Good Politics or Meddlesome Control? The Progressives Good Politics or Meddlesome Control?

Origins of the Progressives Problems associated with industrialization, immigration and urbanization Belief that these problems can be addressed and solved Belief that government is the agency to address these ills Increased use of scientific theory, formal education, expertise, and use of data

Who were progressives? Middle Class Educated Civic Involvement, $, and Time Sympathy for the lower classes but not among them Educated Across geopolitical boundaries Across political parties Grassroots oriented Exposure of issues needing reform

Progressive Reforms needed.. Socialism = against political machines = against Trusts = against Consumers protections voting reforms working conditions (+child labor and living Conservation women’s rights Federal Reserve System Prohibition Income tax Progressive Reforms needed..

Social Progressive Reforms Local codes, state regulations Temperance (eventually national WCTU) Poverty, Disease Prostitution Social Progressive Reforms

Margaret Sanger – Educated urban poor about the benefits of family planning through birth control. Booker T Washington – Trade skills to earn a living W.E.B. DuBois – founder of NAACP Muckrakers – members of the press that investigated corruption in order to expose problems to the American people. Social Reformers

Muckrakers Magazines Newspapers McClure’s Collier’s Newspapers Books (Newspaper series collected into Books) Muckrakers

Thomas Nast – exposed abuses of the NYC political machine called Tammany Hall and Boss Tweed – used political cartoons Exposing corruption

Muckrakers Ida Tarbell (Standard Oil) Lincoln Steffens, The Shame of Cities Jacob Riis, How the Other Half Lives Thorstein Veblen, (Conspicuous Consumption) Upton Sinclair (The Jungle) "I aimed at the public’s heart and by accident hit its stomach." *emotive, empathetic, short on policy*

Prominent Local Progressives Welfare Services for the people Hiram Johnson, Governor of CA Pingree (DTW) Jones (TOL) Utilities To regulate - Water, gas, electricity Hazen Pingree, Mayor of Detroit “Golden Rule” Jones - Toledo Woodrow Wilson, Governor of New Jersey Prominent Local Progressives

Prominent Local Progressives City Reforms Settlement houses – workers, professionals, club members could pressure for changes Jane Addams - created Hull House Women targeted slums, tenements, wages & hours, child labor, alcohol abuses and prostitution

Political Reforms start at state level move to federal 17th Amendment – election of senators 1913 Direct Primary – LaFollette – gives voters more voice in government and limit the political bosses power. By 1916 only 3 states did not have a direct primary Initiative – citizens propose laws via petitioning, then placed on next election ballot Referendum – citizens demand a law be “referred” to voters for approval or rejection Recall – voters able to remove public officials from office

Economic Progressive Reforms Increased regulation of big business Stronger Anti-Trust Legislation Maximum Hours and Minimum Wage Worker’s Compensation (Job Injury) Worker Safety SAFETY, SAFETY, SAFETY Food, drugs, city streets, playgrounds, Emergence of more modern notion of childhood Economic Progressive Reforms

Progressivism Goes National Cross Political Parties TR (Republican) Taft (Republican) Wilson (Democrat) Progressivism Goes National

TR and the Square Deal Consumers Meat Inspection Act Pure Food and Drug Act Aldrich-Vreeland Act Labor Anthracite Coal Miner Strike Big Business Elkins and Heburn Acts Northern Securities Good Trust/Bad Trust Environment National Park Land MURM Hetch Hetchy Valley

Taft Presidency Consumers – Society Big Business Environment Labor Created 35,000 postmasters and 20,00 skilled workers in the Navy under civil service protection Department of Commerce and Labor was divided into 2 departments 8-Hour workday for government employees Consumers – Society Payne – Aldrich Tariff Act Children’s Bureau 16th Amendment – (income tax) 17th Amendment – (senate elections) Big Business Mann – Elkins Act 99 trust busts – prosecutions – including the sugar trust Environment Put more land into conservation than TR

Wilson – “New Freedom” Consumers Labor Big Business Civil Liberties Federal Reserve Bank Federal Trade Commission Labor Federal Farm Loan Board Clayton Anti-Trust Act Adamson Act – 8-Hour workday for RR workers Big Business Underwood Simmons Act (lowering tariffs to stop monopolies) Civil Liberties War Industries Board Committee on Public Information Espionage & Sedition Acts

Evaluation of Progressives Weaknesses of Reform Material progress of Americans weakened zeal of reformers Myriad of Progressive goals were often confusing and contradictory Opposition to Progressivism apparent as initiatives failed and courts struck down legislation Government remained mainly under the influence of business and industry WWI – use of government to create a just society lessens Accomplishments Trust-busting forced industrialists to notice public opinion Legislation gave federal and state government the tools to protect consumers Income tax helped build government revenues and redistribute wealth Challenged traditional institutions and approaches to domestic problems Evaluation of Progressives

Those not helped Immigration restriction or literacy tests Little was done to help migrant farmers or renter farmers or nonunion workers Immigration restriction or literacy tests Imperialism policies to “civilize” underdeveloped nations African Americans and Jim Crow segregation situations Support of women’s suffrage