Politics in the Gilded Age Gilded Age Politics

Politics in the Gilded Age

Gilded Age Politics ® Era was most highly competitive politically in US history ® ® ® Voter turnout reached highest levels in US history Parties avoided controversial issues that might alienate voters Led to issue-free campaigns focused on party loyalty & regional, religious, & ethnic ties

Local Politics – Political Machines ® Gilded Age Politics ® Hard to cater to one group ® ® Ward bosses ran the neighborhoods ® ® ® Bought the votes Political Patronage NYC city bosses ® ® Too many cultures, religions, ethnic backgrounds Fixed city contracts (received kickbacks) Gave utility companies control of cities for payouts William Marcy Tweed “Boss Tweed” They were in politics to make money, not serve the people

Political Hollowness ® Political ideology regarding industry ® ® ® Style over substance in elections ® ® ® Popular notions of laissez-faire economics and “Social Darwinism” Little enforcement of antitrust laws ® United States v. E. C. Knight Co. - 1894 “wave the bloody shirt” Campaigns were shows – bands, fireworks, free beer Voter fraud ® ® Vote early and often Dead men casting votes

Presidents of the Gilded Age ® Ulysses S Grant: 1869 -1877 - Republican ® Rutherford B. Hayes: 1877 -1881 - Rep ® James Garfield: 1881 -1882 - Rep ® Chester Arthur: 1882 -1885 -Rep ® Grover Cleveland: 1885 -1889 - Democrat ® Benjamin Harrison: 1889 -1893 - Rep ® Grover Cleveland: 1893 -1897 - Dem ® William Mc. Kinley: 1897 -1901 - Rep

The Two-Party Stalemate

Political Parties Republican Party ® Stressed strict codes of personal morality and government’s involvement in regulating both economic & moral affairs of the community as a whole ® Consisted of businessmen & African Americans ® Support from Midwest & small & rural towns in northeast Democratic Party ® Opposed government efforts to impose a single moral standard on society ® Emphasized economic equity ® Consisted of many immigrant German Lutherans & Catholics (especially Irish) ® Support from the Solid South & large industrial cities where immigrants factored in significantly under political machines

Grant Administration ® Blighted by Corruption ® Credit Mobilier Scandal ® Indian Ring Scandal ® Whiskey Ring Affair ® “Grantism” – became synonymous with greed and corruption

Republicans Divided ® Stalwarts (Conservatives) ® ® ® Typically Radical republicans Supported Grant’s reelection Opposed Hayes and his troop withdrawal from the South Favored protective tariffs Favored political patronage Half-Breeds (Moderates) ® ® ® Supported Hayes’ lenient treatment of South Favored revenue tariffs only Favored civil service reform (remove political patronage)

Republican Factions ® Stalwarts, Half-Breeds, and Mugwumps ® Stalwarts: Led by Roscoe Conkling, Senator who favored spoils system ® Half-Breeds: Led by James G. Blaine, Congressman who favored civil service reform ® Mugwumps: Represented in thought by Thomas Nast ® Made up of young liberal reformers ® Favored Reconstruction policies to help African Americans ® Anti-corruption

Stalwart Leadership - Conkling ® Roscoe Conkling ® ® Caustic, abrasive personality Radical Republican ® ® ® US Senator (NY) Supported Grant and opposed Hayes ® ® Supported African-American rights Hayes will investigate NY Customs House in retaliation and fire Conkling’s appointee, Chester Arthur Supported Grant for a third term Election of 1880

Half-Breed Leadership - Blaine ® James Blaine ® US Senator (Maine) ® Supporter of Hayes ® Opposed military gov’t in South ® Supported Garfield in 1880 as compromise candidate between Stalwarts and Half-breeds ® Ran for President in 1884

Hayes Administration ® Events on his watch ® ® Compromise of 1877 resolved election Opposed efforts to restrict Chinese immigration ® ® Burlingame Treaty - 1868 Labor competition led to desire for immigration restriction ® ® ® Riots broke out in San Francisco – 1877 California constitution denied Chinese suffrage – 1879 Chinese immigration Act - 1882 Advocated civil service reform efforts - failed ® Critical of the South for not treating freedmen well after the Compromise of 1877, but did nothing about it. ®

Garfield Administration Elected as a moderate Half-breed ® Political Patronage was the big issue ® ® Stalwarts – defended patronage as tradition Half-Breeds – increasing desire to clean up corruption He appointed half-breeds to important positions – angered Stalwarts ® Though Stalwart Chester Arthur was made VP Shot by an office seeking Stalwart – Charles Giuteau ® President for about 5 months ®

Arthur Administration ® NY Customs House Collector under Grant ® ® Affected by Garfield’s assassination ® ® Made a lot of money Made him a supporter of patronage However, he was a very honest man Supported efforts for civil service reform as a result Pendleton Act of 1882 Stalwarts abandon him He chooses to not run in 1884

Election of 1884 ® James Blaine v. Grover Cleveland ® ® ® Mugwumps Cleveland narrowly wins because of Mugwump support in NY and New England First democrat elected since Buchanan

Cleveland Administration Did not support civil service reform ® Opposed government economic assistance ® ® ® Vetoed legislation to provide seed to farmers in drought year Vetoed Civil War pension bills ® ® One provided benefits to vets who were disabled after the war Challenged the high protective tariff Forced railroad to return 81 million acres in land grants Signed into law… ® ® Interstate Commerce Act (1887) Dawes Act

