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In the nineteenth century, America seemed like a dreamland full of opportunity to millions who no longer seeked optimism in their homeland. As cities grew larger and a wave of immigrants poured into the U.S., the population increased, and economic problems grew rapidly. Political machines organized a new form of government management for economic stability. To provide social services to the growing population and jobs in exchange for votes, political machines began to dominate the United States government policies. The emergence of political machines brought corruption to every region of the nation. The sole purpose of political machines in the nineteenth century was to transform the life of the city, state, and nation through corruption. (Baker …show more content…
40) In the late 1800s, the United States government was inefficient and unstable, with increasing numbers of immigrants, a new power structure was formed and the political bosses climbed their way to the top of it. The new form of power initiated the political machines. Starting in the 1850s, the most powerful figure in the history was formed called Tammany Hall. Tammany Hall started out as a meeting place in 1788 for the Democratic party, but soon enough the words “Tammany Hall” became more than just a place. “It was the powerful machine reaching far beyond the influence of life” (Golway 33). William Magear, known as “Boss” Tweed, became the leader of New York City’s corruption of Tammany Hall by controlling New York City economically and stealing millions of dollars from its residents. He began in the U.S. House of Representatives in 1853 and continued in office until 1867. By the late 1860s, Boss Tweed awakened to the top position of his career by dominating the government. Tweed accumulated a fortune estimating between forty-five million to two-hundred million dollars. He was later convicted of forgery and sent to jail in 1873.Though most people viewed this corruption as necessity in the fast-growing, modern, industrial cities, corruption obtained to be a scandal by providing favors to bosses not to society. (“William Marcy (“Boss”) Tweed”) Out of the mist of chaos, a new group of members arose and defined Tammany Hall members as the “Tweed Ring.” The Tweed Ring was formed to encourage corruption and openly dominate New York City politics that controlled activities of the political parties.
In exchange for political or financial support, the Tweed Ring extracted millions of city contracts in New York City. “The Tweed Ring reached its peak of fraudulence in 1871 when The New York Times exposed embezzlement of city funds by the Tweed Rings corruption” (“November 23, 1876: “Boss”). In 1871, the Tweed Rings and Boss Tweed were both tried and sentenced to prison. The downfall of Tammany Hall began in the early 1900s when Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal came into play. Political Machines were beneficial to society's income but they resulted in negative consequences and long lasting economic problems. With new modernized technology, the effectiveness of Tammany Hall became ineffective. The urban political boss of America will forever be known as ”Boss Tweed.” Though corruption arose from the effects of Tammany Hall, it defined a point in history as the basic democratic system regardless of the world’s restored government system. (O’Toole …show more content…
33) Political machines transformed society by promoting increasingly economic stability by insuring jobs to immigrants and corrupting the United States government. Political machines dominated political life in cities reaching far beyond New York City. The influence political machines had on society affected the way of life of all citizens. People who before were unemployed now had jobs making the economy boom. The decades between the Civil War (1861-1865) and the Great Depression (1930s) defined the time political machines monopolized society. In exchange for votes, immigrants were granted jobs. The political bosses formulated a plan that regulated immigrants rights as citizens but was still in the boss's favor. “The scheme of political corruption was covered up by the fact that it provided a career for the millions of immigrants who were unable to get an education” (Baker 40). This political power granted relief to the poor and immigrants, which gave them a virtuous voice to vote. The political power given to the bosses granted them exceeding power over not only immigrants but society. “I don’t care who does the electing, so long as I get to do the nominating,” Boss Tweed (Tuckel 99). Tammany Hall defined Modern American politics in the 1800s, but those politics seem much less “modern” the further we progress into the present century.
