Twenties Domestic Affairs
America of the 1920s was a period of prosperity as well as industrial and technological growth. With the recent end of World War I, Americans yearned for a return to "normalcy" and political leaders that could provide it, thus turning to the leadership of Warren G. Harding.
Election of 1920: candidates, issues, vice-presidential candidates: The democrats nominated James M. Cox and Franklin D. Roosevelt for his running mate. Republicans chose Senator Warren G. Harding of Ohio and Governor Calvin Coolidge of Massachusetts. Harding sensed popular longing for calm and won in a landslide victory.
Normalcy: Coined by Warren G. Harding in an address before the Home Market Club on May 14,1920 in Boston, this term came to symbolize, to powerful businessmen, the immediate abandonment of the foreign and domestic policies of Wilson. This meant a return to high protective tariffs and a reduction in taxes.
Sheppard-Towner Act: Lobbying for child-labor laws as well as worker protection for women and support for education by the Women’s Joint Congressional Committee resulted in the Sheppard-Towner Act of 1921. This act provided $1.2 million for prenatal and baby-care centers in rural areas.
Esch-Cummins Transportation Act: Also known as the Transportation Act of 1920, this act allowed the government to take over the railroads from Dec 26, 1917 until Mar 1, 1920. They were forced to carry heavy traffic while ignoring maintenance. The result was the Act of Feb 28, 1920 and attempted to insure the operation of the railroads.
Immigration Acts 1921, 1924, quota system: In 1921 Congress limited annual immigration to about 350,000 people annually. In 1924, they limited the number to 164,000 people annually. This also restricted immigration to 2% of the total number of people who lived in the U.S. from their respective country since 1890 and completely rejected the immigration of Asians. The intent of these provisions was to reduce the immigration of foreign people in the United States.
KKK revival: A KKK was an organization founded in Pulaski, Tennessee in 1866. Nathan Bedford Forrest served as the first Grand Wizard for this organization. They aimed to destroy radical political power and establish white supremacy in the U.S. They were formally disbanded in 1869, but then it was revived in 1915, led by William J. Simmons.
Harding scandals: Charles Forbes, Harry Daugherty, Sceretary of Interior Fall, Teapot Dome, Harry Sinclair: Forbes, director of the Veteran’s Bureau, in 1924, was exposed and convicted of stealing funds from it for personal economic growth. Daugherty, appointed attorney general, was forced from office in 1924 after receiving payments from violators of prohibition. Fall leased government oil reserves in 1921 to Sinclair, president of the Mammoth Oil Company. All suspects evaded prosecution.
Harding, Warren G.: Although Harding lacked the qualifications for presidency, his ordinary, friendly manner and advocacy of a return to "normalcy" resulted in a landslide vicotry in the election of 1920. Unfortunately, his administration was full of scandals and on Aug 2, 1923, Harding died in San Francisco of a heart attack.
Coolidge, Calvin: Harding’s death brought vice president Coolidge to the presidency, where his silences became legendary. As president, he held an antipathy to progressivism, believed the government had no obligation in protecting citizens against natural disasters, and warned of "the tyranny of bureaucratic regulation and control."
Taft, Chief Justice William Howard: Taft was appointed by President Harding in 1921. Under his jurisdiction, the Supreme Court overturned many progressive reform measures that were opposed by popular business interests. An example of this was the 1919 federal law imposing taxes on the products of child labor that he overturned.
Conference for Progressive Political Action, 1922 (CPPA): A committee designed to revive the practices of the progressive era, the CPPA adopted policies of pro-labor, pro-farmer, and government ownership of railroads and utilities such as telephones and electricity. It helped defeat the conservative Republican candidates in 1924.
Bureau of the Budget: Created by the Budget and Accounting Act on June 10, 1921, this act provided for the Bureau to be located in the treasury department with the director appointed by the president. The Bureau provided for a more efficient management of the budget within the treasury department.
Mellon, Secretary of Treasury tax cuts: Mellon was the secretary of the treasury under Harding, Coolidge, and Hoover. Under his administration, Congress lowered the income tax rates for the wealthy. Mellon also succeeded in balancing the budget every year from 1921 to 1928.
Norris, Senator George, Muscle Shoals: Norris successfully prevented President Coolidge from selling a federal hydroelectric facility at Muscle Shoals, Alabama to auto-maker Henry Ford for only a portion of the value of the land. He also helped reject further tax cuts for the rich.
election of 1924: candidates, Robert La Follette, Progressive Party: CPPA delegates revived the Progressive Party at the meeting in Cleveland in July of 1924 and nominated Robert La Follette for president; the Socialist party and AFL supported this nomination, also. The Democratic Party nominated John W. Davis, a compromise candidate. The Republicans nominated Coolidge, who won with 54% of the vote.
McNary-Haugen Bill, vetoes: The veto of the McNary-Haugen Bill by Coolidge reflected a fear of "the tyranny of bureaucratic regulation." He denounced the bill as an unconstitutional scheme because it would benefit American agriculture at the expense of the general public’s welfare.
Federal Farm Board: This action was a result of Hoover’s response towards the problems faced by agriculture. He secured the passage of legislation that established the Board to Promote Cooperative Commodity Marketing. By doing so he was permitted to raise farm prices while still preserving the voluntarist principle.
Election of 1928: candidates, personalities, backgrounds: Candidates Al Smith and Herbert Hoover represented the social and cultural differences of the 1920s. Smith was the Democratic candidate with the experience of being the governor of NY. Hoover was an inexperienced candidate that had never sought a public office before, yet he won.
Prohibition: Prohibition was first an issue before World War I. Progressives saw it as a way to deal with the social problems associated with alcoholism. Congress submitted the 18th amendment prohibiting the manufacture, sale, or transportation of alcoholic liquors in 1917. However, closet manufacturing of alcoholic beverages and a rise in criminal activities within the cities due to illegal importation of alcohol led to its repeal with the 21st amendment in 1933.
Volstead Act, Al Capone: The Volstead Act of 1919 established the Prohibition Bureau within the Treasury Department, but it lacked financial stability and was ineffective. Capone was a mob king in Chicago who controlled a large network of speakeasies with enormous profits; his illegal activities convey the failure of prohibition in the twenties.
Sacco and Vanzetti Case: On Apr 15, 1920 two robbers killed a clerk and stole money from a shoe factory in South Briantree, Massachusetts. Nicola Sacco and Bartholomeo Vanzetti were arrested and both were charged with the robbery and the murder. The jury found them both guilty. Both men died in the electric chair on Aug 23, 1927.
Leopold and Loeb Case: The case in 1924 involved the murder of a young boy by two rich and intelligent college students. This case has been referred to for its moral lesson on human nature. It also shows that not only famous cases have been products of social developments; Americans responded to criminal cases also.
fundamentalists, Billy Sunday, Aimee Semple McPherson: During the twenties, Protestants who insisted on the divinity of the Bible, were angered by the theory of evolution. Fundamentalist legislatures even introduced bills to prohibit the teaching of evolution in schools. An evangelist, Billy Sunday’s most famous quote reads, "If you turn hell upside down you will find ‘Made in Germany’ stamped on the bottom." Evangelist McPherson used drama and theatrical talent in her sermons, winning many followers.
Scopes Trial, Clarence Darrow, William Jennings Bryan: In 1925, the Tennessee legislature outlawed the teaching of evolution in public schools. The American Civil Liberties Union volunteered to defend any teacher willing to challenge this law. William Jennings Bryan agreed to assist prosecution. Darrow was the head of ACLU’s lawyers.
