Corrupt Government & Farming Problems Copy the words in BLUE

The Tweed Ring  Political Machine: organization designed to gain and keep power in government  Most famous political machine: The Tweed Ring (William Marcy Tweed)  Stole $100 million from New York City’s treasury – city almost went bankrupt

The Tweed Ring (cont)  Thomas Nast (cartoonist) – made Tweed’s crimes public knowledge  Drew Tweed and his friends as vultures, con artists, and money bags  Accused the Tweed Ring of stealing the people’s money.  Tweed offered Nast $500,000 to stop and leave the country – Nast said NO

“The Brains”

 The Tammany Tiger Loose

The Modern Santa Clause

The Republican Mascot

Stopping Corruption…  Write what you remember about the spoils system:

Civil Service Reform  Civil Service: includes all government jobs where people are appointed, not elected.  Started requiring people to take exams for certain jobs.  Forbid elected officials from firing civil service workers based on political views.

State Reform  Robert M. La Follette – Wisconsin’s governor in 1900  Leader in state reforms like railroads, banks, lobbyists & civil service  Wisconsin became first state to use a direct primary: the people, not party conventions, choose candidates for election

Other state reforms  Along with a direct primary: –Referendum – allows legislatures to submit a law to the vote of the people –Initiative – allows the people to propose and pass a law on their own (for example: propositions in Arizona) –Recall – allows the people to vote an official out of office

Hard times for farmers  Oliver H. Kelley – farming reformer  Worked to improve farming methods  Organized the Grange to help farmers –get out of debt –make money –become self-sufficient

Populist Party  Farmers turned to politics in 1890 – created the Populist Party  Called for political and economic reforms  Wanted more money in circulation to help farmers pay off their debts  Started to demand the government make more silver coins.

“Wall Street owns the country. It is no longer a government of the people, by the people, and for the people…The parties lie to us, and the political leaders mislead us…Let the bloodhounds of money who have dogged us…beware.”