Conservapedia - User contributions [en]

Pete Wilson

2017-04-21T01:30:55Z

Teapublican: Category:RINOs

'''Pete Wilson''' (born August 23, 1933) was Mayor of [[San Diego]] (1971-1982), [[U.S. Senator]] from [[California]] (1983-1991), and the 36th Governor of [[California]] (1991-1999). He was a [[liberal]] [[Republican]] who, in the views of some, played a role in destroying the once-energetic [[conservative]] movement there and opening the door to political domination by [[liberals]] and massive emigration of [[conservatives]] and others from [[California]] to the neighboring states of [[Nevada]] and [[Arizona]].

He unsuccessfully ran for president in 1996 and endorsed [[Rudy Giuliani]] for president in 2007, before switching his endorsement to [[John McCain]] on the eve of [http://www.conservapedia.com/2008_presidential_election#Super_Tuesday:_February_5.2C_2008 Super Tuesday].

His primary [[conservative]] accomplishment was appointing [[Janice Rogers Brown]] to the California Supreme Court and ignoring [[liberal]] attempts to smear her as somehow unqualified. Judge Brown was subsequently nominated by President [[George W. Bush]] in 2003 and was confirmed by the [[U.S. Senate]], after a two-year stall by [[Democratic]] opposition, as a federal appellate judge on the [[D.C. Circuit]].

As governor, Pete Wilson also championed the cause of deregulation in the California electricity market. He succeeded when the California legislature, in 1996, passed a law requiring utility companies to purchase electricity on the market, rather than signing long-term contracts. In 2003, the Federal Energy Regulation Commission blamed the deregulation and poor control of the market for the energy crisis that occurred in California from 2000-2001.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, Pete}}
[[Category:Former United States Senators]]
[[Category:Former United States Representatives]]
[[Category:California Governors]]
[[Category:Republican Governors]]
[[Category:RINOs]]

Chicago School of Economics

2017-04-21T01:26:18Z

Teapublican: Category:Capitalism

The '''Chicago school of economics''' is known in the history of modern economic thought as a highly influential school of thought and methodology favoring free-market economics practiced at and disseminated from the [[University of Chicago]] after 1950. The leaders included [[George Stigler]], [[Milton Friedman]] and numerous other Nobel prize winners.

The school closely follows neoclassical price theory (as developed by [[Alfred Marshall]]) and [[libertarianism]]. It rejected [[Keynesianism]] in favor of Friedman's [[monetarism]], and (after 1980) later in favor of [[rational expectations]] as developed by [[Robert Lucas]]. It rejects most government regulation of business in favor of laissez-faire. In terms of methodology the stress is on "positive economics"—that is, empirically based studies using statistics, with less stress on theory and more on data. The school is noted for its very wide range of topics, from regulation to marriage, slavery and demography, that it studies.

The term "Chicago School" was coined in the 1950s to refer to economists teaching in the Economics Department at the University of Chicago, and closely related academic areas at the University such as the Graduate School of Business and the Law School. Scholars met together in frequent, highly intense discussions that helped set a group outlook on economic issues, based on price theory.

Not all economists within the Department of Economics at the University of Chicago shared the beliefs in the "Chicago school". The department has produced more [[Nobel Prize]] winners and John Bates Clark medalists in economics than any other university. Fewer than half of the professors in the economics department were considered part of the school of thought. [[Friedrich Hayek]], a Nobel prize winner who taught at Chicago, had similar ideas but was not part of the intense discussion groups that comprised the "school."

==See also==
*[[Gary S. Becker]]
*[[Ronald Coase]]
*[[Robert Fogel]]
*[[Milton Friedman]]
*[[James Heckman]]
*[[Frank Knight]]
*[[Robert E. Lucas]]
*[[Kevin M. Murphy]]
*[[Richard Posner]]
*[[Sherwin Rosen]]
*[[Theodore Schultz]]
*[[Julian Simon]]
*[[Henry Calvert Simons]]
*[[Thomas Sowell]]
*[[George Stigler]]

==Bibliography==
* Ebenstein, Alan O. ''Friedrich Hayek: A Biography'' (2001)
* Ebenstein, Alan O. ''Milton Friedman: A Biography'' (2007) [http://www.amazon.com/Milton-Friedman-Biography-Lanny-Ebenstein/dp/1403976279/ref=pd_bbs_sr_5?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1198576520&sr=8-5 excerpt and text search]
* Friedman, Milton, and Rose Friedman, ''Two Lucky People: Memoirs'' ISBN 0-226-26414-9 (1998) [http://www.amazon.com/Two-Lucky-People-Milton-Friedman/dp/0226264157/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1198576588&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
* Hammond, J. Daniel, and Claire H. Hammond, ed., ''Making Chicago Price Theory: Friedman-Stigler Correspondence, 1945-1957''. Routledge (2006). 165 pp. ISBN 0-415-70078-7.
* Kasper, Sherryl. ''The Revival of Laissez-Faire in American Macroeconomic Theory: A Case Study of Its Pioneers'' (2002). Covers Knight, Simon, Hayek, Friedman and Lucas.
* Leeson, Robert. ''The Eclipse of Keynesianism: The Political Economy of the Chicago Counter-Revolution'' (2001) [http://www.amazon.com/Eclipse-Keynesianism-Political-Economy-Counter-Revolution/dp/0312235755/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1198576440&sr=8-6 excerpt and text search]
* Miller, H. Laurence, Jr. "On the 'Chicago School of Economics'", ''The Journal of Political Economy,'' Vol. 70, No. 1 (Feb., 1962), pp. 64–69 [http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0022-3808(196202)70%3A1%3C64%3AOT%22SOE%3E2.0.CO%3B2-C online in JSTOR]
* Nelson, Robert H. ''Economics As Religion: From Samuelson to Chicago and Beyond'' (2001) [http://www.amazon.com/Economics-As-Religion-Samuelson-Chicago/dp/0271022841/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1198576182&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Pressman, Steven. ''Fifty Major Economists'' (2006), includes Friedman, Becker, Lucas; [http://www.amazon.com/Fifty-Major-Economists-Routledge-Guides/dp/0415366496/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1198576247&sr=1-3 excerpt and text search]
* Reder, Melvin W. "Chicago Economics: Permanence and Change" ''Journal of Economic Literature'' (1982) 20(1): 1-38. ISSN 0022-0515 [http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0022-0515(198203)20%3A1%3C1%3ACEPAC%3E2.0.CO%3B2-P in Jstor].
* Stigler, George J. ed. ''Chicago Studies in Political Economy'' (1988)
* Stigler, George J. ''Memoirs of an Unregulated Economist'' (1988) [http://www.amazon.com/Memoirs-Unregulated-Economist-George-Stigler/dp/0226774406/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1198576121&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Overtveldt, Johan Van. ''The Chicago School: How the University of Chicago Assembled the Thinkers Who Revolutionized Economics and Business'' (2007) [http://www.amazon.com/Chicago-School-University-Assembled-Revolutionized/dp/1932841148/ref=sr_1_20?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1198575931&sr=1-20 excerpt and text search]
* Wahid, Abu N. M. ed; ''Frontiers of Economics: Nobel Laureates of the Twentieth Century.'' (2002) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=107166560 online edition]

==External links==
* [http://economics.uchicago.edu The University of Chicago Department of Economics]
[[Category:Economists]]
[[Category:Capitalism]]
[[Category:Libertarianism]]

Fiscal conservatism

2017-04-21T01:24:54Z

Teapublican: Category:Capitalism

'''Fiscal conservatism''' is a political position (primarily in the [[United States]]) that calls for lower levels of public spending, lower [[taxes]] and lower [[national debt|government debt]]. It is a variety of [[Conservative|conservatism]] concerned with [[economic]] rather than social issues. Fiscal conservatives oppose unnecessary government expenditures, [[deficit]]s, and government debt. They take the perspective of the present and future taxpayers, and worry about the possible burden on them. They support [[balanced budget]]s. This should be contrasted with those who believe that lower taxation will stimulate industrial development, even though it causes higher deficits.

==Ideology==
Fiscal conservatism may also support limited periods of higher taxes in order to lower the public debt. It can include any or all levels of government, federal, state and local. Fiscal conservatism is typically justified in terms of economic '''efficiency''' (it assumes the private sector is more efficient than the public sector), and in moral terms with high spending, budget deficits, and high debt seen as indicators of '''corruption'''. In opposition to corruption fiscal conservatism develops classic themes of [[republicanism]] that emerged in the era of the [[American Revolution]]. Fiscal conservatism rejects the [[Keynesian]] policy of '''deficit spending'''.<ref>Critchlow, "The Political Control of the Economy: Deficit Spending as a Political Belief, 1932-1952," (1981)</ref>

==Compare with social conservatives==
Fiscal conservatism is distinct in American politics from social conservatism, which concentrates ion issues of personal morality regarding family life, religion and sexual norms. It is closer to the [[libertarian]] approach to drastically limited government. Republicans and Democrats both make claims to fiscal conservatism, though both parties may honor its principles more in the breach than in the observance, and both use the idea as a cudgel to attack their opponents as much as a guide to their own proffered policies.

==Conservative fiscal policies==
One of the familiar slogans associated with fiscal conservatism since the Reagan years is "starve the beast," a phrase which suggests a policy approach of limiting the size of government by limiting appropriations for government programs. The assumptions underlying are that that government is less capable than businesses and individuals in spending money.

==Fiscal conservatism in American history==
''See also [[tax revolt]]''

A major cause of the [[American Revolution]] was "No Taxation without Representation." The Americans insisted that their historic rights as Englishmen entitled them to a voice in setting tax policies, which Britain denied. The issue was not the tax itself or its size, but approval by elected representatives. The Continental Congress borrowed heavily and did not practice fiscal conservatism.

===Early United States===
[[Thomas Jefferson]]'s [[Republicans (Jeffersonian)|Republicans]] supported a weak central government and a low-tax approach, in sharp opposition to the high-spending, high-taxation policies of [[Alexander Hamilton]] and his dominant [[Federalist Party]]. Jeffersonians opposed Hamilton's plan to pay off the debts owed by the states for the expense of the American Revolution, because some of the debt was held by financiers and speculators (who they said did not deserve payment) rather than the original holders. Hamilton passed his legislation and set up tariffs and a highly controversial whiskey tax to pay the debts. When western farmers (who shipped their crops as whiskey) revolted, President [[George Washington]] led militia units (provided by state governors) to quell the [[Whiskey Rebellion]] without bloodshed. When Jefferson became president he dropped the whiskey tax, kept the tariffs, and grew the national debt by purchasing Louisiana in 1803.

[[James Madison]], [[James Monroe]], and [[John Quincy Adams]] were all elected as Republicans, but after the fiscal disasters of the [[War of 1812]], they came to support most of the Federalist position, realizing that the nation needed a central bank and a steady income flow from tariffs. [[Andrew Jackson]], reflecting the conservatism of the Old Republicans, destroyed the Second Bank of the United States and paid off the national debt, but that was followed by a very severe depression, the [[Panic of 1837]].

===Republican Era===
In 1854 a new fiscally liberal political party emerged, the [[Republican Party]], which borrowed heavily to finance the Civil War, raised taxes and tariffs, and promoted heavy spending in aid to railroads, colleges, farmers, and schools. The Democrats demanded fiscal conservatism, as represented by [[Grover Cleveland]] and his cadre of [[Bourbon Democrats]].<ref>Brownlee, ''Federal taxation in America: A short history.'' (1996).</ref>

===Early 20th century===
During the 1920s, President [[Calvin Coolidge]] and his Treasury Secretary [[Andrew Mellon]] cut taxes and spending, and reduced the national debt. Their pro-business economic policy were credited for the successful period of economic growth known as the "Roaring Twenties." After the great crash of 1929, however, Coolidge's successor [[Herbert Hoover]] took the blame. Hoover increased spending and increased taxes, but because of falling revenues the national debt mushroomed relative to GDP.<ref>William J. Barber, ''From New Era to New Deal: Herbert Hoover, the economists, and American economic policy.'' (1985)
</ref>

===New Deal===
During the 1930s [[Franklin Roosevelt]]'s [[New Deal]] was opposed by many conservatives because it expanded the scope of the federal government, and regulated the economy. In general Roosevelt did not raise taxes above the high levels Hoover had set; the national debt changed little from 1933 to 1940 as a proportion of GDP.<ref>Stein, ''Presidential Economics: The Making of Economic Policy From Roosevelt to Clinton'' (1994)</ref>

Roosevelt's Treasury Secretary, [[Henry Morgenthau, Jr.]] believed in balanced budgets, stable currency, reduction of the national debt, and the need for more private investment. Morgenthau accepted Roosevelt’s double budget as legitimate–that is a balanced regular budget, and an “emergency” budget for agencies, like the [[WPA]], [[PWA]], and [[Civilian Conservation Corps|CCC]], that would be temporary until full recovery was at hand. He fought against the veterans’ bonus until Congress finally overrode Roosevelt’s veto and gave out $2.2 billion in 1936. Morgenthau's most notable achievement was the new [[Social Security]] program; he managed to reverse the proposals to fund it from general revenue and insisted it be funded by new taxes on employees. Morgenthau insisted on excluding farm workers and domestic servants from Social Security because workers outside industry would not be paying their way.<ref>Zelizer, "The Forgotten Legacy of the New Deal: Fiscal Conservatism and the Roosevelt Administration, 1933-1938." (2000).</ref>

In World War Two there was broad agreement for heavy taxes, with conservatives insisting that the income tax base be broadened to include the great majority, rather than the 10% who before 1942 paid all income taxes.<ref>Leff, "The Politics of Sacrifice on the American Home Front in World War II," (1991)</ref> After 1945 fiscal conservatism was most prevalent in the [[Conservative Coalition]], including Midwestern Republicans and most southern Democrats, especially senators [[Harry F. Byrd]] of Virginia, and [[Walter F. George]] of Georgia.

===The Reagan era===
Fiscal Conservatism was rhetorically promoted during the presidency of [[Ronald Reagan]] (1981-1989). During his tenure, Reagan pushed through economic policies which became known as [[Reaganomics]]. Rooted in a belief in [[supply-side economics]], Reagan cut income taxes, raised social security taxes, deregulated the economy, and propounded a tight monetary policy to stop inflation. Reagan favored reducing the size and scope of government because it was conducive to inefficiency and corruption; he especially attacked welfare. He proposed greatly increased defense spending (which he got), reduction in income taxes (which he got), and reductions in domestic spending (which he did not get). The result was a large increase in the national debt, economic prosperity, and rapid growth. Reagan also achieved a compromise on Social Security that reduced long-term federal spending.<ref>Stein, ''Presidential Economics: The Making of Economic Policy From Roosevelt to Clinton'' (1994)</ref>

However, by the end of Reagan's second term the [[national debt]] held by the public rose from 26% of [[Gross Domestic Product|GDP]] in 1980 to 41% in 1989, the highest level since 1963. By 1988, the debt totaled $2.6 trillion. The country owed more to foreigners than it was owed, and the United States moved from being the world's largest international creditor to the world's largest debtor nation as investors around the world rushed to send their money to the U.S.<ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A26402-2004Jun8.html See]</ref>

Under Democrat [[Bill Clinton]] the federal government ran a budget surplus and the debt went down.

The [[George W. Bush]] policy was to return the surplus to taxpayers by lowering federal income taxes, even as spending increased, especially for the Iraq war. Democrats attacked the Bush policy as a violation of fiscal conservatism. When the [[Financial Crisis of 2008]] hammered the nation, Bush pushed through spending increases and stimuluses, as well as tax cuts very expensive bailouts of major banks. The result was that the deficit soared and fiscal conservatives soured on Bush.

==Bibliography==
* Barber, William J. ''From New Era to New Deal: Herbert Hoover, the economists, and American economic policy.'' (1985) [http://www.amazon.com/New-Era-Deal-Economists-Perspectives/dp/0521367379/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1201126394&sr=8-2 excerpt and text search]
* Beito, David. ''Taxpayers in revolt: Tax resistance during the Great Depression.'' (1989)
* Brownlee, W. Elliot. ''Federal taxation in America: A short history.'' (1996) [http://www.amazon.com/Federal-Taxation-America-History-Woodrow/dp/052154520X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1201126453&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
* Campbell, Ballard. ''The Growth of American Government: Governance from the Cleveland Era to the Present'' (1995)
* Critchlow, Donald T. "The Political Control of the Economy: Deficit Spending as a Political Belief, 1932-1952," ''The Public Historian,'' Vol. 3, No. 2 (Spring, 1981), pp. 5–22 [http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0272-3433(198121)3%3A2%3C5%3ATPCOTE%3E2.0.CO%3B2-%23 in JSTOR]
* Greenspan, Alan. ''The Age of Turbulence: Adventures in a New World'' (2007) autobiography of chairman of the Federal Reserve (1987-2006)
* Ippolito, Dennis S. ''Why Budgets Matter: Budget Policy and American Politics'' (2003) [http://www.amazon.com/Why-Budgets-Matter-American-Politics/dp/0271022590/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1201126672&sr=8-2 excerpt and text search]
* Kimmel, Lewis. ''Federal budget and fiscal policy, 1789-1958.'' (1959).
* Krol, Robert. "The Role of Fiscal and Political Institutions in Limiting the Size of State Government," ''The Cato Journal'', Vol. 27, 2007. [http://www.questia.com/read/5026702917?title=The%20Role%20of%20Fiscal%20and%20Political%20Institutions%20in%20Limiting%20the%20Size%20of%20State%20Government online edition]
* Leff, Mark. "Taxing the 'forgotten man': The politics of Social Security finance in the New Deal." ''Journal of American History'' 70 (1983): 359-81. [http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0021-8723(198309)70%3A2%3C359%3ATT%22MTP%3E2.0.CO%3B2-L online in JSTOR]
* Leff, Mark H. "The Politics of Sacrifice on the American Home Front in World War II," ''The Journal of American History,'' Vol. 77, No. 4 (Mar., 1991), pp. 1296–1318 [http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0021-8723(199103)77%3A4%3C1296%3ATPOSOT%3E2.0.CO%3B2-H in JSTOR]
* Lind, Michael. ''Hamilton's Republic: Readings in the American Democratic Nationalist Tradition'' (1997)
* Morgan, Iwan W. ''Deficit government: Taxing and spending in modern America.'' (1995). [http://www.amazon.com/Deficit-Government-Spending-America-American/dp/1566630827/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1201126591&sr=8-2 excerpt and text search]
* Peltzman, Sam. "Voters as Fiscal Conservatives," ''The Quarterly Journal of Economics,'' Vol. 107, No. 2 (May, 1992), pp. 327–361 [http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0033-5533(199205)107%3A2%3C327%3AVAFC%3E2.0.CO%3B2-P in JSTOR]
* Sargent, James E. "Roosevelt's Economy Act: Fiscal conservatism and the early New Deal." ''Congressional Studies'' 7 (winter 1980): 33-51.
* Savage, James D. ''Balanced budgets & American politics.'' (1988).
* Stein, Herbert. ''Presidential Economics: The Making of Economic Policy From Roosevelt to Clinton'' (3rd ed. 1994) [http://www.amazon.com/Presidential-Economics-3rd-Economic-Roosevelt/dp/0844738514/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1201126773&sr=8-3 excerpt and text search]
* Tanner, Michael D. ''Leviathan on the Right: How Big-Government Conservatism Brought Down the Republican Revolution'' Cato Institute, 2007 [http://www.questia.com/read/114451355?title=Leviathan%20on%20the%20Right%3a%20%20How%20Big-Government%20Conservatism%20Brought%20Down%20the%20Republican%20Revolution online edition]
* Treaster, Joseph B. ''Paul Volcker: The Making of a Financial Legend'' (2005), chairman of the Federal Reserve, (1979-1987)
* Zelizer, Julian E. "The Forgotten Legacy of the New Deal: Fiscal Conservatism and the Roosevelt Administration, 1933-1938." ''Presidential Studies Quarterly''. 30#2. (2000). pp 331+. [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=5001752830 online]
* Zelizer, Julian E. ''Taxing America: Wilbur D. Mills, Congress, and the State, 1945-1975'' (2000) [http://www.amazon.com/Taxing-America-Wilbur-Congress-1945-1975/dp/0521795443/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1201126591&sr=8-3 excerpt and text search]

==References==
{{reflist|2}}
[[Category:Conservatism]]
[[Category:Economics]]
[[Category:Tax Revolts]]
[[Category:Capitalism]]

Libertarianism

2017-04-21T01:15:28Z

Teapublican: Category:Capitalism

'''Libertarianism''' is a [[Political Philosophy|political philosophy]] that believes in minimizing or entirely eliminating government interventionism in many aspects of life including economic, personal, and in foreign policy matters. Libertarians tend to oppose legal restrictions on social behavior that doesn't affect anybody else. The [[French]] [[term]] of ''[[Laissez faire|Laissez-Faire]]'', or ''let us do'', is a term that describes some aspects of the libertarian belief.<ref>"Libertarians are neither. Unlike Liberals or Conservatives, Libertarians advocate a high degree of both personal and economic liberty. For example, Libertarians advocate freedom in economic matters, so we're in favor of lowering taxes, slashing bureaucratic regulation of business, and charitable -- rather than government -- welfare. But Libertarians are also socially tolerant. We won't demand laws or restrictions on other people who we may not agree because of personal actions or lifestyles.

Think of us as a group of people with a "live and let live" mentality and a balanced checkbook." [http://www.lp.org/article_85.shtml]</ref> Libertarianism tends to emphasize a form of individual ''liberty'', and tends to support rights of private property.

The first systematic libertarian was [[Herbert Spencer]] (1820-1903), an English political philosopher whose books such as ''The Man Versus the State'' (1884) had a major impact in Europe and America in the late 19th century.<ref>Chris Matthew Sciabarra, "The First Libertarian," ''Liberty'' (Aug 1999) [http://www.nyu.edu/projects/sciabarra/essays/spencer.htm online]</ref> The chief American representative was [[Yale]] professor [[William Graham Sumner]].

[[Ronald Reagan]] stated in 1975, "I believe the very heart and soul of conservatism is libertarianism....The basis of conservatism is a desire for less government interference or less centralized authority or more individual freedom and this is a pretty general description also of what libertarianism is....Now, I can’t say that I will agree with all the things that the present group who call themselves Libertarians in the sense of a party say, because I think that like in any political movement there are shades, and there are libertarians who are almost over at the point of wanting no government at all or anarchy. I believe there are legitimate government functions. There is a legitimate need in an orderly society for some government to maintain freedom or we will have tyranny by individuals."<ref>see [http://www.reason.com/news/show/29318.html "Inside Ronald Reagan: A Reason Interview" (July 1975)]</ref>

In the United States, libertarians are typically fiscally conservative and socially liberal using the common US meanings of liberal and conservative. A faction of libertarians exist in the GOP, and are typically more ardent than other members of the GOP in keeping the principle of fiscal sanity and are less willing to "sell out" those principles for political expediency. They support an isolationist foreign policy and are to the left of most Democrats on social and foreign policy issues. The foremost libertarian figure in the GOP is former long-time Congressman [[Ron Paul]].
== Libertarian Philosophy ==

Libertarianism is best summed up in the Non-Aggression Principle, which states that government (or "private police agencies" in the anarcho-capitalist variant) should only exist to protect life, liberty, and property from force and fraud.

Libertarianism is closely related to liberalism, if this word is interpreted according to its original meaning of [[classical liberal]]ism. Libertarians in America tend to be [[liberal]] on social issues but [[conservative]] on economic issues. Libertarians generally oppose government regulation of drugs, prostitution, and marriage (including bans of [[same-sex marriage]]). The Libertarian Party officially supports legalized [[abortion]], however, libertarians themselves are divided on the issue, since government protection from force depends on the personhood of the unborn baby (or fetus). However, libertarians are uniformly opposed to government funding for abortions (such as through [[Planned Parenthood]]). Furthermore, they oppose restrictions on [[pornography]]. However, they also oppose [[universal health care]], [[taxes]] and the [[welfare state]]. They are strong supporters of [[school choice]], and oppose continuing the [[public school]] system. Some libertarians support [[school vouchers]], while others are skeptical due to the issue of government influence over [[private education]].

Libertarians support an expansive view of liberty as the proper basis for organizing civil society. They tend to define liberty as the freedom to do whatever one wishes up to the point that one's behavior begins to interfere with another's person or property through coercive means. At the point of interference, each party would become subject to certain principled rules for adjudicating disputes, generally accepting that one who has demonstrated a proven lack of respect for the rights of others should be subject to sanctions, including possible constraints on their freedom. They believe that liberty is the right of every individual.

Libertarians generally defend the ideal of freedom from the perspective of how little one is constrained by authority, i.e., how much one is allowed to do (also referred to as negative liberty). This ideal is distinguished from a view of freedom focused on how much one is able to do (also called positive liberty).

=== Libertarianism and irreligion/religion ===

''See also:'' [[Atheism and politics]]

According to Murray N. Rothbard, who writes for the [[Ludwig von Mises Institute]], most libertarians at the present time are [[Atheism|atheists]].<ref>[https://mises.org/library/myth-and-truth-about-libertarianism Myth and Truth About Libertarianism], Mises Daily</ref> [[Ayn Rand]] was a libertarian and atheist.

Rothbard also declares:
{{cquote|There are many libertarians who are theists, Jewish or Christian. Among the classical-liberal forebears of modern libertarianism in a more religious age there were a myriad of Christians: from John Lilburne, [[Roger Williams]], Anne Hutchinson, and [[John Locke]] in the 17th century, down to Cobden and Bright, [[Frédéric Bastiat]] and the French laissez-faire liberals, and the great [[John Dalberg-Acton, 1st Baron Acton|Lord Acton]].<ref>[https://mises.org/library/myth-and-truth-about-libertarianism Myth and Truth About Libertarianism], Mises Daily</ref>}}

Both [[Ron Paul]] and [[Rand Paul]] are religious libertarians.

== Libertarian Factions ==

Libertarians tend to use the word "libertarian" (small "l") to refer to the philosophy, and "Libertarian" (capital "L") to refer to the party. Thus, more libertarians exist than members of the [[Libertarian Party]]. Two general factions exist in the libertarian movement. The first are those libertarians who apply the principles of right to person and property to an absolute. They believe that no person, group, or government is above the right to violate these two things. They thus believe that government itself is illegitimate because it violates person and property. These libertarians subscribe to [[anarcho-capitalism]], as first named by [[Murray N. Rothbard]]. They believe that law and security can be handled by private means in the free market. The other faction believes in a very limited government. They are often referred to as [[Minarchism|minarchists]]. Libertarian minarchists want the state to only enforce law and order but generally nothing else. [[Ayn Rand]] was a minarchist.

Libertarians tend to view liberalism as a philosophy advocating less government interference in private morality and more government control of business, and view conservatism as a philosophy advocating more government interference in private morality and less government control of business, while they view libertarianism as advocating less government control in all areas. However, there have been fusionist attempts to mix libertarianism and with social conservatism. This is noted in particular by [[paleolibertarianism|paleolibertarians]]. They believe that social conservatism is a natural entity in a free society, but do not believe that it can be enforced by state interventionism. For instance, they may personally oppose [[homosexuality]], but advocate for [[marriage privatization]] rather than believing that government should sanction "marriage" exclusively between a man and a woman.

Outside the United States, the term "libertarian" refers to [[Anarchism|left-wing anarchism]].

== Libertarian Thought in America ==

While there are libertarian factions within the [[Democratic]] and [[Republican]] [[parties]], neither party is particularly well aligned with libertarian thought. While the Republican Party sometimes adopts libertarian-sounding rhetoric of small government in economic affairs, many libertarians see it as being a force that has increased government interventionism in these affairs. Libertarians generally, for example, are opposed to the [[USA PATRIOT Act]], which they believe increases government power and removes protections on the liberty and privacy of the public. Most conservatives, on the other hand, view it as a necessary government program and believe security to be more important than personal liberty and privacy. Libertarians point out that such a view contradicts those of the founding fathers, such as Benjamin Franklin, who summarized it most eloquently, "Those who would give up Essential Liberty to purchase a little Temporary Safety, deserve neither Liberty nor Safety." Libertarians are also generally opposed to the [[Iraq War]], unlike the majority of conservatives.

While all libertarians agree in general on the principles of the desirability of maximizing individual liberty and avoiding excessive government interference with the operation of the free market, individual libertarians have opinions that differ wildly within these general principles.

The libertarian movement generally praises the [[United States Constitution]], regarding it as the proper scope of the national government. They believe that the Democratic and Republican parties have overstepped constitutional limits. Anarcho-capitalist libertarians, on the other hand, view the implementation of the constitution as the very reason the national government is the size it is today.

== Notable Libertarians ==
Libertarian-oriented writers include [[Frédéric Bastiat]], [[William Leggett]], [[John Stuart Mill]], [[Henry David Thoreau]], [[Lysander Spooner]], [[Herbert Spencer]], [[William Graham Sumner]], [[Carl Menger]], [[Ludwig von Mises]], Rose Wilder Lane, [[Albert Jay Nock]], [[Henry Hazlett]], and [[Isabel Paterson]]. Science fiction writers; [[L. Neil Smith]], [[J. Neil Schulman]], and [[Brad Linaweaver]]. Several popular financial writers including [[Harry Browne]] and [[Howard J. Ruff]]. Browne would later run for President, twice, on the Libertarian Party ticket. Ruff declared his political philosophy as libertarian but as a socially conservative [[Mormon]] made an exception on issues like abortion and prostitution, where he disagreed with the libertarian view. Nobel Laureate economists [[Milton Friedman]], [[F.A. Hayek]], [[Ronald Coase]], Gary Becker, James Buchanan, [[George Stigler]], and Vernon Smith. Humorist [[Dave Barry]], actor/comedian [[Drew Carey]], actor [[Denis Leary]], former MTV VJ [[Lisa "Kennedy" Montgomery]], actor [[Kurt Russell]], investigative reporter [[John Stossel]], and the late rocker [[Frank Zappa]] have all referred to themselves as being aligned with or openly supporting the Libertarian Party. Many Republican congressmen and senators hold libertarian positions, such as [[Walter B. Jones]], [[Rand Paul]], and [[Justin Amash]].

The most influential libertarian of the 20th century was [[Milton Friedman]] (1912-2006), a leader of the [[Chicago School of Economics]].

*[[Glenn Beck]], political commentator, describes himself as a libertarian.
*[[Ed Clark]], the Libertarian Party's 1980 nominee for President. Clark obtained the highest popular vote percentage to date for a Libertarian candidate.
*[[Barry Goldwater]], Republican presidential nominee in 1964 often described himself as libertarian, although whether or not this was true has been disputed by conservatives.
*[[Robert A. Heinlein]], science fiction author, whose 1966 novel ''The Moon Is A Harsh Mistress'' was an influence on the movement.
*[[Karl Hess]], speechwriter for [[Barry Goldwater]] credited with penning Goldwater's famous 1964 statement "Extremism in the defense of liberty is no vice". Hess later became a major figure in the Libertarian Party.
*[[Gary Johnson]], businessman, former Governor of New Mexico (as a Republican), and 2012 Libertarian Party nominee.
*[[Alex Jones]], radio host and activist, describes himself as a libertarian.
*[[Samuel Edward Konkin III]], a significant figure in 1970s libertarianism, whose influence waned considerably after the rise of the Libertarian Party as he opposed political parties and voting as being against libertarian principles. He proposed instead a purely marketplace-based route to a free society, such as [[tax resistance]] and doing business "off the books".
*[[Robert LeFevre]], significant in promoting libertarian philosophy in the 1950s and 1960s before it was a well-defined movement, with his "Freedom School" seminars on political and economic philosophy.
*[[Mario J. Lucero]] and [[Isabel Ruiz Lucero]], the cofounders of [[Heaven Sent Gaming]].
*[[Trey Parker]] and [[Matt Stone]], the creators of [[South Park]], proclaimed that they are libertarians. South Park is vulgar, supports evolution, and sometimes attacks social conservative positions like religion. However, they also make fun of liberals' positions such as political correctness, environmentalism and atheism.<ref>[http://www.reason.com/news/show/116787.html] Parker and Stone, Reason Magazine</ref> The phrases "South Park Conservative" (the name of a book) and "South Park Republican" are used to describe the followers of these beliefs.
*[[Ron Paul]], Republican congressman from Texas, 1988 Libertarian Party and 2008 & 2012 Republican Party presidential candidate. Ron Paul is considered to be of the Constitutionalist and [[paleolibertarianism|paleolibertarian]] schools of libertarian thought.
*[[Penn and Teller]], stage magicians turned libertarian evangelists preaching [[atheism]] and promoting libertarian philosophies, including controversial positions such as legalization of prostitution and drugs in their Showtime series, which sports a name that cannot for reasons of good taste be expressed here.
*The novelist [[Ayn Rand]] advocated a philosophy of ''Objectivism'', embodying some libertarian thought, although differing from libertarianism in many ways. Some of her novels, such as ''Atlas Shrugged'', have become icons of some people in the libertarian movement, while others find her materialism and atheism incompatible with moral ethics and natural rights and law.
*[[Murray N. Rothbard]] was nicknamed "Mr. Libertarian." He brought to life the anarcho-capitalist movement. Rothbard was an economist of the [[Austrian School of Economics|Austrian School]].
*The Canadian rock band [[Rush]], which has been together since 1968, often explores libertarian themes in their lyrics, like in "Free Will", "Tom Sawyer" and "Something for Nothing". Drummer and Lyricist [[Neil Peart]] claims to be a "left leaning libertarian.",<ref>[http://www.theadvocates.org/celebrities/neil-peart.html]</ref>
*The psychiatrist [[Thomas Szasz]], opponent of the therapeutic state and compulsory mental institutionalization.

== See also ==
* [[Herbert Spencer]]
* [[Democratic Freedom Caucus]]
* [[Republican Liberty Caucus]]
* [[Libertarian Party of Canada]]

==Further reading==
* Boaz, David. '' The Libertarian Reader: Classic and Contemporary Writings from Lao Tzu to Milton Friedman'' (1998) [http://www.amazon.com/Libertarian-Reader-Contemporary-Writings-Friedman/dp/0684847671/ref=sr_1_18?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1223323253&sr=8-18 excerpt and text search]
* Doherty, Brian. ''Radicals for Capitalism: A Freewheeling History of the Modern American Libertarian Movement'' (2008) [http://www.amazon.com/Radicals-Capitalism-Freewheeling-American-Libertarian/dp/1586485725/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1259466101&sr=1-2 excerpt and text search]
* Hamowy, Ronald, ed. ''The Encyclopedia of Libertarianism'' (Sage, 2008), 644pp, sponsored by the Cato Institute; [http://www.sage-ereference.com/PublicBrowse.html Online at some academic libraries] also [http://books.google.com/books?id=yxNgXs3TkJYC&dq=intitle:Encyclopedia+intitle:of+intitle:Libertarianism&lr=&as_drrb_is=q&as_minm_is=0&as_miny_is=&as_maxm_is=0&as_maxy_is=&num=30&as_brr=0 excerpt and text search]
* Murray, Charles. ''What It Means to Be a Libertarian'' (1997) [http://www.amazon.com/What-Means-Libertarian-Charles-Murray/dp/0767900391/ref=sr_1_16?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1223322878&sr=8-16 excerpt and text search]
* Tilman, Rick. ''Ideology and Utopia in the Social Philosophy of the Libertarian Economists'' (2001) [http://www.amazon.com/Philosophy-Libertarian-Economists-Contributions-Economics/dp/0313315582/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1223322878&sr=8-5 excerpt and text search]

== References ==
{{reflist|1}}

== External links ==
* [http://www.faqs.org/faqs/libertarian/faq/ Libertarian FAQ]
* [http://dmoz.org/Society/Politics/Liberalism/Libertarianism/ Open Directory libertarian links ]
* [http://chelm.freeyellow.com/black_index.html Black Libertarians]
* [http://libertarianwiki.org/Main_Page Libertarian Wiki]
* [http://www.l4l.org/ Libertarians for Life]
* [http://www.independent.org/ The Independent Institute]
* [http://www.mises.org/ Ludwig von Mises Institute]
* [http://www.fee.org/ Foundation for Economic Education]
* [http://www.cato.org/ Cato Institute]
* [http://reason.org/ Reason Foundation]
* [http://www.heritage.org/political-process/report/dispassionate-assessment-libertarians A Dispassionate Assessment of Libertarians], by [[Russell Kirk]], [[Heritage Foundation]]
[[Category:Capitalism]]
[[Category:Libertarianism]]
[[Category:Tax Revolts]]
[[Category:Pro Second Amendment]]
[[Category:Anti-Communism]]

Free Enterprise

2017-04-21T01:14:55Z

Teapublican: Category:Capitalism

[[Image:Adam Smith.jpg|right|Adam Smith]]
'''Free Enterprise''' is commerce with [[business]] transactions carried on between private individuals or corporations without [[state]] interference or mandatory collective bargaining. Free enterprise brought unprecedented prosperity to the U.S. and Britain after the [[Industrial Revolution]], but its benefits were sharply limited by government regulation and unions in Britain in the 20th century and, to a lesser extent, the United States.

Free enterprise means an unregulated [[economic]] activity that harnesses the power of economic freedom and [[competition]], for the benefit of all.

<blockquote>
Freedom is the principle on which the United States was founded. More than 200 years later, freedom serves as the nation's political foundation. Freedom is also the cornerstone of the [[American]] economic system. It is often called the free enterprise system because of the freedoms of the marketplace. [http://teachertech.rice.edu/participants/jbueno/Lessons/freedom.html]
</blockquote>

<blockquote>
''...every individual necessarily labours to render the annual revenue of the society as great as he can. He generally, indeed, neither intends to promote the public interest, nor knows how much he is promoting it. By preferring the support of domestic to that of foreign industry, he intends only his own security; and by directing that industry in such a manner as its produce may be of the greatest value, he intends only his own gain, and he is in this, as in many other cases, led by '''an invisible hand''' to promote an end which was no part of his intention. Nor is it always the worse for the society that it was no part of it. By pursuing his own interest he frequently promotes that of the society more effectually than when he really intends to promote it. I have never known much good done by those who affected to trade for the public good.'' [[Adam Smith]] [http://plus.maths.org/issue14/features/smith/]
</blockquote>

It is said that [[Ludwig von Mises]] (1881-1973) built an intellectual defense of [[capitalism]] and thus of civilization. When he appeared, there was virtually no systematic intellectual opposition to socialism or defense of capitalism. ''[[Socialism]], von Mises showed, in his greatest original contribution to economic thought, not only abolishes the incentive of profit and loss and the freedom of competition along with private ownership of the means of production, but makes economic calculation, economic coordination, and economic planning impossible, and therefore results in chaos. '' [http://capitalism.net/Ludwig%20von%20Mises%20Defender%20of%20Capitalism.html Ludwig von Mises:Defender of Capitalism]

<blockquote>
''“Historical evidence speaks with a single voice on the relation between political freedom and a free market. I know of no example in time or place of a society that has been marked by a large measure of political freedom, and that has not also used something comparable to a free market to organize the bulk of economic activity.”'' [[Milton Friedman]], Capitalism and Freedom, 1962.
</blockquote>
<center>
''The only real cure for poverty is production.'' [[Henry Hazlitt]], from ''Man vs. the Welfare State''. 95–97
</center>

''Free Enterprise'' is also the name of a 1998 [[movie]] starring [[William Shatner]].

== See also ==
[[Image:Globe.gif|right|150px]]
*[[Free enterprise and the Bible]]
*[[Enterprise]]
*[[Free trade]]
*[[Welfare]]
*[[Capitalism]]
*[[Libertarianism]]
*[[Friedrich Hayek]]
*[[Baldomero Ortoneda]]

== External links ==

*[http://www.americansolutions.com/General/?Page=026a3bda-755c-45d8-84d3-c68eef294612 Values - Free Enterprise]
*[http://www.dallasfed.org/research/ei/ei0101.html Henry Hazlitt—Journalist Advocate of Free Enterprise]

[[Category:Capitalism]]
[[Category:Economics]]
[[Category:Libertarianism]]
[[Category:Political Terms]]
[[Category:Business]]

Free market

2017-04-21T01:14:24Z

Teapublican: Category:Capitalism

A '''free market''' is a term in [[economics]] that refers to an economy operating with little to no interference on the part of a government. The central pillar of free market economy is voluntary exchanges without the use of any kind of coercion or violence.<ref>[http://www.econlib.org/library/Enc/FreeMarket.html Free Market], ''Concise Encyclopedia of Economics''</ref> This type of economic philosophy is the backbone to the system of [[capitalism]], and is sometimes referred to by the [[French]] phrase "[[laissez-faire]]," meaning to "let be." Free markets are largely dependent on the process of [[supply and demand]], where prices are determined by the amount of the product in the market, as well as the number of consumers who wish to purchase that product. The market will punish businesses whose practices are not beneficial, as consumers will take their business elsewhere. [[Communism]] and [[socialism]] are the antithesis of the '''free market'''.

The opposite of a free market is a command system, in which the government regulates all businesses for the theoretical central planning of the economy, although this has been shown to have negative effects. Economist [[Friedrich Hayek]] warned however of mixing a [[planned economy]] with a competitive economy, "a mixture of the two means that neither will work." <ref>Friedrich A. Hayek, [http://www.iea.org.uk/files/upld-publication43pdf?.pdf ''Road to Serfdom'',] Reader's Digest Condensed Version, April 1945, pg. 38.</ref>

A ''[[mixed economy]]'' contains both private-owned and state-owned enterprises or that combines elements of capitalism and socialism, or a mix of market economy and command economy. For example, the UK is said to have a free market economy in almost all goods and services but retains a bureaucratic socialised healthcare regime. This is justified on the grounds that it will ensure that British subjects have access to health care which is supported out of state coffers.

In an interview on [[PBS]], libertarian economist [[Milton Friedman]] said:<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/commandingheights/shared/minitext/int_miltonfriedman.html |title=Commanding Heights: Interview with Milton Friedman |work=[[PBS]] |date=October 1, 2000 }}</ref>
{{cquote| The most important single central fact about a free market is that no exchange takes place unless both parties benefit.}}

==See also==
* [[Austrian economics]]
* [[Gerrymandering]]

==External links==
*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tNdPrJySGdA The Prager University about Free Market Morality]

==References==
<references/>

{{Conservatism}}
{{Economic preparedness topics}}
[[Category:Libertarianism]]
[[Category:Economic Preparedness]]
[[Category:Capitalism]]
[[Category:Economics]]
[[Category:Anti-Communism]]
[[Category:Fiscal Conservatives]]

Supply-side economics

2017-04-21T01:13:29Z

Teapublican: capitalism

'''Supply-side economics''' is recognition that [[demand]] is not completely independent of [[supply]]: demand for a good or service often increases if its affordable supply increases. For example, construction of a free highway will result in its increasing use over time.

In [[macroeconomics]], the implications of this insight are that cutting tax rates can increase the supply of [[goods]] and [[services]], and increase the demand for them, with an overall result of increasing [[tax]] revenues. Conversely, high [[marginal tax rates]] stifle economic growth by reducing the potential supply of goods and services, and decreasing tax revenues. Simply put, increasing taxes often decreases government revenue.

