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A New Era: The 1920s

A New Era: The 1920s. “My candle burns at both ends; It will not last the night; But ah, my foes, and oh my friends- It gives a lovely light! Edna St. Vincent Millay, “First Fig,” 1920. Republican Control.

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A New Era: The 1920s

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  1. A New Era: The 1920s “My candle burns at both ends; It will not last the night; But ah, my foes, and oh my friends- It gives a lovely light! Edna St. Vincent Millay, “First Fig,” 1920

  2. Republican Control • When men, as well as women, went to the polls in November 1920, just two years after the armistice ended World War I, they voted overwhelmingly for a “return to normalcy” under Republican Warren G. Harding. • Through the 1920s, three Republican presidents would control the executive branch. Congress too was solidly Republican through a decade in which business boomed, while farmers and unions struggled.

  3. Mixed Economic Development • The decade began with a brief post-war recession, entered a lengthy period of business prosperity, and ended in economic disaster - the nation’s worst stock market crash. • During the boom years, unemployment was under 4%. The standard of living for most Americans improved significantly. • The prosperity, however, was for from universal. During the 1920s, as many as 40% of American families had incomes in the poverty range. • Farmers particularly suffered under Republican administrations which refused to grant them aid.

  4. President Warren G. Harding • When the Republican National Convention was deadlocked in 1920, the party bosses decided in a smoke-filled room to deliver the nomination to Harding as a compromise choice. • He appoints Food Administration leader Herbert Hoover as Secretary of Commerce. • He appoints former President Taft as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. • The one surprise of his presidency was the pardoning of Socialist Eugene Debs and winning his release from federal prison. Debs had been convicted of violating the Espionage Act during the war.

  5. President Harding - Domestic Policy • President Harding signed into law several important pieces of legislation sent to him from a Republican-controlled Congress: • A reduction in the income tax. • Fordney-Mc Cumber Tariff Act of 1922, which increased tariff rates. • Establishment of the Bureau of the Budget – which would create an annual budget on which Congress could review, debate, and vote.

  6. “I can take care of my enemies all right, but…” • Curiously, President Harding’s post-war presidency closely resembled that of President Grant during Reconstruction. • In 1924, Congress discovered that Secretary of the Interior Albert B. Fall had accepted bribes for granting oil leases near Teapot Dome, Wyoming. • Attorney General Harry Daugherty also took bribes to not prosecute certain criminal suspects in the Teapot Dome Scandal. • President Harding died while travelling out West in 1923 and, like President Grant, was never implicated in any of the scandals.

  7. Governor Coolidge • As Governor of Massachusetts, Coolidge: • supported wages and hours legislation • opposed child labor • imposed economic controls during World War I • favored safety measures in factories • favored worker representation on corporate boards. • Had a dynamic understanding of federalism…

  8. President Calvin Coolidge • President Harding’s Vice-President “Silent Cal” had won popularity by breaking the Boston police strike as governor of Massachusetts. • Commenting on why silence was good in politics he said… “If you don’t say anything, you won’t be called on to repeat it.” • Unemployment reached unprecedented low… • President Coolidge summarized his presidency and his era in the phrase “The business of America is business,” but that’s not the whole quote…

  9. President Coolidge’s famous quote… • ... it is probable that a press which maintains an intimate touch with the business currents of the nation is likely to be more reliable than it would be if it were a stranger to these influences. After all, the chief business of the American people is business. They are profoundly concerned with buying, selling, investing and prospering in the world. • President Calvin Coolidge's address to the American Society of Newspaper Editors, Washington D.C., January 25, 1925.

  10. President Calvin Coolidge • Thwarting a Democrat attempt to use Teapot Dome against Coolidge, the Republicans overwhelmingly nominated the incumbent for office in 1924. • It is important to note that in the election of 1924, a third-party progressive candidate from Wisconsin, Robert LaFollette, received nearly 5 million votes from discontented farmers and laborers. • He believed in limited government, did not allow bonuses for WWI veterans, and vetoed the McNary-Haugen Bill of 1928 twice... “Farmers never have made much money. I do not believe there is much we can do about it.” • Decides to not seek a second term…

  11. President Hoover • Answer the following questions for class tomorrow (pgs. 757-768): • Describe Hoover’s political experience prior to the presidency. • For what reasons did Republican Herbert Hoover defeat Democrat Alfred E. Smith in 1928? • Identify the following: Agricultural Marketing Act, Hawley-Smoot Tariff, Federal Farm Board, Black Tuesday, speculation, foreclosure, and “Hoovervilles.” • Read “Examining the Evidence,” analyze the cartoon on pg. 765, and answer the questions. • Why did President Hoover veto the Muscle-Shoals Bill? • What was the RFC? What line did the president draw concerning government assistance? • Contrast President Hoover’s and President Roosevelt’s dealings with the Bonus Army in Washington. • What was the Stimson Doctrine? Did it work?

  12. The 1920s “Bull” Market • Auto factories, glassworks, tire manufacturers and other complementary industries • New industries… movies, radio, finance, and telephones • All required electricity – in 1899 electrical motors accounted for 5% of all horsepower – by 1929, they accounted for 80% • 7.5 million radio sets by 1928 • Professional advertising was $350 million industry in mid-1920s • Margin buying in 1921=$1 billion and by 1928=$8 billion • 1900 15% American families owned stock and by 1929 over 28% held stock

  13. The 1920s “Bull” Market/ Crash • One analysis of Americans buying at least 50 shares of utilities stock revealed: • In order… housekeepers, clerks, factory workers, merchants, chauffeurs and drivers, electricians, mechanics, and foremen. • By 1928, American homes had: 15 million irons, 6.8 million vacuum cleaners, 5 million washers, 4.5 million toasters, and 750,000 refrig. • Stock Market Crashes on October 29, 1929 • “Black Tuesday” – 16,410,030 shares of stock sold – record held 40 yrs. • Stockholders lost $40 billion in less than two months • Hawley-Smoot Tariff Act – signed into law June 17, 1930 • President Hoover had made a campaign promise… • Opposed the bill… "vicious, extortionate, and obnoxious!“ • Signed it into law under pressure from big business Republicans • U.S. imports from Europe decreased - 1929 = $1,334 million to $390 million during 1932 • U.S. exports to Europe decreased from $2,341 million in 1929 to $784 million in 1932.

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