. NMT06-T0136
Volume VI · Page 136
| government to draw personalities with the
rank of a von der Porten (aluminum industry) and Pintscher (Reich Credit) as
permanent expert advisers for industrial and financial questions, and they, in
their turn, consulted with specialist circles. When this development had reached the point where a reconstruction of an expert civil service for Economy had been set up, it was upset even more basically and more extensively by the Nazis in 1933 than it had been in 1918. This time the ministries were not only purged of so-called unreliable elements, but each field of activity of a civil servant and the tenure of every higher office was made dependent upon Party consent. Just as the officials before 1933 had hesitated, for the most part, to make independent decisions, partly on account of their insufficient knowledge and partly on account of the constantly shifting currents in economic policy between the social democratic conceptions and the liberal attitude of the People's Party [Volkspartei], in the same way now, they were even more afraid of assuming independent responsibilities. No civil servant could foresee how his decision would be regarded by the Party. As a result of this, a reaction set in, of foisting the decision upon one's superiors whenever possible. As a result of this, the highest authorities in the ministry were overburdened with trifles. While Schacht was Minister of Economics he tried to eliminate this overburdening of the highest authorities by appointing men whom he trusted as general experts (Generalreferenten). And these men were Blessing, Wohlthat, Brinkmann, and Herbert Goering. In other fields, however, almost every important problem went to the State Secretary (Staatssekretaer) for a decision, or else the decision was delayed as long as possible. The large economic enterprises however, which had to turn to the State for decisions, and were dependent on them, were therefore compelled to maintain constant contact with the leading officials of the ministry. A second line of development led to the same result. The social democrats who had come to power after the revolution of 1918, had raised the issue of the socialization of basic industries as part of its program. Since economic and also political factors hindered the carrying out of this aim, it confined itself, together with the other leftist parties in the government, to a state-controlled planned economy, of which Walther Rathenau and Wichart von Moellendorf were the special champions. In this connection, Rathenau was considering not only planned control of imports and exports (indispensable because of the reparation obligations of Germany) but also an extensive regimentation of domestic trade, both from the aspect of production as well as of sales and con- […sumption] |