==History==
[[John F. Kennedy]]'s fiscal policy stance made it clear that he believed in pro-growth, supply-side tax measures.<ref>http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2004/06/the-laffer-curve-past-present-and-future</ref>

These ideas were taken up as a popular political movement during the 1980 election campaign, with [[Ronald Reagan]] proposing a modified policy of supply-side economics (which [[liberals]] disparagingly caricatured as "[[trickle-down]]" economics)--a term they have used against conservatives since [[William Jennings Bryan]] in 1896.<ref>[http://www.investopedia.com/articles/05/011805.asp Understanding Supply-Side Economics], David Harper</ref> The decreased regulation begun in the late 1970s, together with lower marginal tax rates would provide enough savings and investment to pool new capital and drive economic growth. Manufacturers for example, would hire more people, produce more, and create more [[demand]] and economic activity. The idea gained wide popular support, and became known as "Reaganomics".

During the presidential campaign of 1980, Ronald Reagan argued that high [[marginal tax rates]] were hurting economic output, but contrary to what many people think, neither Reagan nor his economic advisers believed that cuts in marginal tax rates would increase [[tax revenue]].<ref>[http://www.econlib.org/library/Enc/SupplySideEconomics.html Supply-Side Economics] - James D. Gwartney, The Concise Encyclopedia of Economics</ref>

One key aspect of Reagan's program in 1982 was tax cuts for Research and Development (R&D) in high technology firms intended to make United States more competitive with Japanese electronics manufacturers which had dominated the industry since the late 1960s. Liberals were critical of the idea, claiming "tax cuts for business" only benefited "the rich"; however, the "trickle down effect" became a flood of prosperity in high tech industries starting in the 1980s and continuing on ever since.

Murray Rothbard wrote:
{{cquote|Specifically, Reagan called for a massive cut in government spending, an even more drastic cut in taxation (particularly the income tax), a balanced budget by 1984 (that wild-spender, Jimmy Carter you see, had raised the budget deficit to $74 billion a year, and this had to be eliminated), and a return to the gold standard, where money is supplied by the market rather than by government. In addition to a call for free markets domestically, Reagan affirmed his deep commitment to freedom of international trade.<ref>http://www.mises.org/story/1544</ref>}}

The idea that ''all'' tax cuts raise revenue is an oversimplification, sometimes used by politicians with a poor grasp of mathematics or the [[Laffer curve]].

Some people have falsely claimed that Karl Marx was the earliest advocate of supply-side economics<ref>Brin, David. "A Primer on Supply-Side vs Demand Side Economics." February 20, 2010. Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies. http://ieet.org/index.php/IEET/more/brin20100220</ref> in an attempt to discredit the theory.

==Criticism==
Critics of supply-side economics generally support demand-side economics, usually considered to be part of the [[Keynesian Economics|Keynesian]] school of thought. These critics believe that the capacity for supply is not enough, and that there needs to be demand for goods and services in order to drive the need for supply and create economic growth. They also believe that money in the hands of the middle and lower classes is more effective at creating this demand because their money has more "velocity" (i.e. it gets re-spent more often). Essentially, proponents of supply-side economics believe supply creates its own demand, whereas supporters of demand-side economics believe demand is required before supply can create economic growth. Critics of supply-side economics point towards the increasing income gap in the U.S. since Reagan's election<ref>"Winners Take All." February 14, 2011. ''The Economist'' - Free exchange (blog). http://www.economist.com/blogs/freeexchange/2011/02/income_inequality</ref> as evidence of the failure of supply-side policies.

Most criticism comes from the Left, but some on the Right have been skeptical as well. [[George H.W. Bush]] during a campaign debate famously referred to it as "voodoo economics", due to the discarding of Keynesian orthodoxy. On the Left, it was seen as threat to the [[welfare state]] with the (feared) loss of federal revenues in tax cuts that had funded the failed [[War on Poverty]] programs for more than a decade. However, Reagan did not significantly cut back on the welfare state (that happened in 1996).

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*[http://www.mises.org/story/1544 The Myths of Reaganomics], by Murray N. Rothbard
*[http://72.14.209.104/search?q=cache:ZQm_5SG3WwQJ:www.davidsmick.com/WSJ070881.pdf+%22Reaganomics%22+includes+the+idea+of+tax+cuts&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=7&gl=us&client=firefox-a What Reaganomics Is All About]
*http://etext.library.adelaide.edu.au/k/keynes/john_maynard/k44g/
*[http://www.independent.org/publications/tir/article.asp?issueID=15&articleID=89/ "My Time with Supply-Side Economics"], by Paul Craig Roberts
*[http://www.independent.org/publications/tir/article.asp?issueID=20&articleID=231/ "What Really Happened in 1981"], by Alan Reynolds and Paul Craig Roberts

{{Economic preparedness topics}}

[[Category:Economic Preparedness]]
[[Category:Capitalism]]
[[Category:Economics]]
[[Category:Conservatism]]
[[Category:Reagan Era]]
[[Category:Welfare State]]

FreedomWorks

2017-04-21T01:12:18Z

Teapublican: Category:Conservative Organizations Category:Libertarianism Category:Pro Second Amendment

[[File:Fw.JPG|right]]

'''FreedomWorks''' is a [[conservative]] organization founded in 2004, headquartered in [[Washington, DC]], and has hundreds of thousands of [[grassroots]] volunteers nationwide.<ref>[http://www.freedomworks.org/about/about-freedomworks About FreedomWorks]</ref> FreedomWorks drives policy change by training and mobilizing grassroots [[American]]s to engage their fellow citizens and encourage their political representatives to act in defense of individual freedom and economic opportunity. FreedomWorks believes individual liberty and the freedom to compete increases consumer choices and provides individuals with the greatest control over what they own and earn. The organization was formerly led by former U.S. House Majority Leader [[Dick Armey]], who has since severed all ties and their President is Matt Kibbe. FreedomWorks is a major player in the emerging [[Tea Party Movement]].

==Mission==
FreedomWorks fights for lower taxes, less government and more economic freedom for all Americans. Dick Armey has said that the organizations core motivation and mission driver is to inform all Americans about [[government]] policy which may threaten individual [[liberty]].

{{Cquote|Conservatives are afraid the public will not understand, liberals are afraid the public will understand.<ref>http://www.freedomworks.org/</ref>}}

FreedomWorks combines the stature and experience of America’s greatest policy entrepreneurs with the grassroots power of hundreds of thousands of volunteer activists all over the Nation.

==Tea Party==
In 2010, FreedomWorks is active on many fronts. They are holding the Take Back America conference in the nations capitol. Also, they are organizing the Taxpayer March on Washington event September 9-12th. Dick Armey's new book was published ''Give Us Liberty. A Tea Party Manifesto.''

==Other Issues==
FreedomWorks offers an extensive list of issues to fight for such as tax reform, school choice, work not welfare, lawsuit abuse and personal retirement accounts in place of [[Social Security]]. In addition, border security, environment, free trade, anti-card check, anti-internet tax, anti-[[global warming]], judicial nominees, budgets and spending.

In 2012, a major split occurred. Establishment Republicans attempted a hostile takeover of the organization and forced out conservatives/ libertarians. A few weeks later, the FreedomWorks Trustee board reversed the decision reinstating all those purged. This led to Dick Armey cutting all ties to the organization.<ref>[http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2012/12/dick-armey-freedomworks-hostile-takeover-memo FreedomWorks Feud: War Inside Tea Party Group Gets Nastier, MotherJones.com, December 24th, 2012]</ref> The feud was said to have been about funding true conservative candidates, Tea Party favorites versus the establishment GOP's moderate choices.

==In The News==
* [http://www.newsmax.com/InsideCover/freedomworks-death-threats-move/2010/08/26/id/368506 FreedomWorks moving to a more secure location due to daily death threats from liberals.]

== References ==
{{reflist}}

==FreedomWorks Links==
* [http://www.freedomworks.org/ FreedomWorks homepage]
* [http://www.facebook.com/FreedomWorks Facebook page]
* [http://twitter.com/freedomworks Twitter page]
* [http://www.youtube.com/FreedomWorksAction YouTube page]
* [http://teaparty.freedomworks.org/ Tea Party HQ]
* [http://nolameduck.com/ No Lame Ducks]
* [http://truthinjobs.com/ Truth In Jobs]
* [http://iheartchrischristie.com/ I Heart Chris Christie]
* [http://www.freedomworks.org/groups/entrepreneur/ Defend The Entrepreneur]
* [http://earmarkpledge.com/ Earmark Pledge]
* [http://www.freedomworks.com/keyvotes/ Key Votes Scorecard]
* [http://www.scrapthecode.org/ Scrap The Code]
* [http://stoptheraid08.com/ Stop The Raid]
* [http://www.usteaparty.com/ US Tea Party]

{{Conservatism}}
[[Category:Conservative Organizations]]
[[Category:Libertarianism]]
[[Category:Pro Second Amendment]]
[[Category:Tax Revolts]]
[[Category:Politics]]
[[Category:Tea Party Movement]]

Antifa

2017-04-21T01:08:33Z

Teapublican: hate groups

'''Antifa''', short for Anti-fascist, is another mob of [[liberal]]s and progressives that seek to cause mayhem in the streets of America. They rose up at the [[University of California]], Berkeley in response to [[Democrat]]s losing the presidential election. They insist that those individuals that support [[President Trump]] and others from the right, are [[Nazi]]s. They dress in all black, wear black masks and attempt to disrupt rallies that are held in support of Trump. They use pepper spray on unsuspecting people, throw rocks, bricks, bottles and punches, M-80s, march with flags and clubs. They are militants, far-left extremists that are a product of Democrat party ideology, education and funding. Many in the media applaud their stance as they align with their #Resist agenda. <ref>[https://www.thenation.com/article/anti-fascist-activists-are-fighting-the-alt-right-in-the-streets/ Anti-Fascists Will Fight Trump’s Fascism in the Streets, TheNation.com]</ref> <ref>[http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2017/01/video-richard-spencer-punch-antifa-fascism The Long History of "Nazi Punching" MotherJones.com]</ref> [[Facebook]] permits them to have a page to rally support. Political figures in the Democrat party refuse to condemn their actions. Not a word from California Governor [[Jerry Brown]]. Berkeley California mayor orders the police department to stand down while violence unfolds. While trying to proclaim Antifa fights against the fascists (Nazis, white supremacists, [[Alt-right]], conservatives), Antifa are in fact fascist in every aspect. A quote, falsly attributed to [[Winston Churchill]], is still correct in summing up this group of thugs, "Fascists of the future will call themselves anti-fascists." [[File:19685774_1492357004.9813.jpg|right|150px|thumb|Widely viewed picture showing Antifa supporter nicknamed Moldylocks getting punched in the face.]]

{{cquote| Antifascist Action focuses on promotional, informative and practical ways of struggle against all authoritarian ideologies and groups promoting any kind of oppression, particularly against Neo-Nazism and right wing radicals.}}

Like the [[Occupy Wall Street]] movement prior, they are are establishing branches in cities across the country. By their actions, people are demanding the group be labelled a domestic terrorist organization by the government. [[File:C9vi9oXW0AEQy6v.jpg|right|150px|thumb|Picture showing Trump supporter nicknamed Based Stickman giving a wedgie to an Antifa protester.]] After previous Trump rallies were assaulted, right-wingers came prepared at the next rally and thoroughly embarrassed Antifa, pushing back hard. Assaults were widely viewed on [[social media]]. Antifa radicals tried to garner sympathy by establishing a GoFundMe.com account. With politicians largely ignoring the violence, it is only a matter of time before somebody dies as a result of all the anger on display. <ref>[http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2017/04/antifa-leftist-terror-group-selling-concealed-knives-slicing-conservatives-website/ ANTIFA Leftist Group Is Selling Concealed Knives On Their Website For Slicing Conservatives, Gatewaypundit.com]</ref>

== External Links ==

* [http://antifa.cz/ European website]
* [http://antifaunited.bigcartel.com/ American website not yet live]
* [https://www.facebook.com/pg/ANTIFA.CZ/about/?ref=page_internal Facebook page]

{{liberalism}}

[[Category:Liberalism]]
[[Category:Terrorist Organizations]]
[[Category:Marxism]]
[[Category:Communism]]
[[Category:Activists]]
[[Category:Hate Groups]]
[[Category:Liberal Organizations]]
[[Category:Anti-American]]
[[Category:Anarchists]]

Republican Party

2017-04-21T00:56:11Z

Teapublican: gop

{{AmericanPoliticalParty
| party_name = Republican Party
| party_articletitle = Republican Party (United States)
| party_logo = [[Image:Cjjfdjfty.png|200px|"Republican Party Elephant" logo]]
| website = [http://www.gop.com www.gop.com]
| headquarters = 310 K Street SE [[Washington, D.C.]] 20003
| chairman = [[Ronna Romney McDaniel]]
| housespeaker = [[Paul Ryan]]
| houseleader = [[Kevin McCarthy]]
| senateleader = [[Mitch McConnell]]
| foundation = March 20, 1854
| ideology = [[Conservative|Conservatism]] [[Classical Liberalism]] [[Neoconservatism]] [[Liberal conservatism]] [[Libertarianism]] [[Neoconservatism]] [[Paleoconservative]]
| fiscalpolicy = [[Free Market]]
| socialpolicy = [[Conservative]]
| international = [[International Democrat Union]]
| colors = [[Red states and blue states|Red]] (unofficial)
| footnotes =
}}
The '''Republican Party''' ('''R''') or informally the '''GOP''' (short for Grand Old Party), is one of the two major political parties in the [[United States]].

The Republican Party is the only major U.S. political party that is [[pro-life]]. The Republican Party is also pro-[[free enterprise]], pro-religious liberty, pro-[[Second Amendment]], and pro-[[traditional marriage]]. At its first national convention, in 1856, the Republican Party platform stated, "It is the duty of Congress to prohibit in the territories those twin relics of barbarism, polygamy and slavery."<ref>http://www.ushistory.org/gop/convention_1856.htm</ref>

The Republican Party was created in 1854 by anti-slavery activists, although Democrats today, who are always determined to undermine Republicans by making them look "racist", claim the two parties have somehow "switched" since then.<ref>[http://www.blackandblondemedia.com/2010/03/19/the-dixiecrat-myth/ The Dixiecrat Myth]</ref> It soon swept to control of all the northern states, and in 1860 elected [[Abraham Lincoln]] president. The South seceded, and the Union side of the [[American Civil War]] was directed by Lincoln and the new party, with help from "War Democrats." The GOP (as it was also called from the 1880s) dominated the elections of the [[Third Party System]] (1854-1896) as well as the [[Fourth Party System]] or Progressive Era (1896-1932). However the Democrats built a liberal [[New Deal Coalition]] under President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]], and dominated the [[Fifth Party System]] (1932-1968), with the GOP only electing [[Dwight D. Eisenhower]] in that era. The [[Sixth Party System]], since 1968, has been dominated by the GOP.

19 of the 30 US Presidents since 1861 have been Republicans and since that same year a Republican has won 24 of the last 38 presidential elections. The party's most recent candidate, [[New York]] businessman [[Donald Trump]], along with his running mate, [[Indiana]] Governor [[Mike Pence]], won the [[2016 presidential election]] against Democrat challenger [[Hillary Clinton]] and her running mate [[Tim Kaine]].

It is important to vote for someone who's more conservative on the issues rather than for a Republican due to the fact some Republicans are less conservative than typical Republicans (see: [[RINO]]).
[[image:The_off_year_nast_1877.jpg|right|thumb|1877 Thomas Nast drawing of the Republican elephant.]]

== Symbol ==
The official symbol of the Republican Party is the elephant. Although the elephant had occasionally been associated with the party earlier, a political cartoon by [[Thomas Nast]], published in ''Harper's Weekly'' on November 7, 1874, is considered the first important use of the symbol.<ref>http://www.harpweek.com/09Cartoon/BrowseByDateCartoon.asp?Year=2003&Month=November&Date=7</ref> In the early 20th century, the traditional symbol of the Republican party in some Midwestern states was the eagle, as opposed to the Democratic cock. The eagle still appears on Indiana ballots.

A political term referring to the party is "G.O.P.", which was originally an acronym of "Grand Old Party". The term was coined in 1875.

==Ideology==
Historically, the fundamental philosophy and political ideals of the Republican Party are founded on the idea that societal health is rooted in personal responsibility and actions. The Republican Party holds the belief that all material things are earned, not owed. This is seen most often in the party's push for lower taxes. This is fought for in an attempt to treat all citizens equally despite income, race, gender, or religion. They also see taxes as a drag on the economy, and believe private spending is usually more efficient than public spending.

Republicans also show concerns about having big government in charge of such vital issues as food, shelter, or health care, as they believe the private sector and/or the individual are better suited to control their own lives. President [[Ronald Reagan]] who became a Republican in the early 1960s after being a [[New Deal]]er at one time, has been quoted as saying "Government is not the solution, it is the problem."

The party tends to hold both [[conservative]] and [[Libertarianism|libertarian]] stances on social and economic issues respectively. Major policies that the party has recently supported include a conservative foreign policy, including [[War on Terror]], liberating of [[Afghanistan]] and [[Iraq]], and strong support for democracy, especially in the [[Middle East]]. Many party members and politicians have shown a distrust of the [[United Nations]] due to the organization's incompetent bureaucracy, anti-capitalist undertone, corruption on the [[Security Council]] and in UN humanitarian programs. Along with demanding radical reforms in the UN, many Republican politicians also opposes the Kyoto Protocol due the protocol's unfair application to certain countries (especially the United States) and the fact that it prevents economic growth and slows the reduction of poverty.

The Republican Party generally supports free trade, especially [[NAFTA]] and [[CAFTA]]. It is responsible for a series of across-the-board tax cuts since 2001 that have bolstered the economy and reduced the punitive aspect of the income tax. It has sought business deregulation, reduction of environmental regulations that restrict fair use of land and property, and other policies that are pro-capitalism. It supports gun ownership rights, and enterprise zones (low taxes for investing in poverty areas). On social issues the majority of its national and state candidates usually favor the death penalty, call for stronger state-level control on access to [[abortion]], support a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage at the federal level and by the states, favor faith-based charitable initiatives, support school choice and homeschooling, social welfare benefit reform, and oppose reverse racism, such as racial quotas.

In recent years the party has called for much stronger accountability in the public schools, especially through the "No Child Left behind Act" of 2001 (which also increased [[federal funding]] for schools). The party is split on the issue of federally funding embryonic stem cell research that involves the cloning and killing of human embryos. Many in the party think it unethical to force tax payers who believe this type of research is morally wrong to finance it. Historically Republicans have had a strong belief in [[individualism]], limited government, and business entrepreneurship.

In recent years, the Republican party has downplayed its emphasis on small government. Under the administration of [[George W. Bush]], the federal government has been expanded to record levels, surpassing even the Great Depression era.<ref>http://www.dhs.gov/index.shtm</ref> Additionally, the Bush administration has acted to nationalize the country's banking institutions in an effort to stymie the decline of the U.S. economy<ref>http://www.economist.com/finance/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12078933</ref>

'''''In 2016, the Republican Party adopted the most pro-life party platform in its entire history, with strong language recognizing the right to life of unborn human beings and condemning Planned Parenthood.<ref>Ertelt, Steven; Bilger, Micaiah (July 18, 2016). [http://www.lifenews.com/2016/07/18/republicans-adopt-most-pro-life-platform-ever-condemning-abortion-and-planned-parenthood/ Republicans Adopt Most Pro-Life Platform Ever Condemning Abortion and Planned Parenthood]. ''LifeNews.com''. Retrieved December 26, 2016.</ref>'''''

== History ==
[[File:GOP-presidents.jpg|thumb|300px|GOP Presidents by Andy Thomas; clockwise from far right: Nixon, Ford, Lincoln, GHW Bush, Reagan, GW Bush, Eisenhower, Roosevelt]]
The party began in 1854, at the start of the [[Third Party System]]. The '''GOP''' (or "Grand Old Party" as it was nicknamed after 1880) dominated national politics, including most of the [[Fourth Party System]] until 1932. Then the [[Fifth Party System]] (or "New Deal Coalition") was dominant until the late 1960s. Since 1968 the GOP has won 7 of 11 presidential elections (losing in 1976, 1992, 1996 and 2008). Its great rival is the [[Democratic Party#History|Democrat Party]].

===Third Party System: 1854-1896===
The Republican party began as a spontaneous grass roots protest against the [[Kansas-Nebraska Act]] of 1854, which allowed slavery into western territories where it had been forbidden by earlier compromises. The creation of the new party, along with the death of the [[Whig Party]], realigned American politics. The central issues were new, as were the voter alignments, and the balance of power in Congress. The central issues became slavery, race, civil war and the reconstruction of the Union into a more powerful nation, with rules changed that gave the vote to former slaves.

====Issues: Slavery====
Republican activists denounced the Kansas-Nebraska act as proof of the power of the [[Slave Power]]—the powerful class of slaveholders who were conspiring to control the federal government and to spread slavery nationwide. The name "Republican" gained such favor in 1854 because "[[Republicanism, U.S.|republicanism]]" was the paramount political value the new party meant to uphold. The name also echoed the former Jeffersonian party of the [[First Party System]]. The party founders adopted the name "Republican" to indicate it was the carrier of "republican" beliefs about civic virtue, and opposition to aristocracy and corruption.<ref>Gould (2003) pp 14-15; republicanism is explored in depth by Foner (1970).</ref>
[[Image:Lincoln seated.jpg|thumb|220px|right|Abraham Lincoln was the first Republican president]]
Two small cities of the Yankee diaspora, Ripon, Wisconsin, and Jackson, Michigan, claim the birthplace honors.<ref>There is also a myth that the town of Exeter, New Hampshire was first by six months, but nothing came of the secret meeting there and scholars dismiss the claim.</ref> Ripon held the first county convention on March 20, 1854. Jackson held the first statewide convention where delegates on July 6, 1854 declared their new party opposed to the expansion of slavery into new territories and selected a statewide slate of candidates. The Midwest took the lead in forming state party tickets, while the eastern states lagged a year or so. There were no efforts to organize the party in the South, apart from a few areas adjacent to free states. The new party was sectional, based in the northeast and northern Midwest—areas with a strong Yankee presence. It had only scattered support in slave states before the Civil War.<ref>There was some strength in border cities such as St. Louis, Louisville, Wheeling, and Baltimore.</ref>

The first presidential nomination in 1856 when to an obscure western explorer [[John C. Fremont]], as the party crusaded against the Slave Power with the slogan, "Free Soil, Free Labor, Free men, Fremont and victory!" Democrats warned darkly that disunion and Civil War would result. The remnants of the Know Nothing movement prevented the new party from sweeping the North, and the Democrats elected [[James Buchanan]]. By 1858 the Know Nothings were gone and the Republicans swept the North. The 1860 election seemed a certain victory, for the party had majorities in states with a majority of the electoral votes. In the event the opposition split three ways, and [[Abraham Lincoln]] coasted to an easy victory, carrying 18 states with 190 electoral votes, while the opposition carried 15 states (mostly in the South) with 123 electoral votes. Lincoln had 1.9 million popular votes.

====Modernization====
Besides opposition to slavery, the new party put forward a modernizing vision—emphasizing higher education, banking, railroads, industry and cities, while promising free homesteads to farmers. It vigorously argued that free-market labor was superior to slavery and the very foundation of civic virtue and true American values - this is the "Free Soil, Free Labor, Free Men" ideology explored by historian Eric Foner.<ref>Foner, Eric. ''Free Soil, Free Labor, Free Men''. 1993.</ref> The Republicans absorbed the previous traditions of its members, most of whom had been [[Whig Party|Whigs]], and some of whom had been Democrats or members of third parties (especially the [[Free Soil Party]] and Know-Nothings (American Party). Many [[U.S. Democratic Party, history|Democrats]] who joined up were rewarded with governorships.<ref>They included [[Nathaniel P. Banks]] of Massachusetts, [[Kinsley Bingham]] of Michigan, [[William H. Bissell]] of Illinois, [[Salmon P. Chase]] of Ohio, [[Hannibal Hamlin]] of Maine, [[Samuel J. Kirkwood]] of Iowa, [[Ralph Metcalf]] of New Hampshire, [[Lot Morrill]] of Maine, and [[Alexander Randall]] of Wisconsin).</ref> or seats in the U.S. Senate.<ref>The senators included Bingham and Hamlin, as well as [[James R. Doolittle]] of Wisconsin, [[John P. Hale]] of New Hampshire, [[Preston King]] of New York, [[Lyman Trumbull]] of Illinois, and [[David Wilmot]] of Pennsylvania.</ref> Since its inception, its chief opposition has been the Democratic Party, but the amount of flow back and forth of prominent politicians between the two parties was quite high from 1854 to 1896.

====Ethnocultural voting====
Historians have explored the ethnocultural foundations of the party, along the line that ethnic and religious groups set the moral standards for their members, who then carried those standards into politics. The churches also provided social networks that politicians used to sign up voters. The pietistic churches, heavily influenced by the revivals of the [[Second Great Awakening]], emphasized the duty of the Christian to purge sin from society. Sin took many forms—alcoholism, polygamy and slavery became special targets for the Republicans. The Yankees, who dominated New England, much of upstate New York, and much of the upper Midwest were the strongest supporters of the new party. This was especially true for the pietistic Congregationalists and Presbyterians among them and (during the war), the Methodists, along with Scandinavian Lutherans. The Quakers were a small tight-knit group that was heavily Republican. The liturgical churches (Roman Catholic, Episcopal, German Lutheran), by contrast, largely rejected the moralism of the GOP; most of their adherents voted Democratic.<ref>Kleppner (1979) has extensive detail on the voting behavior of groups.</ref>

====Politics 1854-1860====
[[John C. Frémont]] ran as the first Republican nominee for [[President of the United States|President]] in 1856, using the [[political slogan]]: "[[United States Free Soil Party#Positions|Free soil, free labor, free speech, free men]], Frémont." Although Frémont's bid was unsuccessful, the party showed a strong base. It dominated in New England, New York and the northern Midwest, and had a strong presence in the rest of the North. It had almost no support in the South, where it was roundly denounced in 1856-60 as a divisive force that threatened civil war. The election of Abraham Lincoln in 1860 ended the domination of the fragile coalition of pro-slavery southern Democrats and conciliatory northern Democrats which had existed since the days of [[Andrew Jackson]]. Instead, a new era of Republican dominance based in the industrial and agricultural north ensued. Republicans still often refer to their party as the "party of Lincoln" in honor of the first Republican President.
{{See also|Third Party System}}

====Civil War: 1861-1865====
Lincoln proved brilliantly successful in uniting the factions of his party to fight for the Union.<ref>Goodwyn 2005</ref> However he usually fought the [[Radical Republicans]] who demanded harsher measures. Most Democrats at first were [[War Democrats]], and supportive until the fall of 1862. When Lincoln added the abolition of slavery as a war goal, many war Democrats became "peace Democrats." All the state Republican parties accepted the antislavery goal except Kentucky. In Congress, the party passed major legislation to promote rapid modernization, including a national banking system, high tariffs, an income tax, many excise taxes, paper money issued without backing ("greenbacks"), a huge national debt, homestead laws, and aid to education and agriculture. The Republicans denounced the peace-oriented Democrats as [[Copperheads]] and won enough [[War Democrats]] to maintain their majority in 1862; in 1864, they formed a coalition with many War Democrats as the "National Union Party" which reelected Lincoln easily, then folded back into the Republican party. During the war, upper middle-class men in major cities formed [[Union League]]s, to promote and help finance the war effort.

====Reconstruction: Blacks, Carpetbaggers and Scalawags====
In [[Reconstruction]], how to deal with the ex-Confederates and the freed slaves, or [[Freedmen]], were the major issues. By 1864, [[Radical Republicans]] controlled Congress and demanded more aggressive action against slavery, and more vengeance toward the Confederates. Lincoln held them off, but just barely. Republicans at first welcomed President [[Andrew Johnson]]; the Radicals thought he was one of them and would take a hard line in punishing the South. Johnson however broke with them and formed a loose alliance with moderate Republicans and Democrats. The showdown came in the Congressional elections of 1866, in which the Radicals won a sweeping victory and took full control of Reconstruction, passing key laws over the veto. Johnson was impeached by the House, but acquitted by the Senate. With the election of [[Ulysses S. Grant]] in 1868, the Radicals had control of Congress, the party and the Army, and attempted to build a solid Republican base in the South using the votes of [[Freedmen]], [[Scalawags]] and [[Carpetbaggers]], supported directly by U.S. Army detachments. Republicans all across the South formed local clubs called [[Union League]]s that effectively mobilized the voters, discussed issues, and when necessary fought off [[Ku Klux Klan]] attacks. Thousands died on both sides.

Grant supported radical reconstruction programs in the South, the 14th Amendment, and equal civil and voting rights for the freedmen. Most of all he was the hero of the war veterans, who marched to his tune. The party had become so large that factionalism was inevitable; it was hastened by Grant's tolerance of high levels of corruption typified by the [[Whiskey Ring]]. The "[[Liberal Republican]]s" split off in 1872 on the grounds that it was time to declare the war finished and bring the troops home. Many of the founders of the GOP joined the movement, as did many powerful newspaper editors. They nominated [[Horace Greeley]], who gained unofficial Democratic support, but was defeated in a landslide. The depression of 1873 energized the Democrats. They won control of the House and formed "[[Redeemers|Redeemer]]" coalitions which recaptured control of each southern state, in some cases using threats and violence.

Reconstruction came to an end when the contested election of 1876 was awarded by a special [[Electoral Commission (United States)|electoral commission]] to Republican [[Rutherford B. Hayes]] who promised, through the unofficial [[Compromise of 1877]], to withdraw federal troops from control of the last three southern states. The region then became the [[Solid South]], giving overwhelming majorities of its electoral votes and Congressional seats to the Democrats until 1964.

In terms of racial issues, "White Republicans as well as Democrats solicited black votes but reluctantly rewarded blacks with nominations for office only when necessary, even then reserving the more choice positions for whites. The results were predictable: these half-a-loaf gestures satisfied neither black nor white Republicans. The fatal weakness of the Republican party in Alabama, as elsewhere in the South, was its inability to create a biracial political party. And while in power even briefly, they failed to protect their members from Democratic terror. Alabama Republicans were forever on the defensive, verbally and physically." [Woolfolk p 134]

Social pressure eventually forced most [[Scalawags]] to join the conservative/Democratic Redeemer coalition. A minority persisted and formed the "tan" half of the "Black and Tan" Republican party, a minority in every southern state after 1877. (DeSantis 1998)

====Gilded Age: 1877-1894====
The "GOP" (as it was now nicknamed) split into factions in the late 1870s. The Stalwarts, followers of Senator Conkling, defended the spoils system. The Half-Breeds, who followed Senator [[James G. Blaine]] of Maine, pushed for [[Civil service reform]]. Independents who opposed the spoils system altogether were called "[[Mugwumps]]". In 1884 they rejected [[James G. Blaine]] as corrupt and helped elect Democrat [[Grover Cleveland]]; most returned to the party by 1888.

As the Northern post-bellum economy boomed with heavy and light industry, railroads, mines, and fast-growing cities, as well as prosperous agriculture, the Republicans took credit and promoted policies to keep the fast growth going. They supported big business generally, hard money (i.e. the [[gold standard]]), high [[tariff]]s, and high pensions for Union veterans. By 1890, however, the Republicans had agreed to the [[Sherman Anti-Trust Act]] and the [[Interstate Commerce Commission]] in response to complaints from owners of small businesses and farmers. The high [[McKinley Tariff]] of 1890 hurt the party and the Democrats swept to a landslide in the off-year elections, even defeating McKinley himself.

====Ethnocultural Voters: pietistic Republicans versus liturgical Democrats====
From 1860 to 1912, the Republicans took advantage of the association of the Democrats with "Rum, Romanism, and Rebellion". Rum stood for the liquor interests and the tavern keepers, in contrast to the GOP, which had a strong dry element. "Romanism" meant Catholics, especially Irish Americans, who ran the Democrat Party in every big city, and whom the Republicans denounced for political corruption. "Rebellion" stood for the Confederates who tried to break the Union in 1861, and the [[Copperheads]] in the North who sympathized with them.

Demographic trends aided the Democrats, as the German and Irish Catholic immigrants were Democrats, and outnumbered the English and Scandinavian Republicans. During the 1880s and 1890s, the Republicans struggled against the Democrats' efforts, winning several close elections and losing two to Grover Cleveland (in [[U.S. presidential election, 1884|1884]] and [[U.S. presidential election, 1892|1892]]). Religious lines were sharply drawn [Kleppner 1979]. Methodists, Congregationalists, Presbyterians, Scandinavian Lutherans and other pietists in the North were tightly linked to the GOP. In sharp contrast, liturgical groups, especially the Catholics, Episcopalians, and German Lutherans, looked to the Democratic party for protection from pietistic moralism, especially prohibition. Both parties cut across the class structure, with the Democrats more bottom-heavy.

Cultural issues, especially prohibition and foreign language schools became important because of the sharp religious divisions in the electorate. In the North, about 50% of the voters were pietistic Protestants (Methodists, Scandinavian Lutherans, Presbyterians, Congregationalists, Disciples of Christ) who believed the government should be used to reduce social sins, such as drinking. Liturgical churches (Roman Catholics, German Lutherans, Episcopalians) comprised over a quarter of the vote and wanted the government to stay out of the morality business. Prohibition debates and referenda heated up politics in most states over a period of decade, as national prohibition was finally passed in 1918 (and repealed in 1932), serving as a major issue between the wet Democrats and the dry GOP.<ref>See Kleppner (1979)</ref>

===Fourth Party System: 1896-1932: The Progressive Era ===
The election of [[William McKinley]] in 1896 was a [[realigning election]] that changed the balance of power, and introduced new rules, new issues and new leaders. It did not, however, see the emergence of a new major party. The Republican sweep of the 1894 Congressional elections presaged the McKinley landslide of 1896, which was repeated in 1900, thus locking the GOP in full control of the national government and most northern state governments. The GOP made major gains as well in the border states. The [[Fourth Party System]] was dominated by Republican presidents, with the exception of the two terms of Democrat [[Woodrow Wilson]], 1912-1920.

====McKinley and realignment====
McKinley promised that high tariffs would end the severe hardship caused by the [[Panic of 1893]], and that the GOP would guarantee a sort of pluralism in which all groups would benefit. He denounced [[William Jennings Bryan]], the Democratic nominee, as a dangerous radical whose plans for "Free Silver" at 16-1 (or [[Bimetallism]]) would bankrupt the economy.

McKinley relied heavily on industry and the middle classes for his support and cemented the Republicans as the party of business; his [[campaign manager]], Ohio's [[Mark Hanna]], developed a detailed plan for getting contributions from the business world, and McKinley outspent his rival [[William Jennings Bryan]] by a large margin. McKinley was the first president to promote [[pluralism]], arguing that prosperity would be shared by all ethnic and religious groups.

====Teddy Roosevelt and Progressivism====
At the dawn of the 20th century, the Republican Party was more representative of [[Big Government]](than the democrats), with progressivism finding a home within the GOP.

[[Theodore Roosevelt]], who became president in 1901, had the most dynamic personality in the nation. Roosevelt had to contend with men like Senator [[Mark Hanna]], whom he outmaneuvered to gain control of the convention in 1904 that renominated him. More difficult to handle was conservative House Speaker [[Joseph Gurney Cannon]].

Roosevelt achieved modest legislative gains in terms of railroad legislation and pure food laws. He was more successful in Court, bringing antitrust suits that broke up the [[Northern Securities]] trust and [[Standard Oil]]. Roosevelt moved left in his last two years in office but was unable to pass major Square Deal proposals.

Roosevelt did succeed in naming his successor Secretary of War [[William Howard Taft]] who easily defeated Bryan again in 1908.

====Progressive insurgents vs. Conservatives====
The GOP was divided between insurgents and stand-patters (liberals and conservatives, to use 21st century terms). [[Theodore Roosevelt]] was an enormously popular president (1901-1909), and he transferred the office to [[William Howard Taft]]. Taft, however, did not have TR's enormous popularity nor his ability to bring rival factions together. When Taft sided with the standpatters under Speaker [[Joe Cannon]] and Senate leader [[Nelson Aldrich]], the insurgents revolted. Led by [[George Norris]] the insurgents took control of the House away from Cannon and imposed a new system whereby committee chairmanships depended on seniority (years of membership on the committee), rather than party loyalty.

The tariff issue was pulling the GOP apart. Roosevelt tried to postpone the issue but Taft had to meet it head on in 1909 with the [[Payne-Aldrich Tariff Act]]. Eastern conservatives led by [[Nelson A. Aldrich]] wanted high tariffs on manufactured goods (especially woolens), while Midwesterners called for low tariffs. Aldrich tricked them by lowering the tariff on farm products, which outraged the farmers. In a stunning comeback the Democrats won control of the House in 1910, as the GOP rift between insurgents and conservatives widened.

Roosevelt sided with the insurgents and, after long indecision, decided to run against Taft for the 1912 nomination. Roosevelt had to steamroll over insurgent Senator [[Robert LaFollette]] of Wisconsin, turning an ally into an enemy. Taft outmaneuvered Roosevelt and controlled the convention. Roosevelt walked out and formed a third party, the "Progressive" or "Bull Moose" party. Very few officeholders supported him, and the new party collapsed by 1914. With the GOP vote divided in half, Democrat [[Woodrow Wilson]] easily won the 1912 election, and was narrowly reelected in 1916.

With the defeat of Theodore Roosevelt and the Progressive Bull Moose party, along with the election of Woodrow Wilson, the parties switched progressive leadership, and the Democrat Party has been the party of big government ever since.

====State and local politics====
The Republicans welcomed the [[Progressive Era]] at the state and local level. The first important reform mayor was [[Hazen S. Pingree]] of Detroit (1890–97) who was elected governor of Michigan in 1896. In New York City the Republicans joined nonpartisan reformers to battle [[Tammany Hall]], and elected Seth Low (1902–03). Samuel "Golden Rule" Jones was first elected mayor of Toledo as a Republican in 1897, but was reelected as an independent when his party refused to renominate him. In Iowa Senator Albert Cummins came up with the "Iowa Idea" that blamed the trust or monopoly problem on the high tariff, angering the eastern industrialists and factory workers. Many Republican civic leaders, following the example of Mark Hanna, were active in the [[National Civic Federation]], which promoted urban reforms and sought to avoid wasteful strikes.

====Harding-Coolidge-Hoover, 1920-1932====
The party controlled the presidency throughout the 1920s, running on a limited government platform, opposition to the League of Nations, high tariffs, and promotion of business interests. [[Warren G. Harding]], [[Calvin Coolidge]] and [[Herbert Hoover]] were resoundingly elected in the elections of 1920, 1924 and 1928 as the Democrats were deeply split on prohibition and religion. Running on a campaign of ''returning to normalcy'', Harding and Coolidge led a repudiation election of both the war as well as the big government progressivism of Woodrow Wilson.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=8iSeCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA94 Presidents Harding, Coolidge, and Hoover: Meet the Presidents]</ref><ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=LziMzAR4eD0C&pg=PA162 The Great American History Fact-finder: The Who, What, Where, When, and why of American History]</ref>
[[Image:Coolidge close.jpg|thumb|100px|left|Calvin Coolidge]]
The breakaway efforts of Senator [[Robert LaFollette]] in 1924 failed to stop a landslide for Coolidge, and his movement fell apart. The [[Teapot Dome Scandal]] threatened to hurt the party but Harding died and Coolidge blamed everything on him, as the opposition splintered in 1924. The pro-business policies of the decade seemed to produce an unprecedented prosperity—until the Wall Street Crash of 1929 heralded the [[Great Depression]]. Although the party did very well in large cities and among ethnic Catholics in presidential elections of 1920-24, it was unable to hold those gains in 1928. By 1932 the cities—for the first time ever—had become Democratic strongholds.

The African American vote held for Hoover in 1932, but started moving toward Roosevelt. By 1940 the majority of northern blacks were voting Democrat. Southern blacks who could vote (in border states) were split; disenfranchised blacks in the South probably preferred the Republicans.

The [[Great Depression]] cost Hoover the presidency with the [[U.S. presidential election, 1932|1932 landslide election]] of [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]]. Roosevelt's [[New Deal coalition]] controlled American politics for most of the next three decades, excepting the two-term presidency of Republican [[Dwight Eisenhower]].

===Fifth Party System: 1932-1980===
Minority parties tend to factionalize and after 1936 the GOP split into a conservative faction (dominant in the West and Southeast) and a liberal faction (dominant in the Northeast) – combined with a residual base of inherited progressive Republicanism active throughout the century. [[U.S. presidential election, 1936|In 1936]] Kansas governor [[Alf Landon]] and his young followers defeated the [[Herbert Hoover]] faction. Landon generally supported most New Deal programs, but carried only two states in the Roosevelt landslide.

Senator [[Robert Taft]] of Ohio represented the Midwestern wing of the party that continued to oppose [[New Deal]] reforms and continued to champion [[isolationism]]. [[Thomas Dewey]], governor of New York, represented the Northeastern wing of the party. Dewey did not reject the New Deal programs, but demanded more efficiency, more support for economic growth, and less corruption. He was more willing than Taft to support Britain in 1939-40. After the war the isolationists wing strenuously opposed the [[United Nations]], and was half-hearted in opposition to world Communism. Senator [[William F. Knowland]] of California, sobriquet ''Senator from Formosa'' (Taiwan).

[[Dwight Eisenhower]], an internationalist allied with the Dewey wing, challenged Taft in 1952 on foreign policy issues. The two men were not far apart on domestic issues. Eisenhower's victory broke a 20-year Democrat lock on the White House. Eisenhower did not try to roll back the New Deal, but he did expand the Social Security system and built the Interstate Highway system.

The conservatives in 1964 made a comeback under the leadership of [[Barry Goldwater]] who defeated [[Nelson Rockefeller]] as the Republican candidate in the [[U.S. presidential election, 1964|1964 presidential convention]]. Goldwater was strongly opposed to the New Deal and the United Nations, but he rejected isolationism and containment, calling for an aggressive anti-Communist foreign policy.

Any long-term movement toward the GOP was interrupted by the [[Watergate Scandal]], which forced Nixon to resign in 1974 under threat of impeachment. [[Gerald Ford]] succeeded Nixon and gave him a full pardon—thereby giving the Democrats a powerful issue they used to sweep the 1974 off-year elections. Ford never fully recovered, and in 1976 he barely defeated [[Ronald Reagan]] for the nomination. The taint of Watergate and the nation's economic difficulties contributed to the election of Democrat [[Jimmy Carter]] in [[U.S. presidential election, 1976|1976]], running as a Washington outsider.

====Strength of Parties 1977====
How the Two Parties Stood after the 1976 Election:

{| class=wikitable
! Party
! Republican
! Democrat
! Independent
|-
! Party ID (Gallup)
| 22%
| 47%
| 31%
|-
! House
| 143
| 292
|
|-
! Senate
| 38
| 62
|
|-
! % House popular vote nationally
| 42%
| 56%
| 2%
|-
| align=right | in the East
| 41%
| 57%
| 2%
|-
| align=right | in the South
| 37%
| 62%
| 2%
|-
| align=right | in the Midwest
| 47%
| 52%
| 1%
|-
| align=right | in the West
| 43%
| 55%
| 2%
|-
! Governors
| 12
| 37
| 1
|-
! rowspan=2 | State Legislators
| 2,370
| 5,128
| 55
|-
| 31%
| 68%
| 1%
|-
! State legislature control
| 18
| 80
| 1 *
|-
| align=right | in the East
| 5
| 13
| 0
|-
| align=right | in the South
| 0
| 32
| 0
|-
| align=right | in the Midwest
| 5
| 17
| 1 *
|-
| align=right | in the West
| 8
| 18
| 0
|-
! States' one party control of legislature and governorship
| 1
| 29
| 0
|-
|}
<nowiki>*</nowiki>The unicameral Nebraska legislature, in fact controlled by the Republicans, is technically nonpartisan.

