1890-1920 Politics

How did the populists form?

• Farmers formed alliances due to agricultural unrest

• They became the populist movement and later joined with the Democrats

What were some causes of the populist movement?

• They wanted bimetallism where gold and silver coinage would be used

• Falling prices in wheat and cotton, high tariffs and poor weather conditions

• 1893 depression bankrupted businesses and farmers

• Opposed big businesses

When were they formed?

• 1892 in Omaha

• James B Weaver stood for president in 1892 and gained 1 million votes in the election

What were the Populists aims?

• Regulations of railways

• Income tax on big business

• Maximum 8 hour working day

• Direct election of senators to ensure the citizens could ensure they represent their interests

How was the 1896 election different to other elections?

• It was the first election using modern campaigning methods

• Mark Hannah spent $3 million supporting the Republicans, he sent 1,000 speakers into undecided areas

• McKinley gave 600 campaign speeches, the national newspapers supported him

What was the outcome of the 1896 election?

Popular Vote

• Mckinley- over 7 million

• Bryan- almost 6.5 million

  Electoral College

• Mckinley-273

• Bryan-176

How did this affect the populist movement?

• By 1900, membership had fallen

• Activists had joined other parties

• Populists turned into the progressives

What was William Mckinley like as president?

• Favoured business, laissez faire and high tariffs

• Dingley Tariff- pushed tariff rates high

• Committed America to the Gold Standard

• President throughout the Spanish-American war

• Assassinated in 1901

Why did the Progressive movement emerge?

• 1893 depression- high unemployment, banks collapsed

• Dissatisfaction with the two main parties

• Businesses were extremely powerful, hostility towards robber barons

• 72 hour working week- poor working conditions

• Growth of anarchism and socialism

What were some aims of the progressives?

• Vote for women, directly elected senators

• regulation of business, intervene on behalf of the workers

• government control on banks, recognition of trade unions, protect consumers from adulterated food

What was Teddy Roosevelt like?

• energetic person

• became president in 1901

• Wanted the federal government to have a role in the economy and big business

How did Roosevelt attempt to regulate big business?

1890 Sherman Anti Trust Act-44 prosecutions including Standard oil

1903 Department of Commerce and Labour Act- set up a department of business to collect data on whether business needs to be regulated

1906 Hepburn Act- gave government the powers to look into railroad books and a maximum rate to restrict them exploiting the public

How did Roosevelt side with the people?

• 1902 Anthracite Coal Strike- employers had locked miners who had striked out

• Roosevelt threatened to send troops into the mines

• The employers ended up increasing wages and offered the workers a 9 hour working day

What did Roosevelt do for the environment?

• Conservation- ordered 150 million acres of forest to be placed under federal reserve

• 1906- federal programme of meat inspection- gave the government a greater role in food production

• 1906 Pure Food and Drug Act- started the process of ending food adulteration

How did William Howard Taft attempt to regulate big business?

• filed 80 Sherman Anti Trust cases

• Introduced an 8 hour working day and mine regulations

Why was Roosevelt unhappy with Tafts legacy?

• Payne Aldrich Act- lowered tariffs to 40% (didn’t do much)

• Aligned himself with businesses

• Roosevelt attempted to run against him for the presidency but Taft ran the party machine

Why was the 1912 election significant?

• Roosevelt split from the Republican party and formed the progressive party (Bull Moose Party)

• Republican voters were split between Taft and Roosevelt’s new party

• Woodrow Wilson (democrats) ended up winning the election with 435 seats in the electoral college

What was Woodrow Wilson like?

• Southerner, backed the KKK and The Birth of a Nation

• wanted to attack the Triple Wall of Privilege (banks, tariffs and trusts)

What did Wilson do regarding businesses?

• 1913 Federal Reserve Act- created the first centralised banking system (1923 70% of banking systems were a part of this)

• Federal Trade Commision- used to investigate corporations (issues 400 cease and desist orders)

• Clayton Anti Trust Act- extension of Sherman Anti Trust Act made it illegal to foster monopolies

What did Wilson do regarding employees/Labour?

• Introduced a department of Labour and a Department of Agriculture

• 1916 Federal Farm Loan Act- provided low cost loans for farmers

• Underwood Tariff- Reduced tariffs and freed some products from them

• Federal Income Tax (Sixteenth Amendment)-replaced the income tax, was an attack on big business

What did Wilson do for social groups?

• Federal Child Labour Act-barred goods made from child labour (was later ruled unconstitutional by The Supreme Court

• Adamason Act- maximum 8 hour working day for railroad workers

How did Wilson handle the 1913 Coal Miner’s strike?

• The Colorado National Guard was called who sent in troops, fired in to the tents and killed 26 workers

• Wilson sent in the army to restore order and to break up the strikes

How did Wilson treat African Americans?

• Placed segregationists in government

• opposed Anti-lynching legislation

• gained support of the NAACP to then appease southern democrat voters

How did Wilson win the 1916 election?

• He campaigned on the slogan ‘he kept us out of war’

• took a pacifist stance on WW1

• Republicans believed USA needed greater mobilisation and preparedness

What was Wilson’s 14 points?

• A form of diplomatic idealism

• He wanted to achieve world peace and for no wars to occur again

• 14th Point- The League of Nations to be formed

• Apart from the 14th point, many of Wilsons 14 points were ignored when it came to peace making at the end of the war

What was the Paris Peace Conference?

• Wilson was first US president to leave the US during office (significant)

• he had had 3 strokes and showing signs of paranoia

• Clemenceau wanted revenge, Lloyd George wanted a little revenge and Wilson wanted fairness

Why did Wilson fail to convince the US on the League of Nations?

• He campaigned despite doctors telling him no, he made 37 speeches in 2 days and collapsed after a speech

• He refused to compromise on the US’s term of entry into the League of Nations

What happened to the progressive movement by 1920?

• People turned away from it

• However, 1924 a progressive ran for the presidency and gained 5 million votes, showing it wasn’t completely gone

Why was Warren.G.Harding chosen to run for the republican party?

• Him and Calvin Coolidge broke up the Boston Police Strikes

• ‘A return to normalcy’

• Friend of big business

• both has political experience

• ‘America First’

Why was the political tide moving towards the Republican Party?

• Wilson had only just won the 1916 election

• 1918 Mid term elections- the Republicans gained many seats in both the House and the Senate