1. Political Issues & The Growth of Discontent

2. Political Issues- Civil Service Reform
1870s-1880s: Congress chiefly concerned with patronage, money supply, and tariff issues
Left the states and local govt. to deal with growing problems in the cities and industrialization
Public outraged over assassination of President Garfield in 1881
Pendleton Act of 1881 set up Civil Service Commission
Applicants for federal jobs selected based on competitive exam scores
Prohibited civil servants from making political contributions
Politicians began depending less on govt. workers and more on the rich to fund their campaigns

3. Political Issues- The Money Question
Most hotly debated issue  how much to expand the money supply
A representation of the struggle between the “haves” and “have-nots”
Debtors, farmers, start-up businesses want more “easy” or “soft” money in circulation
Borrow at lower interest rates
Pay off loans easily with inflated dollar
Panic of 1873 blames on the gold standard for restricting money supply and causing depression
“Easy” money advocates campaigned for more paper money (greenbacks) and unlimited minting of silver coins

4. Political Issues- The Money Question
Bankers, creditors, investors, big businesses want more “hard” money
Currency backed by gold
Argued dollars backed by gold would hold their value against inflation
As economy and population grow faster than number of gold-backed dollars, each dollar would gain in value

5. The Greenback Party
1875- Congress sides with the banks and creditors, passes the Specie Resumption Act
Withdrew all greenbacks from circulation
Greenback Party was formed in response
1878- received nearly 1 million votes and won 14 seats in Congress during congressional election
When hard economic times of 1870s ended, Greenback Party died out but the goal of increasing the money supply did not

6. Demands for Silver Money
In addition to removing greenbacks, Congress also stopped the coinage of silver
“The Crime of 1873”
Silver discoveries in Nevada revived demands for use of silver to expand money supply
Bland-Allison Act was a compromise
Limited coinage between $2-4 million in silver each month

7. Political Issues- The Tariff Issue
1890s- tariffs provided more than half of federal revenue
Tariffs were raised by Republicans during the Civil War to protect U.S. industry and fund the Union govt.
Southern Democrats and farmers objected to tariffs because they raised prices on consumer goods
Protective tariffs also resulted in nations placing tariffs of their own on U.S. farm products
Farmers lost sales, ended up with more crop surpluses, while also having to pay higher prices for manufactured tools/equipment from U.S. industries

8. The Growth of Discontent
Discontent over govt. corruption, the money issue, railroads, tariffs, and trusts was growing bigger among voters
Politicians began taking small steps to address public concerns
It would take a third political party and a major depression in to shake the Democrats and Republicans from their laziness

9. Harrison & The Billion-Dollar Congress
Cleveland at the end of his first term proposed lower tariff rates
Surplus in the treasury meant we didn’t need added tax revenue
Election of Republicans nominate Benjamin Harrison
Campaigned for higher tariffs, raised funds from big businesses and earned the vote of northern workers whose jobs depended on industry

10. Harrison & The Billion-Dollar Congress
Cleveland won more popular votes, but Harrison swept the Northern states
Gave him the electoral votes needed to win
Next 2 years- Republican Congress was the most active in years
Passed the first billion-dollar budget in U.S. history
McKinley Tariff of raised taxes on foreign products to all-time high of 48%
Monthly pensions to Civil War vets, families
Sherman Antitrust Act
Sherman Silver Purchase
Bill to protect African American voting rights (passed in House, defeated in Senate)

11. Return of the Democrats & Rise of the Populists
1890: Mid-west voters replaced many Republicans with Democrats
Reacting to unpopular Republican measures like prohibition and laws requiring businesses to close on Sunday
Republicans also were setback by growing discontent among southern and western farmers
Farmers Alliances and Grange Movement provided the foundation for a new political party- the People’s, or Populist Party

12. The Omaha Platform
Delegates from the Populist Party met in Omaha, Nebraska in 1892 to draft a platform and nominate candidates
Omaha platform called for both political and economic reform:
Direct popular election of U.S. senators
Use of initiatives and referendums
Unlimited coinage of silver
Graduate income tax
Public ownership of railroads
Telegraph/telephone companies owned/operated by the govt.
Loans and federal warehouses for farmers
Eight-hour day for industrial workers
Populist movement was revolutionary for its time
Attack on laissez-faire govt. and attempt to form a political alliance between poor whites and blacks

13. The Election of 1892
James Weaver (Populist) won more than 1 million votes, 22 electoral votes
One of the few third-party candidates to win votes in the electoral college
Populist ticket didn’t appeal to Northern industrial workers and lost badly in the South
Fear of uniting white and black workers drove conservative Democrats to disfranchise black voters

14. The Election of 1892
Rematch between President Harrison and former President Grover Cleveland
This time, Cleveland won both the popular and electoral vote
Unpopularity of McKinley Tariff Act
Cleveland the first and only president to return to office after having left it

15. Panic of 1893 Spring and summer of 1893: stock market crashed
Over-speculation and overbuilding caused dozens of railroads to go into bankruptcy
Depression continued for four years
Farm foreclosures reached new highs
Unemployment reached 20%
Cleveland responded by championing the gold standard and adopting a hands-off policy toward the economy

16. Gold Reserve and Tariff
Decline in silver meant more people were trading silver in for gold
Gold reserve fell to dangerously low level
After repealing the Sherman Silver Purchase Act, Cleveland turned to J.P. Morgan and asked if he would borrow $65 million in gold to support the dollar and the gold standard
Convinced many citizens Washington was a tool of the rich bankers and industrialists
Workers became further disenchanted with Cleveland when he used court injunctions and federal troops to crush the Pullman strike

17. Jobless on the March
As the number of jobless grew, conservatives feared class war between capital and labor
1894: especially alarmed by a march to Washington by thousands of unemployed led by Populist Jacob A. Coxey
“Coxey’s Army” demanded the federal govt. spend $500 million on public works programs to create jobs
Coxey and other protest leaders were arrested, the dejected marchers returned home

18. ? What was the significance of the Pendleton Act of 1881?
Why did debtors and farmers want more “easy” money? Why did bankers and creditors want more “hard” money in circulation?
Why was the Greenback Party formed?
Why were tariffs such a big political issue during this time?
Give three examples as to how Congress under the first 2 years of the Harrison administration was one of the most active in U.S. history
Who or what provided a foundation for the Populist Movement? What did the Omaha Platform call for?
Despite a strong showing, what were the two major reasons why the Populists didn’t win in the 1892 election?
What was significant about Grover Cleveland being elected in 1892?
What happened in 1893? How did President Cleveland respond?
What was “Coxey’s Army?”