purposes. The more
I become involved in the affairs of State, the more I see the pressing
necessity in a democracy of a broad citizenship participation in govern-
ment. Now, I realize there is nothing either profound or new in this
observation. I think, however, that it is a proposition too frequently
overlooked, to the great detriment of our democratic political organiza-
tions and the people they serve. Let us ask ourselves the questions:
What happens to government in a democracy when it is neglected by the
people who have created it and are responsible for its operation? What
happens to a governmental program or a governmental institution when
the people are ignorant of their aims and their methods of operation?

In our effort to see just what does happen in such instances, let us
examine just one phase of the governmental process. I will choose one
within my own range of endeavor, the office of the chief executive of the
State. Under the Constitution of Maryland, the Governor has as one of
his primary responsibilities the preparation and submission to the Gen-
eral Assembly of a budget in which money is appropriated for all State
functions and services and in which the necessary revenues are provided
to defray the costs of these functions and services. In preparing the
budget, the Governor must decide how much money is to be spent for
public education, public health, public safety—for prisons, for highways,
for conservation of natural resources, for economic development, for
civil defense, for scores of other services which the people of the State

303