Postwar Domes,c Policies and Truman. Antonio Lovato

Transcription

1 Postwar Domes,c Policies and Truman Antonio Lovato

2 Introduc,on and Overview A9er WWII, twelve million American soldiers returned home; all in search of jobs, homes, and financial security. African Americans, at this,me were more so in demand for equal rights and protec,on under the law. Truman was a New Deal democrat who sought to help: Minimum wage Guaranteed employment Medical insurance Housing aid Benefits for war veterans

3 Introduc,on and Overview Cont. Opinions were changing in comparison to the Great Depression People feared economic downturn Public anger against labor unions grew In late 1945, Truman forced strikers back to work through execu,ve order. Race had remained a large issue a9er WWII Truman had similar racist views against African Americans but understood that the U.S. Cons,tu,on guaranteed rights to all American ci,zens. In 1946, Truman ordered the inves,ga,on of racial issues in America in order to ayempts to reduce them. In 1947, Truman became the first U.S. president to recognize the Na,onal Associa,on for the Advancement of Colored People as an extremely beneficial organiza,on.

4 Introduc,on and Overview Cont. As the economy started to improve in 1948, Truman pe,,oned congress for a fair deal for all Americans, which consisted of: Pro- labor reform Strict economic controls Civil rights legisla,on Social welfare Educa,on, social security, and medical insurance provisions. Congress did not approve of the Fair Deal When Truman had le9 office, he had le9 the country on a path towards prosperity.

5 The G.I. BIll Formally known as the Servicemen s Readjustment Act of 1944 Proposed during the administra,on of FDR by the American Legion. Provide numerous benefits for returning WWII veterans. Returning WWII veterans were commonly known as G.I.s The G.I. Bill provided veterans with: Low- cost mortgages Low- interest loans to help start a business Payments for tui,on and living expenses at universi,es High school educa,on Voca,onal educa,on One year of unemployment compensa,on Help to support young families.

6 The G.I. Bill Cont. Established hospitals that would specially treat veterans. Claimed by 51% of veterans. 2.2 million ayended college or graduate school 5.6 million prepared for voca,ons in certain fields Veterans could any school that admiyed them. 30% of the veterans who claimed these benefits used the low- interest mortgages to buy homes.

7 The G.I. Bill Cont. Beneficiaries also became more engaged ci,zens Recipients were reported to have 50% more civil associa,on and became significantly more poli,cally ac,ve. Some veterans eagerly joined the Civil Rights movement. It was available to any veteran who had been on ac,ve duty during the years of the war for a minimum of 90 days and had not been dishonorably discharged. Combat was not required.

8 The G.I. Bill Cont. The G.I. Bill was a large factor in the crea,on of the modern American middle class. However, it increased tension in racial inequality because many of the benefits that came with the G.I. Bill were withheld against soldiers of color. Considered a large economic and poli,cal success, especially in contrast to the treatment of WWI veterans. In 1966, the Readjustment Benefits Act of 1966 provided the same benefits of the G.I. Bill to all veterans, including those who served during peace,me. Many major figures u,lized the benefits of the G.I. Bill, including: Gerald Ford, George H.W. Bust, Harry Belafonte, Johnny Cash, Clint Eastwood, Paul Newman, and Walter MaYhau.

9 Employment Act of 1946 Charged the government with the responsibility of keeping track of and maintaining high employment levels and price stability Enacted under president Truman and resulted in the Council of Economic Advisors (CEA) This council was appointed to assist the President with preparing an annual economic report, advise the president on certain policies dealing with strong economic issues, and to collect economic data and report on the economic growth and trends in the economy. A three member board that requires the President to submit a detailed report to congress concerning the future and present state of the economy. Composed of members of both par,es from both the House and the Senate who is in charge of reviewing presiden,al reports and making recommenda,ons to the House and Senate on economic policies.

10 Employment Act of 1946 Cont. Stated that, it is the con,nuing policy and responsibility of the federal government assistance and coopera,on of industry, agriculture, labor, and state and local governments. Claimed that it was the responsibility of the government to ensure that all Americans had the right to useful employment and that the policies of the U.S. government would ensure sufficient employment opportuni,es.

11 Ta9- Hartley Act Formally known as the Labor Management Rela,ons Act of A9er WWII, 25% of the workforce was unionized. Restricted the ac,vi,es of labor unions. Effort to overall reduce the gains made by the labor movement in America during the Great Depression and by the Na,onal Labor Rela,ons Act/ Wagner Act. Sponsored by Senator Robert A. Ta9 and Representa,ve Fred A. Hartley, both notorious an,- labor unionists. Overcame Truman s veto on June 23, 1947.

12 Ta9- Hartley Act Cont. Some labor leaders referred to it is as the slave- labor bill in response to Truman s arguments that it was a dangerous intrusion on free speech and that it is a conflict with important principles of our democra,c society. Truman, however, would use his granted power with this act a total of twelve,mes during his presidency. Gave workers the right to refrain from par,cipa,ng in a unions. Was said to protect employees rights from unfair prac,ces by unions.

13 Ta9- Hartley Act Cont. Stated that labor unions could not: Have a closed shop union. However, employees could make it required to join the union a9er the 30 th day of employment. Agreements that required workers to join the employer s labor union. Act out secondary boycoys Ac,ons in which unions strike and refuse to use the goods of a business that is associated with the business they are striking against. Charge excessive dues or ini,a,on fees Perform wildcat strikes

14 Ta9- Hartley Act Cont. PermiYed the union shop only on vote of all employees. Eventually outlawed due to the fact that employees were constantly vo,ng for closed. Contribute to poli,cal campaigns Perform poli,cal strikes Secondary and mass picke,ng Perform Jurisdic,onal strikes A union strikes in order to grant a specific work to the par,cular employees it represents. Fire workers who refused to join the employer s union.

