Gilded Age Politics

1. Gilded Age Politics 1870 - 1900

2. A Two Party Stalemate

3. Few economic differences between Democrats and Republicans

4. Well-Defined Voting Blocs Democrats Republicans Northern Protestants Anti-Immigration Nativists Middle-Class • White Southerners • Catholics • Recent Immigrants • Urban • Pro-Labor • Farmers

5. This caused high voter turnout and partisan voting!

6. Laissez-faire Federal Government 1870 - 1900 • Accomplished little domestically • Main duties of the Federal Government • Delivered Mail • Maintained Military • Collected Taxes and Tariffs • Conducted Foreign Policy • Administered Civil War Veteran’s Pension

7. Issues • Monetary Policy • Regulation of Big Business • Tariff Policy • Railroad Regulations • Labor Regulations • Women’s Suffrage • Farm Problems • Civil Service Reform • American Imperialism

8. Presidency as Symbolic Office • Party bosses ruled! • President • should avoid offending factions within their own party. • Doled out federal jobs. “The President should merely obey and enforce the law.” –Senator John Sherman of Ohio

9. How was it that leaders who failed to address the ‘real issues’ of the day presided over the most highly organized and politically active electorate in American history?

10. No chief executive between Lincoln and T. Roosevelt could be described as a strong president!

11. 1865- 53,000 people worked for the federal government1890 – 166,000 people worked for the federal government

12. 1876 Election- one of the most disputed and controversial elections in US History

14. Hayes Prevails

15. Sammy Tilden—Boo-Hoo! Ruthy Hayes’s got my Presidency, and he won’t give it to me!

16. Rutherford B. Hayes (R)1877 - 1881 • “Compromise of 1877” -end of Reconstruction • “Party of Morality” • Limited Vision of Government’s Role • Great RR Strike of 1877 • 1878 --> Bland-Allison Act

17. Lemonade Lucy

18. Split within the Republican Party Stalwarts Half-Breeds Sen. James Blaine (Maine) Support for Civil Service Reform • Sen. Roscoe Conkling (New York) • Wanted Grant for 3rd Term • Favored Machine Politics/ Spoils System

19. James A. Garfield (R) 1881 • compromise candidate • assassinated

20. Chester A. Arthur (R) 1881 - 1884 • 1882 --> Tariff Commission • 1883 --> Pendleton Act (Civil Reform)

21. Grover Cleveland (D)1885 - 1888 • “Ma, Ma, where’s my Pa? Gone to the White House, ha, ha, ha!” • laissez-faire Democrat • attacked tariffs • 1886 --> Haymarket Riot • 1887 --> Interstate Commerce Act MUGWUMPS

24. Election of 1888 • Tariffs major issue of election

25. Benjamin Harrison (R)1889 - 1892 • 1889 --> Farmers Alliance • curbs on big business (1890): • 1. Sherman Anti-Trust Act • 2. McKinley Tariff Act • 3. Sherman Silver Purchase Act • 1892 --> Homestead Strike TARIFFS

26. Billion Dollar Congress

27. Grover Cleveland (D)1893 - 1896 • Panic of 1893 • [BIG depression!] • 1894 --> Pullman Strike • 1894 --> Wilson-Gorman Tariff • 1895 --> E. C. Knight Co. v. US POPULISM

28. William McKinley (R)1887 - 1901 BIMETTALISM • 1898 --> Spanish-American War • 1899 --> Gold Standard Act • 1899 --> Open Door Policy • 1900 --> Boxer Rebellion in China • 1901 --> assassinated