Re: Blood and Iron-Chapter 901: Chancellor for a Month
It had been a month since Bruno was named Chancellor of the German Reich. In this time he had begun a massive bureaucratic reform, a crusade against decay, rot, and entropy.
What started as simple purges of corrupt officials had shifted into a structural overhaul at a systemic level.
In order to prevent the stagnation, decline, and corruption of bureaucracy from occurring, Bruno had to attack the incentive structure behind it.
He started this by enacting rigid statutes that expanded meritocratic recruitment norms, snuffing out the last vestiges of the old, inefficient dynastic rot.
If one was not the most qualified candidate, they weren’t hired, and if an investigation found that one was hired based on any other standard, there would be a thorough investigation into why this had occurred.
Ideological activism in bureaucracies was strictly investigated and excised. Political affiliation had a place in the Reichstag and the Bundesrat, not in the bureaucracy and its daily functions. What mattered was how well one fulfilled the function, and technocratic function, not ideological alignment.
And finally, civil servants were paid exceptionally well to help dis-incentivize any form of financial corruption. They were promoted purely based on performance metrics and nothing else.
Nobody was above the law, nobody was devoid of responsibility, and flagrant dereliction of duty was considered egregious at an institutional level. Any detected corruption was investigated and, if confirmed punished swiftly, certainly, and above all ruthlessly.
Like every single thing Bruno had tried to change in his life. He had started by reconstructing the foundation, and making dealignment not worth the cost.
It had been a massive undertaking on his part. And the fact that he had taken a mere month to pile through every statute and law in relation to his efforts, let alone devised a solid replacement system had shocked the Kaiser.
Wilhelm II sat across from Bruno in the man’s new office. Reading the list of policies Bruno had effectively set in stone. He was quite frankly shocked by how effective it was, at least in theory.
His disbelief quickly settled into approval as he shook his head.
"Honestly... I know this might be insulting to your honor... But have you ever thought that you make a better politician than a general?"
Bruno scoffed, writing his signature on another document without even deigning the Kaiser with a look.
"War is just politics when words have run their course, and the only way to settle the dispute is through force. If you attack politics and governance the same way you would war, you will find there is much overlap between the two."
The Kaiser chuckled at Bruno’s remarks, thinking he had cornered the man while his attention was diverted he was quick to press where he believed Bruno’s statement was weakest.
"If that were true, then generals would inherently make the best politicians, but history often proves otherwise."
Bruno continued to read through documents and sign his signature. Or not... It was up to his discretion what was adopted and what wasn’t. Well, his and the Kaiser’s co-signature. Which he waited for while continuing the discussion.
"The problem most generals have had in history when transitioning to governance is that they mistake what the enemy is. In war, it’s manifest, its physical, the enemy is whoever you’re fighting against, the nation and its people. But in politics, the enemy is abstract. Entropy has no face, so it’s harder to identify and attack. The best political leaders are rarely civilians, but are often those former generals who during their military careers understood that logistics is the lifeblood of an army, and that tactical and strategic victory were contingent on its success."
Bruno handed over another document he had signed to the stack that the Kaiser was working on. This was how the two of them had spent the majority of their last month.
Much to Wilhelm’s lament; Bruno had no time, nor patience to wait on the Kaiser to co-sign his legal and bureaucratic reforms. So the two of them often sat here at least three days a week, signing and co-signing, while discussing a great variety of topics.
The Kaiser read the next document thoroughly, as he did all the others. Before signing his name next to Bruno’s. He couldn’t help but remark on the efficiency of Bruno’s first month as Chancellor. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺
"Honestly, Bruno... I’m not certain if even Bismarck was as effective with day-to-day administration as you have proven to be this last month. You have gotten so much done, I didn’t think it was possible for government to run this efficiently."
Bruno took a brief break from signing his signature to sip from his coffee before returning to his act, briefly entertaining the Kaiser’s comments in between.
"Bismarck was the Iron Chancellor for a reason, while I understand you had your reasons for dismissing him, and he was getting quite old at the time. His work was foundational to the establishment of our nation. With that being said, he didn’t spend forty years of his life consolidating the degree of control and influence I have over the Reichstag and Bundesrat before taking up the mantle as Chancellor. Fear is its own currency, and many of those in the Reichstag still remember the lessons learned in ’19."
The mere mention of what happened in 1919 caused the Kaiser to frown. The memory of that year still lingered in the marble halls of the Reichstag.
No one who had lived through that winter mistook firmness for weakness again. This of course, caused Wilhelm to converge upon a single worrying thought.
"Do you think that the Reichstag will ever again oppose the crown and its will?"
Bruno did not take the question seriously enough to deviate from his signature.
"I suppose it may after I have left this world behind... But if my life’s work has been half as successful as I desire it to be, such opposition will not pose a threat to the stability of the nation for a very long time, nothing in this universe lives forever, Wilhelm, all we can do is buy our descendants time, and to do that we need to build a better world for them to inherit."
The two men continued to sign documents well throughout the hours of the day, before retiring to their respective homes for the evening. The Kaiser in Berlin, and Bruno in Innsbruck.
