Political Struggles and the Forging of Autonomous Government Agencies

Argues that autonomous agencies are not the result of a systematic design, but are produced by the interactions of political and bureaucratic forces. The case studies illustrate how political struggles between politicians and bureaucrats can create a muddle of agencies that lack coherence and are subject to conflicting levels of political control.

CRISTOPHER BALLINAS VALDES is Associate Assistant Professor in Public Policy, at the Instituto Tecnologico Autonomo de Mexico, Mexico City, Mexico. He specializes in the study of executive government and the effects of politics and institutions on policy outcomes -- the politics of policies. He has also worked as senior adviser to three deputy ministers at the central government in Mexico and possesses extensive high-level experience in policy design and implementation.