Source: Everett Carll Ladd Jr. ''Where Have All the Voters Gone? The Fracturing of America's Political Parties'' (1978) p. 6

====Moderate Republicans of 1940-80====
[[Image:Nelson Rockefeller.jpg|thumb|100px|right|Nelson Rockefeller]]
The term ''Rockefeller Republican'' was used 1960-80 to designate a faction of the party holding "moderate" views similar to those of the late [[Nelson Rockefeller]], [[governor of New York]] from 1959 to 1974 and vice president under President [[Gerald Ford]] in 1974-77. Before Rockefeller, [[Tom Dewey]], governor of New York 1942-54 and GOP presidential nominee in 1944 and 1948 was the leader. Dwight Eisenhower reflected many of their views. An important leader in the 1950s was Connecticut Republican Senator [[Prescott Bush]], father and grandfather of presidents of [[George H. W. Bush]] and [[George W. Bush]]. After Rockefeller left the national stage in 1976, this faction of the party was more often called "moderate Republicans," in contrast to the conservatives who rallied to [[Ronald Reagan]].

Historically, Rockefeller Republicans were moderate or liberal on domestic and social policies. They favored New Deal programs, including regulation and welfare. They were very strong supporters of civil rights. They were strongly supported by big business on Wall Street (New York City). In fiscal policy they favored balanced budgets and relatively high tax levels to keep the budget balanced. They sought long-term economic growth through entrepreneurships, not tax cuts. In state politics, they were strong supporters of state colleges and universities, low tuition, and large research budgets. They favored infrastructure improvements, such as highway projects. In foreign policy they were internationalists, and anti-Communists. They felt the best way to counter Communism was sponsoring economic growth (through foreign aid), maintaining a strong military, and keeping close ties to [[NATO]]. Geographically their base was the Northeast, from Pennsylvania to Maine.

====Suburbia====
The suburban electorate passed the city electorate in the 1950s, as Eisenhower showed unusually strength there. The history of suburban politics is encapsulated in Nassau County (New York), just east of New York City, where a moderate Republican party machine operated. Despite predictions that the New Deal spelled the demise of the political machine, Nassau provided fertile ground for a party organization that rivaled its big city Democrat counterparts. The traditionally GOP county underwent a booming expansion during 1945-60, with an influx of new residents, many with previous Democrat Party affiliations. In established villages and new housing developments such as [[Levittown]], under the canny leadership of J. Russel Sprague, the party used patronage and community organizing techniques to build its base among ethnic voters, young people, and new homeowners. The party expanded beyond its white Protestant base, with Italian Americans becoming particularly prominent in party leadership. Sprague was both party leader and county executive. That post was created in 1936 under a new charter engineered by Sprague to update a municipal apparatus unable to meet the infrastructure and development needs of a county that by 1960 had 1.3 million residents. Democrats and reformers had promoted charter revision for decades, and some consolidation of government services did take place. As county "boss," Sprague ruled with an iron hand. Nassau's pluralities for such candidates as Governor Thomas E. Dewey and President Dwight D. Eisenhower and Sprague's fundraising prowess made him a force in national party politics. He advocated a moderate, middle-of-the-road position that recognized expectations created by the New Deal while criticizing what were claimed to be Democrat excesses. After leaving elective office and party leadership, Sprague became a major campaign issue when the Democrats, in a 1961 historic upset, won the county executive post by both lambasting Sprague, tainted by a racetrack-stock scandal, and criticizing the developer-friendly "Spragueland" regime that had governed Nassau for decades. Soon after Sprague died in 1969, the Nassau GOP regained its control of the county government and reestablished virtual one-party rule until the 1990s.<ref>Marjorie Freeman Harrison, "Machine Politics Suburban Style: J. Russel Sprague and the Nassau County (New York) Republican Party at Midcentury." PhD dissertation Columbia U. 2005. 388 pp.
DAI 2005 66(5): 1925-A. DA3174807</ref>

An even longer reign of power characterized GOP machine control of Delaware County, Pennsylvania, a rural and suburban area south of Philadelphia. William McClure controlled the GOP from 1875 until his death in 1907; his son John J. McClure, was in control from 1907 until his death in 1965. McLarnon (1998) has four main findings. First, political machines were not confined to big cities; the demographic and political peculiarities of suburban counties lent themselves to continued domination by political machines long after the heyday of the city machine had passed. Secondly, neither the New Deal, immigration restriction, nor the rise of organized labor destroyed all the old Republican machines. Delaware was one of several similar counties in southeastern Pennsylvania where the GOP continued to hold sway throughout the 20th century. Thirdly, not all blacks switched their electoral loyalties to the Democrat Party in 1936. The black population of Chester, Delaware County's industrial city, generally voted Republican for offices below the presidential level. Finally, the citizens of Delaware County supported and continues to support the Republican machine because the machine delivered and continues to deliver those things that the citizens want most. At the beginning of the century, the machine provided food, work, and police protection to Chester's European and black immigrants. During Prohibition, it supplied the county with liquor. Through the Depression, patronage and close alliances with local industrialists kept a significant portion of machine loyalists employed. In the 1950s and 1960s the machine kept taxes low, initiated a war on organized vice, successfully defeated all threats to home rule, and discouraged blacks from settling in historically white communities. The trash was collected, the snow plowed, the streets repaired. The buses ran on time, the playgrounds and parks were clean, and the schools acceptably average. These were the most important concerns of a majority of county's citizens. While the citizens and their concerns changed over time, two things seem to have remained constant: the McClures', and their successors' ability to read and react to the needs of the electorate; and the fact that rarely, if ever, has a desire for honest, democratic government been high on Delaware County voters' list of priorities.<ref>John Morrison McLarnon, "Ruling Suburbia: A Biography of the McClure Machine of Delaware County, Pennsylvania." PhD dissertation U. of Delaware 1998. 616 pp. DAI 1998 58(12): 4780-A. DA9819160</ref>

====Rise of the right====
[[Image:BarryGoldwater.jpg|right|thumb|220px|Barry Goldwater]]
[[Barry Goldwater]] crusaded against the Rockefeller Republicans, beating Rockefeller narrowly in the California primary of 1964. That set the stage for a conservative resurgence, based in the South and West, in opposition to the Northeast. Brennan (1995) stresses that conservatives in the late 1950s and early 1960s had many internal problems to overcome before they could mount an effective challenge to the hegemony of the distrusted Eastern Establishment, typified by [[Nelson A. Rockefeller]]. The conservative movement had some newspapers and magazines (especially [[William F. Buckley]]'s ''National Review'') and one charismatic national leader, Arizona Senator Barry Goldwater. The movement gained momentum once they had established a unity out of diverse elements on the Right with a common commitment to a militant anti-Communism, and once they had succeeded in mobilizing a grassroots base inside a number of state and local organizations in the Sun Belt on behalf of a draft Goldwater campaign in 1960. Although Nixon was acceptable to the conservatives, they worried that he compromised with Rockefeller in 1960. His defeat in 1960 removed a major obstacle and also gave ammunition to those who wanted "a choice, not an echo" (to echo a Goldwater slogan). After 1960 liberals and moderates in the Republican party failed to appreciate the magnitude of the challenge they faced on the grass-roots level. They too readily equated their conservative opponents in the party with the "lunatic fringe" and did not take them seriously until they found themselves deposed by a grass roots insurgency of the sort unknown in the party since 1912.<ref>Brennan (1995) p, 59</ref> Goldwater's landslide defeat opened the way to a liberal Democrat resurgence, but did little to help the liberal wing of the GOP. The failures of the Great Society, especially a wave of major urban riots and a surge in violent crime, led to major gains in 1966, and to Nixon's election in the chaotic 1968 election. The Democrats became deeply divided on the Vietnam war (which did not divide the GOP), and on issues of race, when Alabamian [[George C. Wallace]] set up a third party that carried much of the deep South.

As Goldwater faded to a lesser role after 1964, a new conservative hero emerged: in the largest and most trendy state film star [[Ronald Reagan]] was elected governor of California in 1966 and reelected in 1970.

With the rise of conservatism the national Republican Party became more ideologically homogeneous. This change occurred as conservative politicians and voters joined the party and their liberal counterparts abandoned the GOP. Events in New York State during the 1960s and 1970s facilitated this transformation. Here, ideological conservatives formed a third party for the express purpose of changing a state GOP that both symbolized and contributed to the national GOP's liberal viewpoint. The [[Conservative Party, New York|Conservative Party]] relied on the state's unique election law to crash the New York GOP, either by forcing its way in or by imposing a lethal electoral price. The GOP-Conservative Party relationship began in 1962 at sword's point but achieved a high degree of harmony in 1980. Initially, New York Republicans, led by Governor [[Nelson Rockefeller]], successfully marginalized the new party. As the conservative movement matured, however, the balance of power began to shift. When Nixon was elected president in 1968, the Conservative Party gained an external ally who proved invaluable. The third party achieved partial acceptance in 1970 with the election of [[James Buckley]] to the Senate. For much of the ensuing decade, however, Conservatives struggled with success suffering a series of damaging setbacks. Only in the late 1970s, did the party recover when it embraced a more modest agenda. Finally, the 1980 election settled the overall contours of the relationship between the two parties. Conservatives formed their party to force the state GOP to the right, to drive liberal Republicans from office, and allow ideologically conservative national Republicans to succeed in the state. By 1980, it had achieved these goals changing the nature of politics in the state. This resolution affected politics beyond the state by diminishing the importance of ideological liberals in the national GOP, thus freeing a more ideologically consistent national Republican Party to promote the rise of conservatism.<ref>Timothy J. Sullivan, "Crashing the Party: The New York State Conservative and Republican Parties, 1962-1980." PhD dissertation U. of Maryland, College Park 2003. 458 pp. DAI 2004 64(11): 4181-A. DA3112508</ref>

===Sixth Party System===
====Realignment: Republican inroads in the Solid South====
:''See also: [[The South#Politics]]
In the century after Reconstruction ended in 1877, the white South identified with the [[Democrat Party]]. The Democrats' lock on power was so strong, the region was called the "Solid South." The Republicans controlled certain parts of the Appalachian mountains, but they sometimes did compete for statewide office in the border states. Before 1964, the southern Democrats saw their party as the defender of the southern way of life, which included a respect for states' rights and an appreciation for traditional southern values. They repeatedly warned against the aggressive designs of Northern liberals and Republicans, as well as the civil rights activists they denounced as "outside agitators." Thus there was a serious barrier to becoming a Republican.

However, since 1964, the Democrat lock on the South has been broken. The long-term cause was that the region was becoming more like the rest of the nation and could not long stand apart in terms of racial segregation. Modernization that brought factories, businesses, and cities, and millions of migrants from the North; far more people graduated from high school and college. Meanwhile, the cotton and tobacco basis of the traditional South faded away, as former farmers moved to town or commuted to factory jobs. While the majority of political scientists believe that the shift of the South to the Republican Party began in the 1960's, there is evidence that it really began in the 1920s and the 1950s.<ref>Trande, Sean (April 30, 2013). [http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2013/04/30/southern_whites_shift_to_the_gop_predates_the_60s_118172.html Southern Whites' Shift to the GOP Predates the '60s]. ''Real Clear Politics''. Retrieved September 9, 2016.</ref>

The immediate cause of the political transition involved civil rights. The [[civil rights movement]] caused enormous controversy in the white South with many attacking it as a violation of states' rights. When segregation was outlawed by court order and by the Civil Rights acts of 1964 and 1965, a die-hard element resisted integration, led by Democrat governors [[Orval Faubus]] of Arkansas, [[Lester Maddox]] of Georgia, and, especially [[George Wallace]] of Alabama. These populist governors appealed to a less-educated, blue-collar electorate that on economic grounds favored the Democrat Party, but opposed segregation. After passage of the Civil Rights Act most Southerners accepted the integration of most institutions (except public schools). With the old barrier to becoming a Republican removed, traditional Southerners joined the new middle class and the Northern transplants in moving toward the Republican party. Integration thus liberated Southern politics, just as [[Martin Luther King]] had promised. Meanwhile, the newly enfranchised black voters supported Democrat candidates at the 85-90% level.

The South's transition to a Republican stronghold took decades. First the states started voting Republican in presidential elections—the Democrats countered that by nominating Southerners who could carry some states in the region, such as [[Jimmy Carter]] in 1976 and 1980, and [[Bill Clinton]] in 1992 and 1996; the strategy did not work with [[Al Gore]] in 2000, or [[John Edwards]] in 2004. Barack Obama held Florida, North Carolina and Virginia and a sweep of House and Senate seats.

Since the 1970s some states elected Republican senators. Republicans made some inroads into legislatures and governorships and gerrymandering protected the African American and Hispanic vote (as required by the Civil Rights laws), but split up the remaining white Democrats so that Republicans mostly would win. In 2006 the Supreme Court endorsed nearly all of the redistricting engineered by [[Tom DeLay]] that swung the Texas Congressional delegation to the GOP in 2004.

In addition to its white middle class base, Republicans attracted strong majorities from the evangelical Christian vote, which had been nonpolitical before 1980. The national Democrat Party's support for liberal social stances such as [[abortion]] drove many former Democrats into a Republican party that was embracing the conservative views on these issues. Conversely, liberal Republicans in the northeast began to join the Democrat Party. In 1969 in ''The Emerging Republican Majority'', [[Kevin Phillips]], argued that support from Southern whites and growth in the [[Sun Belt]], among other factors, was driving an enduring Republican electoral [[realigning election|realignment]]. Today, the South is again solid, but the reliable support is for Republican presidential candidates. Exit polls in 2004 showed that Bush led Kerry by 70-30% among whites, who comprised 71% of the Southern voters. Kerry had a 90-9% lead among the 18% of the voters who were black. One third of the Southerners said they were white evangelicals; they voted for Bush by 80-20%.<ref>See [http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2004/pages/results/states/US/P/00/epolls.3.html exit polls]</ref>

Despite the shift towards the Republican Party on the presidential level, the South remained solidly Democratic on the state level through the 1980s, 1990s, and even into the 2000s in several states.<ref>Trande, Sean (September 9, 2010). [http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2010/09/09/misunderstanding_the_southern_realignment_107084.html Misunderstanding the Southern Realignment]. ''Real Clear Politics''. Retrieved September 9, 2016.</ref> The Republican Party only became dominant in the state-level in the 2010 elections, when it captured several state legislatures, among many other victories.<ref name="Hamby">Hamby, Peter (December 9, 2014). [http://www.cnn.com/2014/12/03/politics/southern-democrats/ The plight of the Southern Democrat]. ''CNN''. Retrieved September 9, 2016.</ref> After the 2014 elections, the GOP controlled every state legislature in the South with the sole exception of the Kentucky State House, in which the Democrats maintained a slim majority.<ref name="Hamby"/> Additionally by 2015, the GOP was dominant in every level of government across the South.<ref name="Hamby"/><ref>Cohn, Nate (December 4, 2014). [http://www.nytimes.com/2014/12/05/upshot/demise-of-the-southern-democrat-is-now-nearly-compete.html?_r=0 Demise of the Southern Democrat Is Now Nearly Complete]. ''The New York Times''. Retrieved September 9, 2016.</ref> In 2016, the GOP took the Kentucky State House in a landslide, making every legislature in the South GOP-controlled.<ref>Loftus, Tom (November 9, 2016). [http://www.courier-journal.com/story/news/politics/elections/kentucky/2016/11/08/control-kentucky-house-up-grabs/93344114/ GOP takes Ky House in historic shift]. ''Courier-Journal''. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref><ref>Brammer, Jack & Blackford, Linda (November 8, 2016). [http://www.kentucky.com/news/politics-government/article113464563.html Republicans take the Kentucky House after 95 years of Democratic control]. ''Lexington Herald-Leader''. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref>

====Reagan Era====
:''Main article: [[Reagan Era]]''
In 1980, [[Ronald Reagan]] won the Republican nomination and easily beat Carter and a breakaway Republican with his strong communication skills and message of economic freedom and strength against the [[Soviet Union]]. Reagan produced a major realignment with his 1980 and 1984 landslides. In 1980 the Reagan coalition was possible because of Democrat losses in most social-economic groups. In 1984 Reagan won nearly 60% of the popular vote and carried every state except his Democrat opponent Walter Mondale's home state of [[Minnesota]] and the District of Columbia, creating a record 525 electoral vote total (of 538 possible). Even in Minnesota, Mondale won by a mere 3,761 votes,<ref>http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/state.php?year=1984&fips=27&f=1&off=0&elect=0</ref> meaning Reagan came within less than 3,800 votes of winning in all fifty states.
[[Image:Reagan and Buckley.jpg|left|thumb|220px|Reagan opened his presidency proclaiming "Government is the problem".]]
Running on a "Peace Through Strength" platform to combat the Communist threat and massive tax cuts to revitalize the economy, Reagan's strong but genial persona proved too much for the ineffective and sour Carter in 1980. Reagan's election also gave Republicans control of the Senate for the first time in decades. Dubbed the "Reagan Revolution" he fundamentally altered several long standing debates in Washington, namely dealing with the Soviet threat and reviving the economy. His election saw the conservative wing of the party gain control. While reviled by liberal opponents in his day, his proponents contend his programs provided unprecedented economic growth, and spurred the collapse of the former Soviet Union. Currently regarded as one of the most popular and successful presidents in the modern era (1960–present), he inspired Conservatives to greater electoral victories by being re-elected in a landslide against Walter Mondale in 1984 but oversaw the loss of the Senate in 1986.

The so-called "Reagan Democrats" were Democrats before the Reagan years, and afterwards, but who voted for Ronald Reagan in 1980 and 1984 (and for George H.W. Bush in 1988), producing their landslide victories. They were primarily Southern Democrats and ethnic Catholics in the Northeast and were frustrated by their seeing abandonment on cultural issues by the Democrat Party's national leaders.

Reagan's Vice-President, [[George H.W. Bush]], a [[World War II]] war hero, was elected in 1988 but was defeated in 1992 as domestic issues took prominence after the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991 and end of the [[Cold War]]. Democrat challenger [[Bill Clinton]] strategically repositioned the Democrats to the right. [[Ross Perot]]'s candidacy was instrumental in Clinton's victory as he took Republican votes with his criticism of deficits and the free trade movement. Perot won 19% of the popular vote, and Clinton, still a largely unknown quantity in American politics with 41% of! the popular vote took office. Despite his loss, Bush left office in 1993 with a 56 percent job approval rating.

====The Gingrich revolution====
:''Main articles: [[Republican Revolution (1994)]] and [[Contract with America]]''
House Republican Minority Whip [[Newt Gingrich]]-led the [[Republican Revolution (1994)|"Republican Revolution" of 1994]] and its famous ''[[Contract with America]]''. It was the first time since the 1952 elections that the Republicans secured control of both houses of Congress, which, with the brief exception of the Senate during 2001-2002, lasted until the 2006 mid-term elections. Democrats had controlled both houses of Congress for the forty years preceding 1994, with the exception of the 1981-1987 Congresses (in which Republicans controlled the Senate).

In the 1994 mid-term election, Republican congressional candidates ran on a platform of promising floor votes to force members of Congress to go on record on a series of popular reforms—something the Democrats had stifled for decades. These measures and others formed the Contract with America, which represented the first effort to have a party platform in a mid-term election. Seven of the ten Contract items actually became Law. The budget reforms, coupled with reduced defense spending after the Cold War, and the earlier Reagan Tax Cuts for Business Research and Development in the 1980s, led to a high tech consumer boom, rising incomes for all groups, and unprecedented, sustained economic growth in the late 1990s. Democratic President Bill Clinton opposed some of the social agenda initiatives but he co-opted the proposals for welfare reform and a balanced federal budget. The result was a major change in the welfare system, which conservatives hailed and liberals bemoaned. One Contract item, which required Democrats in a two-thirds majority to pass a Constitutional amendment to impose term limits on members of Congress, failed.

In 1995, a budget battle with [[President Clinton]] led to the brief shutdown of the federal government, an event which contributed to Clinton's victory in the 1996 election. That year the Republicans nominated [[Bob Dole]], who was unable to transfer his success in Senate leadership to a viable presidential campaign. [[Ross Perot]] ran again (this time on [[Reform Party]] ticket), once again draining away a large percentage of Dole's support and insuring Clinton another term after the majority of Americans voters voted against him.

====War on Terror====
:Main article: [[War on Terror]]''
With the election of George W. Bush (son of former president George H. W. Bush) in an extremely close 2000 election, the Republican party controlled both the presidency and both houses of Congress for the first time since 1952. However, after [[Vermont]] senator Jim Jeffords left the Republican Party to become an independent aligned with the Democrats in June 2001, Republicans lost control of the Senate by a single seat.

In the wake of the September 11, 2001 Islamic terrorist attacks on the United States, however, Bush pursued a "War on Terrorism" that included the liberation of Afghanistan from the radical Islamic Taliban regime and the [[Patriot act|USA PATRIOT act]]. By early 2002, the Taliban was removed from power in Afghanistan. On March 20, 2003, U.S. and allied nations initiated "Operation Iraqi Freedom" to liberate the Iraqi people from the brutal regime of [[Saddam Hussein]]. By May 1, 2003, the regime of Saddam was declared officially over. Once US and allied military forces entered Iraq, they discovered that various international terrorists had been given sanctuary and ran their terrorist operations from Iraq. Notable terrorists found included Muhammad Zaidan aka Abu Abbas and Sabri Khalil al-Banna aka Abu Nidal.

The Republican Party fared well in the 2002 midterm elections, solidifying its hold on the House and regaining control of the Senate, in the run-up to the liberation of Iraq. This marked just the third time since the Civil War that the party in control of the White House gained seats in both houses of Congress in a midterm election (others were 1902 and 1934).

Bush was renominated without opposition for the [[United States presidential election, 2004]] and titled his political platform "A Safer World and a More Hopeful America". It expressed Bush's commitment to winning the War on Terror, ushering in an Ownership Era, and building an innovative economy to compete in the world.

On November 2, 2004, Bush was re-elected, while Republicans gained seats in both houses of Congress, leaving Democrats in disarray. Bush carried 31 of 50 states for 286 Electoral College votes. In that election, he also received more popular votes than any previous presidential candidate, 62.0 million votes. Democrat challenger, Senator [[John Kerry]], won 251 Electoral votes and 48% of the popular vote to Bush's 51%. It was the first time anyone won a popular majority since 1988. 2004 marked the seventh consecutive election in which the Democrat nominee failed to reach that threshold.

====The wilderness years 2009-2010====
After smashing defeats in 2006 and 2008, the GOP lost control of Congress, the White House, and many states. They confront president who still retains some popularity, but have been able to chip away at support for his domestic policies, as the [[recession of 2008]] continues to drag on. In June 2009 public opinion was favorable toward Obama personally, but increasingly dubious about his plans to overhaul health care, rescue the auto industry and close the prison at Guantánamo Bay. But with a positive job approval rating of 51% , Obama has the backing of most Democrats, even as Republicans turn negative, with only 23% supporting him. Support for Obama's foreign policies and terrorism policies remains high at 57-59%. Meanwhile, the GOP weaknesses were glaring: the June poll found that the Republican Party is viewed favorably by only 28% of Americans, the lowest rating ever in a New York Times/CBS News poll. In contrast, 57% said that they had a favorable view of the Democrat Party.<ref>Jeff Zeleny and Dalia Sussman, "Obama Poll Sees Doubt on Budget and Health Care [http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/18/us/politics/18poll.html?th&emc=th ''New York Times'' June 17, 2009]</ref> However, it should be noted that this poll was conducted by the [[mainstream media]] and thus is a clear example of [[liberal bias]].

====Rise of the Tea Party movement====
[[Image:TeaPartyByFreedomFan.JPG|thumb|200px|right|Tea Party movement March on DC, 2009.]]
:{{main|Tea Party Movement}}
The Tea Party movement, which began around 2009 and supports small government, fiscal conservatism, American independence, and border security, made huge gains in the 2010 election, defeating establishment Republicans and RINOs. They continued to make gains in later elections, including the 2014 elections in [[Texas]] and the 2015 [[Kentucky]] elections, and some commentators, including liberals<ref>{{cite web | last1=Chait | first1=Jonathan | title=Donald Trump Hasn’t Killed the Tea Party. He Is the Tea Party | url=http://nymag.com/daily/intelligencer/2016/05/donald-trump-is-the-tea-party.html | date=May 19, 2016 | publisher=''New York'' | accessdate=December 7, 2016}}</ref> and conservatives,<ref>{{cite web | last1=Martin | first1=Jenny Beth | title=How the Tea Party Helped Trump Win the Election | url=http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2016/11/12/how-tea-party-helped-trump-win-election.html | date=November 12, 2016 | publisher=[[Fox News]] | accessdate=December 7, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | last1=Martin | first1=Jenny Beth | title=The Tea Party Movement Is Alive and Well—And We Saw Trump Coming | url=http://www.politico.com/magazine/story/2016/11/the-tea-party-movement-is-alive-and-well-and-we-saw-trump-coming-214469 | date=November 19, 2016 | publisher=[[Politico|Politico Magazine]] | accessdate=December 7, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | last1=Hayward | first1=John | title=Sarah Palin: Trump Movement Began with the GOP Establishment’s ‘Shocking Betrayals’ of Tea Party Voters | url=http://www.breitbart.com/radio/2016/11/25/sarah-palin-trump-movement-began-with-the-gop-establishments-shocking-betrayals-of-tea-party-voters/ | date=November 25, 2016 | publisher=[[Breitbart News]] | accessdate=December 7, 2016}}</ref> even believe it was responsible for Donald Trump's 2016 victory.

====Trump Era====
:''For further information, see [[2016 U.S. presidential election#General election results]]''
Republican businessman [[Donald Trump]] won the [[United States presidential election, 2016|2016 presidential election]] in a major and historic upset that took the [[establishment]], pollsters and analysts completely by surprise, even winning states such as [[Wisconsin]], [[Michigan]], and [[Pennsylvania]], which Republicans had not won for years.<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/11/08/first-polls-close-in-2016-race-trump-projected-to-win-ind-ky-clinton-wins-vt.html Trump wins presidency, defeats Clinton in historic election upset]. ''Fox News''. November 8, 2016. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref><ref>Blake, Aaron (November 9, 2016). [https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-fix/wp/2016/11/08/donald-trumps-path-to-victory-is-suddenly-looking-much-much-wider/ Donald Trump just blew up the electoral map]. ''The Washington Post''. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref> The Republican Party kept control of the House and Senate, outperforming expectations.<ref>Bresnahan, John (November 9, 2016). [http://www.politico.eu/article/republicans-on-cusp-of-keeping-the-senate/ Republicans hold the Senate in a stunner]. ''Politico''. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref><ref>Hughes, Siobhan (November 9, 2016). [http://www.wsj.com/articles/republicans-are-confident-about-retaining-control-of-the-house-1478634160 Democrats Gain Seats in House, But GOP Retains Majority]. ''The Wall Street Journal''. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref>
[[Image:Donald Trump official photo.jpg|left|thumb|120px|Donald Trump]]
In addition, the Republican Party performed well—much better than expected—in state races, winning trifectas in [[Kentucky]], [[Iowa]], [[Missouri]], and [[New Hampshire]], and Democrats only had six trifectas and total control in five states, a record low.<ref>Greenblatt, Alan (November 9, 2016). [http://www.governing.com/topics/elections/gov-republicans-add-dominance-state-legislatures.html Republicans Add to Their Dominance of State Legislatures]. ''Governing''. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref><ref>Siegel, Josh (November 9, 2016). [http://dailysignal.com/2016/11/09/republicans-maintain-strong-control-of-state-capitols-what-that-means/ Republicans Maintain Strong Control of State Capitols. Here’s What That Means.] ''The Daily Signal''. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref> The GOP won 25 trifectas, the largest since 1952.<ref name="ReshapeLaws">Lieb, David A. (December 29, 2016). [https://www.pressreader.com/usa/chicago-tribune/20161229/281822873464433 GOP-Controlled States Aim to Reshape Laws]. ''Chicago Tribune'' (from the Associated Press). Retrieved December 30, 2016.</ref> After the election, the GOP controlled the highest amount of governorships since 1922,<ref>Lieb, David A. (November 9, 2016). [http://www.usnews.com/news/us/articles/2016-11-09/republicans-expand-control-of-governorships-legislatures Republicans governorships rise to highest mark since 1922]. ''U.S. News & World Report''. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref> and it controlled the most state legislative chambers in history.<ref>Bosman, Julie & Davey, Monica (November 11, 2016). [http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/12/us/republicans-expand-control-in-a-deeply-divided-nation.html Republicans Expand Control in a Deeply Divided Nation]. ''The New York Times''. Retrieved November 14, 2016.</ref>

While the GOP increased its vote share across the entire nation, Trump made the largest gains in the rural [[Midwest]] and [[Rust Belt]], traditionally a Democrat blue collar stronghold..<ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2016/11/08/us/elections/how-trump-pushed-the-election-map-to-the-right.html How Trump Reshaped the Election Map]. ''The New York Times''. November 9, 2016. Retrieved November 12, 2016.</ref>

Because of the large gains, the GOP had a massive opportunity to pass [[Conservative|common sense conservative]] legislation and repeal leftist social and economic quagmires.<ref name="ReshapeLaws"/>

Congressional Republicans were more united during Trump's presidency than in any other time in recent U.S. political history.<ref>Stucky, Phillip (April 2, 2017). [http://dailycaller.com/2017/04/02/trump-smashes-records-with-party-unity/ Trump Smashes Records With Party Unity]. ''The Daily Caller''. Retrieved April 2, 2017.</ref>

== Contemporary Party ==
The contemporary Republican Party represents a wide array of interests such as the conservative evangelicals, economic libertarians, and anti-globalists. The party has had some internal conflict over attitudes about how governments should run and how large they should be, what the party stands for, and what the party's attitude towards [[neo-conservatism]] should be especially in regard to foreign policy. The party is also divided over immigration issues with some members (such as George W. Bush) favoring workers visas and permits and some other members favoring strict control of immigration and strong action against illegal immigration. Unlike the Democrat Party, the Republican Party routinely allows dissenting factions such as the [[Log Cabin Republicans]] to speak at National Conventions.

In the past, the Republican voter coalitions have generally comprised businessmen, military veterans and evangelical Protestants. Some groups have realigned: blacks went from the GOP to the Democrats beginning in the 1930s, while some white Southerners became Republicans in the 1980s. Catholics switched from 80% Democratic in 1960 to 50-50 in recent years, primarily due to the embrace of [[abortion]] by the Democrats. In recent years youth (influenced by [[Hollywood values]]) and better educated professionals (influenced by [[professor values]]) have moved to the Democrats, while blue collar workers have become more Republican, due to the abortion, economic self-interest, and the Democrat support for the [[nanny state]].

==Republican Presidents==
# [[Abraham Lincoln]] (1861-1865)
# [[Ulysses S. Grant]] (1869-1877)
# [[Rutherford B. Hayes]] (1877-1881)
# [[James Garfield]] (1881)
# [[Chester A. Arthur]] (1881-1885)
# [[Benjamin Harrison]] (1889-1893)
# [[William McKinley]] (1897-1901)
# [[Theodore Roosevelt]] (1901-1909)
# [[William Howard Taft]] (1909-1913)
# [[Warren G. Harding]] (1921-1923)
# [[Calvin Coolidge]] (1923-1929)
# [[Herbert Hoover]] (1929-1933)
# [[Dwight Eisenhower]] (1953-1961)
# [[Richard Nixon]] (1969-1974)
# [[Gerald Ford]] (1974-1977)
# [[Ronald Reagan]] (1981-1989)
# [[George H. W. Bush]] (1989-1993)
# [[George W. Bush]] (2001-2009)
# [[Donald Trump]] (2017-)

==Notable Republicans (Non-presidential)==
An incomplete list of notable Republican leaders and politicians who were not elected president:

*[[Frederick Douglass]] (1818-1895): Abolitionist and suffragist from [[Maryland]]
*[[James G. Blaine]] (1830-1893): Senator from [[Maine]], presidential nominee
*[[Joseph Gurney Cannon]] (1836-1926): [[Speaker of the United States House of Representatives]]
*[[Charles Curtis]] (1860-1936): United States [[Vice President]], a Native American
*[[Charles G. Dawes]] (1865-1951): United States Vice President, [[Nobel Peace Prize]] winner
*[[Tom Dewey]] (1902-1971): Governor of [[New York]]; presidential nominee in 1944 and 1948
*[[Everett Dirksen]] (1896-1969): Senate minority leader, instrumental in passing the [[Civil Rights Act]]
*[[John C. Frémont]] (1813-1890): First Republican candidate for president
*Mark Hanna (1837-1904): Senator from [[Ohio]], manager of 1896 campaign
*[[Jesse Helms]] (1921-2008): Senator from [[North Carolina]]
*George Frisbie Hoar (1826-1904): Senator from [[Massachusetts]]
*[[Charles Evans Hughes]]: Governor of New York; presidential nominee in 1916, United States Secretary of State, [[Chief Justice of the United States]]
*[[Martin Luther King, Jr.]] (1929-1968): [[Civil rights]] leader
*William Fife Knowland (1908-1974), Senator from [[California]], Senate Majority Leader from 1953-1955, Senate Minority Leader from 1955-1959
*[[Henry Cabot Lodge]] (1850-1924): Senator from [[Massachusetts]], foreign policy spokesman
*[[Joseph McCarthy]] (1908-1957): Senator from [[Wisconsin]] and noted anti-communist
*Thomas Brackett Reed (1839-1902): Speaker of the United States House of Representatives
*[[Nelson Rockefeller]] (1908-1979): Vice President, Governor of New York, considered representative of the liberal wing of the party
*[[Thaddeus Stevens]] (1792-1868): Senator from [[Pennsylvania]], leader of Radicals in Civil War and Reconstruction
*[[Charles Sumner]] (1811-1874): Senator from Massachusetts, leader of Radicals in Civil War and Reconstruction
*[[Henry Stimson]]: Secretary of War for Taft and FDR, Secretary of State for Hoover
*[[Robert Taft]] (1889-1953): Senator from Ohio and presidential hopeful, leader of conservatives
*[[Strom Thurmond]] (1902-2003): the oldest serving senator in history (from [[South Carolina]])
*Arthur H. Vandenberg (1884-1951): Senator from Michigan, leader of internationalism in 1940s
*[[Scott Walker]]: Governor of [[Wisconsin]], presidential candidate in 2016
*[[Earl Warren]] (1891-1974): Vice presidential nominee, [[Governor of California]], and [[Chief Justice of the United States]]
*[[Barry Goldwater]] (1909-1998): Senator from [[Arizona]], presidential nominee in 1964
*[[Antonin Scalia]] (1936-2016): Associate Justice of the Supreme Court (1986-2016)
*[[Clarence Thomas]]: Associate Justice of the Supreme Court (1991-present)
*[[John McCain]]: Senator from [[Arizona]], presidential nominee in 2008
*[[Sarah Palin]]: Governor of [[Alaska]], vice-presidential nominee in 2008
*[[Arnold Schwarzenegger]]: Governor of [[California]]
*[[Mitt Romney]]: Governor of [[Massachusetts]], presidential nominee in 2012
*[[Mike Pence]]: Vice President (2017-present), Governor of [[Indiana]] (2013-2017)

==See also==
*[[RINO]] - '''R'''epublicans '''i'''n '''N'''ame '''O'''nly
*[[Previous Breaking News/Republicans|Articles about '''Republicans''' from previous "Breaking News"]]

==Bibliography==
===Historical===
*''American National Biography'' (20 volumes, 1999) covers all politicians no longer alive; online at many academic libraries.
* Abramson, Paul R. et al. ''Change and Continuity in the 2004 and 2006 Elections'' (2007) [http://www.amazon.com/Change-Continuity-2004-2006-Elections/dp/0872894150/ref=sr_1_10?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1221785751&sr=8-10 excerpt and text search]
* Batchelor, John Calvin. ''"Ain't You Glad You Joined the Republicans?" A Short History of the GOP.'' 1996. 399 pp. well-written popular history, well illustrated
* Chace, James. ''1912: Wilson, Roosevelt, Taft, and Debs - The Election That Changed the Country.'' (2004). 323 pp.
* ''Congressional Quarterly's Guide to U.S. Elections'' (4th ed 2003) 1600pp, vast compilation of data, esp., since 1945
* Foner, Eric. ''Free Soil, Free Labor, Free Men: The Ideology of the Republican Party Before the Civil War (1970), influential history of ideas and ideology; [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=90104191 online edition]
*Gienapp, William E. ''The Origins of the Republican Party, 1852-1856'' (1987), quantitative voting studies, by state
* Goldberg, Robert Alan. ''Barry Goldwater'' (1995),
*Gould, Lewis. ''Grand Old Party: A History of the Republicans'' (2003), the best scholarly overview.
* Hodgson, Godfrey. ''The World Turned Right Side Up: A History of the Conservative Ascendancy in America'' (1996). by British journalist
*Jensen, Richard. ''Grass Roots Politics: Parties, Issues, and Voters, 1854-1983'' (1983) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=15326916 online edition]
*Jensen, Richard. ''The Winning of the Midwest: Social and Political Conflict, 1888-1896'' (1971)
*Kleppner, Paul, et al. ''The Evolution of American Electoral Systems'' (1983), applies party systems model
*Kleppner, Paul. ''The Third Electoral System 1853-1892: Parties, Voters, and Political Cultures'' (1979), analysis of voting behavior, with emphasis on region, ethnicity, religion and class. [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=24451028 online edition]
*Marcus, Robert. ''Grand Old Party: Political Structure in the Gilded Age, 1880-1896'' 1971.
*Morgan, H. Wayne. ''From Hayes to McKinley; National Party Politics, 1877-1896'' (1969) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=94446383 online edition], good survey of era
*Mayer, George H. ''The Republican Party, 1854-1966.'' 2nd ed. (1967), narrative.
*Parmet, Herbert S. ''Eisenhower and the American Crusades'' (1972) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=14967951 online edition]
* Patterson, James T. ''Mr. Republican: A Biography of Robert A. Taft'' (1972)
*Perlstein, Rick. ''Before the Storm: Barry Goldwater and the Unmaking of the American Consensus'' (2002) well written, broad account of 1964
*Perlstein, Rick. ''Nixonland: The Rise of a President and the Fracturing of America'' (2008), 896pp; covers 1965 to 1972
* Reinhard, David W. ''The Republican Right since 1945'' (1983) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=91954887 online edition]
*Rutland, Robert Allen. ''The Republicans: From Lincoln to Bush'' (1996) popular narrative
*Shafer, Byron E. and Anthony J. Badger, eds. ''Contesting Democracy: Substance and Structure in American Political History, 1775-2000'' (2001), long essays by specialists on each time period: [http://www.amazon.com/Contesting-Democracy-Substance-Structure-Political/dp/0700611398/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1221785707&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
**includes: "'To One or Another of These Parties Every Man Belongs;": 1820–1865 by Joel H. Silbey; "Change and Continuity in the Party Period: 1835–1885" by Michael F. Holt; "The Transformation of American Politics: 1865–1910" by Peter H. Argersinger; "Democracy, Republicanism, and Efficiency: 1885–1930" by Richard Jensen; "The Limits of Federal Power and Social Policy: 1910–1955" by Anthony J. Badger; "The Rise of Rights and Rights Consciousness: 1930–1980" by James T. Patterson; and "Economic Growth, Issue Evolution, and Divided Government: 1955–2000" by Byron E. Shafer
*Schlesinger, Arthur Meier, Jr. ed. ''History of American Presidential Elections, 1789-2000'' (various multivolume editions, latest is 2001). For each election includes good scholarly history and selection of primary document. Essays on the most important election are reprinted in Schlesinger, ''The Coming to Power: Critical presidential elections in American history'' (1972)
* Smith, Richard Norton. An Uncommon Man: The Triumph of Herbert Hoover, (1987) full-length scholarly biography.
*Summers, Mark Wahlgren. ''Rum, Romanism & Rebellion: The Making of a President, 1884'' (2000) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=104865169 online edition]
* Sundquist, James L. ''Dynamics of the Party System: Alignment and Realignment of Political Parties in the United States'' (1983) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=29223022 online edition]
* Thelen, David. ''Robert M. La Follette and the Insurgent Spirit'' 1976. short interpretive biography
===Since 1980===
*Barone, Michael, and Grant Ujifusa, ''The Almanac of American Politics 2008: The Senators, the Representatives and the Governors: Their Records and Election Results, Their States and Districts'' (2007) covers all incumbent Congressmen and governors with amazing detail. New edition published every two years since 1975.
* Aistrup, Joseph A. ''The Southern Strategy Revisited: Republican Top-Down Advancement in the South'' (1996)
* Black, Earl and Black, Merle. ''The Rise of Southern Republicans.'' (2002). 442 pp.
* Cannon, Lou. ''President Reagan: The Role of a Lifetime'' (2000), [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=88989671 online edition]
* Critchlow, Donald T. ''The Conservative Ascendancy: How the GOP Right Made Political History'' (2007), by a leading conservative historian
* Edwards, Lee. ''The Conservative Revolution: The Movement That Remade America.'' (1999). 391 pp. by a conservative
*Ehrman, John, ''The Eighties: America in the Age of Reagan'' (2005) by a conservative historian
* Frank, Thomas. ''What's the Matter with Kansas? How Conservatives Won the Heart of America'' (2005), a liberal attack [http://www.amazon.com/Whats-Matter-Kansas-Conservatives-America/dp/B000FTWB3K/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1198072365&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Green, John Robert. ''The Presidency of George Bush.'' (2000). 1989-1993
* Lamis, Alexander P. ed. ''Southern Politics in the 1990s'' (1999)
* Layman, Geoffrey. ''The Great Divide: Religious and Cultural Conflict in American Party Politics.'' (2001). 435pp.
* Levy, Peter B. ''Encyclopedia of the Reagan-Bush Years'' Greenwood Press, 1996 [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=77341841 online edition]
* Lublin, David. ''The Republican South: Democratization and Partisan Change.'' Princeton U. Press, 2004. 272 pp. [http://www.amazon.com/Republican-South-Democratization-Partisan-Change/dp/0691130477/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1198072384&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Patterson, James T. ''Restless Giant: The United States from Watergate to Bush vs. Gore.'' (2005), standard scholarly synthesis.
* Pemberton, William E. ''Exit with Honor: The Life and Presidency of Ronald Reagan'' (1998) favorable biography by historian; [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=49534236 online edition]
* Reeves, Richard. ''President Reagan: The Triumph of Imagination'' (2005) detailed analysis by conservative historian
* Rymph, Catherine. ''Republican Women: Feminism and Conservatism from Suffrage through the Rise of the New Right.'' U. of North Carolina Press, 2006. 338 pp.
* Sabato, Larry J. ed. ''The Sixth Year Itch: The Rise and Fall of the George W. Bush Presidency'' (2007), in-depth essays by scholars
*Sabato, Larry J. ''Divided States of America: The Slash and Burn Politics of the 2004 Presidential Election'' (2005).
* Sabato, Larry J. and Bruce Larson. ''The Party's Just Begun: Shaping Political Parties for America's Future'' (2001).
* Schaller, Michael and Rising, George. ''The Republican Ascendancy: American Politics, 1968-2001.'' Harlan Davidson, 2002. 210 pp. Short survey by liberal scholars
* Steely, Mel. ''The Gentleman from Georgia: The Biography of Newt Gingrich.'' Mercer U. Press, 2000. 431 pp.
* Taylor, Andrew J. ''Elephant's Edge: The Republicans as a Ruling Party.'' 2005. 336 pp. academic study of how GOP turned small advantages into power [http://www.amazon.com/Elephants-Edge-Republicans-Ruling-Party/dp/0275985369/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1198072452&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Wilentz, Sean. ''The Age of Reagan: A History, 1974-2008'' (2008) by a liberal historian. [http://www.amazon.com/Age-Reagan-History-1974-2008/dp/0060744804/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1221786281&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
*Wooldridge, Adrian and John Micklethwait. ''The Right Nation: Conservative Power in America'' sophisticated study by two British journalists (2004). [http://www.amazon.com/Right-Nation-Conservative-Power-America/dp/B000F71124/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1198072420&sr=1-2 excerpt and text search]

====Notes====
<references/>

==External links==
*[http://www.gop.com/ Official GOP Site]
*[http://platform.gop.com/2008Platform.pdf 2008 Republican Platform (pdf download)]
*[http://nyyrcrecord.blogspot.com/ New York Young Republican Record]
*[http://www.house.gov/hensarling/rsc/doc/rsc_action_plan.pdf The RSC’s Action Plan for House Republicans], Republican Study Committee, May 20, 2008
*[http://www.house.gov/hensarling/rsc/doc/rsc_action_plan_(broad).pdf A Detailed Action Plan For House Republicans: Bold, Simple, and Different than the Democrats], Republican Study Committee, May 20, 2008
*[http://www.aim.org/wls/category/republicans/ What Liberals Say - Category: Republicans], [[Accuracy In Media]]

[[Category:Republican Party|!]]
[[Category:United States]]
[[Category:United States Political Parties]]
[[Category:Conservative Organizations]]
[[Category:United States Political Organizations]]
[[Category:Featured articles]]
[[Category:Modernization]]
[[Category:Conservatism]]
[[Category:Member of the International Democrat Union]]
[[Category:Liberal Conservatism]]

Antifa

2017-04-21T00:42:06Z

Teapublican: cALL THEMselves

'''Antifa''', short for Anti-fascist, is another mob of [[liberal]]s and progressives that seek to cause mayhem in the streets of America. They rose up at the [[University of California]], Berkeley in response to [[Democrat]]s losing the presidential election. They insist that those individuals that support [[President Trump]] and others from the right, are [[Nazi]]s. They dress in all black, wear black masks and attempt to disrupt rallies that are held in support of Trump. They use pepper spray on unsuspecting people, throw rocks, bricks, bottles and punches, M-80s, march with flags and clubs. They are militants, far-left extremists that are a product of Democrat party ideology, education and funding. Many in the media applaud their stance as they align with their #Resist agenda. <ref>[https://www.thenation.com/article/anti-fascist-activists-are-fighting-the-alt-right-in-the-streets/ Anti-Fascists Will Fight Trump’s Fascism in the Streets, TheNation.com]</ref> <ref>[http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2017/01/video-richard-spencer-punch-antifa-fascism The Long History of "Nazi Punching" MotherJones.com]</ref> [[Facebook]] permits them to have a page to rally support. Political figures in the Democrat party refuse to condemn their actions. Not a word from California Governor [[Jerry Brown]]. Berkeley California mayor orders the police department to stand down while violence unfolds. While trying to proclaim Antifa fights against the fascists (Nazis, white supremacists, [[Alt-right]], conservatives), Antifa are in fact fascist in every aspect. A quote, falsly attributed to [[Winston Churchill]], is still correct in summing up this group of thugs, "Fascists of the future will call themselves anti-fascists." [[File:19685774_1492357004.9813.jpg|right|150px|thumb|Widely viewed picture showing Antifa supporter nicknamed Moldylocks getting punched in the face.]]