Harrison Administration ® Tried to annex Hawaii ® Sherman Antitrust Act Mc. Kinley Tariff (biggest tariff since Tariff of Abominations) Sherman Silver Purchase Act Increased monthly pensions for Civil War veterans Harrison increased spending to $1 billion for first time (peacetime) ® ®

Tariffs & Trusts ■ From 1870 -1900, 28 state commissions were created to Supreme Court ruled: “private property regulate industry, RRs: affecting public interest” especially can be “controlled by public. Illinois for the common good” –Inthe 1870, declared RRs to be public highways; this was upheld by Munn v. Illinois (1876) –But was overturned in Wabash v. Illinois (1886): only Congress can regulate interstate trade

This was the 1 st attempt by the federal Tariffs & big Trusts The ICC became the business model gov’t to regulate for future regulatory agencies US v. E. C. responded Knight Co (1895) was the ■ Congress by creating: 1 st test of antitrust law The Interstate Commerce The – Supreme Court ruled that manufacturing monopoly do not restrain trade Commission in 1887 to because regulate making a good is not the same as selling it the railroad industry –The Sherman Antitrust Act in 1890 which made it illegal to restrain trade (punishable by dissolution of the company)

Cleveland Returns ® Panic of 1893 ® ® Cleveland’s Reaction ® ® ® Started with railroad bankruptcy, investors pulled their money Banks and railroads went bankrupt Unemployment rate reached 20% Don’t do much – market forces will fix themselves Repeal Sherman Silver Purchase Act Wilson-Gorman Tariff

Rural Politics in the Gilded Age

The Farm Problem ® By the 1870 s, discontent among farmers was growing due to: ® Harsh farming conditions ® Declining grain & cotton prices ® Rising RR rates & mortgages ® Government deflation policies ® Farmers lashed out at banks, merchants, railroads, & the US monetary system

Railroads & the West ® Farmers had suffered through the Age of Industrialization ® ® ® Price of wheat & cotton dropped from early 1870 s to the mid-90 s Lack of available credit in rural areas Foreign competition with industrialization Railroad Rates – lack of competition Created a farmers’ alliances ® ® Formed co-ops to buy fertilizer in bulk and sell to local farmers at reasonable rates Patrons of Husbandry/Grangers ® ® Will gain political power at state level in West Munn v. Illinois – 1877

Railroads & the West 1. 2. Wabash v. Illinois - 1886 Interstate Commerce Act 1. Recognized railroad regulation was necessary 2. What it did… 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 3. Enforced "just and reasonable" rate changes Prohibited special rates or rebates for individual shippers Forbade long-haul/short-haul discrimination Railroads had to publish rate schedules (couldn’t change) Established Interstate Commerce Commission to oversee It did not allow government to fix rates, only to take railroads to court

Gold v. Silver During the Civil War, Abe Lincoln issued paper money to fund war ® Tight Money Policy – After war, returned to gold ® After Panic of 1893, farmers had difficulty paying down their debt – lacked currency ® Populists suggested introducing silver as part of the currency standard. ® Republicans were concerned that it would water down the currency ®

Populist Party ® Became ® Civil a national farmers’ movement War resentments hurt alliance ® West was most successful ® Farmers unite with labor Knights of Labor in 1892 to form the Populist Party

Populist Platform – Omaha Platform ® Graduated Income tax ® National ownership of railroads, telegraph, and telephones ® Create credit with farmers ® To combat deflation: coin silver & increase money supply ® Popular election of senators

Election of 1896 ® Centered around the money standard ® ® Democrats –William Jennings Bryan ® ® Populists: Inflate currency was needed Republicans: restore confidence in economy by promoting the gold standard Run William Mc. Kinley Cross of Gold Speech - fiery speech that convinced the democrats to shift their platform to a gold & silver coinage platform Mc. Kinley barely beat Bryan ® Bryan dominated South & West

Bryan’s “Cross of Gold” Speech ® The Democrats hoped that free silver would increase the supply of money and provide more credit to farmers and workers. But despite Bryan’s stirring words, “You shall not crucify mankind upon a cross of gold, ” Mc. Kinley won the 1896 election.

The End of Populism ® With Mc. Kinley’s victory, Populism collapsed, burying the hopes of the farmer for a better life. The Populist Party was short-lived but left an important legacy: ® A message that the downtrodden can organize and be heard ® An agenda of reforms that would be enacted in the 20 th century.

The Mc. Kinley Administration ■ Republicans benefited from an improving economy, better crop production, & new discoveries of gold: –Election of 1896 cemented Republican rule for 30 years & became party of prosperity –From 1860 -1890, Republicans had promoted industry; by 1900, it was time to regulate it

The Mc. Kinley Administration ■ Mc. Kinley was an activist president and perhaps was the first “modern” president: –He communicated well with the press –The Spanish-American War brought the USA respect as a world power –The Gold Standard Act (1900) ended the silver controversy

Conclusions: A Decade of Changes ■ The economic hardships of the Depression of 1893 forced people to rethink industry, urbanization, & the quality of American life ■ Many embraced the need for reform; Led to the beginning of the Progressive Era