The emerging mass culture took a toll on Tammany Hall's effectiveness. Newspapers and freedom of press is what strived Tammany Hall and sought new ideas for political corruption. Though Tammany Hall was corrupt in various ways, the country suffered a loss because there is no longer a time when all citizens can gather to participate in public democracy services. “Effective political organizing today is done through electronic and social media, not through the face-to-face contact on which all of the Hall’s success depended” (O’Toole 33). This had an effect on how freedom of press was initiated and the influence it had on society. (O’Toole
33) Many of the new indigenous, racial, and social emergence have brought about the possibility for advanced political machines. Many conspiracies determine that political machines no longer exist;however, the diverse American heritage and industry thrive on political machines still today. In the 1800s, the U.S. government was inefficient and unstable which lead to a new system for the growth of the United States. The new system called for a new way to manage economic income by creating political machines. Today our government still relies on political machines;however, the corruption of political machines is not in effect. Even though a portion of the political machines income was beneficial to society, negative consequences still arose and corrupted the idea of political machines. In an effort to cure the development of American society during the great spurt of industrial growth, the progressive movement was created in the last quarter of the nineteenth century. “Progressivism desired to remove corruption and undue influence from government through the taming of bosses and political machines” (“The Progressive Movement”). The Progressive Movement was mainly generated by muckrakers, minded American journalists who attacked leaders as corrupt, to influence society by publishing writings on detailed horrors of poverty, child labor , and other illnesses based on their opinion of social problems. The rise of the muckrakers and many reformers resulted in many successes. Beginning with the Interstate Commerce Act in 1887, to help America's economy The Interstate Commerce Act went into effect as a federal law that regulated industry and outlawed monopolistic practices. Likewise, in 1890, the Sherman Antitrust Act outlawed monopolistic businesses. Progressive reformers responded to economic instability, social, and political corruption by calling for government intervention in the economy. Because of these reforms in the progressive movement, these effects are still in action today and the government's role is initiated thoroughly. (“The Progressive Movement, Hillstorm L. 69”) Political machines helped shaped the economy of the U.S. by continued the growth of large corporations. The machines transformed American society and the nation’s economy by promoting economic growth to large and small businesses. As the business cycle fluctuations became increasingly severe, the machines affected the economy's stability. The debate of the proper degree of government activism sought to define the government's international role. As economic growth continued, the creation of a new stronger financial regulatory system was needed. Today, government regulations on industries are strict and define the point of corruption. No longer do monopolies in industry or political bosses rule over the government. (Baker 40) In conclusion, the rapid industrialization of both urban and rural areas lead to opportunities calling for early political machines that influenced society greatly. Many government officials and city residents struggled to keep up with the demands of the expanding economic demands in the nineteenth century. Leading to a fertile bleeding ground for corruption, bosses easily monopolized industry and corrupted the city and later the nation. Political machines also focused on personal incomes and provided services that were necessary to aid to the city’s poor and immigrant growing population. This dependence on political machines made these bosses have government control. Without the political machine, most of society would not have survived in the nineteenth century. The machines and the leaders hold an important role in American history despite the corruption the machines caused. Political machines are still in effect today and will continue to be present today, tomorrow, and forever apart of American history.
The reform movement is typically framed as a progressive achievement in improving corrupt governments that were commonplace in many cities during the time period covered in this chapter, but it ...
During the Gilded Age—a period that began in the 1870s wherein the United States experienced tremendous economic growth—affluent industrialists such as John D. Rockefeller, Andrew W. Mellon, Cornelius Vanderbilt, J.P. Morgan, and Andrew Carnegie exercised, owing in large part to their wealth, enormous influence over the direction of American politics. Though left unaddressed during the Gilded Age, the issue of corporate involvement in political affairs was eventually identified as a corrosive problem in President Theodore Roosevelt’s 1904 State of the Union address. In his address, Roosevelt asserted that corporate spending in federal elections had the potential to engender corruption—or the appear...
Individuals like Boss Tweed seized and controlled entire cities. William M. Tweed was a politician who controlled New York City's political network through illegal subsidization for political support and affiliation with city gangs. From his headquarters at Tammany Hall and his position in the United States House of Representatives, he was able to orchestrate elections, cultivate support, and establish the New York County Courthouse, funded by the profits of the Tweed Ring (“William Magear Tweed”) . His accomplishments were made possible by the chaotic shambling of desperate people who had no choice but to submit to his demands, in hopes of alleviating themselves from their dire circumstances. Tweed was only one of many corrupt political figures who used their power and influence to accumulate wealth, and vice versa. By the mid 20th century, the scale and prominence of corruption had increased dramatically, due to the widespread transition to vast urban cities and industrialized systems. The greed and desperation that resulted from the shift towards industrialism accelerated the growth of corruption in
With this power came leniency for the men and Tweed began to use this power to gain personal wealth. Tweed accomplished this when he made business for the city. For example, “Tweed allowed the contractors to overcharge the city for their work as long as the suppliers ‘kicked back’ a portion of their illicit profits to him” (Anbinder, 2010), as well as Hall, Sweeny, and Connolly. Tweed and these men were nicknamed the Tweed ring, known for their illicit acts against the city (Hirsch, 1945, p.
During the 1800’s, business leaders who built their affluence by stealing and bribing public officials to propose laws in their favor were known as “robber barons”. J.P. Morgan, a banker, financed the restructuring of railroads, insurance companies, and banks. In addition, Andrew Carnegie, the steel king, disliked monopolistic trusts. Nonetheless, ruthlessly destroying the businesses and lives of many people merely for personal profit; Carnegie attained a level of dominance and wealth never before seen in American history, but was only able to obtain this through acts that were dishonest and oftentimes, illicit.
