Chapter 19: Political Stalemate and Political Upheaval, 1868-1900

1. Parties, Voters, and Reformers
   1. Republicans and Democrats
      1. Republicans asserted that they had a virtual monopoly on patriotism and that they were the party of prosperity.
         1. They pointed to a postwar economic growth that had resulted from their policies.
      2. The Democrats typically explained what they opposed.
         1. Democrats opposed government interference in the economy as well as social relations and behavior, including the enforcement of black civil rights.
      3. On Election Day, each party tried to make sure that all its supporters voted, and in 1876, more than 80 percent of those eligible cast their votes.
         1. Catholics and most immigrants supported the Democrats, which defended them against the American Protective Association, nativism, and prohibition.
         2. Outside the South, most old-stock Protestants voted Republican, and most African Americans also supported the party of emancipation.
   2. Parties and Patronage
      1. Political parties dominated nearly every aspect of the political process in this era.
      2. The Democrats and the Republicans had similar organizations and purposes.
         1. Nominations came from party conventions and voters in each neighborhood gathered in party caucuses to choose delegates to these conventions.
         2. Party platforms explained their positions on issues and promises of policy changes.
         3. Candidates campaigned as party candidates, and campaigns were almost entirely party-oriented.
      3. Once the votes were counted, winners appointed loyal supporters to government jobs using patronage.
         1. Those appointed to such jobs were expected to return part of their salaries to the party as a part of the spoils system.
         2. All government jobs were eagerly sought, especially those that included the duties of purchasing supplies or handling government contracts.
         3. Some critics of the spoils system argued that it invited corruption and that politics ignored principles and issues and revolved instead around greed.
         4. Defenders of the spoils system argued that politics required some sort of reward system, especially since such an enormous number of party workers were needed to identify and mobilize supporters.
         5. The Mugwumps were the most persistent critics and advocated a merit system based on ability to pass a comprehensive exam.
   3. Challenging the Male Bastion: Woman Suffrage
      1. The struggle for woman suffrage was longstanding, and women increasingly participated in public affairs prior to the Civil War.
         1. Women supported the abolitionist movement, mobilized support for the Union, and pushed for improved educational opportunities.
         2. Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony unsuccessfully opposed the inclusion of the word malein the Fourteenth Amendment.
         3. These two women formed the National Woman Suffrage Association (NWSA), which was open only to women, and sought an amendment to the Constitution as the only sure route to woman suffrage.
         4. The American Woman Suffrage Association (AWSA), on the other hand, focused on winning the right to vote on a state-by-state basis.
         5. The two groups merged in 1890 to form the National American Woman Suffrage Association.
      2. The first victories for woman suffrage came in the West, and several states began to permit women limited voting rights before the turn of the century.
   4. Structural Change and Policy Change
      1. Most groups pushing for political change called themselves reformers because they wanted to change the form of politics.
      2. Structural change or reform refers to efforts to change political decision making.
         1. Structural issues include the way public officials are chosen, the eligibility to vote, the workings of the Electoral College, and the nature of the president’s veto power.
      3. Policy issues, by contrast, have to do with the way the government uses its power.
         1. Most Democrats favored laissez faire, while most Republicans followed a policy of distribution; Grangers favored regulation.
2. Political Stalemate
   1. Formula for Stalemate
      1. A political stalemate made it difficult to put through major changes between 1875 and 1896, since national competition between the two parties was very close during those years.
         1. Although most presidential elections were close, the Republicans usually won.
         2. However, the two parties had nearly equal numbers in both houses of Congress: Democrats held a slim majority in the House in most years, and Republicans held a similar margin in the Senate.
         3. The struggle between Johnson and the Radicals tipped power toward Congress, and the presidents after Johnson did little to challenge that dominance.
   2. The Grant Administration: Spoils and Scandals
      1. Too often, Grant named his friends to federal posts for which they were not qualified, but Congress also supplied its full share of scandal.
         1. The Crédit Mobilier and the Whiskey Ring were among the most prominent scandals.
   3. Hayes, Garfield, and Arthur: The Politics of Stalemate
      1. The Republicans nominated Rutherford B. Hayes in 1876 to help restore the reputation of the party after the scandals of the previous administration.
         1. The Stalwarts and Half-Breeds badly divided the Republicans in 1880.
         2. The convention deadlocked thirty-six times before compromising on Garfield.
         3. Chester A. Arthur became president when Garfield was shot four months after taking office.
      2. The Pendleton Act of 1883 established the merit system for government employment and was passed with bipartisan support.
