1. Politics in:
Chapter 7, Section 3

2. Gilded Age Era of corruption (1860s – 1890s)
Term coined by Mark Twain in the satirical novel, The Gilded Age, that examined wealth and politics
Twain compared politics at this time was like a gilded object – cheap material with a glittering gold surface.
Politicians tried to appear good, but scandal and corruption shocked voters.

3. Vocabulary
Political machine
Corruption
Civil service
Graft
patronage

4. Political Machine
Political Machine: well-organized political parties that ran city governments in the United States
Mainly in larger cities — Boston, Chicago, New York City
Politicians joined political machines in order to get elected, though it meant they then owed favors to the political machine.

5. Vocab:
Corruption: dishonest or illegal behavior by those in power, typically involving bribery or abuse of their power
Civil service: the non-elected jobs in government; examples include tax collection, postal service
Graft: abuse of political power for personal gain (bribery, kickback etc)
Patronage: giving civil service jobs in the government to friends or political supporters as payback

6. Impact of Urbanization
The rapid growth of urban populations during the late 1800s created new challenges for governments like:
increased demand on services like fire departments, police and sanitation and the expansion or new construction of bridges, schools, streets, and sewer systems.
In some cities, political machines develop to solve these problems

7. Political Boss – controls the political machine
Ward Bosses – run large sections of the city
Precinct Captain – run neighborhoods
Precinct Workers
Citizens / voters

8. The Role of the Political Boss
Political Boss: managed the machine and ran the city to the machine’s benefit; made deals with business leaders.
The boss controlled city jobs, city offices, business licenses, courts, and precinct captains, aldermen, and council members who helped keep the machine running.

9. Political Boss (Cont.) James Michael Curley, Boston
Examples of City "Bosses" and their political machines
James Michael Curley, Boston
Richard J. Daley, Chicago
Tom L. Johnson, Cleveland
William Tweed, New York City

10. Immigrant Voters
The real strength of the machine was the relationship between precinct captains and voters – many of which were recent immigrants
By offering jobs, housing, help in naturalization, political favors, and donating money for schools, hospitals, orphanages, the precinct captain bought support for the political machine at election time.
In return for favors, citizens voted the way the political machine wanted

11. Machines and Immigrants
Representatives of the machine would meet immigrants as soon as they arrived in the US
For example, Tammany Hall sent party workers to Ellis Island to recruit
Immigrants sometimes became members of political machines, serving as officeholders, organizers, and representatives.

14. Election Fraud
Machines had to maintain control over elections to maintain influence
When favors were not enough, they used fraud:
Election fraud: voters were encouraged and rewarded for voting more than once.
They hired men to vote as different people by changing clothing and even facial hair in the process; they even had men vote as a recently deceased person

15. Graft
Graft – getting money or power through illegal or dishonest methods
Politicians often received bribes, payoffs, or kickbacks – payments of part of the earning from a job or contract –
Paid when business owners lobbied to provide public services for a city.
Bribes to allow illegal activities
“Cooking the books” overcharging the city by employee who received jobs from political boss

16. Examples of Graft
Chicago: railroad company paid $25,000 for city decisions that would grant it special privileges
New York: George Plunkitt of Tammany Hall would get “tipped off” to purchase land that was planned for development, before this was publicly known, and then he could sell it at a significant profit

17. Tammany Hall
Tammany Hall: New York City’s powerful Democratic Party political machine
Named for the building
played a major role in New York City politics 1790s s

18. THE TWEED RING William Tweed (“Boss Tweed”) ran Tammany Hall
Tweed and his ring of supporters used power to gain bribes and kickbacks
Tweed Ring got more than $200 million in graft between 1865 and 1871
Example: The New York City courthouse should have cost $3 million to construct, after graft it cost $11 million.

19. Downfall of Tweed Ring
Corruption revealed in a series of political cartoons drawn by Thomas Nast
Led to Tweed’s indictment and arrest for fraud in 1871.
Tweed said, “I don’t care so much what the papers write about me. My constituents can’t read but they can see pictures.”

20. Tweed escaped and fled to Spain
He was a fugitive there for a year until he was recognized because of a Nast cartoon

21. Thomas Nast: influential political cartoonist in the late 1800s
Created many now-common caricatures including Uncle Sam, the Democratic donkey, and the Republican elephant