Public Policies and National Elections How effective was government in addressing the problems of America s industrializing economy?

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1 1 2 Politics and Government The Structure and Style of Politics How did parties shape late-nineteenth-century politics? The Limits of Government What explains the weakness and inefficiency of latenineteenth-century government? Public Policies and National Elections How effective was government in addressing the problems of America s industrializing economy? 3 Politics and Government The Crisis of the 1890s What factors contributed to the rise and fall of the Populist Party? Political Life in the Late Nineteenth Century A Weak Presidency An Inefficient Congress The Rise of Federal Regulation Populist Party The Structure and Style of Politics Campaigns and Elections Partisan Politics Associational Politics Campaigns and Elections New era of mass politics Voter mobilization Party tickets Women involved Could not vote Woman s National Republican Association 1

2 Woman s National Republican Association 7 8 Partisan Politics The two major parties balanced Swing states became important Party loyalty Regional bases Party identities Third parties Prohibition Party Greenback Party Populist Party 9 10 Associational Politics Common goals The Grange Granger laws Mugwumps Christian lobbyists Women National American Woman Suffrage Association 1890 Woman s Christian Temperance Union The Limits of Government The Weak Presidency The Inefficient Congress The Federal Bureaucracy and the Spoils System Inconsistent State Government The Weak Presidency Belief in laissez-faire Impeachment of Andrew Johnson 2

3 Impeachment of Andrew Johnson Grant deferred to Congress Capable presidents in late 1800s 14 The Inefficient Congress Partisanship Rapid turnover Number of bills introduced grew quickly The Federal Bureaucracy and the Spoils System Spoils system From early 1800s Party loyalty Favored party strength over government efficiency Calls for reform Inconsistent State Government State governments small by today s standards Growth in state government Regulation Minnesota particularly active Public Policies and National Elections Civil Service Reform The Political Life of the Tariff The Beginnings of Federal Regulation The Money Question Civil Service Reform Support for reform Assassination of Garfield 1881 Pendleton Civil Service Act 1883 Exams More female civil servants 20 3

4 21 The Political Life of the Tariff Issues Commerce versus manufacturing Farmers wanted low tariffs Both parties wanted tariffs McKinley Tariff Act of 1890 Led to backlash that benefited Democrats The Beginnings of Federal Regulation Corporate power led to apprehension Railroads levied different rates Granger laws Interstate Commerce Act 1887 Created Interstate Commerce Commission Sherman Antitrust Act 1890 Not initially upheld The Money Question For or against limiting the money supply Sound money policy Limited money supply The silver issue Silver demonetized 1873 Free silver philosophy Sherman Silver Purchase Act The Crisis of the 1890s Farmers Protest Inequities The People s Party The Challenge of the Depression The Battle of the Standards and the Election of 1896 Farmers Protest Inequities Poor weather ruined many 4

5 Poor weather ruined many Credit inequities Farmers paid higher interest rates Freight rates and tariffs Farmers organized Farmers Alliance The People s Party Western third parties All eventually called People s or Populist State legislation Southern Populists tried to co-opt Democratic Party Mostly segregated National action Omaha Platform Explore the Populist Movement on MyHistoryLab The Challenge of the Depression Calls for reform Depression hit 1893 Appeals for federal action Coxey s Army Other industrial armies Protecting big business United States v. E.C. Knight Company The Battle of the Standards and the Election of 1896 Dissatisfaction with federal response to depression McKinley and the Republicans Bryan and the Silverites Money and oratory 5

6 Money and oratory Bryan excelled at speaking People s Party disappeared Conclusion Governments appeared weaker than political parties in the late 1800s. By the end of the 1890s, the Republicans had emerged as the dominant party, a new activist presidency was emerging, and the stage was set for the Progressive Era of reform. 6