         1. The act provided for competitive exams for classified positions; initially only 15 percent of federal positions were classified.
         2. The president could add positions to the classified list, and positions were gradually withdrawn from the patronage system.
         3. Most state and local governments eventually adopted the merit system.
   4. Cleveland and the Democrats
      1. Cleveland won with support from many who opposed the spoils system.
      2. The Interstate Commerce Act grew out of pressure to regulate railroads.
         1. The Interstate Commerce Commission was the first federal regulatory commission.
         2. It prohibited pools and rebates and required "reasonable rates."
         3. However, it proved to be largely unenforceable, partly because of vague provisions.
      3. The Democrats renominated Cleveland in 1888, but he refused to campaign actively.
         1. The Republicans nominated Benjamin Harrison and focused on the virtues of the protective tariff.
         2. Harrison won in the electoral voting even though he received fewer popular votes than Cleveland.
   5. Harrison: Ending the Stalemate?
      1. The McKinley Tariff raised some tariff rates but added to the free list.
      2. The Sherman Anti-Trust Act regulated against restraint of trade.
3. Agricultural Distress and Political Upheaval: 1890 - 1893
   1. The Farmers’ Complaints
      1. Farmers were most troubled by the prices they received for their crops, especially when prices fell after the Civil War as national and world demand fell.
         1. In addition, they condemned the monopolistic practices of grain and cotton buyers.
         2. Since much of the post-Civil War agricultural expansion was based on borrowed money, falling prices only worsened the ability of farmers to repay their debts.
         3. Railroads also angered farmers, since they appeared greedy and too influential in politics.
         4. Southern farmers especially condemned the tariff for protecting manufacturers, since there were no tariffs to protect them from the perils of the marketplace.
   2. Grangers, Greenbackers, and Silverites
      1. Farmers joined organizations they hoped would provide some relief.
         1. The Grange (Patrons of Husbandry) provided a social outlet for farm families but also educated them and grew rapidly.
         2. The Grange became a leading proponent of cooperative buying and selling.
         3. Granger Laws were state regulations prohibiting railroad rate discrimination.
      2. The Greenbackers argued that prices would stabilize through printing more greenbacks, an idea that appealed to farmers in debt.
      3. The Silverites wanted the government to resume issuing silver dollars.
   3. Birth of the People’s Party
      1. Farmers’ Alliances emerged when previous farmers’ groups faded, and the Populists were a political party representing their interests.
         1. The Populists emphasized three elements: antimonopolism, government action on behalf of farmers and workers, and increased popular control of government.
         2. They also favored a series of structural changes to make government respond more to the people: expansion of the merit system for government employees; election of United States senators by direct ballot; a one-term limit for the president; the secret ballot; and the initiative and referendum.
   4. The Elections of 1890 and 1892
      1. Everywhere Republicans suffered defeat, and the Democrats chose Grover Cleveland as their candidate again.
         1. Populist candidates displayed strength in the West and South.
4. Economic Collapse and Political Upheaval: 1893-1896
   1. Economic Collapse and Depression
      1. At the time, no one really understood why the economy collapsed so quickly.
      2. The major underlying factors included the end of agricultural expansion and railroad construction and their domino effects on other industries.
         1. Coxey’s Army demonstrated against unemployment in 1894.
   2. The Divided Democrats
      1. Democrats were divided over silver coinage and its role in causing the depression.
      2. Most voters returned decisively to the Republicans in the 1894 election.
   3. The 1896 Election: Bryan versus McKinley, Silver versus Protection
      1. The Republicans nominated McKinley, who focused on the tariff, and the party’s platform pronounced in favor of the gold standard and against silver.
      2. The Democrats nominated William Jennings Bryan, whose "Cross of Gold" speech exemplified the party’s support for silver.
         1. Populists felt compelled to give Bryan their nomination, too.
      3. McKinley won with 51.1 percent of the popular vote.
         1. Bryan’s defeat ended any significant influence on politics by the Populists, and many of their issues were adopted by the Democratic party.
   4. After 1896: The New Republican Majority
      1. McKinley forged a broader appeal and emphasized the gold standard and protective tariff for economic recovery.
         1. The 1896 election ushered in a generation of Republican dominance of national politics.
      2. Events of the 1890s also worked significant changes in the Democratic party.
      3. Many Americans held their new party commitments less intensely than before, and the political role of newspapers also changed.