{{cquote| Antifascist Action focuses on promotional, informative and practical ways of struggle against all authoritarian ideologies and groups promoting any kind of oppression, particularly against Neo-Nazism and right wing radicals.}}

Like the [[Occupy Wall Street]] movement prior, they are are establishing branches in cities across the country. By their actions, people are demanding the group be labelled a domestic terrorist organization by the government. [[File:C9vi9oXW0AEQy6v.jpg|right|150px|thumb|Picture showing Trump supporter nicknamed Based Stickman giving a wedgie to an Antifa protester.]] After previous Trump rallies were assaulted, right-wingers came prepared at the next rally and thoroughly embarrassed Antifa, pushing back hard. Assaults were widely viewed on [[social media]]. Antifa radicals tried to garner sympathy by establishing a GoFundMe.com account. With politicians largely ignoring the violence, it is only a matter of time before somebody dies as a result of all the anger on display. <ref>[http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2017/04/antifa-leftist-terror-group-selling-concealed-knives-slicing-conservatives-website/ ANTIFA Leftist Group Is Selling Concealed Knives On Their Website For Slicing Conservatives, Gatewaypundit.com]</ref>

== External Links ==

* [http://antifa.cz/ European website]
* [http://antifaunited.bigcartel.com/ American website not yet live]
* [https://www.facebook.com/pg/ANTIFA.CZ/about/?ref=page_internal Facebook page]

{{liberalism}}

[[Category:Liberalism]]
[[Category:Terrorist Organizations]]
[[Category:Marxism]]
[[Category:Communism]]
[[Category:Activists]]
[[Category:Liberal Organizations]]
[[Category:Anti-American]]
[[Category:Anarchists]]

Antifa

2017-04-21T00:41:10Z

Teapublican: marxism communsiim

'''Antifa''', short for Anti-fascist, is another mob of [[liberal]]s and progressives that seek to cause mayhem in the streets of America. They rose up at the [[University of California]], Berkeley in response to [[Democrat]]s losing the presidential election. They insist that those individuals that support [[President Trump]] and others from the right, are [[Nazi]]s. They dress in all black, wear black masks and attempt to disrupt rallies that are held in support of Trump. They use pepper spray on unsuspecting people, throw rocks, bricks, bottles and punches, M-80s, march with flags and clubs. They are militants, far-left extremists that are a product of Democrat party ideology, education and funding. Many in the media applaud their stance as they align with their #Resist agenda. <ref>[https://www.thenation.com/article/anti-fascist-activists-are-fighting-the-alt-right-in-the-streets/ Anti-Fascists Will Fight Trump’s Fascism in the Streets, TheNation.com]</ref> <ref>[http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2017/01/video-richard-spencer-punch-antifa-fascism The Long History of "Nazi Punching" MotherJones.com]</ref> [[Facebook]] permits them to have a page to rally support. Political figures in the Democrat party refuse to condemn their actions. Not a word from California Governor [[Jerry Brown]]. Berkeley California mayor orders the police department to stand down while violence unfolds. While trying to proclaim Antifa fights against the fascists (Nazis, white supremacists, [[Alt-right]], conservatives), Antifa are in fact fascist in every aspect. A quote, falsly attributed to [[Winston Churchill]], is still correct in summing up this group of thugs, "Fascists of the future will come under the guise of anti-fascists." [[File:19685774_1492357004.9813.jpg|right|150px|thumb|Widely viewed picture showing Antifa supporter nicknamed Moldylocks getting punched in the face.]]

{{cquote| Antifascist Action focuses on promotional, informative and practical ways of struggle against all authoritarian ideologies and groups promoting any kind of oppression, particularly against Neo-Nazism and right wing radicals.}}

Like the [[Occupy Wall Street]] movement prior, they are are establishing branches in cities across the country. By their actions, people are demanding the group be labelled a domestic terrorist organization by the government. [[File:C9vi9oXW0AEQy6v.jpg|right|150px|thumb|Picture showing Trump supporter nicknamed Based Stickman giving a wedgie to an Antifa protester.]] After previous Trump rallies were assaulted, right-wingers came prepared at the next rally and thoroughly embarrassed Antifa, pushing back hard. Assaults were widely viewed on [[social media]]. Antifa radicals tried to garner sympathy by establishing a GoFundMe.com account. With politicians largely ignoring the violence, it is only a matter of time before somebody dies as a result of all the anger on display. <ref>[http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2017/04/antifa-leftist-terror-group-selling-concealed-knives-slicing-conservatives-website/ ANTIFA Leftist Group Is Selling Concealed Knives On Their Website For Slicing Conservatives, Gatewaypundit.com]</ref>

== External Links ==

* [http://antifa.cz/ European website]
* [http://antifaunited.bigcartel.com/ American website not yet live]
* [https://www.facebook.com/pg/ANTIFA.CZ/about/?ref=page_internal Facebook page]

{{liberalism}}

[[Category:Liberalism]]
[[Category:Terrorist Organizations]]
[[Category:Marxism]]
[[Category:Communism]]
[[Category:Activists]]
[[Category:Liberal Organizations]]
[[Category:Anti-American]]
[[Category:Anarchists]]

Occupy Wall Street

2017-04-20T17:15:07Z

Teapublican: /* Supporters, sponsors, organizers, and sympathizers on the Left that endorsed Occupy Wall Street */ occupy democrats

Far-Left protest '''Occupy Wall Street''' was an anti-[[capitalism]] rally and rapists' and murderers' <ref>[http://articles.sfgate.com/2011-11-11/bay-area/30390080_1_highland-hospital-shooting-victim-encampment Man shot to death near Occupy Oakland camp], [[San Francisco Chronicle]]</ref> playground, beginning as an [[astroturfing]] campaign funded by a [[George Soros]] group called ''Adbusters'', with the ultimate goal of replacing the [[United States Constitution]] with a form of government akin to Communist totalitarianism.<ref>[http://occupywallst.org/forum/proposed-list-of-ows-demands/ Forum Post: Proposed list of OWS Demands ]</ref> Invoked by [[Bill Ayers]] "Days of Rage," the first Occupy protest was staged on September 17, 2011 in [[New York City]] after months of planning by co-founder of [[SEIU]] Stephen Lerner.<ref>[http://www.wnd.com/?pageId=345861 Protesters begin 'Day of Rage' against capitalism], ''[[WND]]'', September 17, 2011.</ref><ref name=SorosMoney>[http://www.theblaze.com/stories/video-exposing-occupy-wall-street-was-organized-from-day-one-by-seiu-acorn-front-the-working-family-party-and-how-they-all-tie-to-the-obama-administration-dnc-democratic-socialists-of-america/ Video Exposing How 'Occupy Wall Street' Was Organized From Day One By SEIU/ACORN Front – The Working Family Party, And How They All Tie To The Obama Administration, DNC, Democratic Socialists of America Tides And George Soros], ''[[The Blaze]]'', October 7, 2011.</ref><ref>[http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/10/14/us-wallstreet-protests-origins-idUSTRE79C1YN20111014 Who's behind the Wall Street protests?], ''[[Reuters]]'' October 13, 2011.</ref> Occupy Wall Street protesters consist of radicals, anarchists, [[Nihilism|nihilists]], college students, hippies, special interest groups, [[labor union]]s and vendors. They disliked [[capitalism]], blame [[greed]], [[Wall Street]] and the [[banks]] for economic hardship, and while claiming to be "peaceful", Occupiers have been seen spitting on U.S. Military personnel,<ref>[http://nation.foxnews.com/occupy-boston/2011/10/14/occupy-boston-protesters-spit-coast-guard Occupy Boston Protesters Spit On Coast Guard Member], myfoxboston.com via [[Fox News]], October 13, 2011.</ref> committing acts of rage, violence, vandalism, arson, rape, drug use, public masturbation, public defecation, littering, public nudity, public urination, rioting, and other acts of assault. Similar "Occupy" demonstrations have spread to over 200 cities in the [[United States]] and [[Canada]]<ref>[http://www.occupy.com/article/keystone-xl-protests-ignite-200-cities-monday-02032014 Keystone XL Protests Ignite in 200 Cities, Monday (02/03/2014)]</ref> (often on a much smaller scale). The resulting mayhem has led to thousands of arrests and severe restrictions placed upon the protesters, which included the recent dismantling of tent "cites" on public and private property and, in some locations, use of force and nonlethal weapons on protesters who were in violation of police orders.<ref>Henderson, Peter and Randewick, Noel. "Oakland protesters plan march, mayor apologizes." October 29, 2011. [[Reuters]]. [http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/10/29/us-usa-wallstreet-protests-oakland-idUSTRE79R5LH20111029 Oakland protesters plan march, mayor apologizes]</ref><ref>[http://edition.cnn.com/2011/11/20/us/california-occupy-pepperspray/index.html California campus police on leave after pepper-spraying], November 21, 2011. [[CNN]]</ref> As of November 2011, the cost to local municipalities, funded by taxpayers, approaches $20,000,000.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20111212082216/http://www.verumserum.com/?p=32348 Taxpayers Get the Bill for Occupations: $18.4M (Updated 11/23), Verum Serum, November 4, 2011]</ref>

The Occupy Wall Street movement was inspired by the [[Arab Spring]] protests in Cairo that were organized by the [[Muslim Brotherhood]].<ref>[http://canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/40397 "Day of Rage" Obama re-election team in disguise?], ''Canada Free Press'', September 2011 (Accessed October 16, 2011).</ref><ref>[http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2011/01/29/did-muslim-brotherhood-learn-day-of-rage-egypt-protest-tactics-from-obama-allies-bill-ayers-and-code-pink/ Did Muslim Brotherhood Learn 'Day of Rage' Egypt Protest Tactics From Obama Allies Bill Ayers and Code Pink?], [[Breitbart.com]]</ref> Egyptians camped out in Tahir Square until [[Hosni Mubarak]] resigned.

==Historical roots==
[[File:Protesters of Occupy Knoxville oct 2011.jpg|thumb|250px|Protesters in Knoxville, Oct 2011.]]
Inspired by the Arab Spring protests in Cairo that were organized by the [[Islamism|Islamic]] [[Muslim Brotherhood]], the Occupy Wall Street protesters dubbed the September 17 rally a "Day of Rage," which finds its origin in "Days of Rage," a violent set of riots waged in Chicago in 1969 by the [[Weather Underground]] [[terrorist]]s Bill Ayers and Bernadine Dohrn. Staged by [[ACORN]] and SEIU affiliates, the September 17 US Day of Rage's mission statement is "To help facilitate state and city level organization, and to organize the federal protest at the U.S. Capitol."<ref name=SEIUstephenlerner>[http://www.theblaze.com/stories/seius-stephen-lerner-invokes-bill-ayers-days-of-rage-to-take-down-wall-street-this-september/ Who Is Behind the ‘US Day of Rage’ to ‘Occupy’ Wall Street this September 17th?], [[The Blaze]]</ref>

During an interview with ''Chicago Mag'', Ayers, who was featured on a magazine cover while standing on the American flag, with no regrets, summed up his riot’s intended purpose, stating,
{{Cquote|Kill all the rich people. Break up their cars and apartments. Bring the revolution home, kill your parents—that‘s where it’s really at.<ref name=SEIUstephenlerner/><ref>[http://www.chicagomag.com/Chicago-Magazine/August-2001/No-Regrets/ Bill Ayers 'Fugitive Days': No Regrets]</ref><ref>[http://www.chicagomag.com/Chicago-Magazine/August-2001/No-Regrets/index.php?cparticle=2&siarticle=1#artanc No Regrets], Page 2</ref>}}

* In a display of anti-American hatred, "Occupy Portland" protesters rallied behind a sort of theme song, called "F*ck the USA."<ref>''Warning: Explicit Language used in linked Video recorded at an "Occupy" rally in Portland, OR.'' [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKzGbgSe8lg&sns=em Occupy Portland Protesters Sing "F*ck the USA"], Recorded and Uploaded to [[YouTube]] on October 15, 2011.</ref>
* A protester identified only as OleJodie was photographed defecating on a New York City police car.
* An "Occupy Seattle" protester was arrested on October 18 for exposing himself at least five times to children at Westlake Park.<ref>[http://www.komonews.com/news/local/132064518.html Man accused of exposing self to children arrested]</ref>
* An "Occupy Cleveland" protester reported to the police that she was raped in her tent over the weekend on October 15 or 16.<ref>[http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2011/10/19/teenager-claims-she-was-raped-at-the-occupy-cleveland-protest/ Teenager Claims She Was Raped at the Occupy Cleveland Protest], [[The Blaze]]</ref>
* A leftist radical at the "Occupy Dayton" protest declared, “F*** the military, f*** your flag, f*** the police.”<ref>[http://www.theblaze.com/stories/occupy-dayton-protester-f-the-military-f-your-flag-f-the-police/ Occupy Dayton Protester: ‘F*** The Military, F*** Your Flag, F*** The Police'], ''[[The Blaze]]'', October 23, 2011.</ref>
* A homosexual [[porn]] movie was filmed at "Occupy Oakland".<ref>[http://newsbusters.org/blogs/noel-sheppard/2011/11/25/gay-porn-movie-filmed-occupy-oakland Gay Porn Movie Filmed At Occupy Oakland], [[Newsbusters]], November 25, 2011</ref>
* Occupy Wall Street sympathizer threatens to murder Republican governor [[Nikki Haley]] <ref>[http://weaselzippers.us/2011/11/26/occupy-wall-street-sympathizer-threatens-to-murder-gop-gov-nikki-haley/ Occupy Wall Street Sympathizer Threatens To Murder GOP Gov. Nikki Haley], [[Weasel Zippers]], November 26, 2011</ref>

Occupy Wall Street is a protest attempting to counter the influence of the real grassroots movement, the [[Tea Party Movement]]. The protest claims that thousands of cities in [[America]] will join their cause and that it will spread internationally to hundreds of cities. Many misinformed people see the protests as a worthy cause, with some falsely relating it to the Tea Party.

Occupy Wall Street is not and never will be worthy of legitimate comparison to the Tea Party Movement. The two movements, as OWS protestors so easily demonstrate with their offensive and criminal behavior, share absolutely nothing in common. As [[Barack Obama]] reaffirmed his commitment to supporting the movement, the "president" attempted to discredit the Tea Party by claiming it was related.<ref>[http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/obama-occupy-wall-street-we-are-their-side_598251.html Obama on Occupy Wall Street: 'We Are on Their Side'], ''[[Weekly Standard]]'', October 18, 2011.</ref> The Tea Party movement is a collection of concerned citizens that care for future generations, fighting for austerity and an honest national government. Wall Street protesters are selfish, make silly demands, and have misguided rage toward job creators. Over 700 Occupy Wall Street protesters were arrested during its first month; after more than two years, zero arrests have been made in the Tea Party movement.

Unlike the Tea Party, Obama was quick to acknowledge Occupy Wall Street, offering it credibility and a share of frustration and support.<ref>[http://www.businessinsider.com/white-house-draws-closer-to-occupy-wall-street-says-obama-is-fighting-for-interests-of-the-99-2011-10 White House Draws Closer To Occupy Wall Street, Says Obama Is Fighting For The Interests Of The 99%, Business Insiders, October 16, 2011]</ref> In fact, one chant not found at any of these protests was anger directed at Barack Obama. Nancy Pelosi cried upon learning about the Tea Party; she offered her blessings to Occupy Wall Street. [[Rush Limbaugh]] argued that this protest was organized by the [[White House]] and Obama. [[Bill O'Reilly]] says the "Occupy Wall Street" protesters are "far-Left loons" and "anarchists".<ref>[http://newsbusters.org/blogs/brad-wilmouth/2011/10/09/wapos-wemple-really-disgraceful-oreilly-called-protesters-far-left-lo WaPo's Wemple: 'Really Disgraceful' That O'Reilly Called Protesters 'Far-Left Loons' and 'Anarchists'], ''[[Newsbusters]]'', October 8, 2011.</ref>

Other reports indicated that sanitation was becoming a concern for Occupy Wall Street as the park where the protesters camp was not been cleaned since September 16 and [[Michael Bloomberg|Mayor Bloomberg]] indicated that the protests were costing NYC tourism dollars.

===Media Collaboration===
The [[Lamestream media|Democrat Media Complex]] has willfully covered up the violence, [[vandalism]], and anti-Semitism that truly does define the Occupy movement. [[Conservative media]] has documented more than 300 incidents of their outrageous and appalling behavior.<ref>[http://www.breitbart.com/big-journalism/2011/10/28/updated-occupywallstreet-the-rap-sheet-so-far/ See the *UPDATED* #OccupyWallStreet: The Rap Sheet, So Far], [[Breitbart.com]]</ref>

[[Andrew Breitbart]]'s BigJournalism website shows emails from well-known media members trying to facilitate a message for the protesters, insisting on demands so as to further report on the movement.<ref>[http://www.breitbart.com/big-journalism/2011/10/16/journolist-20-occupy-wall-street-emails-show-msm-dylan-ratigan-working-with-protesters-to-craft-message/ Journolist 2.0: Occupy Wall Street Emails Show MSM, Dylan Ratigan, Working With Protesters To Craft Message], [[Breitbart.com]], October 16, 2011</ref> Rush Limbaugh says the numbers of people involved in the protest are unusually small, troubling the MSM.<ref>[http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/daily/2011/10/17/journalists_are_advising_protesters Journalists are Advising Protesters], [[Rush Limbaugh]], October 17, 2011</ref>

[[The Daily Caller]] reported that a host for government-funded [[NPR]], Lisa Simeone emerged as spokeswoman for the "Occupy D.C." movement.
<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/us/2011/10/19/radio-host-with-ties-to-npr-becomes-spokeswoman-for-occupy-dc/?test=latestnews#ixzz1bI7VedDL Host of NPR Show Also Serves as Spokeswoman for 'Occupy D.C.'], [[Fox News]], October 19, 2011</ref>

''[[New York Times]]'' reporter Natasha Lennard did not merely cover the protests, but also took part in planning and executing them.<ref>[http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/daily/2011/10/24/nyt_reporter_outed_as_protester_occupy_wall_street_caught_putting_its_money_in_an_evil_corporate_bank NYT Reporter Outed as Protester; Occupy Wall Street Caught Putting Its Money in an Evil, Corporate Bank], [[Rush Limbaugh]], October 24, 2011</ref>

The ''[[Washington Post]]'' and the ''New York Times'' generated a total of 224 stories and opinion pieces praising the protest movement.<ref>[http://www.newsbusters.org/blogs/dan-gainor/2011/10/28/postnyt-182000-words-occupy-wall-street-and-counting Post/NYT: 182,000 Words on Occupy Wall Street and Counting], [[Newsbusters]], October 27, 2011</ref>

109 clips, or 87 percent of the coverage by [[ABC]], [[CBS]] and [[NBC]] produced positive protest stories. In addition, they ran 33 stories or segments about "Occupy" within the first 11 days and only 13 stories for the first year of the Tea Party movement.<ref>[http://weaselzippers.us/2011/10/28/study-big-three-tv-networks-have-devoted-more-than-double-the-coverage-to-occupy-wall-street-than-the-tea-party-87-has-been-positive/ Study: Big Three TV Networks Have Devoted More Than Double The Coverage To Occupy Wall Street], [[Weasel Zippers]], October 27, 2011</ref>
[[File:Obama-jodie-evans-300x136.png|right|thumb|250px|Code Pink co-founder Jodie Evans paid $30,400 to be photographed with President Obama at this fundraiser.]]

===Astroturfing===
Reports show that Wall Street protesters were being paid to march. Manufactured, professionally-designed protest signs indicate [[liberal]] money is influencing the protests.<ref>[http://www.thenewamerican.com/usnews/politics/9269-big-soros-money-linked-to-occupy-wall-street Big Soros Money Linked to “Occupy Wall Street”], ''[[The New American]]'', October 5, 2011.</ref> A re-branded [[ACORN]] was involved with the "Occupy" protests.<ref name=SorosMoney/> Many Occupy organizers and protestors are Anti-war on terror holdovers (so called "Rent-A-Mob" protesters) who have thrown away their "Bush is a War Criminal" posters for "We Are the 99%". [[Code Pink]], and its organizers such as Medea Benjamin<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20110611022158/http://october2011.org/statement Stop the Machine! Create a New World!]</ref> and Jodi Evans<ref>[http://www.humanevents.com/2008/04/14/code-pink-bundles-for-barack/ Code Pink ‘Bundles’ for Barack], [[Human Events]]</ref> are prime examples.

===Lack of Direction===
[[Conservative]]s mock the movement as Occupy Sesame Street, for its childishness. Conservatives know that it's the government devaluing our currency, weakening our economy and plundering money from the next generation—Wall Street and the banks aren't to blame. Republicans [[Mitt Romney]] and [[Herman Cain]] have denounced the protests as [[class warfare]].<ref>[http://dailycaller.com/2011/10/06/congressional-dems-rally-in-support-of-occupy-wall-street/#ixzz1aIny1Ke7 Congressional Dems rally in support of "Occupy Wall Street"], [[Daily Caller]], October 6, 2011.</ref> Congressman [[Peter King]] said the protesters have no direction and called them losers who live in dirt.<ref>[http://weaselzippers.us/2011/11/17/gop-rep-peter-king-wall-street-occupiers-are-losers-that-live-in-dirt/ GOP Rep. Peter King: Wall Street Occupiers Are "Losers" That "Live In Dirt"], [[Weasel Zippers]], November 17, 2011</ref>

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee sent out a fundraising email asking supporters to sign a petition in support of the protesters. Barack Obama said that the movement reflected "broad-based frustration about how our financial system works." <ref>[http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/186499-poll-finds-more-than-half-of-all-americans-aware-of-occupy-wall-street-protests?utm_campaign=briefingroom&utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitterfeed Poll finds majority of Americans aware of Occupy Wall Street protests], ''The Hill'', October 10, 2011.</ref>

==The 99% Declaration==
As part of Occupy Wall Street, a [[progressive]]-[[socialist]] organization called the 99 Percent Declaration Working Group, claiming to represent "the 99%" of the American population, issued the following "Declaration" on October 7, 2011.<ref>[https://sites.google.com/site/the99percentdeclaration/ The99PercentDeclaration]</ref>

{{Cquote|WHEREAS THE FIRST AMENDMENT TO THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION PROVIDES:

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

BE IT RESOLVED THAT:

WE, THE NINETY-NINE PERCENT OF THE PEOPLE of the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, in order to form a more perfect Union, by, for and of the PEOPLE, shall elect and convene a NATIONAL GENERAL ASSEMBLY beginning on July 4, 2012 in the City Of Philadelphia.

I. Election of Delegates:

The People, consisting of all United States citizens who have reached the age of 18, regardless of [[party affiliation]] and [[voter registration]] status, shall elect Two Delegates, one male and one female, by direct vote, from each of the existing 435 Congressional Districts to represent the People at the NATIONAL GENERAL ASSEMBLY in Philadelphia. Said Assembly shall convene on July 4, 2012 in the city of Philadelphia.

The office of Delegate shall be open to all United States citizens who have reached the age of 18. Election Committees, elected by local General Assemblies from all over the United States, shall coordinate with the 99 Percent Declaration Working Group (http://groups.yahoo.com/group/the99declaration/) to organize, coordinate and fund this national election by direct democratic voting. The Election Committees shall operate like the original Committees of Correspondence did '''before''' the first American Revolution.

II. Meeting of the National General Assembly and Deliberation:

At the NATIONAL GENERAL ASSEMBLY, the 870 Delegates shall set forth, consider and vote upon a PETITION OF GRIEVANCES to be submitted to all members of Congress, The Supreme Court and President and each of the political candidates running in the nationwide Congressional and Presidential election in November 2012. The Delegates of the National General Assembly shall vote upon and implement their own agenda, propagate their own rules and elect or appoint committee members as the Delegates see fit to accomplish their goal of presenting a PETITION OF GRIEVANCES from the 99% of Americans before the 2012 elections.

III. Proposed Petition for the Redress of Grievances:

The PETITION OF GRIEVANCES shall be non-partisan and address the critical issues now confronting the People of the United States. The Delegates shall deliberate and vote upon proposals for the PETITION OF GRIEVANCES in consultation with the People as the delegates to the first two Continental Congresses did. Below is a suggested list of grievances respectfully submitted by the OWS Working Group on the 99% Declaration. The final version of the PETITION OF GRIEVANCES voted upon by the Delegates of the National General Assembly MAY or MAY NOT include the following suggested issues:

1. Implementing an immediate ban on all private contributions of money and gifts, to all politicians in federal office, from Individuals, Corporations, Political Action Committees, Super Political Action Committees, Lobbyists, Unions and all other private sources of money to be '''replaced by''' the fair and equal '''public financing''' of all federal political campaigns. We categorically REJECT the concept that money is equal to free speech because if that were so, then only the wealthiest would have a voice. These actions must be taken because it has become clear that '''politicians''' in the United States cannot regulate themselves and '''have become the exclusive''' [[Seventeenth Amendment|representatives of corporations, unions]] and the very wealthy who spend vast sums of money on political campaigns to influence the candidates’ decisions and ensure their reelection year after year.

2. The immediate reversal, even if it requires a Constitutional Amendment, of the outrageous and anti-democratic holding in the "Citizens United" case by the Supreme Court, which equates the payment of money by corporations, wealthy individuals and unions to politicians with free speech. We, the People, demand that institutional bribery and corruption not be deemed protected speech.

3. Prohibiting all federal public officials and their immediate family members, whether elected or appointed, from EVER being employed by any corporation they regulate while in office and/or holding any stock or shares in any corporation they regulate while in office until a full 5 years after their term is completed.

4. A complete lifetime ban on accepting all gifts, services, money, directly or indirectly, to any elected or appointed federal officials or their immediate family members, from any person, corporation, union or other entity that the public official was charged to regulate while in office.

5. A complete reformation of the United States Tax Code to require ALL citizens to '''pay''' a fair share of a [[progressive]], graduated [[income tax]] by '''eliminating''' loopholes, unfair '''tax breaks''', exemptions and deductions, subsidies (e.g. oil, gas and farm) and ending all other methods of evading taxes. The current system of taxation favors the wealthiest Americans, many of whom, pay fewer taxes to the United States Treasury than citizens who earn much less and pay a much higher percentage of income in taxes to the United States Treasury. We, like [[Warren Buffett]], find this income tax disparity to be fundamentally unjust.

6. Medicare for all American citizens or another [[socialized medicine|single-payer healthcare system]], adjusted by a means test (i.e. citizens who can afford it may opt-out and pay their own health insurance or opt-in and pay a means tested premium). The Medicaid program, fraught with [[corruption]] and [[fraud]], will be eliminated '''except for the purpose of providing''' emergency room care to [[illegal aliens|indigent non-citizens]] who will not be covered by the '''single-payer program'''.

7. New comprehensive regulations to '''give''' the [[Environmental Protection Agency]] '''expanded powers''' to shut down corporations, businesses or any entities that intentionally or recklessly damage the environment and/or criminally prosecute individuals who intentionally damage the environment. We also demand the immediate adoption of the most recent '''international protocols''', including the "Washington Declaration" to [[Cap and Trade|cap carbon emissions]] and implement new and existing programs to transition away from fossil fuels to reusable or carbon neutral sources of power.

8. Adoption of an immediate plan to reduce the national debt to a sustainable percentage of GDP by 2020. Reduction of the national debt to be achieved by BOTH a cut in spending to corporations engaged in perpetual war for profit, the "healthcare" industry, the pharmaceutical industry and all other sectors that use the federal budget as their income stream AND a truly '''progressive income tax code''' that does not allow the wealthy and corporations to evade taxes through excessive deductions, subsidies and loopholes. We agree that spending cuts are necessary but those cuts must be made to facilitate what is best for the People of the United States of America, not multinational and domestic corporations.

9. '''Passage of''' a comprehensive job and job-training act like the [[Stimulus bill|American Jobs Act]] to employ our citizens in jobs that are available with specialized training and by putting People to work now by repairing America's crumbling infrastructure. We also recommend the '''establishment of an online international job exchange''' to match employers with skilled workers or employers willing to train workers in 21st century skills.

10. Student loan debt relief. Our young People and students are more than $830 billion in debt from education loans alone. Payment and interest on these debts should be deferred for periods of unemployment and the principal on these loans reduced '''using a corporate tax surcharge.'''

11. Immediate passage of the [[Dream Act]] and comprehensive immigration and border security reform including offering visas, lawful permanent resident status and citizenship to the world’s brightest People to stay and work in our industries and schools after they obtain their education and training in the United States.

12. Recalling all military personnel at all non-essential bases and refocusing national defense goals to address threats posed by the geopolitics of the 21st century, including terrorism and limiting the large scale deployment of military forces to instances where Congressional approval has been granted to counter the Military Industrial Complex's goal of perpetual war for profit.

13. '''Mandating new educational goals''' to train the American public to perform jobs in a 21st Century economy, '''particularly''' in the areas of technology and '''green energy''', taking into consideration the redundancy caused by technology and the inexpensive cost of labor in China, India and other countries and paying our teachers a competitive salary commensurate with the salaries of employees in the private sector with similar skills.

14. Subject to the elimination of corporate tax loopholes and exploited exemptions and deductions stated above, offering tax incentives to businesses to remain in the United States and hire its citizens rather than outsource jobs and reconstruct the manufacturing capacity of the United States. In conjunction with a new jobs act, '''reinstitution''' of the Works Progress Administration and Civilian Conservation Corps '''or a similar emergency governmental agency tasked with creating new public works projects''' to provide jobs to the 46 million People living in poverty, the 9.1% unemployed and 10% underemployed.

15. Implementing of immediate legislation to encourage China and our other trading partners to end currency manipulation and reduce the trade deficit.

16. Immediate reenactment of the Glass-Steagall Act and '''increased regulation of Wall Street and the financial industry''' by the SEC, FINRA and the other financial regulators, and the commencement of a Justice Department criminal investigations into the Securities and Banking industries practices that led to the collapse of markets, $700 billion bail-out, and financial firm failures in 2007-2008.

17. Adoption of a plan similar to President Clinton’s proposal to end the mortgage crisis and instead of the Federal Reserve continuing to lower interest rates for loans to banks who are refusing to loan to small businesses and consumers, '''the Federal Reserve shall buy all underwater or foreclosed mortgages and refinance these debts at 1% or less to be managed by the newly established Consumer Financial Protection Bureau''' (and foreclosure task force described below) because 1% or less is the interest rate the Federal Reserve loans to the banks directly who hoard the cash rather than loan it to the People and small businesses.

18. An immediate one year freeze on '''all foreclosures to be reviewed by an independent foreclosure task force appointed by Congress and the Executive Branch''' to (in conjunction with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ) determine, on a case by case basis, whether foreclosure proceedings should continue based on the circumstances of each homeowner and propriety of the financial institution's conduct.

19. Subject to the above ban on all private money and gifts in politics, to enact '''additional campaign finance reform requiring''' free air time and '''public campaign finances''' to all candidates who obtain sufficient petition signatures and/or votes to participate in the primaries and/or electoral process, to shorten the campaign season and to allow voting on weekends and holidays.

20. An immediate withdrawal of all troops from Iraq and Afghanistan and a substantial increase in the amount of funding needed for veteran job placement and the treatment of the physical and emotional injuries sustained by veterans in these wars. Our veterans are committing suicide at an unprecedented rate and we must help now.

BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that IF the PETITION OF GRIEVANCES approved by the 870 Delegates of the NATIONAL GENERAL ASSEMBLY in consultation with the PEOPLE, is not acted upon by Congress, the President, and Supreme Court, to the satisfaction of the Delegates of the NATIONAL GENERAL ASSEMBLY, said Delegates shall organize a THIRD, COMPLETELY NON-PARTISAN, INDEPENDENT POLITICAL PARTY to run candidates for every available Congressional seat in the mid-term election of 2014 and again in 2016 until all vestiges of the existing corrupt corporatocracy have been removed by the ballot box.}}

==13 demands==
The content below is listed on the Occupy Wall Street website by an affiliated protester. OWS has made their intentions known that it is an unofficial post and they do not have an official list of demands. Per their website,

{{cquote|Demand one: Restoration of the living wage. This demand can only be met by ending “Freetrade” by re-imposing trade tariffs on all imported goods entering the American market to level the playing field for domestic family farming and domestic manufacturing as most nations that are dumping cheap products onto the American market have radical wage and environmental regulation advantages. Another policy that must be instituted is raise the minimum wage to twenty dollars an hr.

Demand two: Institute a universal single payer healthcare system. To do this all private insurers must be banned from the healthcare market as their only effect on the health of patients is to take money away from doctors, nurses and hospitals preventing them from doing their jobs and hand that money to wall st. investors.

Demand three: Guaranteed living wage income regardless of employment.

Demand four: Free college education.

Demand five: Begin a fast track process to bring the fossil fuel economy to an end while at the same bringing the alternative energy economy up to energy demand.

Demand six: One trillion dollars in infrastructure (Water, Sewer, Rail, Roads and Bridges and Electrical Grid) spending now.

Demand seven: One trillion dollars in ecological restoration planting forests, reestablishing wetlands and the natural flow of river systems and decommissioning of all of America’s nuclear power plants.

Demand eight: Racial and gender equal rights amendment.

Demand nine: Open borders migration. anyone can travel anywhere to work and live.

Demand ten: Bring American elections up to international standards of a paper ballot precinct counted and recounted in front of an independent and party observers system.

Demand eleven: Immediate across the board debt forgiveness for all. Debt forgiveness of sovereign debt, commercial loans, home mortgages, home equity loans, credit card debt, student loans and personal loans now! All debt must be stricken from the “Books.” World Bank Loans to all Nations, Bank to Bank Debt and all Bonds and Margin Call Debt in the stock market including all Derivatives or Credit Default Swaps, all 65 trillion dollars of them must also be stricken from the “Books.” And I don’t mean debt that is in default, I mean all debt on the entire planet period.

Demand twelve: Outlaw all credit reporting agencies.

Demand thirteen: Allow all workers to sign a ballot at any time during a union organizing campaign or at any time that represents their yeah or nay to having a union represent them in collective bargaining or to form a union.}}

===Other Demands===

On September 21, 2011, an unofficial list of 11 demands (each labeled "our one demand") was posted on the Occupy Wall Street website from "the fifth communiqué."<ref>[http://occupywallst.org/article/a-message-from-occupied-wall-street-day-five/ A Message From Occupy Wall Street]</ref> The group claimed the following demands.
{{Cquote|On September 21st, 2011, Troy Davis, an innocent man, was murdered by the state of Georgia. Troy Davis was one of the 99 percent.

Ending capital punishment is our one demand.

On September 21st, 2011, the richest 400 Americans owned more wealth than half of the country's population.

Ending wealth inequality is our one demand.

On September 21st, 2011, four of our members were arrested on baseless charges.

Ending police intimidation is our one demand.

On September 21st, 2011, we determined that Yahoo lied about occupywallst.org being in spam filters.

Ending corporate censorship is our one demand.

On September 21st, 2011, roughly eighty percent of Americans thought the country was on the wrong track.

Ending the modern gilded age is our one demand.

On September 21st, 2011, roughly 15% of Americans approved of the job Congress was doing.

Ending political corruption is our one demand.

On September 21st, 2011, roughly one sixth of Americans did not have work.

Ending joblessness is our one demand.

On September 21st, 2011, roughly one sixth of America lived in poverty.

Ending poverty is our one demand.

On September 21st, 2011, roughly fifty million Americans were without health insurance.

Ending health-profiteering is our one demand.

On September 21st, 2011, America had military bases in around one hundred and thirty out of one hundred and sixty-five countries.

Ending American imperialism is our one demand.

On September 21st, 2011, America was at war with the world.

