This AEA 2012 presentation to the Government Evaluation Topical Interest Group addresses the ways in which evaluation reflect political components. The presentation presents an accountability framework that demonstrates the inherant political context of accountability. The presentation covers the history of U.S. Federal evaluation policy, illustrating the changes and evolutions with each political administration. Finally, the presentation suggests ways to minimize political influence in evaluation, including using incorporating the AEA Guiding Principles into evaluation practice.#GovernmentEvaluation #2012Conference #HowTo #EvaluationPolicy