HIST 106 2nd Edition Lecture 11 Outline of Last Lecture I Context II Encountering exotic cultures III Initial imperialist ventures IV The Spanish American Cuban Filipino war of 18989 V Critics of American imperialism Outline of Current Lecture I Protecting Big Business II Battle Of Standards And The 96 Election Current Lecture PROTECTING BIG BUSINESS 1894 1400 strikes greatest number of strike in one year Cleveland had no response but just used violence to squash their protests Conservative Court o Supreme court 1895 strengthen bond between business and government o Pullman Strike Injunctions became a major weapon for the courts Cleveland Corporate Puppet o Callous treatment of strikers o Silver Democrats condemned Cleveland for giving in to public interest Consequences o Cleveland sucked at financial o Borrowed money from Wall Street benefitted big bankers o Seemed that Cleveland voters made the party pay o Governments unpopular actions depression alienated farmers and workers o In election of 94 Democrats lost the greatest number of seats in American history o Populist made huge gains in the South o Republicans gained control of Congress and state across the north and the west o All 3 parties began planning for the presidential election of 96 BATTLE OF STANDARDS AND THE 96 ELECTION Many Southern and Western Democrats wanted to distance themselves from Cleveland William McKinly Gov of OHIO appeared as a frontrunner o High tariff platform o Endorsed the gold standard o Prompting several western siver repubs to leave party o Demo Convention supporters of the gold started learned that they were a minority Bryan and Silverites o Repudiated Cleveland o Income tax o Tighter regulation of railroads o Sounded like the Populist o Wiliam Jennings Bryan gave a speech and nominated DEMO Populists Predicament o Undercut their votes by Demos because Demos modified their platform o Bryan encouraged them to support him o Losing the identity that they so strived to achieve o Reluctantly endorsed Bryan for President Money and the Media o Standard oil gave 250 000 to o McKinley used these funds to organize shifted emphasis from parades to information o 250 million campaign documets o Republicans were aided by an actual press that were so sympathetic to McKinleys position distorted their news stories to Bryans disadvantage Oratory s Limitations o Spoke hundreds of times o Money versus Speaking o Bunch of voters o McKinley got East and the Midwest o Bryan got the South and some of the plain states 1896 Fallout o Democrats disenfranchisement laws o Silver Tide in the West got a bunch of populists in West o 1897 Populist dissolve Historical Ironies o McKinley plunged into presidency tariff protection sound money and overseas expansion o Shape public opinion o Actually went to Congress and made speeches o First Modern President o Promised prosperity and it returned not because for the record high tariffs o Currency Act of 1900 established the gold standard o Monetary inflation o New gold deposits in Alaska o Ne inflation was massively greater with gold than it was with silver Easily won reelection beating WJB again
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