Ending war is our one demand.}}

==Ohio bridge bomb plot==
In 2012 the FBI infiltrated the Occupiers<ref>[http://www.thesmokinggun.com/buster/fbi/fbi-informant-infiltrated-occupy-movement-758348 "Occupy" Movement Was Infiltrated By FBI Informant In Cleveland Bridge Bombing Probe]</ref>, and through their informant learned of a plot to blow up the Brecksville-Northfield High Level Bridge<ref>[http://www.theblaze.com/news/2012/05/01/report-fbi-arrests-five-anarchists-for-allegedly-trying-to-blow-up-a-cleveland-area-bridge/ Report: Five Anarchists Arrested for Allegedly Trying to Blow Up a Cleveland-Area Bridge, Had Similar Attacks Planned in Chicago]</ref> in the Cleveland area.<ref>[http://www.cleveland.com/metro/index.ssf/2012/05/bridge_bomb_plot_suspects_were.html Bridge bomb plot: Suspects were active in Occupy Cleveland, even as movement slowed to a crawl], [[The Plain Dealer]]</ref>

== Occupy Wall Street and anti-Semitism ==

Several anti-Semitic incidents were reported during "Occupy Wall Street" demonstrations in New York as Jews were falsely blamed for the turmoil in America's financial markets. In addition, anti-Israel signs were raised against their inflammatory claim of "Israel's occupation of Gaza".<ref>[http://www.commentarymagazine.com/2011/10/11/occupy-wall-street-has-an-anti-semitism-problem/ Occupy Wall Street Has an Anti-Semitism Problem], [[Commentary]], October 11, 2011</ref> Anti-Semitic sign bearers and speakers who have latched onto the Occupy demonstrations have Jewish leaders in Chicago concerned.<ref>[http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-4135361,00.html Anti-Semitism tainting Occupy Wall Street protests, Ynet News, October 16, 2011]</ref>

The "Occupy Boston" protest camp marched to the building that houses the Israeli consulate and held a brief sit-in in the building’s lobby.<ref>[http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2011/11/stunner-jew-bashing-obama-endorsed-occupy-boston-loons-hold-sit-in-protest-at-israeli-consulate-video/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+gatewaypundit2+%28Gateway+Pundit%29 Stunner… Jew-Bashing Obama-Endorsed Occupy Boston Loons Hold Sit-in Protest at Israeli Consulate], [[Gateway Pundit]], November 5, 2011</ref>

The "Occupy Miami" movement is led by Islamic anti-Semite Mohammad Malik, who has called for the extermination of Jews and is the principal organizer of numerous anti-Israel rallies.<ref>[http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2011/11/figures-occupy-miami-protest-leader-led-jews-go-back-to-the-ovens-rally/ Figures… #Occupy Miami Protest Leader Led “Jews Go Back to the Ovens” Rally], [[Gateway Pundit]], November 25, 2011</ref>

== Occupy Wall Street and bestiality chant ==

''See also:'' [[Occupy Wall Street and bestiality chant]] and [[Liberalism and bestiality]]

[[Bestiality]] is the act of engaging in sexual relations with an animal. A crowd at Occupy Wall Street was led to mindlessly repeat various chants which included a chant involving bestiality and the incident was videotaped.<ref name=tengreatest>[http://rightwingnews.com/john-hawkins/the-10-greatest-moments-from-the-occupy-wall-street-protests-so-far/ The 10 Greatest Moments From The Occupy Wall Street Protests So Far]</ref>

Below is an excerpt of the chant:
{{cquote|Everything seems to be possible. [Crowd Parrot Chant] You can travel to the moon. [CPC] You can become immortal [CPC] by biogenetics. You can have sex with animals, or whatever. [CPC].<ref name=tengreatest />}}

==Supporters, sponsors, organizers, and sympathizers on the Left that endorsed Occupy Wall Street==
{|background="none" width="100%" border="1"
|-
!A-C
!D-L
!M-R
!S-Z
|-
|valign="top"|
*[[ACORN]]
*[[AFL-CIO]]<ref>[http://www.aflcio.org/Blog/Corporate-Greed/Unions-Occupy-Wall-Street-Join-Together-in-New-York-Peoria-Around-the-Nation Unions, Occupy Wall Street Join Together in New York, Peoria, Around the Nation]</ref>
*[[Al Gore]]<ref>[http://www.theblaze.com/stories/al-gore-says-hes-cheering-on-the-occupy-wall-street-movement/?utm_medium=referral&utm_source=pulsenews Al Gore Says He's Cheering On The Occupy Wall Street Movement], ''[[The Blaze]]'', October 2011.</ref>
*[[Alan Haber]]
*[[Alec Baldwin]]<ref>[http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-31749_162-20122574-10391698.html Alec Baldwin visits Occupy Wall Street], [[CBSNews]]</ref>
*[[American Nazi Party]] <ref>[http://www.thegatewaypundit.com/2011/10/figures-nazi-party-throws-support-behind-occupy-wall-street-movement/ Nazis and Communists Throw Their Support Behind Occupy Wall Street Movements], [[Gateway Pundit]], October 15, 2011</ref>
*[[Anonymous]]
*[[Arianna Huffington]]
*Ayatollah [[Ali Khamenei]], Supreme Leader of [[Iran]]<ref>[http://frontpagemag.com/2011/10/14/khamenei-cheers-on-occupy-wall-street/ Khamenei Cheers On Occupy Wall Street], [[FrontPage Magazine]]</ref>
*[[Banksy]]<ref>[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EefGY-bMS2k Banksy Occupy London Protest], [[YouTube]]</ref>
*[[Barack Obama]]<ref>[http://articles.businessinsider.com/2011-10-11/politics/30265829_1_wall-street-middle-class-republicans It's Official: Obama Has Embraced Occupy Wall Street], businessinsider.com, October 10, 2011.</ref>
*[[Barbara Lee]]<ref>[http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1011/67079.html Barbara Lee: Obama 'really understands' Occupy], [[Politico]]</ref>
*[[Barney Frank]]<ref>[http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1011/66412.html Barney Frank supports protests, raises Wall St. cash]. [[Politico]]</ref>
*[[Ben & Jerry's Ice Cream]]<ref>[http://www.benjerry.com/activism/occupy-movement/ To those who Occupy: We stand with you] - A statement from the company's website</ref>
*[[Bernie Sanders]]<ref>[http://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2011/10/18/bernie_sanders_we_need_to_address_the_issue_of_the_rich_getting_richer.html Bernie Sanders: "We Need To Address Issue Of The Rich Getting Richer"], [[Real Clear Politics]]</ref>
*[[Bill Ayers]]
*[[Bill Clinton]]<ref>[http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/showtracker/2011/10/late-night-bill-clinton-occupy-wall-street-is-a-positive-thing.html Late Night: Bill Clinton: Occupy Wall Street is 'a positive thing'], [[Los Angeles Times]]</ref>
* Former [[Louisiana]] Governor [[Buddy Roemer]]<ref>[http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20118163-503544.html GOP candidate Buddy Roemer backs "Occupy Wall Street"], [[CBSNews]]</ref>
*[[Charlie Rangel]]<ref>[http://www.theroot.com/blogs/charles-rangel/charles-rangel-supporting-occupy-wall-street Charles Rangel on Supporting Occupy Wall Street]</ref>
*[[Christiane Amanpour]]
*[[Cindy Sheehan]]<ref>[http://www.kcra.com/news/29494989/detail.html 'Occupy Wall Street' Going Global - KCRA]</ref>
*[[CNN]]
*[[Communist Party USA]]<ref>[http://www.theblaze.com/stories/the-next-big-step-occupy-chicago-gives-rousing-welcome-to-communist-party-u-s-a/ ‘The Next Big Step’: Occupy Chicago Gives Rousing Welcome to Communist Party U.S.A.], [[The Blaze]]</ref>
*[[Cornel West]]<ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/on-faith/post/cornel-west-keeps-the-faith-for-occupy-wall-street/2011/11/10/gIQAZxhk8M_blog.html Cornel West keeps the faith for Occupy Wall Street], [[Washington Post]]</ref>
*[[Council on American-Islamic Relations]]<ref>[http://dailycaller.com/2011/10/23/islamic-group-joins-with-occupy-wall-street/ Islamist group joins with Occupy Wall Street], [[Daily Caller]]</ref>

|valign="top"|
*[[Daily Kos]]
*[[David Graeber]]
*[[Angela Davis]]
*[[Debbie Wasserman Schultz]]<ref>[http://www.realclearpolitics.com/video/2011/10/11/debbie_wasserman_schultz_fully_embraces_occupy_movement.html Debbie Wasserman Schultz Fully Embraces "Occupy" Movement], [[RealClearPolitics]]</ref>
*[[DCCC]] <ref>[http://weaselzippers.us/2011/11/22/love-it-pelosi-pens-dccc-letter-reaffirming-support-for-occupy-wall-street-movement/ Love It: Pelosi Pens DCCC Letter Reaffirming Support For Occupy Wall Street Movement], [[Weasel Zippers]], November 22, 2011</ref>
*[[Dennis Kucinich]]<ref>[http://www.examiner.com/human-rights-in-national/dennis-kucinich-others-occupy-congress-keep-occupying-wall-street Dennis Kucinich, others Occupy Congress: 'Keep Occupying Wall Street' - examiner.com]</ref>
*[[Fred Karger]]<ref>[http://dailycaller.com/2011/10/18/karger-praises-occupy-wall-street-proposes-jobs-plan/ Karger praises Occupy Wall Street, proposes jobs plan], [[Daily Caller]]</ref>
*[[George Soros]]
*[[Hugo Chavez]]<ref>[http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/10/08/us-venezuela-usa-idUSTRE79726120111008 Chavez slams "horrible repression" of U.S. protests], [[Reuters]]</ref>
*[[Janeane Garofalo]]<ref>[http://dailycaller.com/2011/09/29/garofalo-gop-using-herman-cain-to-keep-the-racism-very-covert/ Garofalo: GOP using Herman Cain ‘to keep the racism very covert’], [[Daily Caller]]</ref>
*[[Jesse Jackson]]<ref>[http://nymag.com/daily/intel/2011/10/jesse_jackson_literally_links.html Jesse Jackson Literally Links Arms With Occupy Wall Street Protesters to Protect Medical Tent - New York Magazine]</ref>
*[[John Larson]]<ref name="topdems" />
*[[John Lewis]]<ref>[http://abcnews.go.com/US/occupy-wall-street-protests-spread-country-clear-unified/story?id=14696466#.TsvwNVbxG3I Occupy Wall Street Protests Spread Across the Country With No Unified Message], [[ABC News]]</ref>
*[[Kanye West]]<ref name="Kanye">[http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/10/10/idUS277321529320111010 Kanye West Crashes Occupy Wall Street With Russell Simmons], [[Reuters]]</ref>
*[[Keith Ellison]]<ref name="topdems">[http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1011/65229.html Top Democrats endorse Occupy Wall Street protests], [[Politico]]</ref>
*[[Lincoln Chafee]]<ref>[http://johnstonsunrise.net/stories/Governor-supports-Occupy-says-college-debt-detrimental-to-economy,64451 Governor supports Occupy; says college debt 'detrimental' to economy]</ref>
*[[Louis Farrakhan]]<ref>[http://www.examiner.com/generation-y-politics-in-national/occupy-wall-street-protestors-nazis Occupy Wall Street protestors Nazis, maybe socialists? - The Examiner]</ref>
*[[Louise Slaughter]]<ref>[http://www.louise.house.gov/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2561:slaughter-supports-occupy-wall-street-movement&catid=95:2011-press-releases&Itemid=55 Slaughter Supports “Occupy Wall Street” Movement]</ref>
*[[Lisa Fithian]]

|valign="top"|
*[[Mark Ruffalo]]<ref name="Celebs" />
*[[Meghan McCain]]<ref>[http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2011/10/24/meghan-mccain-s-day-at-occupy-wall-street.html My Day at Occupy Wall Street], [[The Daily Beast]]</ref>
*[[Michael Moore]]<ref name="Celebs" />
*[[MoveOn.org]]
*[[Mumia Abu-Jamal]]<ref>[http://www.therightscoop.com/occupy-wall-street-snags-coveted-mumia-abu-jamal-endorsement/ Occupy Wall Street snags coveted Mumia Abu-Jamal endorsement], [[The Right Scoop]]</ref>
*[[MSNBC]]
*[[Nancy Pelosi]]<ref>[http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/pelosi-supports-occupy-wall-street-movement/story?id=14696893#.Trf44HL4JJE Pelosi Supports Occupy Wall Street Movement], [[ABC News]]</ref>
*[[National Education Association]]
*National Nurses United<ref>[http://www.nationalnursesunited.org/press/entry/nurses-join-students-occupy-movement-other-labor-unions-to-demand-wall-stre/ Nurses Joining Students, Occupy Movement, other Labor Unions, to Demand Wall Street Tax 11/17 - National Nurses United's website]</ref>
*[[New Black Panthers]]<ref>[http://conservativeblogscentral.blogspot.com/2011/10/new-black-panther-party-at-occupy.html New Black Panther Party at Occupy Cleveland: "We need to take back the Street!" - Conservative Blog Central]</ref>
*[[New York Times]]
*[[Noam Chomsky]]
*[[Occupy Democrats]]
*[[Patrick Leahy]]<ref>[http://www.vpr.net/news_detail/92394/ Leahy Hopes Occupy Movement Plays Role In 2012 Elections - Vermont Public Radio]</ref>
*[[Penn Badgley]]<ref name="Celebs" />
*[[Peter DeFazio]]
*[[Pete Seeger]]<ref>[http://gawker.com/5852365/pete-seeger-joins-occupy-wall-street-with-this-little-light Pete Seeger Joins Occupy Wall Street With ‘This Little Light’ - Gawker]</ref>
*[[Ralph Nader]]<ref>[http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1111/67413.html Ralph Nader: Tax Wall Street 'speculation'], [[Politico]]</ref>
*[[Raúl Grijalva]]<ref name="topdems" />
*[[Rosanne Barr]]<ref>[http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2044747/Roseanne-Barrs-solution-banking-crisis-Bring-guillotine.html 'Bring back the guillotine and behead those who won't give up wealth': Roseanne Barr's solution to the banking crisis], [[The Daily Mail]]</ref>
*[[Roger Waters]]<ref>[http://wcbsfm.radio.com/2011/11/10/pink-floyds-roger-waters-supports-the-occupy-wall-street-movement/ Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters Supports the Occupy Wall Street Movement]</ref>
*[[Russ Feingold]]<ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/plum-line/post/russ-feingold-endorses-occupy-wall-street-this-will-make-the-tea-party-look-like--a-tea-party/2011/03/03/gIQANucZNL_blog.html Russ Feingold endorses Occupy Wall Street: “This will make the Tea Party look like ... a tea party.”], [[Washington Post]]</ref>
*[[Russell Simmons]]<ref name="Kanye" />
*[[Russell Brand]]<ref>[http://www.nypost.com/p/pagesix/russell_brand_visits_occupy_wall_fYwPoVGnWfUiHWjEtfPWMN Russell Brand visits Occupy Wall Street], [[New York Post]]</ref>
*[[Russia Today]]<ref>[http://rt.com/trends/occupy-wall-street-protests-us/ Occupy Wall Street], [[Russia Today]]</ref>

|valign="top"|
*[[SEIU]]
*[[Shepard Fairey]]<ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/arts-post/post/shepard-fairey-changes-occupy-wall-street-sign-after-complaints/2011/11/23/gIQADCDgoN_blog.html Shepard Fairey changes Occupy Wall Street sign after complaints], [[Washington Post]]</ref>
*[[Susan Sarandon]]<ref>[http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2042317/Occupy-Wall-Street-Susan-Sarandon-Michael-Moore-join-protesters-New-York.html Now Susan Sarandon joins in! Activist actress joins author Michael Moore and hundreds of other Wall Street protesters... but all eyes are on ANOTHER naked protester], [[The Daily Mail]]</ref>
*[[Tim Robbins]]<ref name="Celebs">[http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/celebritology/post/occupy-wall-street-penn-badgley-tim-robbins-latest-celebs-to-join-protests/2011/10/06/gIQASLjPQL_blog.html Occupy Wall Street: Penn Badgley, Tim Robbins latest celebs to join protests], [[Washington Post]]</ref>
*[[Rage Against The Machine]]'s guitarist Tom Morello<ref>[http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/occupy-wall-street-rage-against-the-machine-tom-morello-perform-248195 Occupy Wall Street: Rage Against the Machine's Tom Morello to Perform - The Hollywood Reporter]</ref>
*[[Van Jones]]<ref>[http://dailycaller.com/2011/10/14/van-jones-stand-in-solidarity-with-occupy-wall-street/ Van Jones: ‘Stand in solidarity with Occupy Wall Street’], [[The Daily Caller]]</ref>
*[[Washington Post]]
*[[Yoko Ono]]<ref name="Celebs" />

|}

==See also==
* [[Arab Spring]]
* [[One Nation]]
* [[Restore Sanity rally]]
* [[Save the American Dream rally]]
* [[Tea Party Movement]], ''which is noticeably different in most important respects.'
* [[Front organization]]s

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

{{liberalism}}

==External links==

* [http://newsbusters.org/blogs/paul-wilson/2011/12/28/99-percent-top-25-occupy-wall-street-backers-worth-over-4-billion#ixzz1hqQg6Ixn Top 25 Occupy Wall Street Backers Worth Over $4 Billion], [[Newsbusters]]
* [http://www.owsexposed.com/ OWSexposed.com]
* [http://reason.com/archives/2011/11/04/the-disturbing-agenda-of-occupy-wall-str The Disturbing Agenda of Occupy Wall Street] - Reason magazine
* [http://www.outsidethebeltway.com/the-incoherent-agenda-of-occupy-wall-street/ The Incoherent Agenda Of Occupy Wall Street]
* [http://kleinonline.wnd.com/category/expose-occupy/ Expose Occupy WallStreet], [[WND]]
* [http://occupywallst.org/ OccupyWallSt.org]
* [http://twitter.com/#!/OccupyArrests Occupy arrests tracker on Twitter], [[Twitter]]
* [http://www.breitbart.tv/sick-of-media-comparing-occupy-wall-street-to-tea-party-watch-this/ What is Occupy Wall Street? Fox News]
* [http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2049137/Occupy-Wall-Street-Violence-erupts-police-clash-protesters.html Occupy Wall Street Violence Erupts], [[The Daily Mail]]
* [http://www.maggiesnotebook.com/2011/09/us-day-of-rage-occupy-wall-street-acorn-seiu-robin-hood-tax-new-constitution/ Us Day of Rage, Occupy Wall Street: ACORN, SEIU, Robin Hood Tax, New Constitution]
* [http://canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/40397 “Day of Rage” Obama re-election team in disguise?], [[Canada Free Press]]
* [http://www.theblaze.com/stories/seius-stephen-lerner-invokes-bill-ayers-days-of-rage-to-take-down-wall-street-this-september/ SEIU's Stephen Lerner Invokes Bill Ayers 'Days of Rage' To Take Down Wall Street This September], [[The Blaze]]
* [http://politics.blogs.foxnews.com/2011/11/04/giuliani-obama-owns-occupy-wall-street Giuliani: "Obama Owns Occupy Wall Street"], [[Fox News]]
* [http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/daily/2011/11/17/guy_who_shot_at_white_house_lived_in_occupy_dc_camp Guy Who Shot at White House Lived in Occupy DC Camp], [[Rush Limbaugh]]
* [http://www.rushlimbaugh.com/daily/2011/11/17/moment_of_silence_at_occupy_san_diego_for_white_house_shooter Moment of Silence at Occupy San Diego for White House Shooter], [[Rush Limbaugh]]

[[Category:Liberalism]]
[[Category:Obama Presidency]]
[[Category:Activists]]
[[Category:Liberal Organizations]]
[[Category:Anti-American]]
[[Category:Anarchists]]

David Duke

2017-04-20T17:11:49Z

Teapublican: kkk

{{Officeholder
|name = David Duke
|image = 76r7uy.jpg
|party = Independent (former [[Democrat]] (1975-1987), [[Populist Party#1990s|Populist]] (1988), [[Republican]] (1989-1999; 2016) and [[Reform Party|Reform]] (1999-2001))
|spouse = Chloê Eleanor Hardin (m. 1974–1984, divorced)
|religion = [[Christian]]
|offices =
{{Officeholder/representative
|state = Louisiana
|district =81st
|terms = February 18, 1989 – January 13, 1992
|preceded = Charles Cusimano
|succeeded = [[David Vitter]]
}}
}}
'''David Ernest Duke''' (born July 1, 1950 in [[Tulsa]], [[Oklahoma]]) is a former member of the [[Louisiana]] House of Representatives, whose service extended from 1989 to 1992. Duke has run for office as a [[Democrat]], as a [[Republican]], and as the 1988 presidential candidate of the [[Populist Party]]. He is a former Grand Wizard of the [[Ku Klux Klan]].<ref>[http://www.adl.org/poisoning_web/duke.asp David Duke: White Revolution on the Internet].</ref>

== Life ==
Duke ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. Senate in the nonpartisan blanket primary in 1990 against the incumbent Democrat [[J. Bennett Johnston, Jr.]] of [[Shreveport]]. In 1991, he lost the governor's race to Democrat [[Edwin Edwards]], who easily secured his fourth nonconsecutive term in the position. In that contest, Edward supporters used posters saying, "Vote for the Crook. It's Important."

Duke participated in the "International Conference to Review the Global Vision of the Holocaust" in 2006 held in Iran. This was a convocation of holocaust deniers.

== Political views ==
Duke was vehement critic of U.S. President [[George W. Bush]]'s decision in 2003 to invade [[Iraq]]. He has also spoken against the [[Republican National Committee]], which opposed him in his own electoral contests.<ref>http://vodpod.com/watch/1331269-video-david-duke-dumps-on-rnc</ref> [[Evolutionary racism]] is a major component of David Duke's [[racism]].<ref>[http://creation.com/darwinisms-influence-on-modern-racists-and-white-supremacist-groups-the-case-of-david-duke Darwinism’s influence on modern racists and white supremacist groups: the case of David Duke]</ref>

On the [[War in Iraq]], Duke stated,

:[[Cindy Sheehan]] is absolutely right. Her son signed up in the military to defend America, not Israel ... In advancing this war for Israel, government and media advocates obviously couldn’t get Americans behind the war by saying it was a war for Israel. They had to make up bogus reasons for the war, such as saying that Iraq was an imminent threat to America and that Saddam had [[weapons of mass destruction]].<ref>[http://www.davidduke.com/index.php?p=350 Why Cindy Sheehan is Right!], David Duke, 8/14/2005.</ref>

Duke has run multiple times for office, including races for the United States Senate in 1990, 1996, and 2016, when Republican [[David Vitter]], who succeeded Duke in the state House in 1992, declined to pursue a third term after having been defeated in 2015 in a race for governor of Louisiana. In his most recent venture on the ballot, Duke finished in seventh place among twenty-four candidates with 58,581 votes (3 percent).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://voterportal.sos.la.gov/Graphical|title=Election Returns|date=November 8, 2016|publisher=Louisiana Secretary of State|accessdate=November 10, 2016}}</ref> Duke was allowed in the second of two senatorial debates in 2016 though the sixth-place finisher, retired [[United States Air Force]] Colonel [[Rob Maness]], was excluded because of low poll standings. Maness, who also ran for the Senate in 2014 against [[Bill Cassidy]] and [[Mary Landrieu]], received 90,812 votes (5 percent) in the 2016 primary election. The seat will be filled in 2017 by either state Treasurer John Neely Kennedy, a Republican, or the Democrat Public Service Commissioner Foster Campbell, the two leading candidates from the primary election who meet in a runoff contest on December 10, 2016.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.theadvocate.com/acadiana/news/politics/elections/article_5bc8107e-a6d2-11e6-8011-9f0284eb23bf.html|title=Foster Campbell seen as facing steep climb in U.S. Senate race against John Kennedy|publisher=''Baton Rouge Advocate''|author=Tyler Bridges|date=November 9, 2016|accessdate=November 10, 2016}}</ref>

==References==
<references/>

==External links==
*[http://www.davidduke.com/ David Duke's Official Website]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Duke, David}}

[[Category:Anti-war Movements]]
[[Category:Republicans]]
[[Category:Louisiana People]]
[[Category:RINOs]]
[[Category:Liberals]]
[[Category:Evolutionary Racists]]
[[Category:Democrats]]
[[Category:Ku Klux Klan members]]

Robert Byrd

2017-04-20T17:09:30Z

Teapublican: kkk

{{Officeholder
|name=Robert Byrd
|image=Byrd_formal_smile_highres.jpg‎
|party=[[Democrat Party|Democrat]]
|spouse=Erma Ora Byrd (deceased)
|religion=[[Baptist]]
|offices=
{{Officeholder/senator
|state=West Virginia
|terms=January 3, 1959 - June 28, 2010
|preceded=W. Chapman Revercomb
|former=n
|succeeded=[[Carte Goodwin]]
}}
{{Officeholder/representative
|state=West Virginia
|district=6th
|terms=January 3, 1953 – January 3, 1959
|preceded=E.H. Hedrick
|former=n
|succeeded=John M. Slack, Jr.
}}
}}

'''Robert Carlyle Byrd''' (November 20, 1917 - June 28, 2010) was a [[Democrat Party|Democrat]] Senator from [[West Virginia]]. He was the oldest member of [[Congress]] at his death at age 92, [[President pro tempore]] of the US Senate, and was the longest-serving [[Senator]] in history, having been first elected in 1958.

Byrd twice held the position of Senate Democrat Leader, was a crucial 60th vote in holding a filibuster-proof Senate in 2009, and remained a Democrat Party legend and icon until the end. He was third in line to the [[President of the United States|Presidency]] behind [[Vice President of the United States|Vice President]] [[Joe Biden]] and [[Speaker of the United States House of Representatives|Speaker]] [[Nancy Pelosi]].

==Klan Membership==
Byrd first joined the [[Ku Klux Klan]] in the 1940s and attained the rank of Exalted Cyclops, the leader of the local chapter of the organization.<ref>Pianin, Eric. [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/06/18/AR2005061801105_pf.html A Senator's Shame: Byrd, in His New Book, Again Confronts Early Ties to KKK]. Washington Post, 2005-06-19, pp. A01</ref> He repeatedly expressed his desire for the Klan to expand to its previous size and power, once remarking in a letter that "The Klan is needed today as never before and I am anxious to see its rebirth here in West Virginia" and "in every state in the nation." <ref>King, Colbert I. [http://www.pulitzer.org/year/2003/commentary/works/king2.html Sen. Byrd: The view from Darrell's barbershop], Washington Post, March 2, 2002</ref>

Byrd commented on the 1945 controversy raging over the idea of racially integrating the military. In his book When ''Jim Crow Met John Bull'', Graham Smith referred to a letter written that year by Byrd, when he was 28 years old, to [[segregation]]ist Senator Theodore Bilbo of [[Mississippi]], in which Byrd vowed never to fight:
{{Cquote|Rather I should die a thousand times, and see Old Glory trampled in the dirt never to rise again, than to see this beloved land of ours become degraded by race mongrels, a throwback to the blackest specimen from the wilds.}}

He had earlier written Bilbo:
{{Cquote|I shall never fight in the armed forces with a Negro by my side}}

By the 1950s, he was no longer publicly involved with the Ku Klux Klan. In recent years Byrd has made public statements about poor choices he made, and like [[Strom Thurmond]], (who at one time ran on a segregationist platform) says he regrets being involved with the group. However, he was involved in a controversy in 2001 over his use of a racial epithet as part of a metaphor during an interview on race relations by [[Tony Snow]].<ref>http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0FIBJt-c2o0</ref>

==Congressional Service==
Byrd was elected as a member of the [[United States House of Representatives]] in 1952 for the 6th district of West Virginia, succeeding [[E.H. Hedrick]], who had decided to step down to run for Governor of [[West Virginia]]. Byrd was reelected to the House twice. In 1958, he was elected to the [[United States Senate]], defeating the [[United States Republican Party|Republican]] incumbent W. Chapman Revercomb. He has been reelected eight times. For his first four terms, Byrd was West Virginia's junior senator. This was because his colleague from 1959 to 1985, Jennings Randolph, had been elected on the same day in a special election to fill the seat of the late Senator Matthew Neely.

While Byrd faced vigorous Republican opposition in the past, he has not faced truly serious opposition since freshman congressman Cleve Benedict ran against him in 1982. He has since won by comfortable margins. Despite his tremendous popularity in the state, he has only run unopposed once, in 1976. On two other occasions — in 1994 and 2000 — he carried all 55 of West Virginia's counties. In his reelection bid in 2000, he won all but seven of West Virginia's precincts. [[Shelley Moore Capito]], a Congresswoman and the daughter of one of Byrd's longtime foes—former Governor [[Arch A. Moore, Jr.|Arch Moore, Jr.]]—briefly weighed a challenge to Byrd in 2006, but decided against it.

In the 1960 Presidential election primaries, Byrd, a close Senate ally of [[Lyndon B. Johnson]], tried and failed to derail the Democrat front-runner and ultimately successful candidate [[John F. Kennedy]] in the crucial West Virginia [[primary election|primary]].

On November 7, 2006, Byrd was elected to an unprecedented ninth consecutive term in the Senate. He became the longest-serving senator in American history on June 12, 2006, surpassing [[Strom Thurmond]] of [[South Carolina]] with 17,327 days of service.<ref>[http://www.thehill.com/thehill/export/TheHill/News/Frontpage/053106/news2.html The Hill]</ref> Previously, he already held the record for the longest unbroken tenure in the Senate (Thurmond served 48 years in total, but vacated the office between April and November 1956). Counting his tenure as a West Virginia state legislator from 1947 to 1953, Byrd served as an elected official for almost 60 years ''and never lost an election''. Byrd cast a total of 17,745 votes as of September 13, 2006 — the most of any senator in history. Upon the death of Senator [[George Smathers]] of Florida on January 20, 2007 — Byrd became the last living United States Senator from the 1950s.<ref>[http://senate.gov/pagelayout/reference/three_column_table/10000_or_more_votes.htm U.S. Senate]</ref> This means that not only did Byrd outlive every other Senator who had seniority over him, but he is the only person to ever have remained in the Senate the entire time while doing it. He surpassed [[Carl Hayden]] of [[Arizona]] as the longest-serving member of Congress (House and Senate tenure combined) in American history in early 2010. Byrd was the last remaining Senator to have voted on a statehood bill and has served longer in the Senate than eight of his colleagues have been alive (those being [[Bob Casey, Jr.]], [[Amy Klobuchar]], [[Blanche Lincoln]], [[John Thune]], [[David Vitter]], [[Barack Obama]], [[Mark Pryor]], and [[John E. Sununu]]).

Byrd was, at his death, the chairman of the [[United States Senate Committee on Appropriations]]. Byrd was first appointed to the committee by then-Majority Leader [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] when he first entered the Senate in 1959. Since [[1989]], he was the committee's top Democrat and had chaired the committee when the Democrats had control of the Senate. Byrd was also a member of the [[United States Senate Committee on Armed Services|Committee on Armed Services]], the [[United States Senate Committee on Rules and Administration|Committee on Rules and Administration]] and the [[United States Senate Committee on the Budget|Committee on the Budget]].

In 2007, after serving in the Senate for nearly 50 years, and holding several prominent Committee chairmanships and Leadership posts, as Appropriations Chairman in the [[110th Congress]], Byrd finally required Democrat staff on his committee to provide him with a detailed disclosure of any direct or indirect [[conflicts of interest]] they may have as a result of actions taken by the panel.<ref>[http://www.rollcall.com/issues/52_147/news/19169-1.html?CMP=OTC-RSS Byrd Issues Tougher Staff Conflict Rules], By John Stanton, ''Roll Call'', June 27, 2007.</ref>

===Filibuster of the Civil Rights Act of 1964===
Byrd joined with other [[Southern United States|Southern]] and [[Border states (Civil War)|border state]] Democrats to [[filibuster]] the [[Civil Rights Act of 1964]], personally filibustering the bill for 14 hours — a move he later said he regretted.<ref>[http://www.commondreams.org/headlines06/0228-07.htm Byrd Says He Regrets Voting For Patriot Act], Associate Press, 2006-02-28.</ref> Despite an 83-day [[filibuster]] in the Senate, both parties in Congress voted overwhelmingly in favor of the Act, and President Johnson signed the bill into law.<ref>[http://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/minute/Civil_Rights_Filibuster_Ended.htm U.S. Senate, June 10, 1964: Civil Rights Filibuster Ended]</ref> He also opposed the [[Voting Rights Act of 1965]], but voted for the [[Civil Rights Act of 1968]]. In 2005, Byrd told the ''Washington Post'' that his membership in the [[Baptist]] church led to a change in his views. In the opinion of one reviewer, Byrd, along with other Southern and border state Democrats, came to realize that he would have to temper "his blatantly [[racial segregation|segregationist]] views" and move to the Democrat Party mainstream if he wanted to play a role nationally.

==External links==
*[http://byrd.senate.gov/ Official Site]
*[http://www.ontheissues.org/senate/Robert_Byrd.htm Byrd on Issues]
==References==
{{reflist}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Byrd, Robert}}
[[Category:Former United States Senators]]
[[Category:Democratic Party]]
[[Category:110th United States Congress]]
[[Category:111th United States Congress]]
[[Category:West Virginia]]
[[Category: Ku Klux Klan members]]

Hugo Black

2017-04-20T17:07:26Z

Teapublican: kkk

{{Officeholder
|name=Hugo Black
|image=HugoBlack.jpg
|party=Democrat
|spouse=Josephine Foster (1921-1951) Elizabeth Seay DeMeritte (1957-death)
|religion=
|offices=
{{Officeholder/Supreme Court Justice
|role=Associate
|nominator=[[Harry Truman]]
|terms=August 18, 1937 – September 17, 1971
|preceded=[[Willis Van Devanter]]
|former=y
|succeeded=[[Lewis Powell]]
}}
{{Officeholder/senator
|state=Alabama
|terms=March 4, 1927 – August 19, 1937
|preceded=Oscar W. Underwood
|former=(y or n)
|succeeded=Dixie B. Graves
}}
}}
'''Hugo LaFayette Black''' (February 27, 1886 – September 25, 1971) was an Associate Justice of the [[Supreme Court of the United States]]. Appointed by [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]], he served from August 19, 1937 – September 17, 1971.

He had previously served as a [[Democrat]] in the [[U.S. Senate]] from 1926-1937, representing the State of [[Alabama]]. Before his political career he was a member of the [[Ku Klux Klan]] in the 1920s.

As a [[Supreme Court]] Justice, Black was completely opposed to:

* school prayer
* religion in public life
* [[patent]] rights
* any limitations on pornography

Justice Black was the leading proponent of [[incorporation doctrine]].

Black often insisted on a literalist interpretation of the [[Bill of Rights]], and he dissented from ''[[Griswold v. Connecticut]]''.

{{Supreme Court|hughes=y|stone=y|vinson=y|warren=y|burger=y}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Black, Hugo}}

[[Category:United States Supreme Court Justices]]
[[Category:Judicial Activism]]
[[Category: Ku Klux Klan members]]

Patriotism

2017-04-20T16:14:24Z

Teapublican: conservatism

'''Patriotism''' means [[love]] or [[devotion]] and [[duty]] to one's country or homeland.

The word ''patriot'' comes from [[Latin]]; the root is the same as that of "father": ''pater''.

The [[Roman]] poet [[Horace]] wrote "Dulce et decorum est pro Patria mori", which means "It is sweet and seemly to die for one's country."<ref>Horace, ''Odes'' (iii 2.13)</ref>

Later, American satirist [[Ambrose Bierce]] would write "In Dr. Johnson's famous dictionary patriotism is defined as the last resort of a scoundrel. With all due respect to an enlightened but inferior lexicographer I beg to submit that it is the first."<ref>Ambrose Bierce, The Devil's Dictionary</ref>

Later still, [[World War I]] [[British]] infantryman and poet [[Wilfred Owen]] would mock Horace's words by describing a soldier dying a particularly gory death on the battlefield, and saying "My friend, you would not tell with such high zest / To children ardent for some desperate glory, / The old Lie: Dulce et decorum est / Pro patria mori."<ref>Wilfred Owen, Dulce Et Decorum Est</ref>

==Conflicts With Pacifism==

In rare cases patriotism has been a source of conflict for [[Christian]]s in wartime. While their nation may call on them to do their patriotic duty, many Western pacifists believe that [[New Testament]] advocates [[Pacifism#Biblical references about Christian nonviolence|nonviolence]].

Many western conservative Christians feel that patriotism does not conflict with Christianity as in their view their countries' political systems are based upon Christian principles. However, this argument is dubious. With the possible exception of Vatican City, no nation can truly be labelled "Christian", and given that people of other religious dispositions are allowed to vote - and these are numerous - it is unreasonable to expect a "Christian" outcome.

==Quotes==
* "In the beginning of a change, the [[patriot]] is a scarce man and [[bravery|brave]] — hated and scorned. When [[unalienable rights|his cause]] succeeds however, the timid join him. For then it costs them nothing to be a patriot." – [[Mark Twain]]

* "It is in vain, sir, to extenuate the matter. Gentlemen may cry, [[Peace]], Peace–but there is no peace. The [[war]] is actually begun! The next gale that sweeps from the north will bring to our ears the clash of resounding [[firearms|arms]]! Our brethren are already in the field! Why stand we here idle? What is it that gentlemen wish? What would they have? Is [[life]] so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and [[slavery]]? Forbid it, Almighty [[God]]! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, '''give me [[liberty]] or give me [[death]]!''' – [[Patrick Henry]], March 23, 1775

* "Today, we need a nation of [[Minutemen]], [[citizen]]s who are not only [[preparedness|prepared]] to [[Second Amendment|take arms]], but citizens who regard the [[Bill of Rights|preservation of freedom]] as the basic [[duty|purpose]] of their daily life and who are willing to consciously work and [[sacrifice]] for that freedom." – President [[John F. Kennedy]]

* "American patriotism can be said to be contrasted with the [[Anti-Americanism]] of [[Muslim]] [[Jihadism|jihad]] [[terrorist]]s, and most [[leftist]]s, [[socialist]]s and [[communist]]s." - [[Essay:Conservative quotes on American patriotism, preparedness, firearms and religion|The American Redoubt]]

* "When the great Tao is forgotten, [[good]]ness and [[piety]] appear. When the body’s intelligence declines, cleverness and knowledge step forth. When there is no [[peace]] in the [[family]], [[filial piety]] begins. When the country falls into chaos, patriotism is born." - [[Lao Tzu]], ''[[Tao Te Ching]]'', Chapter 18, [http://taotechingme.com/chapter-18-when-the-great-tao-is-forgotten|Stephen Mitchell] translation.

== See also ==
* [[American Patriots]]
* [[Founding Fathers]]
* [[Veteran]]s and [[Oath Keepers]]
* [[Essay:Conservative quotes on American patriotism, preparedness, firearms and religion]]
* [[Nationalism]]
* [[Sociology of "atheism is un-American" view]]

==External links==
*[http://www.aim.org/wls/category/patriotism/ What Liberals Say - Category: Patriotism], [[Accuracy In Media]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Oath Keepers]]
[[Category:Patriots]]
[[Category:Political Terms]]
[[Category:Conservatism]]
[[Category:Veterans]]

Ralph Nader

2017-04-20T15:55:05Z

Teapublican: Category:Socialists Category:Liberalism Category:Leftists

[[Image:Ralph Nader.jpg|right|thumb|Ralph Nader (photo from Harvard Kennedy School of Government)]]
'''Ralph Nader''' (born February 27, 1934) is a far left anti business activist. He ran unsuccessfully for President of the United States in 1996, 2000, 2004, and 2008.

In 1965, Nader wrote ''Unsafe at Any Speed'', an indictment of the auto industry that accused American carmakers of producing unsafe vehicles. The book was filled with lies and out right propaganda. The publication of ''Unsafe at Any Speed'' led to liberals instituting a series of congressional hearings and a series of automobile safety laws which weakened the American auto industry. Since 1966, Nader has been responsible for at least eight major federal consumer protection laws such as the motor vehicle safety laws, the Safe Drinking Water Act; the launching of federal regulatory agencies such as the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), the [[Environmental Protection Agency]] (EPA), and the [[Consumer Product Safety Administration]]; the recall of millions of defective motor vehicles; and access to government through the [[Freedom of Information Act of 1974]].

Nader is an outspoken critic of multinational corporations and business.

==Unsafe at Any Speed==
Nader's 1965 publication, ''Unsafe at Any Speed'' was an attempt to attack the American automotive industry by making untrue statements concerning the safety features of the Chevy Corvair. Nader's campaign against the Corvair showed that he believed not only that the Corvair was dangerous but that [[General Motors]] (GM) knew it was. Nader convinced liberal [[Connecticut]] Senator [[Abraham Ribicoff]] into investigating whether GM had lied about what it knew in testimony before Congress. Nader alleged that he had inside sources and documents that would reveal this conspiracy. Ribicoff assigned staff to the case, and they spent two years chasing down Nader's leads. None of them panned out. The investigators found no evidence that GM knew of the Corvair's safety flaws.<ref>http://www.tnr.com/doc.mhtml?i=20040308&s=chait030804</ref> The failure to confirm Nader's suspicions enraged him. "He could not let go of the Corvair issue," one of the staffers would later say. "He was fixated. And, if you didn't accept or believe the same things he did, you were either stupid or venal."<ref>http://www.tnr.com/doc.mhtml?i=20040308&s=chait030804</ref>

In 1971, Nader pressured one of his associates, Lowell Dodge, to doctor his study ''Small on Safety: The Designed-in Dangers of the Volkswagen.''{{fact}} Nader insisted that Dodge rewrite the conclusion of the study so that it began, "The Volkswagen is the most hazardous car in use in significant numbers in the U.S. today." Objecting that "the conclusion is not reflected in the data," Dodge left the project, allowing others to take credit as principal authors. "I have always carried around considerable guilt about what I regard as the extreme intellectual dishonesty of that conclusion," he later concluded.<ref>http://www.tnr.com/doc.mhtml?i=20040308&s=chait030804</ref>

Nader sued GM and won $425,000, which he used to found liberal activist organizations that helped push through a staggering series of consumer and environmental reforms, most of them in the late 1960s and early 1970s.

==Presidential candidacy==

Nader's most successful run for President was in 2000, when, as the Green Party's nominee, he garnered 2.7% of the popular vote, and was blamed by many liberals for the loss of [[Al Gore]] to [[George W. Bush]], the reasoning being that most of the people who voted for him would have preferred Gore to Bush, and that thus Nader's candidacy may have tipped the election in Bush's favor.<ref>http://www.commondreams.org/headlines04/0626-04.htm</ref>

In Nader's 2004 presidential run, a concerned Democratic party successfully sued Ralph Nader off the ballot in 19 states. In Pennsylvania alone, not just one lawsuit in one court but twelve suits in twelve separate courts simultaneously.<ref>[http://www.americanchronicle.com/articles/842], PA Ballot Access Laws and 2004 Nader Candidacy, June 28, 2005</ref> While he was still the most successful third party candidate, he managed barely a seventh of his 2000 performance, at just 0.38% of the popular vote. He ran again in 2008 and performed slightly better than in the previous election, this time getting 0.5% of the vote, despite running in even fewer states than he did in 2004.

==References==
<references/>

==See also==
[[Previous Breaking News/Ralph Nader|Articles about '''Ralph Nader''' from previous "Breaking News"]]
[[Category:2004 Presidential Candidates]]
{{2008 presidential candidates}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Nader, Ralph}}

[[Category:Third Party Politicians]]
[[Category:Liberals]]
[[Category:Failed Presidential Candidates]]
[[Category:Socialists]]
[[Category:Liberalism]]
[[Category:Leftists]]
[[Category:Socialism]]
[[Category:Liberal Activists]]
[[Category:Anti Second Amendment]]

Vladimir Lenin

2017-04-20T15:48:45Z

Teapublican: liberals

[[Image:Khvhkgfiy.jpg|right|thumb|Vladimir Lenin]]
'''Vladimir Lenin''' (born Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov <ref>"Vladimir Ilyich Lenin" (Russian: Владимир Ильич Улянов, Ленин) was the pseudonym he used after 1900 to disguise his identity.</ref>) (1870-1924) was the leader of Russian Communism and an important theoretician of Marxism. Coming to power in 1917 he became dictator of the [[Soviet Union]]. All over the Soviet Union and even to some extent some Western countries, there were statues and paintings honoring his memory; some were removed when Communism collapsed in 1991.

==Early life==
Lenin was born on April 22, 1870 (later to be celebrated as [[Earth Day]]) to a middle class Russian family; his parents were school teachers. In 1889, he became a [[Marxist]] after his older brother was hanged for the murder of Tsar Aleksandr II. Lenin obtained a law degree shortly afterwards, and by 1895 was a [[subversion (political)|subversive]] who was arrested and sent to a prison in [[Siberia]] as punishment. He was in exile 1900-1917. He collaborated with Georgy Plekhanov and others to set up the clandestine newspaper ''Iskra'' (The Spark), designed to "ignite" radical consciousness. In the pages of ''Iskra'', Lenin denounced any alliance with liberals or other elements of the bourgeoisie because they would keep power in the hands of the middle class. He emphasized social democracy—equality of condition, rather than political democracy, as the basis for individual freedom. His major theoretical publication was the pamphlet "What Is to Be Done?" (1902). In 1903 he organized and controlled the '''"Bolshevik"''' wing of the Russian Social Democratic Labor party, fighting the opposition "Mensheviks." Lenin, like his populist predecessors in the Russian radical movement, stressed the need for a small elite vanguard to lead the revolution

Despite disapproval of the Mensheviks, Lenin's followers continued to raise money through a mixture of bank robberies, kidnapping, extortion, terrorism, and murder. Unlike the leaders of other Marxist organizations, Lenin did not spent the money on his own lifestyle and carefully strengthened his movement.

With German help he returned to Russia after the [[Tsar]] abdicated in March 1917 and a short-lived liberal democracy allowed for free elections. At the time, most Bolsheviks were more interested in using the ballot box to gain political power. Lenin rejected elections,and declared, "History will not forgive us if we do not take power now."

