GILDED AGE – THE WHITE HOUSE POLITICS AND POLICY

 Mark Twain called the late 19 th century the “Gilded Age.” He meant that the period was glittering on the surface but corrupt underneath. In the popular view, the late 19 th century was a period of greed and guile: of Robber Barons, of shady business practices and scandal-plagued politics.

 The Gilded Age was America’s formative period, when an agrarian society was transformed into an urban society dominated by industrial corporations.  Like any teenager it had to learn its lessons and test boundaries.

Politics  In 1881 Cleveland was asked to run for mayor of Buffalo by the Democratic Party because of his work against corruption and he accepted.  Mayor Cleveland fought the city aldermen who were a corrupt circle of politicians from both parties. He vetoed bills in an attempt to cut the political graft that was rampant.

 The party leaders of New York needed a new face in order to reconcile a deadlock for the nomination of a new Governor. Cleveland was chosen, and running on his reputation for being an honest politician, he won the election without making a single campaign speech. As Governor, Cleveland continued his campaign against corruption.

 In 1884, the Republicans nominated James G. Blaine, who had been accused of accepting bribes, for president. In July 1884, the Democrats nominated Cleveland for president, deciding that with his irrefutable public record, he would win the votes of both the democrats and the Republicans who were unhappy with their party’s choice. The campaign inspired many personal attacks.  Blaine = accused of aiding the RR at public expense  Cleveland = fathering an illegitimate child

Cleveland won the election by a slim margin over Blaine. The electoral votes were Cleveland 219 to Blaine’s

 Cleveland was inaugurated March 4, 1885 and continued his independent and conscientious but conservative course. He found himself continually at odds with the Republican controlled Senate.

 In the election of 1888, Cleveland was running against Benjamin Harrison of Indiana. Although Cleveland received 100,000 more popular votes than Harrison, he lost the election in electoral votes receiving 168 against Harrison’s 233.

1888

 Cleveland returned to New York City and resumed his law practice in However, three years later the Democrats once again nominated him. His Republican opponent was again Ben Harrison. Despite arguments within his own party, Cleveland decisively defeated President Harrison 277 electoral votes to 145. Cleveland became the only President to be reelected after defeat.

1892

 On March 4, 1893, Cleveland once more took the presidential oath. The Depression of 1893 struck his administration hard. Some Democrats saw salvation in free coinage of silver, but Cleveland was able to persuade Congress to repeal the Sherman Silver Purchase Act in an effort to improve the economic situation. However, by focusing on monetary policy rather than on direct assistance to the needy, Cleveland lost the support of his party.

 Although thousands of businesses were ruined and more than 4 million were left unemployed, Cleveland did little. He believed, like most people of both major parties, that the business cycle was a natural occurrence and should not be tampered with by politicians.

 The Democratic party was split by the end of his second term. They had nominated both William Jennings Bryan and a rival candidate for president. Cleveland removed himself from the campaign and the Republican candidate, William McKinley easily defeated both Democratic nominees.

On March 4, 1897, Cleveland turned the presidency over to McKinley.

 McKinley was on the side of the public and against private interests.  During his 14 years in the House, he became the leading Republican tariff expert, giving his name to the measure enacted in  When McKinley became President, the depression of 1893 had almost run its course. Deferring action on the money question, he called Congress into special session to enact the highest tariff in history.  It called for a tariff of over 49.5% on most goods.  The McKinley Tariff led to a sharp rise in the prices of many products

 It got passed because the Republican party argued that Democratic “free trade” (lower tariffs under Cleveland) had helped cause the depression and unemployment.  Republicans’ argued that tariffs enabled American men to earn a family wage and ‘protect’ their families. The tariff thus formed a key part of Republicans’ appeal to laboring men.

 Another key to the puzzle – the only reason that the McKinley Tariff passed through both parties was due to a larger compromise. The Democrats gave their support to the McKinley Tariff in return for Republican votes for the Sherman Silver Purchase Act. The measure provided the following  The treasury would purchase 281,250 lbs of silver each month at market rates  The treasury would issue notes redeemable in either gold or silver  making silver and gold ‘=’

 The planned government purchases amounted to almost the total monthly output from the mines. However, the increased supply of silver drove down the price. Many mine operators in the West tried to reduce expenses by cutting the miners’ wages. Labor unrest and sporadic violence followed.  As the price of silver continued to decline, holders of the government notes understandably redeemed them for gold rather than silver. The result of the growing disparity between the two metals was deletion of the US gold reserves, an event that played prominently during the Panic of 1893.