City%20Politics

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City Politics

• The Machine

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City Machines?

• Political Machines existed since the beginning of
  the 19th century when they played a role in the
  split of the Democratic Party of Andrew Jacksons
  tenure in office.
• Political Machines offered services to voters and
  businesses in exchange for political supportthey
  also intimidated ignorant immigrants.

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How does the machine work?

• Hierarchy Precinct captains?ward bosses?city
  bossthey controlled access to city jobs,
  business licenses, and influenced city courts and
  municipal agencies.
• Although these machine members were second or
  third generation immigrants themselves, they may
  not help fellow immigrants that do not support
  them.

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The Machine and the Immigrant

• Machines also gave money toward the construction
  of hospitals and schools tooand assisted in the
  naturalization of immigrants, as well as assisted
  in the finding of jobs and housing for
  immigrants. 
• Politics of the time mirrored the business
  community of the Gilded AgeSocial Darwinism.

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What do historians think?

• Historian Alan Dawleys Struggles Social
  Responsibility and the Liberal State he states
  ?To the orthodox mind of the Gilded Age, the
  fact that wage earners teetered on the brink of
  poverty was a sign of their moral depravity.
  Combing the Puritan work ethic of individual
  salvation witheconomics, Protestant economic
  doctrine held that responsibility for poverty lay
  not with the business cyclebut with the moral
  failure of the poor themselves to conduct proper
  family economy.?

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Famous Machines?

• The political machines, especially in New York,
  led by Boss Tweed, made graft, the illegal use of
  political influence for personal gain.
• EX A machine may hire a contractor, the
  contractor would then overcharge for a city
  project, and then the contractor would then
  kickback money to the machine.

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Boss Tweed

• Between 1869 and 1871, Boss Tweed (a Democrat)
  led the corrupt Tweed Ring and also headed
  Tammany Hall, the Democratic mouthpiece in New
  York. They specialized in the graft/kickback
  game.
• One scheme had Tammany constructing the New York
  County Courthouse for 13 million dollars, but the
  bill actually cost 3 millionrest went to Tweed.

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Thomas Nast

• Thomas Nast helped to break this Tweed Ring by
  publishing cartoons depicting Tweed as a corrupt
  politician and inciting public outrage.
• In general, Nast was well known in his time for
  his political cartoons supporting American
  Indians, Chinese Americans and advocating
  abolition of slavery.
• Tweed was eventually arrestedand city corruption
  became a national issue.

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National Politics

• Since Andrew Jackson patronage dominated national
  politicspatronage is the giving of government
  jobs to people who helped a candidate get elected
  (today we call it cronyism).
• Andrew Jackson called patronage the spoils system
  in politics.

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Political Reformism

• Push for meritocracy and reform led to the
  Republican Rutherford B. Hayes backing through
  appointments and commissions a more balanced less
  partisan cabinet.
• WHY?
• To extinguish corruption in local and national
  government.
• ?Hayes angered Republicans by firing of two top
  officials at a New York customs house.  
• ?James Garfield and his VP Chester A. Arthur (the
  first a reformer, the second a Stalwart (or
  someone whom liked the spoils system).
• ?Hayes ended up supporting reform under
  Garfields leadership. This led to Garfields
  shooting by Charles Guiteau (a Stalwart lawyer
  turned down for an appointment)
• in 1881.

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More Political Reforms?

• Surprisingly, Arthur continues in Garfields
  footsteps and reforms Civil Service through the
  Pendleton Civil Service Act (1883), making the
  system more a meritocracy then before.