==Revolution==
In 1917 Lenin opposed Russia's continued participation in World War I and advocated proceeding directly to a socialist revolution, bypassing bourgeois rule. He rejected cooperation with the Provisional Government and drove some old Bolsheviks out of the party, while coopting many younger, more radical members. [[Joseph Stalin]], [[Grigori Zinoviev]], and others rallied to Lenin's side during the elections to the party's Central Committee during the 7th Party Conference in April 1917 and became the new leadership. The Bolsheviks were allowed free expression of disagreements until a decision by the Central Committee was reached, and then no opposition or disagreement was permitted. Lenin now ruled the Bolsheviks from his base in Petrograd (St. Petersburg).

In October 1917, Lenin masterminded a [[coup d'état]] which overthrew the [[Provisional Government]] which had replaced the [[Russian Empire]]. In what historian [[Simon Sebag Montefiore]] has described as a comedy of errors, the Winter Palace was shelled and the Provisional Cabinet was placed under arrest by a mixture of Red Guards and radical sailors from the Kronstadt Naval Base.
==Dictator==
Lenin ruled the [[Soviet Union]] under Marxism–Leninism, until 1922, when he had a debilitating stroke and retired.

{{Cquote|A wide campaign of "education" was undertaken to show the people why "workers' rule" meant, in practice, [[Nomenklatura|managers]]' rule. Where necessary, the education by the word was supplemented with education by [[firing squad]] or [[concentration camp]] or forced labour battalion.<ref>James Burnham, ''The Managerial Revolution'', (1940).</ref> }}

In 1918 Lenin ordered to kill all prostitutes.<ref>http://marxists.org/archive/lenin/works/1918/aug/09gff.htm</ref>

==Death==
Lenin, a workaholic who avoided vacations and downtime, died in 1924 following a series of progressively more serious strokes. [[Joseph Stalin]] was his even more brutal successor.
==Interpretations==
===Lenin on revolution===
Before 1917, Lenin thought that revolution was more likely to break out in Russia than in any other country on the continent, and he expected the outbreak of other revolutions in Europe, or at least in Central Europe, after the Russian Revolution. During the Civil War he considered a short period of War Communism as an extension of the revolutionary situation from which a direct path might open toward socialism. However, after the failure of War Communism he returned to his earlier viewpoint, that is, to the necessity of a transition period. This was reflected in the New Economic Policy (NEP) - which meant a transition including both private enterprise and a market economy. Stalin deemed the transition favored by Lenin to be too dangerous, because it carried with it the threat of a defeat and an eventual restoration of capitalism

===Dictatorship of the proletariat===
see also [[Dictatorship of the proletariat]]
Lenin saw the Marxist concept of the "Dictatorship of the proletariat" in terms of a dictatorship exercised not by a democratically chosen majority but by a [[Revolutionary Vanguard|vanguard minority revolutionary party]], ruthlessly controlled by a few leaders like himself. He eventually accepted the need for a state bureaucracy, and his more extreme opposition to the bourgeoisie led him to favor their exclusion and disenfranchisement to the benefit of the urban working class.

==Leninism as a religion==
Lenin's utopian design of a revolutionary community of virtuosi was a typical political religion of an intelligentsia longing for an inner-worldly salvation, a socialist paradise without exploitation and alienation, to be implanted in the backward Russian society at the outskirts of the industrialized and modernized Western Europe. The Russian Revolution of October 1917 accomplished the institutionalization of a political religion combining a political and sacral monopoly of power and belief. Consequently, the Leninist policy of social extermination of political opponents, ideological rivals, and stigmatized social classes became a sacral obligation to be fulfilled by the new ideological orthodoxy. The beginning iconography of a Leninist sacral tradition praised Lenin as a messianic and numinous leader. This process of iconographic work in progress culminated after Lenin's death in the sacral Lenin cult. The Lenin mausoleum served as the monumental centerpiece of sacral rites and practices to be enacted by the Stalinist orthodoxy. Joseph Stalin's invention of a sacral tradition of Marxism–Leninism qualified him as the only true disciple of Lenin. Therefore, Stalin claimed the monopoly of the infallible interpretation of the holy scriptures, summarized in his own dogmatic performances. In this sense, Stalin's Leninism became itself the religion of the Soviet state.<ref>Klaus-Georg Riegel, "Marxism-Leninism as a Political Religion," ''Totalitarian Movements and Political Religions'' 2005 6(1): 97-126 in [[EBSCO]]</ref>

==Image and memory==
After his death in 1924 Stalin portrayed Lenin as an infallible humanitarian; his writings were viewed as gospel. Museums were devoted to his life and work, cities were named for him, and huge statues and monuments honored his memory. Beginning in 1985, however, the Lenin cult began to crumble. Party chairman [[Mikhail Gorbachev]] was a faithful disciple of Lenin, but he now faced the reality that the economically bankrupt Communist state was rapidly decaying. As the Communist nation unraveled, so did the Lenin personality cult. Leningrad residents voted to restore the St. Petersburg name; the once-crowded museums attracted few visitors; and Lenin's philosophy and actions were found less than perfect. In 1991 as Communism fell, the statues and paintings went into cold storage. By 1995 plans were being made to bury Lenin's corpse, which was finally acknowledged to be putrefying just as the remains of any other mortal, as the cult itself fell into "the dustbin of history."<ref>Trevor J. Smith, "The Collapse of the Lenin Personality Cult in Soviet Russia, 1985-1995," ''Historian'' 1998 60(2): 325-343, in [[EBSCO]]</ref>

== Quotes from Lenin ==
* “The way to crush the [[middle class]] is to grind them between the millstones of [[taxation]] and [[inflation]].”

* "The best revolutionary is youth devoid of [[moral]]s."

* "A lie told often enough becomes the truth."

* "The goal of [[socialism]] is [[communism]]."

* "There are no morals in [[politics]] there is only expedience. A scoundrel may be of use to us just because he is a scoundrel."

* "Give us the child for 8 years and it will be a [[Bolshevik]] forever." (see [[Public school values]] and [[Professor values]])

* ""It matters not if 90% of the Russian people perish so long as 10% bring about a world revolution."<ref>http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,717663,00.html</ref>

== See also ==
* [[Karl Marx]]
* [[Joseph Stalin]]
* [[Dictatorship]]
** [[Dictator]]
** [[List of dictators]]
** [[Friendly dictator]]
** [[Adolf Hitler]], Joseph Stalin, [[Chairman Mao]], [[Kim Jong-Il]], [[Pol Pot]]
** [[Dictatorship of the proletariat]]
** [[List of Communist States]]
** [[List of Socialist States]]
** [[Death toll of communism]]
** [[Coup d'état]]
* [[Cult of personality]]
* [[Single-party state]]
* [[Mobocracy]], [[Social Effects of the Theory of Evolution]], [[Anti-Semitism]], [[Communist Racism]], [[Genocide]], [[Holocaust]]
* [[National Socialist German Workers Party]] ([[Nazi]])
* [[National Socialism]] - the Nazis were elitist [[Police state]] [[liberals]] not [[conservative]]s
* [[Big government]] [[Welfare state]] leads to [[Nanny state]], leads to [[Police state]]: [[Globalist]]-[[Statist]]-[[Socialist]]-[[Communist]]
* [[Liberal totalitarianism]]

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==Further reading==
===Biography===
* Clark, Ronald W. ''Lenin'' (1988). 570 pp.
* Service, Robert. ''Lenin: A Biography'' (2002), 561pp; standard scholarly biography; a short version of his 3 vol detailed biography
* Volkogonov, Dmitri. ''Lenin: Life and Legacy'' (1994). 600 pp.
===Specialized scholarly studies===
* Anderson, Kevin. ''Lenin, Hegel, and Western Marxism: A Critical Study'' (1995) 311 pp.
* Copleston, Frederick Charles. ''Philosophy in Russia: From Herzen to Lenin and Berdyaev'' (1986). 445pp. by a conservative
* Debo, Richard K. ''Survival and Consolidation: The Foreign Policy of Soviet Russia, 1918-1921'' (1992).
* Marples, David R. ''Lenin's Revolution: Russia, 1917-1921'' (2000) 156pp. short survey
* Pipes, Richard. ''A Concise History of the Russian Revolution'' (1996) [http://www.amazon.com/Concise-History-Russian-Revolution/dp/0679745440/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1232393501&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search], by a leading conservative
* Pipes, Richard. ''Communism: A History'' (2003), by a leading conservative
* Pipes, Richard. ''Russia under the Bolshevik Regime.'' (1994). 608 pp.
* Pomper, Philip. ''Lenin, Trotsky, and Stalin: The Intelligentsia and Power.'' (1990). 446 pp.
* Schapiro, Leonard and Reddaway, Peter, eds. ''Lenin: The Man, the Theorist, the Leader - a Reappraisal'' (1987). 317 pp.
* White, James D. ''Lenin: The Practice and Theory of Revolution'' (2001) 262pp.

===Primary sources===
* Desai, Meghnad, ed. ''Lenin's Economic Writings.'' (1989). 363 pp.
* Pipes, Richard, ed. ''The Unknown Lenin: From the Secret Archive.'' (1996). 185 pp.

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lenin, Vladimir}}
[[Category:Russian History]]
[[Category:Soviet Union]]
[[Category:Dictators]]
[[Category:Communism]]
[[Category:Socialism]]
[[Category:Mass Murderers]]
[[Category:Communists]]
[[Category:Liberals]]
[[Category:Soviet Leaders]]
[[Category:Communist Revolutionaries]]
[[Category:Atheists]]

List of conservative, neoconservative and libertarian think tanks

2017-04-20T02:07:22Z

Teapublican: freedomworks

'''List of conservative, neoconservative and libertarian [[think tank]]s:'''

'''United States:'''

* [[Heritage Foundation]]
* [[Freedomworks]]
* [[American Enterprise Institute]]
* [[Manhattan Institute for Policy Research]]
* [[Lexington Institute]]
* [[Claremont Institute]]
* [[Hudson Institute]]
* [[Cato Institute]]
* [[Hoover Institution]]
* [[Project for the New American Century]]
* [[Center for Security Policy]]
* [[Foreign Policy Research Institute]]
* [[Center for Immigration Studies]]
* [[Center for Strategic and International Studies]]
* [[The Federalist Foundation]]

'''England:'''

* [[Centre for Policy Studies]]
* [[Conservative Monday Club]]

'''Scotland:'''

* [[Reform Scotland]]

'''Europe:'''

* [[Groupement de recherche et d'études pour la civilisation européenne]]

'''Australia:'''

* [[Menzies Research Centre]]
* [[Institute of Public Affairs]]
* [[Centre for Independent Studies]]

'''France:'''

* [[Cercle de l'Oratoire]]
* [[Institut Constant de Rebecque]]

'''Italy:'''

* [[FareFuturo]]

'''Sweden:'''

* [[Captus]]
* [[Timbro]]

'''Belgium:'''

* [[Nova Civitas]]

== See also ==
* [[Conservative think tanks]]
* [[Major conservative organizations]]
* [[First Amendment]] [[unalienable rights]] of [[Freedom of the press]]: The [[Constitution First Amendment Press Association]] ([http://CFAPA.org|CFAPA.org])
* [[:Category:Conservative Media|Conservative Media]]
* [[:Category:Conservative Magazines|Conservative Magazines]]
* [[Conservative blogs]]
* [[Conservative news organizations]]
* [[Conservative Links]] and [[Conservative resources]]
* [[Essay:Best News Sources|Conservative news websites]]
* [[Conservative video]]
* [[Conservative columnists]]
* [[Conservative humor and satire resources]]
* [[Libertarian|Libertarian values]] and [[Conservative values]]/[[Traditional values]] are the original [[American]] [[Patriot]] [[Founding Fathers]]' values
* [[American values]] and [[Free enterprise]]-[[Capitalism]]
* [[Small town values]] of [[Real America]]
* [[Family values]]: [[Parental rights]], [[Homeschooling]] and [[Parochial school]]
* [[Essay:Conservative Benefits]]

===Contrast With===

* [[Liberal media elite]] of the [[Mainstream media]]
* [[Liberal values]] and [[Liberalism]]: [[Similarities between Communism, Nazism and liberalism]]
* [[Public school values]] [[entitlement mentality]] [[Indoctrination]] of the [[Teacup Generation]] by [[Public schools in the United States]] and [[Common Core]]
* [[Teachers' unions]]: [[National Education Association]] and [[American Federation of Teachers]]
* [[Hollywood values]]: [[List of celebrities against Second Amendment]] - always [[Liberal]] [[Elitist]]s
* [[San Francisco values]] [[Diane Feinstein]], [[Nancy Pelosi]], [[Barbara Boxer]], [[Leland Yee]]
* [[Fashion industry values]] and [[addiction]]
* [[Professor values]] and [[Politically correct|Political correctness]]
* [[Obamunism]]: [[Income redistribution]] of [[Obamanomics]] [[Economic planning]] of the [[Obama administration fiscal policy]], [[Obama administration monetary policy]], [[Obamacare]], [[Federal funding]] via [[Crony capitalism]] ([[Obama donor list]], [[Bailout]], [[Obama administration corporate bailouts]], [[Obamageddon]]), [[Deficit spending]] and the [[National debt]]
* [[John Maynard Keynes]] [[liberal]] [[Keynesian economics]] and [[Fabian Socialism|Fabian Socialist]] influence on [[Barack Obama]]
* [[Big government]] [[liberal]] [[Welfare state]] leads to [[socialist]] [[Nanny state]], leads to [[communist]] [[Police state]]: [[Globalist]]-[[Statist]]-[[United Nations]]
* [[National Socialist German Workers Party]] ([[Nazi]])
* [[Nazism and socialism]]: [[National Socialism]] - the Nazis were elitist [[Police state]] [[liberals]] not [[conservative]]s
* [[Liberal totalitarianism]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Political Organizations]]
[[Category:Conservative Organizations]]
[[Category:Lists|conservative, neoconservative and libertarian think tanks]]
[[Category:Libertarian Organizations]]

{{Conservatism}}

Capitalism

2017-04-20T02:05:30Z

Teapublican: Category:Conservatism Category:Fiscal Conservatives Category:Economic Preparedness

[[Image:Tokyo Stock Exchange.jpg|thumb|Tokyo Stock Exchange]]
'''Capitalism''' is a [[free market]] economic system based on private ownership and entrepreneurship. The investment of capital, and production, distribution, income, and prices are determined not by government (as in [[socialism]]) but through the operation of a competitive market where decisions are voluntary and private rather than regulated and mandated by government (see [[law of supply and demand]]).

==Overview==
One self-regulating feature of capitalism is competition, which helps maintain fair market value for goods and services. However, ''unrestrained'' or ''pure'' capitalism may sometimes create a positive feedback loop in which a small number of individual accumulations of capital grow ever larger, eventually becoming so few as to limit effective competition, thus ceasing to strictly be free-market capitalism. In this regard, pure capitalism is unstable. Modern political systems have developed regulation mechanisms in an attempt to render capitalism more stable, including anti-trust regulation, trade tariffs, etc.

Since the fall of [[communism]], and the advent of information technology, capitalism is becoming increasingly widespread.

[[Adam Smith]] described the operation of capital accumulation through the productive powers of labor as such,
{{Cquote|Whatever a person saves from his [[revenue]] he adds to his [[capital]], and either employs it himself in maintaining an additional number of productive hands, or enables some other person to do so, by lending it to him for an interest, that is, for a share of the profits. As the capital of an individual can be increased only by what he saves from his annual revenue or his annual gains, so the capital of a society, which is the same with that of all the individuals who compose it, can be increased only in the same manner.<ref>Adam Smith, ''An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations'', [http://www.econlib.org/library/Smith/smWN.html Book II, Chapter 3, Paragraph 15,] ''Of the Accumulation of Capital, or of Productive and Unproductive Labour'', First Edition 1776.</ref>}}

Smith goes on to describe how the productive powers of labor employed by the owner of a capital allow laborers to reproduce with a profit the value of their maintenance, over and above their own consumption, which then allows for an additional set of hands to be employed.<ref>Adam Smith, ''Wealth of Nations'', Book II, Chapter 3, Paragraph 22.</ref> Smith observes labor is the original purchase price for all the wealth of the world,
[[Image:Eco Pillars.jpg|right|400px|thumbnail|The [[free enterprise]] system in [[United States of America|America]] before [[liberals]], [[Republican in name only|rinos]], and/or members of the [[progressive movement]], such as President [[Barack Obama]], eroded America's [[economics|economic]] freedom and prosperity. Former president [[Obamunism|Barack Obama]] created [[National debt of the United States|massive Federal government debt]], which upset the system.]]
{{Cquote|The real price of every thing, what every thing really costs to the man who wants to acquire it, is the toil and trouble of acquiring it. What every thing is really worth to the man who has acquired it, and who wants to dispose of it or exchange it for something else, is the toil and trouble which it can save to himself, and which it can impose upon other people. What is bought with money or with goods is purchased by labour, 2<ref>'Everything in the world is purchased by labour.'—Hume, 'Of Commerce,' in Political Discourses, 1752, p. 12</ref> as much as what we acquire by the toil of our own body. That money or those goods indeed save us this toil. They contain the value of a certain quantity of labour which we exchange for what is supposed at the time to contain the value of an equal quantity. Labour was the first price, the original purchase-money that was paid for all things. It was not by gold or by silver, but by labour, that all the wealth of the world was originally purchased; and its value, to those who possess it, and who want to exchange it for some new productions, is precisely equal to the quantity of labour which it can enable them to purchase or command.<ref>Adam Smith, ''An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations'', [http://www.econlib.org/library/Smith/smWN.html Book I, Chapter 5, Paragraph 2,] ''Of the Real and Nominal Price of Commodities'', First Edition 1776.</ref>}}

Real wealth consists not in money, but in the things money will exchange for,
{{Cquote|In order to put industry into motion, three things are requisite; materials to work upon, tools to work with, and the wages or recompense for the sake of which the work is done. Money is neither a material to work upon, nor a tool to work with; and though the wages of the workman are commonly paid to him in money, his real revenue, like that of all other men, consists, not in money, but in the money's worth; not in the metal pieces, but in what can be got for them.<ref>Adam Smith, ''An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations'', [http://www.econlib.org/library/Smith/smWN7.html Book II, Chapter 2, Paragraph 37,] ''Of Money Considered as a particular Branch of the General Stock of the Society, or of the Expence of Maintaining the National Capital '', First Edition 1776.</ref>}}

Since wealth does not consist in money, gold, or silver, and labor is the original purchase price, Smith explains how the capitalist system is then put into motion, complete with natural incentives, only Smith does not use the word "capital" here to describe what is needed. Smith explains how a "store of goods", or "stock sufficient to maintain" the original capitalist entrepreneur is necessary;
{{Cquote|When the stock which a man possesses is no more than sufficient to maintain him for a few days or a few weeks, he seldom thinks of deriving any revenue from it. He consumes it as sparingly as he can, and endeavours by his labour to acquire something which may supply its place before it be consumed altogether. His revenue is, in this case, derived from his labour only. This is the state of the greater part of the labouring poor in all countries.

But when he possesses stock sufficient to maintain him for months or years, he naturally endeavours to derive a revenue from the greater part of it; reserving only so much for his immediate consumption as may maintain him till this revenue begins to come in. His whole stock, therefore, is distinguished into two parts. That part which, he expects, is to afford him this revenue, is called his capital. The other is that which supplies his immediate consumption <ref>Adam Smith, ''An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations'', [http://www.econlib.org/library/Smith/smWN7.html Book II, Chapter 1, Paragraphs 1 & 2,] ''Of the Division of Stock '', First Edition 1776.</ref>}}

The [[division of labor]] is the necessary condition that gives rise to the productive powers of labor that allows for large scale economic growth. By "division of labor", Smith is referring to "specialization of labor", where each worker acquires specific knowledge to apply to a specific task.
{{Cquote|In that rude state of society in which there is no division of labour, in which exchanges are seldom made, and in which every man provides everything for himself, it is not necessary that any stock should be accumulated or stored up beforehand in order to carry on the business of the society. Every man endeavours to supply by his own industry his own occasional wants as they occur. When he is hungry, he goes to the forest to hunt; when his coat is worn out, he clothes himself with the skin of the first large animal he kills: and when his hut begins to go to ruin, he repairs it, as well as he can, with the trees and the turf that are nearest it.

But when the division of labour has once been thoroughly introduced, the produce of a man's own labour can supply but a very small part of his occasional wants. The far greater part of them are supplied by the produce of other men's labour, which he purchases with the produce, or, what is the same thing, with the price of the produce of his own. But this purchase cannot be made till such time as the produce of his own labour has not only been completed, but sold. A stock of goods of different kinds, therefore, must be stored up somewhere sufficient to maintain him, and to supply him with the materials and tools of his work till such time, at least, as both these events can be brought about.

As the accumulation of stock must, in the nature of things, be previous to the division of labour, ...in order to give constant employment to an equal number of workmen, an equal stock of provisions, and a greater stock of materials and tools than what would have been necessary in a ruder state of things, must be accumulated beforehand.<ref>Adam Smith, ''An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations'', [http://www.econlib.org/library/Smith/smWN7.html Book II, Introduction, Paragraphs 1, 2, & 3] ''Of the Nature, Accumulation, and Employment of Stock,'', First Edition 1776.</ref>}}
{{Cquote|When the division of labour has been once thoroughly established, it is but a very small part of a man's wants which the produce of his own labour can supply. He supplies the far greater part of them by exchanging that surplus part of the produce of his own labour, which is over and above his own consumption, for such parts of the produce of other men's labour as he has occasion for. Every man thus lives by exchanging, or becomes in some measure a merchant, and the society itself grows to be what is properly a commercial society.<ref>Adam Smith, ''An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations'', [http://www.econlib.org/library/Smith/smWN7.html Book I, Chapter 4, Paragraphs 1] ''Of the Origin and Use of Money'', First Edition 1776.</ref>}}

==Capitalism and Society==
[[Image:Ludwig von Mises.jpg|thumb|100px|Ludwig von Mises]]
Historically, capitalism has fostered freedom and an increase in the standard of living and human rights, and vice versa. Societies that have tried non-capitalist systems inevitably fall into tyranny.

For example, [[Venezuela]], while not a perfect country before [[Hugo Chavez]], had freedom and wealth unprecedented in its history. As Chavez has nationalized industries, he has also centralized power for himself, becoming a dictator.

Capitalist societies also generally have higher standards of living compared to their non-capitalist counterparts in terms of per capita GDP, education, healthcare, and poverty rates. [[China]], for instance, has been growing extremely prosperous since it began opening its economy to capitalism in the 1980s.

However, capitalist societies also have seen progressively larger gaps between the upper and middle classes develop, such as the United States where the top twenty percent owned eighty-seven percent of the financial wealth and eighty percent of the total wealth, despite having the largest GDP in the world.

== Quotes ==

“Historical evidence speaks with a single voice on the relation between political freedom and a free market. I know of no example in time or place of a society that has been marked by a large measure of political freedom, and that has not also used something comparable to a free market to organize the bulk of economic activity.”

"Underlying most arguments against the free market is a lack of belief in freedom itself."
--[[Milton Friedman]], Capitalism and Freedom, 1962.

"If an exchange between two parties is voluntary, it will not take place unless both believe they will benefit from it. Most economic fallacies derive from the neglect of this simple insight, from the tendency to assume that there is a fixed pie, that one party can gain only at the expense of another."

--[[Milton Friedman]], Free to Choose

“Capitalism is essentially the economic system of poor people. That’s what allowed the people that came from humble origins of the world to have economic rights the way only nobility and the high bourgeoisie had it before. So capitalism is essentially a tool for poor people to prosper.”—Hernando de Soto, PBS Interview, March 30–31, 2001

(cf: [http://www.americansolutions.com/General/?Page=026a3bda-755c-45d8-84d3-c68eef294612 Values - Free Enterprise])

"The only real cure for poverty is production". [[Henry Hazlitt]], from ''Man vs. the Welfare State''.

"The first condition for the establishment of perpetual peace is the general adoption of the principles of laissez-faire capitalism."—Ludwig von Mises, The Ultimate Foundation of Economic Science

"There are two methods, or means, and only two, whereby man's needs and desires can be satisfied. One is the production and exchange of wealth; this is the economic means. The other is the uncompensated appropriation of wealth produced by others; this is the political means."—Albert Jay Nock, Our enemy, the State

"Businessmen are the symbol of a free society — the symbol of America."—Ayn Rand

== See also ==
* [[Austrian economics]]
* [[Capital]]
* [[Free Enterprise]]
* [[Ludwig von Mises]]
* [[Enterprise]]
* [[Planned economy]]
* [[Socialism]]
* [[Welfare state]] turns to [[Nanny state]] turns to [[Police state]]
* [[Benefits of capitalism]]
* [[Vulture capitalist]]

==External links==
*[http://www.capmag.com Capitalism Magazine]
*[http://www.aim.org/wls/category/capitalism/ What Liberals Say - Category: Capitalism], [[Accuracy In Media]]

==References==
<references/>

[[Category:Capitalism|!]]
[[Category:Economics]]
[[Category:Conservatism]]
[[Category:Fiscal Conservatives]]
[[Category:Economic Preparedness]]
[[Category:Libertarianism]]
[[Category:Anti-Communism]]

Republican Party

2017-04-20T01:58:36Z

Teapublican: capitalism

Democratic Party

2017-04-20T01:56:49Z

Teapublican: redistribution of wealth regulations

{{AmericanPoliticalParty
| party_name=Democratic Party
| party_articletitle = Democratic Party (United States)
| party_logo = [[Image:democraticpartyusalogo.png|200px]]
| website = [http://www.democrats.org www.democrats.org]
| headquarters = 430 South Capitol Street SE [[Washington, D.C.]] 20003
| chairman = [[Thomas Perez]]
| houseleader = [[Nancy Pelosi]]
| senateleader = [[Chuck Schumer]]
| foundation = 1828
| ideology = [[Liberalism]] [[Keynes]]ianism [[Socialism]] [[Progressivism]] [[Marxism]] [[Communism]] Historically: [[Racism]] [[White supremacy]] Segregationism
| fiscalpolicy = [[Left-wing]]
| socialpolicy = Left-wing
| colors = Blue (unofficial)
| footnotes =
}}
:''This article is about the Democratic Party of the United States. For Democratic Parties in other countries, see [[Democratic party (disambiguation)]]''
:''For the grammatically-correct name of the party, see [[Democrat Party]]''
The '''Democratic Party'''<ref>This is the official name of the party.[https://www.democrats.org/about/our-party/party-organization] Some argue that its proper name is the "Democrat" Party, not the "Democratic" Party. No one says the "Republicanic Party," for example. Some Republicans and conservatives commonly refer to it as such, implying the party is not democratic. The term is said to grate on Democrats' ears.</ref> ('''D''') is one of the two major political [[parties]] in the [[United States of America]]. It is [[pro-abortion]] and anti-[[free enterprise]], supporting higher taxes, redistribution of wealth, over-regulation, anti-gun policies, and a much larger, more invasive government, while the [[Republican Party]] is [[pro-life]] and pro-free enterprise, supporting lower taxes, gun rights, indiviudal liberty and small, responsible government.<ref>http://www.diffen.com/difference/Democrat_vs_Republican#Role_of_Government</ref> [[Barack Obama]] and other Democrats are left-wing on the political spectrum. Voters in 2010, 2014, and 2016 rejected Democratic Party candidates at the local, state and national levels in record-setting proportions. On February 25, 2017, the Democratic National Committee selected [[Thomas Perez]] to lead the party.

Members of the Democratic Party are known as Democrats. Founded in 1828, slavery and segregation were cornerstones of the party's ideology. Both were exclusively Democratic issues which the GOP was founded to oppose.<ref>The rights and dignity of the individual remain the core principal of the Republican party, be it opposition to slavery, abortion, big government, or high taxes.</ref> A Congressional faction known as [[Blue Dogs]] made up of [[conservative]] Democrats, was largely "shellacked" after it was offered up on the altar of Obamacare by [[Progressive]]s, defying and abandoning their constituents. In 2009 Bluedogs boasted 44 [[centrist]]s but by 2011 it had only 8 members. A [[bi-partisan]] core in the House was destroyed by radical leftists who now dominate the party.

In the doldrums after 2000, the party led by [[anti-war]] radicals roared back with major gains in 2006, which it expanded in 2008 to sweep control of the national government and leave the GOP in a state of confusion and decline. The GOP bounced back in 2009, with near-unanimous opposition to contentious Democratic policies, especially stimulus spending and Obamacare. Polls show Obama's popularity began to erode after his [[Barack Obama approval ratings#Declines after the Gates flap|anti-police stance]] became apparent in the summer of 2009.

For the first two Obama years, the Democrats controlled the White House and a veto-proof Congress, ramming through unpopular legislation without bipartisan support such as [[Obamacare]]. In the 2010 midterm elections, the Republican party won decisive control of the House of Representatives; suburbs and rural areas are still more likely to be in Republican hands.<ref>[http://www.multistate.com/Site.nsf/Elections2006PostMaps?OpenPage Multistate.com] Post-Election 2006 Maps</ref> Polls at the time indicated that 50% of voters identified themselves with the Democrats as opposed to 35% for the Republican Party.<ref>[http://people-press.org/reports/display.php3?ReportID=312 Trends in Political Values and Core Attitudes: 1987-2007] Pew Research Center, 22 March 2007</ref> On the one hand, the Democrats claim to have won the popular vote for President in 2016 by more than 2.7 million votes (although, contrary to [[liberal denial]], over 800,000 illegal immigrants likely voted<ref>Lucas, Fred, "[http://dailysignal.com/2016/11/28/more-than-800000-noncitizens-could-have-voted-in-2016-election-experts-say/ More Than 800,000 Noncitizens May Have Voted in 2016 Election, Expert Says]," ''The Daily Signal''.</ref><ref>O'Reilly, Bill (November 29, 2016). [http://www.foxnews.com/transcript/2016/11/29/bill-oreilly-amazing-amount-confusion-over-illegal-aliens-voting/ Bill O'Reilly: Amazing amount of confusion over illegal aliens voting]. ''Fox News''. Retrieved November 2016.</ref><ref>Scarborough, Rowan (January 26, 2017). [http://m.washingtontimes.com/news/2017/jan/26/hillary-clinton-received-800000-votes-from-nonciti/ Trump argument bolstered: Clinton could have received 800,000 votes from noncitizens, study finds]. ''The Washington Times''. Retrieved January 27, 2017.</ref>), and Republican candidates received 49.13% of the nationwide total votes cast for House races in 2016 and won 55.4% of U.S. House seats.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://ballotpedia.org/United_States_House_of_Representatives_elections,_2016|title=United States House of Representatives elections, 2016|accessdate=February 8, 2017}}</ref> However, because the Presidential election is decided by the Electoral College and the House seats are elected by defined districts, Republicans won the White House as well as the majority of House seats.

==Policies and criticism==
The views of individual Democrats sometimes diverge from the party's official stance as expressed in its national [[party platform]], however unlike the Republican party, the Democratic National Committee has not allowed dissenting opinions to share the podium on matters such as abortion at National Conventions.<ref>[http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2005_03/005787.php] , http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2005_03/005787.php, March 6, 2005</ref> The Democratic party also adopts policy positions and platforms at the state, Congressional district and local levels.

===Economic policy===
[[Image:Unemployment.jpg|thumb|right|''Source: Bureau of Labor Statisitcs'' [http://astuteblogger.blogspot.com/2009/07/anti-stimulus-in-pictures-any-questions.html]]]
In the field of economic policy, Democrats tend to favor high progressive taxes, more regulation, less personal freedom and more government control and spending.

The Democratic Party has historically had ties to [[labor union|organized labor]].<ref>http://weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/013/913wopoz.asp Paying Dues - The Democrats settle up with their union bosses, [[Weekly Standard]], July 25, 2007</ref> However, the influence of organized labor has waned as the portion of the unionized workforce has dropped in the "gig economy" that is more service oriented.

The [[National Education Association]],<ref>[http://www.nea.org/index.html National Education Association homepage]</ref> the largest union of public school teachers, is a backbone of the party, supplying the largest number of delegates to its national conventions.

Democrats typically claim that they want to help low-income Americans and claim to want to accomplish this by increasing the tax burden on the wealthiest Americans. However now only half of Americans pay federal taxes, and the other half receive federal benefits.

Since passage of the Economic Recovery Act of 2009, [[unemployment]] increased from below 7% to slightly under 10% and then fell to 6.2%.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.nr0.htm|title=Employment Situation Summary|work=Bureau of Labor Statistics|date=August 1, 2014|accessdate=August 5, 2014}}</ref>

Many Democrats support a minimum wage that increases with the increases in the cost of living and currently advocate setting the minimum wage at $15.00 per hour. President Obama signed an executive order imposing this minimum wage on federal contractors, a meanigless gesture as few federal contracts and little money is handed out to unskilled workers. Congress did not adopted a proposed $10.10 wage for all interstate commerce.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/06/12/minimum-wage-federal-contractors_n_5489027.html|title=Obama Moves On Minimum Wage Without Congress|date=June 12, 2014|accessdate=August 5, 2014}}</ref> Currently, only 4.3% of all hourly wage workers receive the current minimum wage of $7.25.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bls.gov/cps/minwage2013.pdf|title=Characteristics of Minimum Wage Workers, 2013|work=Bureau of Labor Statistics|date=March 2014|accessdate=August 5, 2014}}</ref>

===Foreign and military policy===
According to its platform, the Democratic Party is alleged to have the objective of strengthening America. Democratic national leadership has shown itself lax on terrorism while it grew exponentially on President Obama's watch<ref>[http://www.news10.net/display_story.aspx?storyid=22045 "Democrats, ACLU Outraged Over Traveler Terrorism Screening Program"] C. Johnson, Associated Press</ref> and insufficiently patriotic.<ref>[http://edition.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0112/01/smn.19.html CNN Saturday Morning News] Transcript: December 1, 2001</ref> A poll conducted by [[Fox News]] released in October 2007 found that 1 in 5 Democrats – nearly 10 million voters – think the world will be better off if the [[United States]] were to lose the [[War in Iraq]].<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,299374,00.html Nearly 1 in 5 Democrats Say World Will Be Better Off if U.S. Loses War], FOX News Poll, October 04, 2007.</ref> The poll found this sentiment 3 to 4 times higher among Democrats than among moderate, centrist, and Republican voters.

In general, the Democratic Party has been pro-Israel and, in a reversal of roles, anti-Russia. In contrast, some critics claim that Russia interefered in the 2016 Presidential election and worked to undermine Hillary Clinton's campaign, promoted Donald J. Trump while President Obama did nothing to prevent it. The Democratic Party has favored free trade agreements, environmental regulation and so-called "trade impact assistance" or government handouts after trade agreements destroy private sector, taxpaying jobs. Many traditional Republicans have also favored free trade agreements, but President Elect Donald J. Trump has called for the re-negotiation of free trade agreements.

===Education===
An organization affiliated with the [[Democratic Leadership Council]] called the [[Progressive Policy Institute]] claims a long-standing opposition to school vouchers.<ref>21st Century Schools Project Bulletin: Special Edition [http://www.ppionline.org/ppi_ci.cfm?knlgAreaID=110&subsecID=900001&contentID=250630 ''Putting Vouchers in Perspective''], PPI E-newsletter 2 July 2002</ref> Jonathan Alter of ''Newsweek'' warned that opposition to vouchers might alienate some traditional Democratic voting blocs:
:"Can wealthy white liberals - many of whom send their kids to private school - really say to poor parents: 'We can have choices, but you must not?'...This is a glaring hypocrisy sitting at the heart of the liberal opposition to targeted vouchers… Right now, Democrats are in a highly compromised position on education."<ref>[http://www.edreform.com/index.cfm?fuseAction=newsLetter&sectionID=29&NLissueID=4&articleID=11&altCol=2 Center For Education Reform, Monthly Letter to Friends No. 75], Back to School 2002.</ref>
Democrats favor expanded taxpayer funding of higher education, particularly for scientific research, land-grant colleges, community colleges and historically black colleges.<ref name=ed/> President Obama established a White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/executive-order-historically-black-colleges-and-universities|title=Executive Order 13532 -- Historically Black Colleges and Universities|date=February 26, 2010|accessdate=November 2, 2012}}</ref> Democrats subsidized the interest rate out of the federal treasury for Stafford loan voters by cutting the rate to 3.4% and eliminated private banks as middlemen in federal student loans.<ref name=ed>{{cite web|url=http://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/education/higher-education|title=Higher Education|accessdate=November 2, 2012}}</ref>

===Environment vs Labor===
Two other important coalition groups also find themselves in direct conflict with each other within the Democratic party coalition--[[Environmentalist]]s and Labor Unions. While environmentalists support efforts like clean air and alternative fuels, for example, this creates tension with the workers of American automobile manufactures whose jobs are threatened by environmental policies such as increasing regulations and high costs. Such policies can lead to cutbacks and layoffs. Balancing these issues is difficult because some sacrifices of interests must be made by both sides.

===Health care===
Democratic leaders have endorsed various [[Democratic Health Care Plans]]; the question in 2009 was whether a new trillion dollar plan could pass in a time of economic crisis. Many Democrats advocate a [[socialist]] [[big government]] single-payer health insurance system and used the budget reconciliation act to ram through an unpopular plan that required individuals to purchase insurance with the threat of fines for non-compliance. A new entitlement and income transfer program was created which favored some of their core constituents. On March 21, 2010, [[ObamaCare]] was passed on a straight partyline vote, and President Obama signed it into law on March 23, 2010.

The party grossly overplayed its hand, mistaking its internal unity as a national consensus. And the Obamacare plan was promoted by mainstream media sources with thousands of fake news stories, blatant lies, distortions, and deceptions, even by President Obama himself promising Americans if they liked their insurance policy, they could keep it. Many Democrats argued that there may be some advantages to a universal health care system. Democrats generally regard [[universal health care]] coverage to be a priority because of the appeal to voters with nothing to contribute to their own care and are without any kind of [[health insurance]]. Others argue that the United States must compete with foreign countries where the public treasury covers all health care costs which supposedly gives foreign companies an advantage over U.S. products. Another argument is that prior to ObamaCare, uninsured people would fail to get preventative care and would go to hospital emergency rooms for treatment, resulting in higher health care costs and large subsidies paid by people with health insurance.

The employer mandate required employers with 50 or more employees to provide some sort of health insurance plan for their workers. The net result was job loss and little new job creation, as many existing small businesses were forced to pare down their workforce to 49 employees and other jobs were never created because of the added costs and burden.

===Voting Rights and Civil Rights===
Democrats have generally favored legislation that makes it more convenient to vote, including early voting and no-excuse absentee voting. Democrats have supported litigation to address redistricting that hinders minorities from electing officials. Democrats have favored extension of the [[Voting Rights Act]].

===Homosexual "Rights"===
White Democratic leaders — but not blacks or Latinos — consistently favor measures such as the establishment of [[same-sex civil union]]s or "marriage". On May 9, 2012, [[Barack Obama|President Obama]] announced that he supports same-sex "marriage".<ref name="ABC News">{{cite web|url=http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/obama-sex-marriage-legal-16312904|title=Obama Affirms Support for Same-Sex Marriage|date=May 9, 2012|work=ABC News}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2012/05/09/politics/obama-same-sex-marriage/index.html|title=Obama announces he supports same-sex marriage|last=Gast|first=Phil|date=May 9, 2012|publisher=CNN|accessdate=November 1, 2012}}</ref>

===Abortion===
'''''In 2016, the Democrats adopted one of the most extreme, pro-abortion platforms in its history, supporting unrestricted abortion, supporting the repeal of every single law in existence that limits abortion including those that formerly received bipartisian support, and forcing taxpayers to fund murder.<ref>Bilger, Micaiah (June 28, 2016). [http://www.lifenews.com/2016/06/28/democratic-party-platform-calls-for-forcing-americans-to-pay-for-abortions/ Democratic Party Platform Calls for Forcing Americans to Pay for Abortions]. ''LifeNews.com''. Retrieved December 26, 2016.</ref>''''' Additionally, the Democrat presidential nominee [[Hillary Clinton]] was one of the strongest supporters of abortion in U.S. history.<ref>Ertelt, Steven (October 19, 2016). [http://www.lifenews.com/2016/10/19/hillary-clinton-defends-killing-babies-in-partial-birth-abortions-government-shouldnt-step-in/ Hillary Clinton Defends Killing Babies in Partial-Birth Abortions: “Government Shouldn’t Step In”]. ''LifeNews.com''. Retrieved December 26, 2016.</ref>

===Other Policies===
Democrats frequently support the [[minimum wage]], workplace protections, the legal "right" to [[abortion|murder unborn human beings]], [[gun control]], the [[homosexual agenda]], and the [[separation of church and state]].

==Religion==
In the United States, there is some correlation between religious and political affiliation, though people of all faiths and denominations can be found among the supporters of each of the main parties.

Historically, [[Roman Catholic Church|Catholic]] voters have had a tendency to identify with the Democratic Party; in recent decades there has been little difference. However, Catholic politicians are mostly Democrats, including Speaker of the House [[Nancy Pelosi]]. However, several general ideals of the Democratic Party's platform — most notably, the party's overall support for the legality of [[abortion]] and many methods of [[contraception]] — are contrary to the position of the [[Catholic Church]]. In 2012, there was a controversy regarding a national organization of religious women ("nuns") speaking out against House Republican budget proposals. This resulted in a national publicity tour and protests called "Nuns on the Bus".

With regard to Protestants, members of [[Evangelical]] churches in recent years have voted about 70-80% Republican. However, the large majority of Democratic Party members are Protestants. One unusual feature of the Democratic Party, however, is that it draws substantial support both from committed African-American Protestants (most of whom are Baptists) and from secular and atheist voters. The strong opposition to [[homosexuality]] found among many Black Protestants contrasts strikingly with the support frequently shown by other Democrats for the [[homosexual agenda]]. One reason for this contrast could be the Democrats' strong support for minority rights.

Democrats also generally believe that organized religion should be separate from public life, and as such are typically supported by the [[ACLU]]. For example, in 1999 the Congress took up a bill to protect the display of the [[Ten Commandments]]. In the House of Representatives, over 3/4ths of the Democratic party members voted to remove the display.<ref>http://www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/stories/1999/06/18/gun.rollcall/ten.commandments.html</ref> The measure did not pass the Congress, and as a result when a member of the Alabama Supreme Court, [[Roy Moore]], posted a [[Ten Commandments]] display in his courthouse, the ACLU was able to have the display removed.

=== Religious affiliation and voting for Barack Obama ===

Pew Forum reports about the religious affiliation of voters who voted for Barack Obama in 2012:
{{Cquote|About seven-in-ten religiously unaffiliated voters (70%) and Jews (69%) voted for Obama in 2012. A similar share of Jews in our survey (64%) say they are Democrats, while all three subsets of religious “[[nones]]” ([[Atheism|atheists]], [[Agnosticism|agnostics]] and those who say their religion is “nothing in particular”) lean in that direction as well.<ref>[http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/02/23/u-s-religious-groups-and-their-political-leanings/ U.S. religious groups and their political leanings]</ref>}}

==History==
[[File:Dem-leaders.jpg|thumb|Clockwise from far left: presidents Carter, Kennedy, Clinton, Wilson, Johnson, Truman, Jackson, Roosevelt]]
===First Party System===
Democrats claim that [[Thomas Jefferson]] founded their party in 1792 at the start of the [[First Party System]]. The [[Republicans (Jeffersonian)|Jeffersonian Republicans]] was a political party established under the leadership of Jefferson and [[James Madison]]. At the time, it was generally called the Republicans, but it had no relationship to today's Republican Party, founded in 1854. The 1816 election was the last occasion when the Federalist Party nominated a presidential candidate. In the 1820s, the Jeffersonian Republicans split into several fractions. [[Andrew Jackson]] emerged as the candidate of one of these groups and was elected president in 1828.