15 Ta9- Hartley Act Cont. Required unions and employers to give a 60 days no,ce before striking. Made it illegal for federal employees to strike. Required union officers to sign a non- communist affidavit with the government. Also required them to sign an affidavit that promised that they had no inten,ons of overthrowing the U.S. government. Employers could terminate supervisors who were engaging in union ac,vi,es or who did not support the employer s stance. Employers could also communicate an,- union messages to the workplace. Employers could also sue unions for damages caused by secondary boycoy. The execu,ve branch could impede on any strike legally if they felt it was a threat to na,onal health or safety. This act also largely contributed to the reelec,on of Truman. Overall, the act substan,ally reduced the power of the labor union

16 The Elec,on of 1948 The Democra,c Party had a poor showing in the mid- term elec,on of 1946, which allowed the Republican Party to take control of both the House and the Senate for the first,me since This dimmed the possibility of Truman s reelec,on. A survey taken in 1946 showed that only 30% of Americans showed support for his presidency. Truman worked hard to build support for his candidacy. He ayempted to build a strong connec,on with the laborers in by vetoing the Ta9- Hartley bill. He gained the African Americans by fully suppor,ng the Civil Rights movement. Gained support by the general public by suppor,ng programs that were concerned with na,onal health insurance, higher minimum wage, and federal housing. His an,- Soviet policy won him support from families with origins in Eastern Europe and from an,- communist liberals. His recogni,on of the new state of Israel in early 1948 gained him a posi,ve reputa,on American Jews.

17 Truman and The Democrats Divisions within the Democra,c Party hurt his chance of reelec,on even further. His weaknesses as a candidate almost led the Democra,c Party to nomina,ng a DINO by the name of Dwight D. Eisenhower who declined the nomina,on. In January of 1948, Truman s secretary of commerce, Henry Wallace, intended to run for president under the Progressive party and threatened to rob Truman of the progressive vote. Truman also lost the southern wing of the Democra,c Party a9er his open support of African American civil rights. He even ayempted to keep the support of the southerners by

18 Truman and the Democrats Cont. During the Democra,c Na,onal Conven,on in July of 1948, the en,re Mississippi and Alabama delega,on walked out of the conven,on to show their lack of support. The southerners that remained stayed only to vote against Truman. In the end of July, southern Democrats had formed a new branch of the Democra,c Party to oppose Truman (known as the Dixiecrats) and nominated Storm Thurmond. Truman won the nomina,on of the Democra,c Party and chose Kentucky senator Alben Barkley as his Vice President. Senator Barkley and I will win this elec,on and make these Republicans like it don t our forget that!

19 The Republicans The Republicans nominated New York governor Thomas Dewey for President and Earl Warren as the Vice President. Dewey had run against FDR in the 1944 elec,on and lost in a close race. He was a young and extremely popular Republican and Progressive candidate. Alice Roosevelt Longsworth described him as the liyle moan on the wedding cake.

20 Truman and Dewey In early 1948, Truman called Congress to session and presented a long list of proposed legisla,on in which the Republican congress refused to pass. Truman now had another example of the do- nothing congress that lied in the way of poli,cal success. Truman acted on civil rights by issuing an execu,ve order that desegregated the military and ended discrimina,on in the civil service. No longer caring about the long lost Dixiecrat opinion, Truman issued many ini,a,ves that would please blacks and liberals, two important

21 Truman and Dewey Cont. Truman began his campaign with a Labor Day speech to a labor union in Detroit. He con,nued his campaign by making several train tours across the country which eventually became known as whistle stops. In these whistle stops Truman was friendly: he shook hands, signed autographs, made wiyy remarks about Dewey. Truman traveled by train from Pennsylvania to California. Overall, Truman ayacked the Republican Congress and warned that a Republican controlled White House would unravel the New Deal and reminded people that the Democra,c Party saved the country from the Depression. Truman also won support from farmers. This Republican Congress has already stuck a pitchfork in the farmer s back. Dewey also went on several train stops however, unlike Truman, he campaigned cau,ously. The polls asserted that Dewey had a strong lead over Truman.

22 The Results Although Truman was ahead by more than one million votes on elec,on night, Dewey was s,ll strongly expected to win. At 4 in the morning on November 3 rd, Truman was informed that his lead was strong enough so that he would not lose the elec,on. Truman had one 49.5% of the popular vote in comparison to Dewey s 45.1% however, he won the electoral college vote 303 to 189. Although his victory was far from overwhelming, his victory came about strongly from his support from minori,es and farmers. The overall win of Truman was an upset due to the fact that the polls and almost every popular newspaper had already claimed that Dewey had one the elec,on. New York Times: Thomas E. Dewey s Elec,on as President is a Foregone Conclusion Life Magazine, with a picture of Dewey: The Next President of the United States Chicago Daily Tribune: DEWEY DEFEATS TRUMAN Truman s victory also proved to be a tremendous embarrassment to the poll business.

23 Bibliography "Harry S. Truman Domes,c Policy." N.p., n.d. Web. 4 Apr "G.I. Bill." American History USA. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Apr "G.I. Bill." History.com. A&E Television Networks, n.d. Web. 12 Apr "Scholars Strategy Network." Scholars Strategy Network. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Apr "Employment Act of A Detailed Essay on an Important Event in the History of the Federal Reserve." Employment Act of N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Apr "NLRB.gov." 1947 TaA- Hartley SubstanEve Provisions. N.p., n.d.