The political scene of New York was altered greatly as a result of the Triangle Fire. Still dominated by the machine-boss system, New York was prime example of graft and corruption of politicians. Tammany Hall still reigned supreme, even after the fall of Boss Tweed in the 1870s, and a man named Charles Murphy headed it. In 1909, when workers at the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory went on strike, owners Max Blanck and Isaac Harris used the police and gangsters to get the strikers to give up their cause. The suppliers of these corrupt office...
During the Gilded Age, several Americans emerged as leaders in many fields such as, railroads, oil drilling, manufacturing and banking. The characterization of these leaders as “robber barons” is, unfortunately, nearly always correct in every instance of business management at this time. Most, if not all, of these leaders had little regard for the public or laborers at all and advocated for the concentration of wealth within tight-knit groups of wealthy business owners.
After the soaring ideals and tremendous sacrifices of the Civil War, the post-War era of the United States was generally one of political disillusionment. Even as the continent expanded and industrialized, political life in the Gilded Age was marked by ineptitude and stalemate as passive, rather than active, presidents merely served as figureheads to be manipulated rather than enduring strongholds. As politicians from both the White House to the courthouse were deeply entangled in corruption and scandal during the Gilded Age, the actual economic and social issues afflicting urbanizing America festered beneath the surface without being seriously addressed.
The growth of large corporations had impacted American politics by causing governmental corruption because of the power some industries had in society. Since the government had used laissez faire in the late 1800s for the big businesses to...
Following the years of Congressional Reconstruction during the Johnson administration, former Union General Ulysses S. Grant was elected president, despite his lack of political experience. Although Grant was an excellent soldier, he proved to be an insufficient politician, failing to respond effectively to rampant corruption throughout his two terms in office. Both government and businesses were plagued by corrupt schemes, as Republican leaders used the spoils system to gain political favors and “robber barons,” such as Jay Gould and James Fisk, stole large sums of money at the public’s expense. New York Mayor William “Boss” Tweed, leader of the “Tammany Hall” political machine, took advantage of the influx of immigrants to the United States by manipulating newly arrived immigrants, promising employment, housing, and other favors in return for their electoral support. This blatant corruption severely damaged the opinions of many Americans regarding their government, and prompted the election of numerous reform-minded politicians. Rutherford B. Hayes and James Garfield both attempted to restore honest government following the tainted Grant administration, yet political divisions between the “Halfbreed” and “Stalwart” factions of the Republican Party prev...
enough votes to maintain control over the community. Political machines were able to restructure the city governments; they also resulted in poorer services, corruption and aggravation of the immigrants and minorities. ("Encyclopedia of American History") He was able to infiltrate Tammany Hall and bribe or smooth-talk any government official that stood in his way. Famously, Tweed is known for the construction of the New York Courthouse. It wasn't until the New York Times wrote an exposé on Boss Tweed that his grafting became publicly known and finally consequences caught up with his actions.
Political machines were supported by continuing immigration, sustained by patronage, enlarged by wealth, and in the end were weeded out by reformers progress for public rather than private good, and caused by the need for public works and skilled workers, after the population of cities expanded.
There are thousands of years of history that have taken place. History is not like art(less subjective), but there is still plenty of room for speculation, criticism, and debate among historians, professors, as well as average citizens. However, not all these moments are documented, or done successfully specifically. Some of these moments end up becoming movies, books, or even historical fiction novels, but what about those fundamental moments that aren’t readily documented? In the book The Birth of Modern Politics Lynn Hudson Parsons claims that the 1828 election was momentous in the history of both political history, as well as our nation. Parsons not only discusses the behind the scenes of the first public election of 1828, but the pivotal events in Andrew Jackson and John Quincy Adams’ lives leading up to the election as well. Parsons succeeds in proving her thesis that the 1828 election was crucial to American politics as we know it today, as well as provoking evidence from various sources with her own logic and opinions as well.
The New Deal period has generally - but not unanimously - been seen as a turning point in American politics, with the states relinquishing much of their autonomy, the President acquiring new authority and importance, and the role of government in citizens' lives increasing. The extent to which this was planned by the architect of the New Deal, Franklin D. Roosevelt, has been greatly contested, however. Yet, while it is instructive to note the limitations of Roosevelt's leadership, there is not much sense in the claims that the New Deal was haphazard, a jumble of expedient and populist schemes, or as W. Williams has put it, "undirected". FDR had a clear overarching vision of what he wanted to do to America, and was prepared to drive through the structural changes required to achieve this vision.
The very history of the country, a major contributor to the evolution of its political culture, shows a legacy of democracy that reaches from the Declaration of Independence through over two hundred years to today’s society. The formation of the country as a reaction to the tyrannical rule of a monarchy marks the first unique feature of America’s democratic political culture. It was this reactionary mindset that greatly affected many of the decisions over how to set up the new governmental system. A fear of simply creating a new, but just as tyrannic...