===Origins===
Most historians regard Jackson's 1832 campaign organization as the beginning of today's Democratic Party. The Democratic Party itself traces its origin to Jefferson's Republicans.<ref>[[World Book]]</ref> The leadership of the Jeffersonian Republicans, including [[John Quincy Adams]] and [[Henry Clay]], created the [[National Republican Party]]. Adams supporters called themselves National Republicans, antecedents of the Whig and later the Republican parties.<ref name="presidents">William DeGregorio, ''The Complete Book of U.S. Presidents'', Gramercy 1997</ref>

The modern Democratic party was formed during 1828-34, under the national leadership of Jackson and Van Buren, with organizations in all the states comprised of local political leaders. This became the era of [[Jacksonian Democracy]]. The Jacksonians resembled the [[Jeffersonian Democracy|Jeffersonians]] especially in terms of anti-elite rhetoric of opposition to "aristocracy" (that is, wealthy old families), distrust of banks (and paper money), and faith in "the people." By his extensive use of federal [[Spoils system|patronage]], President Jackson removed old office-holders to make way for party loyalists. With the emergence of the Whig Party, the nation now had a new party system, the [[Second Party System]], which lasted until 1854.

The party held its first national convention in 1832 to choose a new running mate for Jackson; it nominated Martin Van Buren for vice president and endorsed the reelection of Jackson. Jackson easily defeated Clay in 1832. In the political realignment of 1828-32, some of Jackson's supporters from the election of 1828, especially businessmen and bankers, switched to the opposition Whig Party as Jackson crusaded against the [[Second Bank of the United States]]. The name "Democratic Party" became common by the mid-1830s.

=== Jacksonian Democracy: 1832-1854 ===
[[image:donk1837.jpg|thumb|1837 cartoon shows Democratic Party as donkey]]
The new party dominated the [[Second Party System]] (as political scientists call it; historians call it "Jacksonian Democracy", 1832-54. After 1832, the Democratic Party drew support from a cross section of the country; every group was represented. However the vast majority of rich merchants, bankers and plantation owners were Whigs, as were most evangelical Protestants. The party was strongest among traditionalistic farmers, frontiersmen, unskilled workers, Irish Catholics, and local or state political leaders. It was weakest in [[New England]], where industrialization turned most factory workers and white collar workers into Whigs, but was dominant in all other regions. The key issues it promoted were opposition to elites and aristocrats, popular democracy (in terms of voting rights and access to government patronage jobs) and opposition to the [[Bank of the United States]] (Jackson vetoed its charter renewal in 1832). The policies were known as [[Jacksonian Democracy]]. [[Image:Jackson1832.jpg|thumb|300px|left]]

Banking and tariffs were the central domestic policy issues from 1828 to 1852. The Democrats favored the [[Mexican-American War]]; Whigs opposed it. Democrats attracted Catholic Irish and German immigrants and denounced anti-immigrant nativism. Both the Democrats and Whigs were divided on the issue of slavery.

In the 1830s the [[Loco-Focos]] in New York City were radically democratic, anti-monopoly, and proponents of [[laissez-faire]]. Their chief spokesman was writer [[William Leggett]]. At this time labor unions were few; some were loosely affiliated with the party.

The economy went sour in the late 1830s with Van Buren getting the blame; he lost reelection as president in 1840 to the Whig [[William Henry Harrison]]. The Democrats gained the White House back in 1844 with [[James K. Polk]]. He had a successful term, then retired. The Democratic National Committee was created in 1848 at the convention that nominated General [[Lewis Cass]], who lost to General [[Zachary Taylor]] of the Whigs. In state after state the Democrats gained small but permanent advantages over the Whigs, until by 1852 the Whig Party was fatally weakened by divisions regarding the issue of slavery and they soon vanished.

The Democratic party dominated the North from the 1840s to 1854. Northern Democrats opposed banks, criticized corporate practices, and preached the ideals of a free society. They called for rapid territorial expansion of the United States, saying that in territorial expansion lay a means for thwarting the pretensions of the [[Slave Power]].

[[Franklin Pierce]] of New Hampshire was elected president in 1852, followed by [[James Buchanan]] of Pennsylvania in 1856. They proved poor presidents who lost control of the slavery issue, and the party, as the nation broke apart and fought the [[American Civil War]].

===Third Party System: Civil War, Gilded Age: 1854-1896===
During the [[Third Party System]] (1854-1896) the Democrats (still split in two due to the issue over slavery) became the minority in the face of the newly formed Republican Party (formed by former Whigs and abolitionists), which controlled nearly all northern states by 1860, bringing a solid majority in the Electoral College. A powerful Republican issue was the allegation that northern Democrats, including "Doughfaces" like Pierce and Buchanan, and advocates of popular sovereignty like [[Stephen A. Douglas]] and [[Lewis Cass]], were accomplices to the [[Slave Power]]. The Republicans meant by Slave Power the conspiracy of slaveholders to seize control of the federal government and block the progress of liberty.

[[Image:DEM1860.JPG|thumb|left|To vote for Douglas in Virginia, a man had to deposit the ticket in the official ballot box.]]
In 1860 the Democrats were unable to stop the election of Republican [[Abraham Lincoln]], even as they feared his election would lead to civil war. The party split in two due to the issue of slavery. The northern wing nominated Douglas, and the southern wing nominated Vice President [[John C. Breckinridge]]. Douglas campaigned across the country and came in second in the popular vote, but carried only Missouri. Breckinridge carried 11 slave states.

The Republican Party was beginning a 50-year era of dominance (1858-1910). During the war, Northern Democrats divided into two factions, [[War Democrats]], who supported the military policies of President Lincoln, and [[Copperheads]], who strongly opposed them. Historian Kenneth Stampp has captured the Copperhead spirit in his depiction of Democratic Congressman [[Daniel W. Voorhees]] of Indiana:
<blockquote>There was an earthy quality in Voorhees, "the tall sycamore of the Wabash." On the stump his hot temper, passionate partisanship, and stirring eloquence made an irresistible appeal to the western Democracy. His bitter cries against protective tariffs and national banks, his intense race prejudice, his suspicion of the eastern Yankee, his devotion to personal liberty, his defense of the Constitution and state rights faithfully reflected the views of his constituents. Like other Jacksonian agrarians he resented the political and economic revolution then in progress. Voorhees idealized a way of life which he thought was being destroyed by the current rulers of his country. His bold protests against these dangerous trends made him the idol of the Democracy of the Wabash Valley.<ref>Stampp, 211.</ref></blockquote>

The Democrats lost consecutive presidential elections from 1860 through 1880 (but 1876 was in dispute); 1884 was their next victory. The Democrats were weakened by their record of opposition to the Civil War but nevertheless benefited from white Southerners' resentment of Reconstruction and consequent hostility to the Republican Party. The [[Redeemers]] gave the Democrats control of every Southern state; the disenfranchisement of black voters in most of the South took place 1890-1900. From 1880 to 1960 the "[[Solid South]]" voted Democratic in all presidential elections (except 1928). After 1900 the key election in southern states was the Democratic primary; victory in the that primary was "tantamount to election" because the GOP was so weak.

Though Republicans continued to control the White House until 1912 (except 1884 and 1892), the Democrats remained competitive in the states, especially in the mid-Atlantic and lower Midwest, and controlled the House of Representatives for most of that period. In the election of 1884, [[Grover Cleveland]], the conservative Democratic Governor of New York, won the presidency, a feat he repeated in 1892, having lost in the election of 1888.

[[Image:1893cleveland-typewriter.jpg|thumb|Typewriters were new in 1893 and this Gillam cartoon from ''Puck'' shows that Cleveland can't get the Democratic "machine" to work as the keys (key politicians) won't respond to his efforts.]]

Cleveland was the leader of the [[Bourbon Democrats]], the conservative wing of the party. They represented business interests, supported banking and railroad goals, promoted capitalism, opposed imperialism and U.S. verseas expansion, opposed the annexation of [[Hawaii]], fought for the [[gold standard]], and opposed [[Bimetallism]]. They strongly supported reform movements such as [[Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act|Civil Service Reform]] and opposed corruption of city bosses, leading the fight against the [[Tweed Ring]]. The leading Bourbons included [[Samuel J. Tilden]], [[David Bennett Hill]] and [[William C. Whitney]] of New York, [[Arthur Pue Gorman]] of Maryland, [[Thomas F. Bayard]] of Delaware, [[William L. Wilson]] of West Virginia, [[John Griffin Carlisle]] of Kentucky, [[William F. Vilas]] of Wisconsin, [[J. Sterling Morton]] of Nebraska, [[John M. Palmer]] of Illinois, [[Horace Boies]] of Iowa, [[L.Q.C. Lamar]] of Mississippi, and railroad builder [[James J. Hill]] of Minnesota. A prominent intellectual was [[Woodrow Wilson]]. The Bourbons were in power when the [[Panic of 1893]] hit; it was a deep depression and they took the blame. A fierce struggle inside the party ensued, with catastrophic losses for both the Bourbon and agrarian factions in 1894, leading to the showdown in 1896.
[[Image:Dead-dem1880.jpg|thumb|550px|In 1880 when General Hancock (right) became the presidential nominee of the Democrats, Republican cartoonists showed the Democratic party history as a horror chamber featuring atrocities in the Civil War era; the donkey" shows the party as a coalition of the rear end of the South joined to the rear end of the North]]

====Ethnocultural voting: pietistic Republicans versus liturgical Democrats====
Religious lines were sharply drawn.<ref>Kleppner (1979).</ref> Methodists, Congregationalists, Presbyterians, Scandinavian Lutherans and other pietists and evangelicals in the North were tightly linked to the Republican Party. In sharp contrast, liturgical groups, especially the Catholics, Episcopalians, and German Lutherans, looked to the Democratic Party for protection from pietistic moralism, especially prohibition. Both parties cut across the class structure, with the Democrats more bottom-heavy.

Cultural issues, especially prohibition and foreign language schools became important because of the sharp religious divisions in the electorate. In the North, about 50% of the voters were pietistic or evangelical Protestants who believed the government should be used to reduce social sins, such as drinking. Liturgical churches (Roman Catholics, German Lutherans, Episcopalians) comprised over a quarter of the vote and wanted the government to stay out of the morality business. Prohibition debates and referenda heated up politics in most states over a period of decade, as national prohibition was finally passed in 1918 (and repealed in 1933), serving as a major issue in the North between the wet Democracy and the dry GOP.<ref>In the South the Democrats were mostly on the dry side. Kleppner (1979).</ref>

===The Bryan Movement===
[[Image:Mark Hanna 1896 election.jpg|thumb|right|Democratic attack ad in 1896 against GOP National Chairman [[Mark Hanna]]; cartoon by Davenport depicts Hanna as a slave driver; from Hearst's ''New York Journal'']]
[[Grover Cleveland]] led the conservative, pro-business [[Bourbon Democrat]]s but as the [[Panic of 1893|depression of 1893]] deepened his enemies multiplied. The Panic of 1893 started in February 1893, a full month before Cleveland became president. Convinced that the [[Sherman Silver Purchase Act]], passed under the administration of [[Benjamin Harrison]], was largely responsible for the alarming drain on federal gold, President Cleveland called Congress into special session to urge its repeal. Congress consented, but only after bitter debate that divided the Democratic party into two hostile camps-the eastern "goldbugs" and the silver wing of the West and South that was to propel young [[William Jennings Bryan]] to the fore in 1896.<ref name="presidents" /> At the 1896 convention the silverite-agrarian faction repudiated the president, and nominated the crusading orator [[William Jennings Bryan]] on a platform of inflation through "free" silver. The idea was that minting huge numbers of silver dollars would flood the economy with cash and end the depression. Eastern Democrats, unable to accept the party's free-silver platform and unwilling to support McKinley for his tariff views, nominated their own candidate, John M. Palmer of Illinois and called themselves the National, or Gold, Democrats.<ref name="presidents" /> The [[Gold Democrats]] attracted politicians and intellectuals (including [[Woodrow Wilson]] and [[Frederick Jackson Turner]]) who refused to vote Republican.

Bryan, an overnight sensation because of his phenomenal "Cross of Gold" speech, crusaded against the gold standard. Crisscrossing the Midwest and East by special train, he gave over 500 speeches to audiences in the millions. In St. Louis he gave 36 speeches to workingmen's audiences all over the city, all in one day. Most Democratic newspapers were hostile (except [[William Randolph Hearst]]'s ''New York Journal'') but Bryan seized control of the media by making the news every day, as he hurled thunderbolts against Eastern monied interests. The rural folk in South and Midwest were ecstatic, showing an enthusiasm never before seen. Ethnic Democrats, especially Germans, however, were alarmed and frightened by Bryan. The middle classes, businessmen, newspaper editors, factory workers, railroad workers, and prosperous farmers generally rejected Bryan's crusade. Bryan was overwhelmed by [[William McKinley]] in the most exciting race in national history.<ref>Refuting Bryan's charges, historians have discovered there was little coercion of workers.</ref> McKinley promised a return to prosperity based on the gold standard, support for industry, railroads and banks, and pluralism that would enable every group to move ahead. Bryan did however, win the hearts and minds of a majority of Democrats. The election of 1896 was a political realignment. The victory of the Republican Party marked the start of the "Progressive Era," from 1896 to 1932, in which the GOP usually was dominant.

===Fourth Party System: Bryan, Wilson, Progressivism: 1896-1932 ===
The [[Fourth Party System]] began with the 1896 election, a realignment during which the GOP controlled the presidency for 28 of 36 years. The GOP dominated most of the Northeast and Midwest, and half the West. Bryan, with a base in the South and Plains states, was strong enough to get the nomination in 1900 (losing to McKinley) and 1908 (losing to Taft). [[Theodore Roosevelt]] dominated the first decade of the century—and to the annoyance of Democrats "stole" the trust issue by crusading against trusts.

[[Image:Steal~trust.JPG|thumb|[[Theodore Roosevelt]] steals the anti-trust issue from the Democrats, 1904]]

Anti-Bryan conservatives controlled the convention in 1904, but they faced a [[Theodore Roosevelt]] landslide. Bryan dropped his free silver and anti-imperialism rhetoric and supported mainstream progressive issues, such as the income tax, anti-trust, and direct election of Senators. He backed Woodrow Wilson in 1912, was rewarded with the State Department, then resigned in protest against Wilson's non-pacifistic policies in 1916. Northern Democrats were progressive on most issues, but generally opposed prohibition, were lukewarm regarding woman's suffrage, and were reluctant to undercut the "boss system" in the big cities.

Taking advantage of a deep split in the GOP, the Democrats took control of the House in 1910, and elected the intellectual reformer Woodrow Wilson in 1912 and 1916. Wilson successfully led Congress to a series of Progressive laws, including a reduced tariff, stronger antitrust laws, the [[Federal Reserve System]], hours-and-pay benefits for railroad workers, and outlawing of child labor (which was reversed by the Supreme Court). Furthermore, constitutional amendments for prohibition and woman suffrage were passed in his second term. In effect, Wilson laid to rest the issues of tariffs, money and antitrust that had dominated politics for 40 years.

Wilson ordered [[Jim Crow]] segregation in the federal government offices in Washington DC, wiping out 50 years of social progress for African-Americans. No longer could blacks and whites work together in government offices, eat in the same cafeterias, our use the same bathrooms. The Wilson administration went a step further. Through the Treasury Department's Office of the Architect, the bureau charged with construction and maintenance of federal buildings, federal buildings throughout the nation were ordered to furnish segregated bathrooms, even in Northern states were practices as such were virtually unknown.<ref>''American Nightmare: The History of Jim Crow'', Jerrold M. Packard, St. Martin's Press, 2003, pp. 124-125</ref>

Wilson led the U.S. to victory in the World War, and turned his attention to foreign affairs. He wrote parts of the [[Versailles Treaty]], especially the new [[League of Nations]]. But in 1919 Wilson's political skills faltered, and suddenly everything turned sour. The Senate rejected Versailles and the League, a nationwide wave of strikes and violence caused unrest, and Wilson's health collapsed. The GOP came roaring back in a landslide in 1920, as [[Warren G. Harding]] defeated a Democratic ticket memorable for having [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] as the vice presidential nominee.

[[Image:D-Edge-Congress.JPG|thumb|Before 1932 Republicans usually controlled Congress; after 1932 the Democrats usually were in control]]

At the 1924 Democratic National Convention, the big fight was over a resolution denouncing by name the [[Ku Klux Klan]]; it was pushed by New York governor [[Al Smith]] and Alabama Senator [[Oscar W. Underwood]] in order to embarrass the front-runner, [[William McAdoo]] of California. After furious debate, the resolution failed by just a single vote. The KKK faded away soon after, but the deep split in the party over cultural issues, especially Prohibition, facilitated Republican landslides in 1920, 1924 and 1928. However [[Al Smith]] did build a strong Catholic base in the big cities in 1928, and [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]]'s election as Governor of New York that year brought a new leader to center stage.

=== Fifth Party System: The New Deal ===
[[Image:509px-FDR in 1933.jpg|thumb|left|200px|President [[Franklin Delano Roosevelt]] (1933-1945)]]
The [[Wall Street Crash 1929|stock market crash of 1929]] and the ensuing [[Great Depression]] set the stage for a more progressive government and [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] won a [[landslide victory]] in the [[U.S. presidential election, 1932|election of 1932]], campaigning on a platform of "Relief, Recovery, and Reform." This came to be termed "[[New Deal|The New Deal]]" after a phrase in his acceptance speech. The Democrats also swept to large majorities in both houses of Congress, and among state Governors. Roosevelt altered the nature of the Party, away from laissez-faire capitalism, and towards an ideology of economic regulation and insurance against hardship. Conservative Democrats were outraged; led by [[Al Smith]] they formed the [[American Liberty League]] in 1934 and counterattacked. They failed and either retired from politics or joined the GOP. A few of them, such as [[Dean Acheson]] found their way back to the Democratic Party.

After making gains in Congress in 1934 Roosevelt moved left and embarked on an ambitious legislative program called "The Second New Deal." It was characterized by building up labor unions, nationalizing welfare by the [[WPA]] (which 2 million employed unemployed men), setting up [[Social Security]] and raising taxes on business profits.<ref>In general the New Deal, 1933-40, did not raise taxes, except for the Social Security tax that went into effect in 1937.</ref>

Roosevelt's [[New Deal]] programs focused on job creation through public works projects as well as Social Security. In the name of "reform" it imposed strong regulations on the banking and financial system, transportation, communications, stock markets and labor-management relations.

Roosevelt successfully built up the "[[New Deal Coalition]]", a powerful coalition of voters and interest groups that supported liberalism. Key components included big city machines and labor unions. Key voter groups included traditional Democrats, white Southerners, Catholics, Jews, and liberals, as well as many blacks. This united voter base allowed Democrats to be elected to Congress and the presidency for much of the next 30 years.

After a sweeping landslide reelection in 1936—losing only Maine and Vermont—Roosevelt stunned the nation, and his party, by calling for legislation to enlarge the Supreme Court by five new members. A firestorm of opposition erupted, led by his own vice president [[John Nance Garner]]. Roosevelt was defeated by an alliance of Republicans and conservative Democrats, who formed a [[Conservative coalition]] that managed to block nearly all liberal legislation. (Only a minimum wage law got through.) Angry with the conservative wing of his own party, Roosevelt tried to destroy it. In 1938, he actively campaigned against five incumbent conservative Democratic senators; all five senators won re-election. In 1940, Roosevelt broke with tradition and sought a third term as President.

Under FDR, the Democratic Party became identified closely with modern liberalism, which included the promotion of social welfare, unions and regulation of the economy. Civil rights were not on the party agenda at this time. FDR slways opposed the federal anti-lynching law a courted racist Southern Democrats.

Mayor Fiorello La Guardia of New York, a Republican [[New Deal]]er who supported Roosevelt, made the first efforts to court African-Americans, who were traditional Lincoln Republicans, into the New Deal coalition. Roosevelt provided federal funds to La Guardia and withheld support from his opponents. La Guardia decreed that African-Americans were not to be arrested for anything, and that police patrolling [[Harlem]] could not carry night sticks. Not until the presidential election of 1960 when John Kennedy intervened for the release of Martin Luther King, who was jailed two weeks before the election in Atlanta following a non-violent protest, did the majority of Blacks begin voting Democratic ''en bloc''. The transition was solidified four years later when the Republican presidential nominee, Barry Goldwater, who defied Republican Congressional leadership and voted with Southern Democrat segregationists to oppose the 1964 Civil Rights Act.

===Truman to Kennedy: 1945-1963===
Harry Truman took over unexpectedly in 1945, and the rifts inside the party that Roosevelt had papered over began to emerge. Former Vice President [[Henry A. Wallace]] denounced Truman as a war-monger for his anti-Soviet programs, the [[Truman Doctrine]], [[Marshall Plan]], and [[NATO]]. By cooperating with internationalist Republicans, Truman succeeded in defeating isolationists on the right and pro-Soviets on the left to establish a [[Cold War]] program that lasted until the fall of Communism in 1991. Wallace supporters and fellow travelers of the far left were pushed out of the party and the CIO in 1946-48 by young anti-Communists like [[Hubert Humphrey]], [[Walter Reuther]], and [[Arthur Schlesinger, Jr.]]. [[Hollywood]] emerged in the 1940s as an importance new base in the party, led by movie-star politicians such as [[Ronald Reagan]], who at this point in time strongly supported Roosevelt and Truman.<ref>Reagan became a conservative around 1960, saying the Democratic party had left him.</ref>

On the right the Republicans blasted Truman’s domestic policies. "Had Enough?" was the winning slogan as Republicans recaptured Congress in 1946. Many party leaders were ready to dump Truman, but they lacked an alternative. Truman counterattacked, pushing [[J. Strom Thurmond]] and his [[Dixiecrats]] out, and taking advantage of the splits inside the GOP. He was reelected in a stunning surprise. However all of Truman’s Fair Deal proposals, such as universal health care were defeated by the [[Conservative Coalition]] in Congress. His seizure of the steel industry was reversed by the Supreme Court.

In foreign policy, Europe was safe but troubles mounted in Asia. China fell to the Communists in 1949. Truman entered the [[Korean War]] without formal Congressional approval—the last time a president would ever do so. When the war turned to a stalemate in 1951 he fired General [[Douglas MacArthur]], a hero to conservatives. Republicans blasted Truman's failure to stop Communist gains in Asia. A series of petty scandals among friends and buddies of Truman further tarnished his image, allowing [[Dwight Eisenhower]] and the Republicans in 1952 to crusade against "Korea, Communism and Corruption." Truman dropped out of the presidential race early in 1952, leaving no obvious successor. The convention nominated [[Adlai Stevenson]] in 1952 and 1956, only to see him overwhelmed by two Eisenhower landslides.

[[Image:1952-32.jpg|thumb|right|Stevenson and labor unions warn against a return of the Republican policies of Herbert Hoover in 1952 campaign poster]]

In Congress the powerful duo of House Speaker [[Sam Rayburn]] and Senate Majority leader [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] held the party together, often by compromising with Eisenhower. In 1958 the party made dramatic gains in the midterms and seemed to have a permanent lock on Congress. Indeed, Democrats had majorities in the House every election from 1930 to 1992 (except 1946 and 1952). Most southern Congressmen were conservative Democrats, however, and they usually worked with conservative Republicans. The result was a [[Conservative Coalition]] that blocked practically all liberal domestic legislation from 1937 to the 1970s, except for a brief spell 1964-65, when Johnson neutralized its power.

The nomination of [[John F. Kennedy]] in 1960 energized the Catholic population, which jammed motorcades and turned out in heavy numbers (over 80% voted for Kennedy), while also causing a backlash among white Protestants (over 70% of whom voted for Republican candidate [[Richard Nixon]]. Reaching beyond the traditional Irish, German, Italian and Polish Catholic ethnics, Viva Kennedy set out to mobilize the previously passive Latino vote, and it perhaps provided the margin of victory for Kennedy in Texas and New Mexico. Kennedy's victory reinvigorated the party. His youth, vigor and intelligence caught the popular imagination. In foreign policy he was strongly anti-Communist, and promptly launched an invasion of casto's Cuba; it failed badly. A few new programs like the Peace Corps harnessed idealism. In terms of legislation, Kennedy was stalemated by the [[Conservative Coalition]], and anyway his proposals were all cautious and incremental. In three years he was unable to pass any significant new legislation.

Kennedy's election did mark the coming of age of the Catholic component of the New Deal Coalition. After 1964 middle class Catholics started voting Republicans in the same proportion as their Protestant neighbors. Except for the Chicago of [[Richard J. Daley]], the last of the Democratic machines faded away. His involvement in Vietnam proved momentous, for his successor Lyndon Johnson decided to stay, and double the investment, and double the bet again and again until over 500,000 American soldiers were fighting in that small country.

===Civil Rights, Riots, War and collapse of the New Deal Coalition===
[[Image:LBJ-64.jpg|left|thumb|President Lyndon Johnson ran for reelection in the shadow of Kennedy]]

The New Deal Coalition began to fracture as union and religious leaders demanded support for [[civil rights]], upsetting the party's traditional base of conservative Southern Democrats. After Harry Truman's platform showed support for civil rights and anti-segregation policies during the 1948 Democratic National Convention, many Southern Democratic delegates decided to split from the Party and formed the "[[Dixiecrats]]," led by [[South Carolina]] governor [[Strom Thurmond]] (who, as a Senator, would later join the Republican Party). Over the next few years, many conservative Democrats in the "[[Solid South]]" drifted away from the party. By 1940 most northern Blacks had shifted to the Democratic Party due to its New Deal relief programs and support for civil rights.

The party's dramatic reversal on civil rights issues culminated when Democratic President [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] signed into law the [[Civil Rights Act of 1964]]. The new laws ended segregation and also ended the main argument Democrats had used to block Republican gains in the South (that is, only the Democrats could protect segregation). The South became competitive in presidential politics in the 1970s and 1980s, giving strong support to Republican Ronald Reagan and rejecting the liberal northern candidates. The Democrats responded by nominating Southerners (Carter in 1976 and 1980, Clinton in 1992 and 1996, Gore in 2000). Few southern states were won by Democratic presidential candidates from the North (Humphrey in 1968, McGovern in 1972, Mondale in 1984, Dukakis in 1988, Kerry in 2004). At the state and local level the Republicans made slow, steady gains, especially among upscale middle class whites and migrants from the North. By the 1990s the GOP was competitive at the state and local level throughout the South. The Democrats made gains in the west, converting California to a Democratic stronghold and gaining in fast-growing Arizona and Nevada. The Northeast became more and more a Democratic enclave, especially after 2006 when numerous Republican moderates were defeated for reelection. The Midwest remained a battleground. The Democrats made strong gains in Illinois, but slipped a little in Minnesota.
[[Image:Demfight1968.jpg|thumb|290px|By 1968 Democrats were bitterly fighting over Vietnam and the failures of the Great Society]]

===1968 to 1999===
The Democratic party split five ways in 1968 and became a minority party in presidential elections for decades; after 1964 they won a national majority of the popular presidential vote only in 2008. However, the Democrats won a plurality of the popular vote in 1976, 1992, 1996 and 2000.

In 1972, the Democrats nominated Sen. [[George McGovern]] (SD) as the presidential candidate on a platform which advocated, among other things, U.S. withdrawal from Vietnam and a guaranteed minimum income for all Americans. McGovern's forces at the national convention ousted Mayor [[Richard J. Daley]] and the entire Chicago delegation, replacing them with insurgents led by [[Jesse Jackson]]. After it became know that McGovern's running mate, [[Thomas Eagleton]], had received electric shock therapy, McGovern said he supported Eagleton "1000%" but he was soon forced to drop him and find a new running mate. With his campaign stalled for several weeks McGovern finally selected [[Sargent Shriver]], a Kennedy-in-law who was close to Mayor Daley. On July 14, 1972, McGovern appointed his campaign manager, Jean Westwood as the first woman chair of the Democratic National Committee. McGovern was defeated in a landslide by incumbent [[Richard Nixon]], winning only Massachusetts and Washington, D.C. The [[Watergate affair]] of 1973-74 made corruption a central issue, especially after [[Gerald Ford]] pardoned Nixon in September 1974. The Democrats made major gains in the 1974 off-year elections.

[[Image:Carter.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Jimmy Carter was elected in 1976 and defeated in 1980.]]
In 1976, mistrust of the administration, complicated by a combination of economic recession and inflation, sometimes called ''[[stagflation]]'', led to Ford's narrow defeat in 1976 by [[Jimmy Carter]], a former governor of Georgia.

Carter represented the total outsider, who promised honesty in government. He had served as a naval officer, a farmer, a state senator, and a one-term governor. His only experience with federal politics was when he chaired the Democratic National Committee's congressional and gubernatorial elections in 1974. Some of Carter's major accomplishments consisted of the creation of a national energy policy and the consolidation of governmental agencies, resulting in two new cabinet departments, the [[United States Department of Energy]] and the [[United States Department of Education]]. Carter also successfully deregulated the trucking, airline, rail, finance, communications, and oil industries, bolstered the [[social security]] system, and appointed record numbers of women and minorities to significant government and judicial posts. He also enacted strong legislation on environmental protection, through the expansion of the [[National Park Service]] in [[Alaska]], adding 103 million acres of park land. In foreign affairs, Carter's accomplishments consisted of the [[Camp David Accords]], the [[Panama Canal Treaties]], the creation of full diplomatic relations with the [[People's Republic of China]], and the negotiation of the [[SALT II]] Treaty. In addition, he championed human rights throughout the world and used human rights as the center of his administration's foreign policy.

Even with all of these successes, Carter failed to implement a national health plan or to reform the tax system, as he had promised in his campaign. Inflation was also on the rise. Abroad, the Iranians held 52 Americans hostage for 444 days, and Carter's diplomatic and military rescue attempts failed. The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan later that year weakened the perception Americans had of Carter. Even though he had already been defeated for re-election, Carter fortunately was able to negotiate the release of every American hostage. They were lifted out of Iran minutes after Reagan was inaugurated and Carter served as Reagan's emissary to greet them when they arrived in Germany. In 1980, Carter defeated liberal champion [[Edward Kennedy]] to gain renomination, but lost to conservative [[Ronald Reagan]] by a landslide. The Democrats lost 12 Senate seats, and for the first time since 1954, the Republicans controlled the Senate. The House, however, remained in Democratic hands.

====1980s: Battling Reaganism====
Instrumental in the election of Republican [[Ronald Reagan]] in 1980, were Democrats who supported many conservative policies. Among legislators, one of the most prominent of these consevative Democrats was Georgia congressman and second chairman of the [[John Birch Society]], [[Larry McDonald]], who was a passenger on [[Korean Airlines Flight 007]] shot down by the Soviets near [[Moneron Island]] on September 1, 1983. The "Reagan Democrats" were Democrats before the Reagan years, and afterward, but they voted for Ronald Reagan in 1980 and 1984 (and for [[George H. W. Bush]] in 1988), producing their landslide victories. They were mostly white ethnics in the Northeast who were attracted to Reagan's social conservatism on issues such as abortion, and to his strong foreign policy. They did not continue to vote Republican in 1992 or 1996, so the term fell into disuse except as a reference to the 1980s. The term is not used to describe southern whites who became permanent Republicans in presidential elections. Stanley Greenberg, a Democratic pollster analyzed white ethnic voters, largely unionized auto workers, in suburban Macomb County, Michigan, just north of Detroit. The county voted 63 percent for Kennedy in 1960 and 66 percent for Reagan in 1984. He concluded that Reagan Democrats no longer saw Democrats as champions of their middle class aspirations, but instead saw it as being a party working primarily for the benefit of others, especially African Americans and the very poor. Bill Clinton targeted the Reagan Democrats with considerable success in 1992 and 1996.

[[Image:Liberal1984.jpg|thumb]] The failure to hold the Reagan Democrats and the white South led to the final collapse of the [[New Deal coalition]]. Reagan carried 49 states against former Vice President and Minnesota Senator [[Walter Mondale]], a New Deal stalwart, in 1984. Massachusetts Governor [[Michael Dukakis]], running not as a New Dealer but as an efficiency expert in public administration, lost by a landslide in 1988 to Vice President [[George H. W. Bush]], who had pledged "no new taxes."

In response to these landslide defeats, the [[Democratic Leadership Council]] was created. It worked to move the Party rightwards to the ideological center in order to recover some of the fundraising that had been lost to the Republicans due to corporate donors supporting Reagan. With the Party retaining left-of-center supporters as well as supporters holding moderate or conservative views on some issues, the Democrats became generally a "big tent" or "catch all party" with widespread appeal to most opponents of the Republicans.

====The South moves toward Republicans====
In the century after the end of [[Reconstruction]] in 1877, the white South identified with Democratic Party. The Democrats' lock on power was so strong, the region was called the [[Solid South]]. The Republicans only controlled parts of the Appalachian mountains, but they sometimes did compete for statewide office in the border states. Before 1964, the southern Democrats saw their party as the defender of the southern way of life, which included a respect for states' rights and an appreciation for traditional southern "values" (including [[segregation]] of blacks). They repeatedly warned against the aggressive designs of Northern liberals and Republicans, as well as civil rights activists whom they denounced as "outside agitators."

However, between 1964 and 2004, the Democratic Party's lock on the South was broken. The long-term cause had to do with the South becoming more like the rest of the nation. It could not long stand apart in terms of racial segregation. Modernization had brought factories, national businesses, and larger, more cosmopolitan cities to the South, as well as millions of migrants from the North and more opportunities for higher education. Meanwhile, the cotton and tobacco economy of the traditional rural South faded away, as former farmers commuted to factory jobs.

Integration and the civil rights movement caused enormous controversy in the white South, with many attacking it as a violation of states' rights. When segregation was outlawed by court order and by the Civil Rights acts of 1964 and 1965, a die-hard element resisted integration, led by Democratic governors [[Orval Faubus]] of Arkansas, [[Lester Maddox]] of Georgia, and, especially [[George Wallace]] of Alabama. These populist governors appealed to a less-educated, blue-collar electorate that on economic grounds favored the Democratic Party, but opposed desegregation. After 1965 most Southerners accepted integration (with the exception of public schools). Believing themselves betrayed by the Democratic Party, traditional white southerners joined the new middle-class and the Northern transplants in moving toward the Republican Party. Meanwhile, newly enfranchised Black voters began supporting Democratic candidates at the 80-90-percent levels, producing Democratic leaders such as [[Julian Bond]] and [[John Lewis]] of Georgia, and [[Barbara Jordan]] of Texas. Just as Martin Luther King had promised, integration had brought about a new day in Southern politics, freeing both blacks and whites from old hatreds and fears.

Using issues of cultural conservatism, especially opposition to abortion and homosexuality and support for school prayer, Republicans attracted strong majorities among evangelical Christians. They were nationwide, but strongest in the South; before the 1980s they were largely apolitical. Exit polls in 2004 showed that Bush led Kerry by 70-30% among Southern whites, who comprised 71% of the voters. Kerry had a 90-9 lead among the 18% of Southern voters who were black. One third of the Southern voters said they were white evangelicals; they voted for Bush by 80-20.<ref>See the exit polls at {{cite web|url=http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2004/pages/results/states/US/P/00/epolls.3.html |date=2004-11-02\|accessdate=2006-11-18|title=U.S. PRESIDENT / REGION: SOUTH / EXIT POLL}}</ref>

====1990s====
In the 1990s the Democratic Party revived itself, in part by moving to the right on economic and social policy. President [[Bill Clinton]], who defeated the incumbent [[George H. W. Bush]] in 1992, implemented a balanced federal budget and [[welfare reform]] (cutting benefits and requiring many recipients to take jobs), traditionally conservative causes. Labor unions, which had been steadily losing membership since the 1960s, found they had also lost political clout inside the Democratic Party: Clinton enacted the [[NAFTA]] free trade agreement with Canada and Mexico over the strong objection of these labor unions, much to the disappointment of those on the left of the party. The [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican Party]] took control of both the House of Representatives and the United States Senate after the 1994 election. Clinton was impeached in 1998 and subsequently acquitted in 1999.

When the [[Democratic Leadership Council]] (DLC) attempted to move the Democratic agenda in favor of more centrist positions, prominent Democrats from both the centrist and conservative factions assumed leadership of the party and its direction. Some liberals and progressives felt alienated by the Democratic Party, which they felt had become unconcerned with the interests of the common people and left-wing issues in general. Some Democrats challenged the validity of such critiques, citing the Democratic role in pushing for progressive reforms.

===21st century===
====Election of 2000====
During the presidential election of 2000, the Democrats chose Vice President [[Al Gore]] to be the party's candidate for the presidency. Gore and [[George W. Bush]], the Republican candidate and son of former President George H.W. Bush, disagreed on a number of issues, including abortion, gun control, environmentalism, gay rights, tax cuts, foreign policy, public education, global warming, judicial appointments, and affirmative action. Nevertheless, Gore's affiliation with Clinton and the DLC caused critics—Green Party presidential candidate [[Ralph Nader]] in particular—to assert that Bush and Gore were too similar, especially on free trade, reductions in social welfare, and the death penalty. "We want to punish the Democrats, we want to hurt them, wound them," Nader's closest advisor said.<ref>Harry G. Levinem "Ralph Nader, Suicide Bomber." ''The Village Voice'' May 3, 2004 at [http://www.villagevoice.com/news/0418,levine,53179,1.html]</ref>

Gore won a popular plurality of over 500,000 votes over Bush, but lost in the electoral vote by four votes. In a close election anything can be decisive, but many angry Democrats blamed Nader's third-party spoiler role for Gore's defeat. Controversy plagued the election, and Gore largely dropped from politics for years; by 2005 however he was making speeches critical of Bush's foreign and environmental policies.

Despite Gore's close defeat, the Democrats gained five seats in the Senate (including the election of [[Hillary Clinton]] in New York), to turn a 55-45 Republican edge into a 50-50 split (with a Republican Vice President breaking a tie). However, when Republican Senator [[Jim Jeffords]] of Vermont decided in 2001 to become an independent and caucus with the Democrats, the majority status shifted along with the seat, including control of the floor (by the Majority Leader) and control of all committee chairmanships. However, the Republicans regained their Senate majority with gains in 2002 and 2004, leaving the Democrats with only 44 seats, the fewest since the 1920s.

====2001-2003====
In the aftermath of the [[9-11 Attacks]], the nation's focus was changed to issues of national security. All but one Democrat<ref>Representative [[Barbara Lee]] of Texas</ref> joined the Republicans to authorize President Bush to invade invasion of Afghanistan and overthrow the Taliban. House leader [[Richard Gephardt]] and Senate leader [[Thomas Daschle]] pushed Democrats to vote for the [[USA PATRIOT Act]] and the 2003 invasion of Iraq. The Democrats were split over entering Iraq in 2003 and increasingly expressed concerns about both the justification and progress of the [[War on Terrorism]], as well as the domestic effects, including supposed threats to civil rights and civil liberties from the PATRIOT Act. Senator [[Russ Feingold]] was the only Senator to vote against the act; it received more resistance when it came up for renewal, but was renewed in 2006.

In the wake of the financial fraud scandal of the [[Enron Corporation]] and other corporations, Congressional Democrats pushed for a legal overhaul of business accounting with the intention of preventing further accounting fraud. This led to the bipartisan [[Sarbanes-Oxley Act]] in 2002. Economic issues did not work well in 2002, as the Democrats lost a few seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. They lost three seats in the Senate. While Democrats gained governorships in New Mexico (where [[Bill Richardson]] was elected), Arizona ([[Janet Napolitano]]) and Wyoming ([[Dave Freudenthal]]), other Democrats lost governorships in South Carolina ([[Jim Hodges]]), Alabama ([[Don Siegelman]]) and, for the first time in more than a century, Georgia ([[Roy Barnes]]). The election led to another round of soul searching about the party's narrowing base. The party's miseries mounted in 2003, when a voter recall unseated their unpopular governor of California, [[Gray Davis]], and replaced him which a charismatic liberal Republican [[Arnold Schwarzenegger]]. By the end of 2003 the four largest states had Republican governors: California, Texas, New York and Florida.

====Election of 2004====
The 2004 campaign began in late 2002, when Gore said he would not run again. [[Howard Dean]], former Governor of Vermont, an opponent of the war and a critic of the Democratic establishment, was the front-runner leading into the Democratic primaries. Dean had immense grassroots support, especially from the left wing of the party. Massachusetts Senator [[John Kerry]], a more centrist figure with heavy support from the DLC, was nominated because he was seen as more "electable" than Dean. Democrats moved to populist anti-business positions that denounced free trade and the [[NAFTA]] agreement. The party rhetoric attacked the Bush administration rather than propose alternative programs.

In the end, Kerry lost both the popular vote (by 3 million out of over 120 million votes cast) and the [[Electoral College]]. Republicans also gained four seats in the Senate and three seats in the House of Representatives, and for the first time since 1952, the Democratic leader of the Senate lost re-election. In the end, there were 3,660 Democratic state legislators across the nation to the Republicans' 3,557. Democrats gained governorships in Louisiana, New Hampshire and Montana. However, they lost the governorship of Missouri and a legislative majority in Georgia, which had long been a Democratic stronghold.

There were many reasons for the defeat. After the election most analysts concluded that Kerry was a poor campaigner.<ref>Evan Thomas and Staff of Newsweek,''Election 2004: How Bush Won and What You Can Expect in the Future''(2005)</ref> A group of Vietnam veterans opposed to Kerry called the "Swift Boat Veterans for Truth" undercut Kerry's use of his military past as a campaign strategy. Kerry was unable to reconcile his initial support of the [[Iraq War]] with his opposition to the war in 2004, or manage the deep split in the Democratic Party between those who favored and opposed the war. Republicans ran thousands of television commercials to argue that Kerry had flip-flopped on Iraq. When Kerry's home state of Massachusetts legalized same-sex marriage, the issue split liberal and conservative Democrats and independents (Kerry publicly stated throughout his campaign that he opposed same sex marriage, but favored civil unions). Republicans exploited the same-sex marriage issue by promoting ballot initiatives in 11 states that brought conservatives to the polls in large numbers; all 11 initiatives passed. Some Democrats argued that flaws in vote-counting systems may also have played a role in Kerry's defeat in Ohio. Other factors include a healthy job market, a rising stock market, strong home sales, and low unemployment.

After the 2004 election, prominent Democrats began to rethink the party's direction, and a variety of strategies for moving forward were voiced. Some Democrats proposed moving towards the right; others demanded that the party move more to the left and become a stronger opposition party. Rethinking the party's position on gun control became a matter of discussion, brought up by [[Howard Dean]], [[Bill Richardson]], [[Brian Schweitzer]] and other Democrats who had won governorships in states where Second Amendment rights were important to many voters.

====2005 - 2007====
These debates were reflected in the 2005 campaign for Chairman of the [[Democratic National Committee]], which [[Howard Dean]] won. He sought to move the Democratic strategy away from the establishment, and bolster support for the party's state organizations, even in Red states.

When the 109th Congress convened in 2005, [[Harry Reid]], the new Senate Minority Leader, tried to convince the Democratic Senators to vote more as a bloc on important issues; he forced the Republicans to abandon their push for privatization of Social Security. In 2005, the Democrats retained their governorships in Virginia and New Jersey, electing [[Tim Kaine]] and [[Jon Corzine]], respectively. However, the party lost the mayoral race in New York City, a Democratic stronghold, for the fourth straight time.

In 2006, with scandals involving Republican lobbyist [[Jack Abramoff]], as well as GOP House leader [[Tom DeLay]], Ohio GOP governor [[Bob Taft]] and others, the Democrats used the slogan "Culture of corruption." Negative public opinion on the war in Iraq, along with widespread dissatisfaction among conservatives over government spending, dragged President Bush's job approval ratings down to the lowest levels of his presidency. To win control the Democrats had to add 15 seats in the House (they added 30), and 6 in the Senate (they added 6).

The Democratic Party's electoral success has been attributed to running relatively conservative Democrats in close seats, such as the Senate races in Virginia, Pennsylvania and Montana.<ref>Dewan Shaila and Anne E. Kornblut, "In Key House Races, Democrats Run to the Right," ''New York Times,'' 2006-10-30; but compare Rick Perlstein, "Who deserves credit for the Democratic comeback?" ''The New Republic'' 2006-11-08 at [https://ssl.tnr.com/p/docsub.mhtml?i=w061106&s=perlstein110806]</ref> Exit polling suggested that corruption was a key issue for many voters.<ref>CNN, "Corruption named as key issue by voters in exit polls," 2006-11-08 at [http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/11/07/election.exitpolls/]</ref>

In 2006 Democrats gained a majority of governorships and made gains in many state legislatures. No Democratic incumbent was defeated in any major race.

====2007-2010====
[[File:Obama_approval_index_december_22_2009.jpg‎|thumb]]
House Democrats chose Rep. [[Nancy Pelosi]] of California for Speaker, the first woman ever, but rejected her choice for House Majority Leader, electing Steny Hoyer instead of John Murtha. Senate Democrats promoted Harry Reid to Majority Leader. Neither have been very effective.

The presidential campaign of 2008 featured a remarkable duel between Obama—the first major black candidate, and [[Hillary Clinton]], the first major woman contender. Obama won with his charismatic oratory and his highly efficient fund-raising and strong organization in the caucus states, while Clinton went downscale to pick up big majorities among poor whites and Hispanics. The contest between Obama and GOP nominee [[John McCain]] showed Obama being the clear favorite, with the vast majority of polls (with the exception of early September) depicting Obama as the clear favorite.

The [[Obama Administration]] got off to a fast start in 2009, especially in vigorous efforts to combat the [[Recession of 2008]] with heavy new stimulus spending, massive loans to banks, increased regulation, and deep intervention in the automobile industry. All those policies were begun by Bush, and had failed to reverse the decline of the economy in late 2008. Whether they will now succeed remains an open question, with the GOP now voting solidly against them and some conservatives like [[Rush Limbaugh]] hoping that the Democrats will fail badly and that the people will again turn to the Republican party. The Democratic Party is feeling the sting from the opposition and many Democrats are beginning to question their own leadership. Liberals are disenchanted with Obama's hawkish position on the [[Afghanistan War]]. The health care reform that consumed most of 2009 remains unsettled, as public opinion has turned against it. Environmentalists now seem resigned to the failure of a [[cap and trade]] program to reduce CO2 emissions. Most of all the recession drags on. The stimulus bill was passed quickly in February 2009 over almost unanimous GOP opposition, but despite promises of "shovel ready" projects, most of the money has not been spent a year later and the economy remains in the doldrums.

The elections in November 2009 in New Jersey and Virginia went badly for the Democrats, as the GOP gained both governorships and many local races, not to mention the Democrats' fifth straight loss for the mayoralty of New York City.

In the [[2010 Midterm Elections]], the Republican Party gained 63 Representatives in the House (one of the largest amounts in its history and surpassing the 1994 landslide), almost gained a majority in the Senate, and gained a majority of governorships and state legislatures in one of its best election results in its history.

====2011-present====
Liberal Democrat [[Barack Obama]] won re-election in [[2012 United States Presidential Election|2012]], even though the Republican Party held on to all its 2010 gains.

Although the Democrats had the opportunity to reverse the massive GOP gains in 2014, they completely failed and allowed the GOP to make even larger victories. For example, even though the GOP held a majority of governorships so large that it would be extremely difficult to hold them all, they actually gained two states, expanding their majority to 31 out of 50.

Again, in 2016, the Democrats performed very poorly, allowing the GOP to win the presidency with [[Donald Trump]],<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/11/08/first-polls-close-in-2016-race-trump-projected-to-win-ind-ky-clinton-wins-vt.html Trump wins presidency, defeats Clinton in historic election upset]. ''Fox News''. November 8, 2016. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref> to maintain their House and Senate majorities,<ref>Bresnahan, John (November 9, 2016). [http://www.politico.eu/article/republicans-on-cusp-of-keeping-the-senate/ Republicans hold the Senate in a stunner]. ''Politico''. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref><ref>Hughes, Siobhan (November 9, 2016). [http://www.wsj.com/articles/republicans-are-confident-about-retaining-control-of-the-house-1478634160 Democrats Gain Seats in House, But GOP Retains Majority]. ''The Wall Street Journal''. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref> to win the largest amount of governorships since 1922,<ref>Lieb, David A. (November 9, 2016). [http://www.usnews.com/news/us/articles/2016-11-09/republicans-expand-control-of-governorships-legislatures Republicans governorships rise to highest mark since 1922]. ''U.S. News & World Report''. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref> and to win the most state legislative chambers in history.<ref>Bosman, Julie & Davey, Monica (November 11, 2016). [http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/12/us/republicans-expand-control-in-a-deeply-divided-nation.html Republicans Expand Control in a Deeply Divided Nation]. ''The New York Times''. Retrieved November 14, 2016.</ref> The Democrats held a record low amount of party trifectas in the states.<ref>Greenblatt, Alan (November 9, 2016). [http://www.governing.com/topics/elections/gov-republicans-add-dominance-state-legislatures.html Republicans Add to Their Dominance of State Legislatures]. ''Governing''. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref><ref>Siegel, Josh (November 9, 2016). [http://dailysignal.com/2016/11/09/republicans-maintain-strong-control-of-state-capitols-what-that-means/ Republicans Maintain Strong Control of State Capitols. Here’s What That Means.] ''The Daily Signal''. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref> Democrats lost 1,042 seats—including U.S. House, Senate, state governorship, and state legislative seats—during the eight years of [[Barack Obama]]'s tenure as U.S. president.<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/12/27/democrats-lost-over-1000-seats-under-obama.html?refresh=true Democrats lost over 1,000 seats under Obama]. ''Fox News''. December 27, 2016. Retrieved December 27, 2016.</ref>

Although the Democrats had earlier derided conservative Republicans as being the "party of No", the aftermath of the 2016 elections showed that the Democrats would rightfully assume that label.<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/12/26/new-party-no-dems-prepare-for-battle-with-trump-on-cabinet-picks-agenda.html?refresh=true New Party of No? Dems prepare for battle with Trump on Cabinet picks, agenda]. ''Fox News''. December 26, 2016. Retrieved December 26, 2016.</ref>

==Symbols==
The most common symbol for the party is the donkey, although the party itself never officially adopted this symbol.<ref>[http://www.democrats.org/a/2005/06/history_of_the.php History of the Democratic Donkey].</ref> Some historians suggest the jackass was born 1828 when Jackson was sometimes called a jackass by his opponents as a play on his name. A political cartoon depicting Jackson riding and directing a donkey (representing the Democratic Party) was published in 1837. A political cartoon by [[Thomas Nast]] in an 1870 revived the donkey as a symbol for the Democratic Party. Cartoonists ever since have followed Nast and used the donkey to represent the Democrats, and the elephant to represent the Republicans.

In the early 20th century, the traditional symbol of the Democratic Party in many states was the rooster, as opposed to the Republican eagle.

There is no official color, but since election night 2000 blue has become the identification color of the Democratic Party for maps, while the red has become the color of the Republicans. Increasingly blue is used by Democrats for promotions (e.g. BuyBlue, BlueFund) and by the party itself, which in 2006 unveiled the "Red to Blue Program" to support Democratic candidates running against Republican incumbents in the 2006 midterm election.

The song "[[Happy Days Are Here Again]]" is the unofficial song of the Democratic Party. It was used prominently when Roosevelt was nominated for president at the 1932 Democratic National Convention and remains a sentimental favorite for Democrats today. During the [[Bill Clinton|Clinton]] era, the [[Fleetwood Mac]] song "Don't Stop Thinking About Tomorrow" became a popular song at Democratic events, reflecting the growing prominence of Baby Boomers in the party.

Some critics refer to the group disparagingly as the [[Democrat Party]].
==Jefferson – Jackson Dinners==
The United States Democratic Party claims Jefferson and [[Andrew Jackson]] as two of its key founding members. Although this claim is a bit of a stretch, for decades the Democrats have honored these two presidents by holding fund-raising events called "Jefferson-Jackson Dinners." Recently, in an act of extreme "political correctness", activists have demanded that these events be renamed on the grounds that Jefferson held slaves and Jackson mistreated Native Americans. Many units of the Democratic Party have given into these arguments and are denouncing and dishonoring two of what most Americans view as great Presidents.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/09/us/jefferson-jackson-dinner-will-be-renamed.html|title=Jefferson-Jackson Dinner Will Be Renamed|date=August 8, 2015|work=New York Times|accessdate=April 19, 2016|first=Ashley|last=Southhall}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://blogs.denverpost.com/thespot/2015/11/16/colorado-democratic-party-considers-renaming-annual-jefferson-jackson-dinner/123835/|title=Colorado Democrats consider renaming Jefferson Jackson dinner|work=The Denver Post|first=John|last= Frank|date=November 16, 2015|accessdate=April 19, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=
http://www.nola.com/politics/index.ssf/2015/07/jefferson_jackson_renamed_loui.html|title=As state Democratic parties rename their Jefferson-Jackson dinners, will Louisiana change 'J-J?'|work=The Times Picayune|first=Kevin |last=Litten|date= July 23, 2015|accessdate=April 21, 2016}}</ref>

==Democratic Presidents==
* [[Andrew Jackson]] (1829-1837)
* [[Martin Van Buren]] (1837-1841)
* [[James K. Polk]] (1845-1849)
* [[Franklin Pierce]] (1853-1857)
* [[James Buchanan]] (1857-1861)
* [[Grover Cleveland]] (1885-1889) (1893-1897)
* [[Woodrow Wilson]] (1913-1921)
* [[Franklin Roosevelt]] (1933-1945)
* [[Harry S Truman]] (1945-1953)
* [[John F. Kennedy]] (1961-1963)
* [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] (1963-1969)
* [[Jimmy Carter]] (1977-1981)
* [[Bill Clinton]] (1993-2001)
* [[Barack Obama]] (2009–2017)

==See also==
*[[Racism and the Democratic Party]]
*[[Clinton Foundation conflicts of interest]]
*[[Obamacare]]
*[[Democratic party (disambiguation)]]
*[[Previous Breaking News/Democrats|Articles about '''Democrats''' from previous "Breaking News"]]
*[[Democrats (Brazil)]]

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* Brownstein, Ronald. ''The Second Civil War: How Extreme Partisanship Has Paralyzed Washington and Polarized America''(2007)
* Crane, Michael. ''The Political Junkie Handbook: The Definitive Reference Books on Politics'' (2004) covers all the major issues explaining the parties' positions
*Sabato, Larry J. ''Divided States of America: The Slash and Burn Politics of the 2004 Presidential Election'' (2005).
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* Patterson, James T. ''Restless Giant: The United States from Watergate to Bush vs. Gore'' (2005) synthesis by leading scholar. [http://www.amazon.com/Restless-Giant-United-Watergate-History/dp/0195305221/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1211911625&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Ritchie, Donald A. ''Electing FDR: The New Deal Campaign of 1932'' (2007) [http://www.amazon.com/Electing-FDR-Campaign-Presidential-Elections/dp/0700615504/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1195784762&sr=8-2 excerpt and text search]
* Rutland, Robert Allen. ''The Democrats: From Jefferson to Clinton'' (1995).
* Shafer, Byron E. and Anthony J. Badger, eds. ''Contesting Democracy: Substance and Structure in American Political History, 1775-2000'' (2001), most recent collection of new essays by specialists on each time period:
**includes: "State Development in the Early Republic: 1775–1840" by Ronald P. Formisano; "The Nationalization and Racialization of American Politics: 1790–1840" by David Waldstreicher; "'To One or Another of These Parties Every Man Belongs;": 1820–1865 by Joel H. Silbey; "Change and Continuity in the Party Period: 1835–1885" by Michael F. Holt; "The Transformation of American Politics: 1865–1910" by Peter H. Argersinger; "Democracy, Republicanism, and Efficiency: 1885–1930" by Richard Jensen; "The Limits of Federal Power and Social Policy: 1910–1955" by Anthony J. Badger; "The Rise of Rights and Rights Consciousness: 1930–1980" by James T. Patterson, Brown University; and "Economic Growth, Issue Evolution, and Divided Government: 1955–2000" by Byron E. Shafer
* Schlisinger, Galbraith. ''Of the People: The 200 Year History of the Democratic Party'' (1992)
* Sundquist, James L. ''Dynamics of the Party System: Alignment and Realignment of Political Parties in the United States'', (1983) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=29223022 online edition]
* Wilentz, Sean. ''The Rise of American Democracy: Jefferson to Lincoln'' (2005), detailed synthesis by a leading liberal scholar. [http://www.amazon.com/Rise-American-Democracy-Jefferson-Lincoln/dp/0393058204/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1195784940&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
* Witcover, Jules. ''Party of the People: A History of the Democrats'' (2003)
* Schlesinger, Arthur Meier, Jr. ed. ''History of American Presidential Elections, 1789-2000'' (various multivolume editions, latest is 2001). For each election includes a short history by a leading scholar and a selection of primary documents.

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==External links==
*[http://www.democrats.org/ Democratic Party Official Site]
*[http://www.demconvention.com/assets/downloads/2008-Democratic-Platform-final.pdf 2008 Democratic Platform (pdf download)]
*[http://bertschlossberg.blogspot.com/2012/11/lawrence-patton-mcdonald-b_15.html A Forgotten Man: Congressman Larry McDonald]

[[Category:United States Political Organizations]]
[[Category:United States Political Parties]]
[[Category:Democratic Party]]
[[Category:Progressive Era]]
[[Category:Gilded Age]]
[[Category:New Deal]]
[[Category:Reagan Era]]
[[Category:1960s]]
[[Category:Obama Presidency]]
[[Category:Liberals]]
[[Category:Jacksonian Democracy]]
[[Category:111th United States Congress]]
[[Category:Liberal Organizations]]
[[Category:Anti Second Amendment]]

Democratic Party

2017-04-20T01:54:21Z

Teapublican: s

{{AmericanPoliticalParty
| party_name=Democratic Party
| party_articletitle = Democratic Party (United States)
| party_logo = [[Image:democraticpartyusalogo.png|200px]]
| website = [http://www.democrats.org www.democrats.org]
| headquarters = 430 South Capitol Street SE [[Washington, D.C.]] 20003
| chairman = [[Thomas Perez]]
| houseleader = [[Nancy Pelosi]]
| senateleader = [[Chuck Schumer]]
| foundation = 1828
| ideology = [[Liberalism]] [[Keynes]]ianism [[Socialism]] [[Progressivism]] [[Marxism]] [[Communism]] Historically: [[Racism]] [[White supremacy]] Segregationism
| fiscalpolicy = [[Left-wing]]
| socialpolicy = Left-wing
| colors = Blue (unofficial)
| footnotes =
}}
:''This article is about the Democratic Party of the United States. For Democratic Parties in other countries, see [[Democratic party (disambiguation)]]''
:''For the grammatically-correct name of the party, see [[Democrat Party]]''
The '''Democratic Party'''<ref>This is the official name of the party.[https://www.democrats.org/about/our-party/party-organization] Some argue that its proper name is the "Democrat" Party, not the "Democratic" Party. No one says the "Republicanic Party," for example. Some Republicans and conservatives commonly refer to it as such, implying the party is not democratic. The term is said to grate on Democrats' ears.</ref> ('''D''') is one of the two major political [[parties]] in the [[United States of America]]. It is [[pro-abortion]] and anti-[[free enterprise]], supporting higher taxes, anti-gun policies, and a much larger, more invasive government, while the [[Republican Party]] is generally [[pro-life]] and pro-free enterprise, supporting lower taxes and small, responsible government.<ref>http://www.diffen.com/difference/Democrat_vs_Republican#Role_of_Government</ref> [[Barack Obama]] and other Democrats are left-wing on the political spectrum. Voters in 2010, 2014, and 2016 rejected Democratic Party candidates at the local, state and national levels in record-setting proportions. On February 25, 2017, the Democratic National Committee selected [[Thomas Perez]] to lead the party.

Members of the Democratic Party are known as Democrats. Founded in 1828, slavery and segregation were cornerstones of the party's ideology. Both were exclusively Democratic issues which the GOP was founded to oppose.<ref>The rights and dignity of the individual remain the core principal of the Republican party, be it opposition to slavery, abortion, big government, or high taxes.</ref> A Congressional faction known as [[Blue Dogs]] made up of [[conservative]] Democrats, was largely "shellacked" after it was offered up on the altar of Obamacare by [[Progressive]]s, defying and abandoning their constituents. In 2009 Bluedogs boasted 44 [[centrist]]s but by 2011 it had only 8 members. A [[bi-partisan]] core in the House was destroyed by radical leftists who now dominate the party.

In the doldrums after 2000, the party led by [[anti-war]] radicals roared back with major gains in 2006, which it expanded in 2008 to sweep control of the national government and leave the GOP in a state of confusion and decline. The GOP bounced back in 2009, with near-unanimous opposition to contentious Democratic policies, especially stimulus spending and Obamacare. Polls show Obama's popularity began to erode after his [[Barack Obama approval ratings#Declines after the Gates flap|anti-police stance]] became apparent in the summer of 2009.

For the first two Obama years, the Democrats controlled the White House and a veto-proof Congress, ramming through unpopular legislation without bipartisan support such as [[Obamacare]]. In the 2010 midterm elections, the Republican party won decisive control of the House of Representatives; suburbs and rural areas are still more likely to be in Republican hands.<ref>[http://www.multistate.com/Site.nsf/Elections2006PostMaps?OpenPage Multistate.com] Post-Election 2006 Maps</ref> Polls at the time indicated that 50% of voters identified themselves with the Democrats as opposed to 35% for the Republican Party.<ref>[http://people-press.org/reports/display.php3?ReportID=312 Trends in Political Values and Core Attitudes: 1987-2007] Pew Research Center, 22 March 2007</ref> On the one hand, the Democrats claim to have won the popular vote for President in 2016 by more than 2.7 million votes (although, contrary to [[liberal denial]], over 800,000 illegal immigrants likely voted<ref>Lucas, Fred, "[http://dailysignal.com/2016/11/28/more-than-800000-noncitizens-could-have-voted-in-2016-election-experts-say/ More Than 800,000 Noncitizens May Have Voted in 2016 Election, Expert Says]," ''The Daily Signal''.</ref><ref>O'Reilly, Bill (November 29, 2016). [http://www.foxnews.com/transcript/2016/11/29/bill-oreilly-amazing-amount-confusion-over-illegal-aliens-voting/ Bill O'Reilly: Amazing amount of confusion over illegal aliens voting]. ''Fox News''. Retrieved November 2016.</ref><ref>Scarborough, Rowan (January 26, 2017). [http://m.washingtontimes.com/news/2017/jan/26/hillary-clinton-received-800000-votes-from-nonciti/ Trump argument bolstered: Clinton could have received 800,000 votes from noncitizens, study finds]. ''The Washington Times''. Retrieved January 27, 2017.</ref>), and Republican candidates received 49.13% of the nationwide total votes cast for House races in 2016 and won 55.4% of U.S. House seats.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://ballotpedia.org/United_States_House_of_Representatives_elections,_2016|title=United States House of Representatives elections, 2016|accessdate=February 8, 2017}}</ref> However, because the Presidential election is decided by the Electoral College and the House seats are elected by defined districts, Republicans won the White House as well as the majority of House seats.

==Policies and criticism==
The views of individual Democrats sometimes diverge from the party's official stance as expressed in its national [[party platform]], however unlike the Republican party, the Democratic National Committee has not allowed dissenting opinions to share the podium on matters such as abortion at National Conventions.<ref>[http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2005_03/005787.php] , http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2005_03/005787.php, March 6, 2005</ref> The Democratic party also adopts policy positions and platforms at the state, Congressional district and local levels.

===Economic policy===
[[Image:Unemployment.jpg|thumb|right|''Source: Bureau of Labor Statisitcs'' [http://astuteblogger.blogspot.com/2009/07/anti-stimulus-in-pictures-any-questions.html]]]
In the field of economic policy, Democrats tend to favor high progressive taxes, more regulation, less personal freedom and more government control and spending.

The Democratic Party has historically had ties to [[labor union|organized labor]].<ref>http://weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/013/913wopoz.asp Paying Dues - The Democrats settle up with their union bosses, [[Weekly Standard]], July 25, 2007</ref> However, the influence of organized labor has waned as the portion of the unionized workforce has dropped in the "gig economy" that is more service oriented.

The [[National Education Association]],<ref>[http://www.nea.org/index.html National Education Association homepage]</ref> the largest union of public school teachers, is a backbone of the party, supplying the largest number of delegates to its national conventions.

Democrats typically claim that they want to help low-income Americans and claim to want to accomplish this by increasing the tax burden on the wealthiest Americans. However now only half of Americans pay federal taxes, and the other half receive federal benefits.

Since passage of the Economic Recovery Act of 2009, [[unemployment]] increased from below 7% to slightly under 10% and then fell to 6.2%.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.nr0.htm|title=Employment Situation Summary|work=Bureau of Labor Statistics|date=August 1, 2014|accessdate=August 5, 2014}}</ref>

Many Democrats support a minimum wage that increases with the increases in the cost of living and currently advocate setting the minimum wage at $15.00 per hour. President Obama signed an executive order imposing this minimum wage on federal contractors, a meanigless gesture as few federal contracts and little money is handed out to unskilled workers. Congress did not adopted a proposed $10.10 wage for all interstate commerce.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/06/12/minimum-wage-federal-contractors_n_5489027.html|title=Obama Moves On Minimum Wage Without Congress|date=June 12, 2014|accessdate=August 5, 2014}}</ref> Currently, only 4.3% of all hourly wage workers receive the current minimum wage of $7.25.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bls.gov/cps/minwage2013.pdf|title=Characteristics of Minimum Wage Workers, 2013|work=Bureau of Labor Statistics|date=March 2014|accessdate=August 5, 2014}}</ref>

===Foreign and military policy===
According to its platform, the Democratic Party is alleged to have the objective of strengthening America. Democratic national leadership has shown itself lax on terrorism while it grew exponentially on President Obama's watch<ref>[http://www.news10.net/display_story.aspx?storyid=22045 "Democrats, ACLU Outraged Over Traveler Terrorism Screening Program"] C. Johnson, Associated Press</ref> and insufficiently patriotic.<ref>[http://edition.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0112/01/smn.19.html CNN Saturday Morning News] Transcript: December 1, 2001</ref> A poll conducted by [[Fox News]] released in October 2007 found that 1 in 5 Democrats – nearly 10 million voters – think the world will be better off if the [[United States]] were to lose the [[War in Iraq]].<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,299374,00.html Nearly 1 in 5 Democrats Say World Will Be Better Off if U.S. Loses War], FOX News Poll, October 04, 2007.</ref> The poll found this sentiment 3 to 4 times higher among Democrats than among moderate, centrist, and Republican voters.

In general, the Democratic Party has been pro-Israel and, in a reversal of roles, anti-Russia. In contrast, some critics claim that Russia interefered in the 2016 Presidential election and worked to undermine Hillary Clinton's campaign, promoted Donald J. Trump while President Obama did nothing to prevent it. The Democratic Party has favored free trade agreements, environmental regulation and so-called "trade impact assistance" or government handouts after trade agreements destroy private sector, taxpaying jobs. Many traditional Republicans have also favored free trade agreements, but President Elect Donald J. Trump has called for the re-negotiation of free trade agreements.

===Education===
An organization affiliated with the [[Democratic Leadership Council]] called the [[Progressive Policy Institute]] claims a long-standing opposition to school vouchers.<ref>21st Century Schools Project Bulletin: Special Edition [http://www.ppionline.org/ppi_ci.cfm?knlgAreaID=110&subsecID=900001&contentID=250630 ''Putting Vouchers in Perspective''], PPI E-newsletter 2 July 2002</ref> Jonathan Alter of ''Newsweek'' warned that opposition to vouchers might alienate some traditional Democratic voting blocs:
:"Can wealthy white liberals - many of whom send their kids to private school - really say to poor parents: 'We can have choices, but you must not?'...This is a glaring hypocrisy sitting at the heart of the liberal opposition to targeted vouchers… Right now, Democrats are in a highly compromised position on education."<ref>[http://www.edreform.com/index.cfm?fuseAction=newsLetter&sectionID=29&NLissueID=4&articleID=11&altCol=2 Center For Education Reform, Monthly Letter to Friends No. 75], Back to School 2002.</ref>
Democrats favor expanded taxpayer funding of higher education, particularly for scientific research, land-grant colleges, community colleges and historically black colleges.<ref name=ed/> President Obama established a White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/executive-order-historically-black-colleges-and-universities|title=Executive Order 13532 -- Historically Black Colleges and Universities|date=February 26, 2010|accessdate=November 2, 2012}}</ref> Democrats subsidized the interest rate out of the federal treasury for Stafford loan voters by cutting the rate to 3.4% and eliminated private banks as middlemen in federal student loans.<ref name=ed>{{cite web|url=http://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/education/higher-education|title=Higher Education|accessdate=November 2, 2012}}</ref>

===Environment vs Labor===
Two other important coalition groups also find themselves in direct conflict with each other within the Democratic party coalition--[[Environmentalist]]s and Labor Unions. While environmentalists support efforts like clean air and alternative fuels, for example, this creates tension with the workers of American automobile manufactures whose jobs are threatened by environmental policies such as increasing regulations and high costs. Such policies can lead to cutbacks and layoffs. Balancing these issues is difficult because some sacrifices of interests must be made by both sides.

===Health care===
Democratic leaders have endorsed various [[Democratic Health Care Plans]]; the question in 2009 was whether a new trillion dollar plan could pass in a time of economic crisis. Many Democrats advocate a [[socialist]] [[big government]] single-payer health insurance system and used the budget reconciliation act to ram through an unpopular plan that required individuals to purchase insurance with the threat of fines for non-compliance. A new entitlement and income transfer program was created which favored some of their core constituents. On March 21, 2010, [[ObamaCare]] was passed on a straight partyline vote, and President Obama signed it into law on March 23, 2010.

The party grossly overplayed its hand, mistaking its internal unity as a national consensus. And the Obamacare plan was promoted by mainstream media sources with thousands of fake news stories, blatant lies, distortions, and deceptions, even by President Obama himself promising Americans if they liked their insurance policy, they could keep it. Many Democrats argued that there may be some advantages to a universal health care system. Democrats generally regard [[universal health care]] coverage to be a priority because of the appeal to voters with nothing to contribute to their own care and are without any kind of [[health insurance]]. Others argue that the United States must compete with foreign countries where the public treasury covers all health care costs which supposedly gives foreign companies an advantage over U.S. products. Another argument is that prior to ObamaCare, uninsured people would fail to get preventative care and would go to hospital emergency rooms for treatment, resulting in higher health care costs and large subsidies paid by people with health insurance.

The employer mandate required employers with 50 or more employees to provide some sort of health insurance plan for their workers. The net result was job loss and little new job creation, as many existing small businesses were forced to pare down their workforce to 49 employees and other jobs were never created because of the added costs and burden.

===Voting Rights and Civil Rights===
Democrats have generally favored legislation that makes it more convenient to vote, including early voting and no-excuse absentee voting. Democrats have supported litigation to address redistricting that hinders minorities from electing officials. Democrats have favored extension of the [[Voting Rights Act]].

===Homosexual "Rights"===
White Democratic leaders — but not blacks or Latinos — consistently favor measures such as the establishment of [[same-sex civil union]]s or "marriage". On May 9, 2012, [[Barack Obama|President Obama]] announced that he supports same-sex "marriage".<ref name="ABC News">{{cite web|url=http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/obama-sex-marriage-legal-16312904|title=Obama Affirms Support for Same-Sex Marriage|date=May 9, 2012|work=ABC News}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2012/05/09/politics/obama-same-sex-marriage/index.html|title=Obama announces he supports same-sex marriage|last=Gast|first=Phil|date=May 9, 2012|publisher=CNN|accessdate=November 1, 2012}}</ref>

===Abortion===
'''''In 2016, the Democrats adopted one of the most extreme, pro-abortion platforms in its history, supporting unrestricted abortion, supporting the repeal of every single law in existence that limits abortion including those that formerly received bipartisian support, and forcing taxpayers to fund murder.<ref>Bilger, Micaiah (June 28, 2016). [http://www.lifenews.com/2016/06/28/democratic-party-platform-calls-for-forcing-americans-to-pay-for-abortions/ Democratic Party Platform Calls for Forcing Americans to Pay for Abortions]. ''LifeNews.com''. Retrieved December 26, 2016.</ref>''''' Additionally, the Democrat presidential nominee [[Hillary Clinton]] was one of the strongest supporters of abortion in U.S. history.<ref>Ertelt, Steven (October 19, 2016). [http://www.lifenews.com/2016/10/19/hillary-clinton-defends-killing-babies-in-partial-birth-abortions-government-shouldnt-step-in/ Hillary Clinton Defends Killing Babies in Partial-Birth Abortions: “Government Shouldn’t Step In”]. ''LifeNews.com''. Retrieved December 26, 2016.</ref>

===Other Policies===
Democrats frequently support the [[minimum wage]], workplace protections, the legal "right" to [[abortion|murder unborn human beings]], [[gun control]], the [[homosexual agenda]], and the [[separation of church and state]].

==Religion==
In the United States, there is some correlation between religious and political affiliation, though people of all faiths and denominations can be found among the supporters of each of the main parties.

Historically, [[Roman Catholic Church|Catholic]] voters have had a tendency to identify with the Democratic Party; in recent decades there has been little difference. However, Catholic politicians are mostly Democrats, including Speaker of the House [[Nancy Pelosi]]. However, several general ideals of the Democratic Party's platform — most notably, the party's overall support for the legality of [[abortion]] and many methods of [[contraception]] — are contrary to the position of the [[Catholic Church]]. In 2012, there was a controversy regarding a national organization of religious women ("nuns") speaking out against House Republican budget proposals. This resulted in a national publicity tour and protests called "Nuns on the Bus".

With regard to Protestants, members of [[Evangelical]] churches in recent years have voted about 70-80% Republican. However, the large majority of Democratic Party members are Protestants. One unusual feature of the Democratic Party, however, is that it draws substantial support both from committed African-American Protestants (most of whom are Baptists) and from secular and atheist voters. The strong opposition to [[homosexuality]] found among many Black Protestants contrasts strikingly with the support frequently shown by other Democrats for the [[homosexual agenda]]. One reason for this contrast could be the Democrats' strong support for minority rights.

Democrats also generally believe that organized religion should be separate from public life, and as such are typically supported by the [[ACLU]]. For example, in 1999 the Congress took up a bill to protect the display of the [[Ten Commandments]]. In the House of Representatives, over 3/4ths of the Democratic party members voted to remove the display.<ref>http://www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/stories/1999/06/18/gun.rollcall/ten.commandments.html</ref> The measure did not pass the Congress, and as a result when a member of the Alabama Supreme Court, [[Roy Moore]], posted a [[Ten Commandments]] display in his courthouse, the ACLU was able to have the display removed.

=== Religious affiliation and voting for Barack Obama ===

Pew Forum reports about the religious affiliation of voters who voted for Barack Obama in 2012:
{{Cquote|About seven-in-ten religiously unaffiliated voters (70%) and Jews (69%) voted for Obama in 2012. A similar share of Jews in our survey (64%) say they are Democrats, while all three subsets of religious “[[nones]]” ([[Atheism|atheists]], [[Agnosticism|agnostics]] and those who say their religion is “nothing in particular”) lean in that direction as well.<ref>[http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/02/23/u-s-religious-groups-and-their-political-leanings/ U.S. religious groups and their political leanings]</ref>}}

==History==
[[File:Dem-leaders.jpg|thumb|Clockwise from far left: presidents Carter, Kennedy, Clinton, Wilson, Johnson, Truman, Jackson, Roosevelt]]
===First Party System===
Democrats claim that [[Thomas Jefferson]] founded their party in 1792 at the start of the [[First Party System]]. The [[Republicans (Jeffersonian)|Jeffersonian Republicans]] was a political party established under the leadership of Jefferson and [[James Madison]]. At the time, it was generally called the Republicans, but it had no relationship to today's Republican Party, founded in 1854. The 1816 election was the last occasion when the Federalist Party nominated a presidential candidate. In the 1820s, the Jeffersonian Republicans split into several fractions. [[Andrew Jackson]] emerged as the candidate of one of these groups and was elected president in 1828.

===Origins===
Most historians regard Jackson's 1832 campaign organization as the beginning of today's Democratic Party. The Democratic Party itself traces its origin to Jefferson's Republicans.<ref>[[World Book]]</ref> The leadership of the Jeffersonian Republicans, including [[John Quincy Adams]] and [[Henry Clay]], created the [[National Republican Party]]. Adams supporters called themselves National Republicans, antecedents of the Whig and later the Republican parties.<ref name="presidents">William DeGregorio, ''The Complete Book of U.S. Presidents'', Gramercy 1997</ref>

The modern Democratic party was formed during 1828-34, under the national leadership of Jackson and Van Buren, with organizations in all the states comprised of local political leaders. This became the era of [[Jacksonian Democracy]]. The Jacksonians resembled the [[Jeffersonian Democracy|Jeffersonians]] especially in terms of anti-elite rhetoric of opposition to "aristocracy" (that is, wealthy old families), distrust of banks (and paper money), and faith in "the people." By his extensive use of federal [[Spoils system|patronage]], President Jackson removed old office-holders to make way for party loyalists. With the emergence of the Whig Party, the nation now had a new party system, the [[Second Party System]], which lasted until 1854.

The party held its first national convention in 1832 to choose a new running mate for Jackson; it nominated Martin Van Buren for vice president and endorsed the reelection of Jackson. Jackson easily defeated Clay in 1832. In the political realignment of 1828-32, some of Jackson's supporters from the election of 1828, especially businessmen and bankers, switched to the opposition Whig Party as Jackson crusaded against the [[Second Bank of the United States]]. The name "Democratic Party" became common by the mid-1830s.

=== Jacksonian Democracy: 1832-1854 ===
[[image:donk1837.jpg|thumb|1837 cartoon shows Democratic Party as donkey]]
The new party dominated the [[Second Party System]] (as political scientists call it; historians call it "Jacksonian Democracy", 1832-54. After 1832, the Democratic Party drew support from a cross section of the country; every group was represented. However the vast majority of rich merchants, bankers and plantation owners were Whigs, as were most evangelical Protestants. The party was strongest among traditionalistic farmers, frontiersmen, unskilled workers, Irish Catholics, and local or state political leaders. It was weakest in [[New England]], where industrialization turned most factory workers and white collar workers into Whigs, but was dominant in all other regions. The key issues it promoted were opposition to elites and aristocrats, popular democracy (in terms of voting rights and access to government patronage jobs) and opposition to the [[Bank of the United States]] (Jackson vetoed its charter renewal in 1832). The policies were known as [[Jacksonian Democracy]]. [[Image:Jackson1832.jpg|thumb|300px|left]]

Banking and tariffs were the central domestic policy issues from 1828 to 1852. The Democrats favored the [[Mexican-American War]]; Whigs opposed it. Democrats attracted Catholic Irish and German immigrants and denounced anti-immigrant nativism. Both the Democrats and Whigs were divided on the issue of slavery.

In the 1830s the [[Loco-Focos]] in New York City were radically democratic, anti-monopoly, and proponents of [[laissez-faire]]. Their chief spokesman was writer [[William Leggett]]. At this time labor unions were few; some were loosely affiliated with the party.

The economy went sour in the late 1830s with Van Buren getting the blame; he lost reelection as president in 1840 to the Whig [[William Henry Harrison]]. The Democrats gained the White House back in 1844 with [[James K. Polk]]. He had a successful term, then retired. The Democratic National Committee was created in 1848 at the convention that nominated General [[Lewis Cass]], who lost to General [[Zachary Taylor]] of the Whigs. In state after state the Democrats gained small but permanent advantages over the Whigs, until by 1852 the Whig Party was fatally weakened by divisions regarding the issue of slavery and they soon vanished.

The Democratic party dominated the North from the 1840s to 1854. Northern Democrats opposed banks, criticized corporate practices, and preached the ideals of a free society. They called for rapid territorial expansion of the United States, saying that in territorial expansion lay a means for thwarting the pretensions of the [[Slave Power]].

[[Franklin Pierce]] of New Hampshire was elected president in 1852, followed by [[James Buchanan]] of Pennsylvania in 1856. They proved poor presidents who lost control of the slavery issue, and the party, as the nation broke apart and fought the [[American Civil War]].

===Third Party System: Civil War, Gilded Age: 1854-1896===
During the [[Third Party System]] (1854-1896) the Democrats (still split in two due to the issue over slavery) became the minority in the face of the newly formed Republican Party (formed by former Whigs and abolitionists), which controlled nearly all northern states by 1860, bringing a solid majority in the Electoral College. A powerful Republican issue was the allegation that northern Democrats, including "Doughfaces" like Pierce and Buchanan, and advocates of popular sovereignty like [[Stephen A. Douglas]] and [[Lewis Cass]], were accomplices to the [[Slave Power]]. The Republicans meant by Slave Power the conspiracy of slaveholders to seize control of the federal government and block the progress of liberty.

[[Image:DEM1860.JPG|thumb|left|To vote for Douglas in Virginia, a man had to deposit the ticket in the official ballot box.]]
In 1860 the Democrats were unable to stop the election of Republican [[Abraham Lincoln]], even as they feared his election would lead to civil war. The party split in two due to the issue of slavery. The northern wing nominated Douglas, and the southern wing nominated Vice President [[John C. Breckinridge]]. Douglas campaigned across the country and came in second in the popular vote, but carried only Missouri. Breckinridge carried 11 slave states.

The Republican Party was beginning a 50-year era of dominance (1858-1910). During the war, Northern Democrats divided into two factions, [[War Democrats]], who supported the military policies of President Lincoln, and [[Copperheads]], who strongly opposed them. Historian Kenneth Stampp has captured the Copperhead spirit in his depiction of Democratic Congressman [[Daniel W. Voorhees]] of Indiana:
<blockquote>There was an earthy quality in Voorhees, "the tall sycamore of the Wabash." On the stump his hot temper, passionate partisanship, and stirring eloquence made an irresistible appeal to the western Democracy. His bitter cries against protective tariffs and national banks, his intense race prejudice, his suspicion of the eastern Yankee, his devotion to personal liberty, his defense of the Constitution and state rights faithfully reflected the views of his constituents. Like other Jacksonian agrarians he resented the political and economic revolution then in progress. Voorhees idealized a way of life which he thought was being destroyed by the current rulers of his country. His bold protests against these dangerous trends made him the idol of the Democracy of the Wabash Valley.<ref>Stampp, 211.</ref></blockquote>

The Democrats lost consecutive presidential elections from 1860 through 1880 (but 1876 was in dispute); 1884 was their next victory. The Democrats were weakened by their record of opposition to the Civil War but nevertheless benefited from white Southerners' resentment of Reconstruction and consequent hostility to the Republican Party. The [[Redeemers]] gave the Democrats control of every Southern state; the disenfranchisement of black voters in most of the South took place 1890-1900. From 1880 to 1960 the "[[Solid South]]" voted Democratic in all presidential elections (except 1928). After 1900 the key election in southern states was the Democratic primary; victory in the that primary was "tantamount to election" because the GOP was so weak.

Though Republicans continued to control the White House until 1912 (except 1884 and 1892), the Democrats remained competitive in the states, especially in the mid-Atlantic and lower Midwest, and controlled the House of Representatives for most of that period. In the election of 1884, [[Grover Cleveland]], the conservative Democratic Governor of New York, won the presidency, a feat he repeated in 1892, having lost in the election of 1888.

[[Image:1893cleveland-typewriter.jpg|thumb|Typewriters were new in 1893 and this Gillam cartoon from ''Puck'' shows that Cleveland can't get the Democratic "machine" to work as the keys (key politicians) won't respond to his efforts.]]

Cleveland was the leader of the [[Bourbon Democrats]], the conservative wing of the party. They represented business interests, supported banking and railroad goals, promoted capitalism, opposed imperialism and U.S. verseas expansion, opposed the annexation of [[Hawaii]], fought for the [[gold standard]], and opposed [[Bimetallism]]. They strongly supported reform movements such as [[Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act|Civil Service Reform]] and opposed corruption of city bosses, leading the fight against the [[Tweed Ring]]. The leading Bourbons included [[Samuel J. Tilden]], [[David Bennett Hill]] and [[William C. Whitney]] of New York, [[Arthur Pue Gorman]] of Maryland, [[Thomas F. Bayard]] of Delaware, [[William L. Wilson]] of West Virginia, [[John Griffin Carlisle]] of Kentucky, [[William F. Vilas]] of Wisconsin, [[J. Sterling Morton]] of Nebraska, [[John M. Palmer]] of Illinois, [[Horace Boies]] of Iowa, [[L.Q.C. Lamar]] of Mississippi, and railroad builder [[James J. Hill]] of Minnesota. A prominent intellectual was [[Woodrow Wilson]]. The Bourbons were in power when the [[Panic of 1893]] hit; it was a deep depression and they took the blame. A fierce struggle inside the party ensued, with catastrophic losses for both the Bourbon and agrarian factions in 1894, leading to the showdown in 1896.
[[Image:Dead-dem1880.jpg|thumb|550px|In 1880 when General Hancock (right) became the presidential nominee of the Democrats, Republican cartoonists showed the Democratic party history as a horror chamber featuring atrocities in the Civil War era; the donkey" shows the party as a coalition of the rear end of the South joined to the rear end of the North]]

====Ethnocultural voting: pietistic Republicans versus liturgical Democrats====
Religious lines were sharply drawn.<ref>Kleppner (1979).</ref> Methodists, Congregationalists, Presbyterians, Scandinavian Lutherans and other pietists and evangelicals in the North were tightly linked to the Republican Party. In sharp contrast, liturgical groups, especially the Catholics, Episcopalians, and German Lutherans, looked to the Democratic Party for protection from pietistic moralism, especially prohibition. Both parties cut across the class structure, with the Democrats more bottom-heavy.

Cultural issues, especially prohibition and foreign language schools became important because of the sharp religious divisions in the electorate. In the North, about 50% of the voters were pietistic or evangelical Protestants who believed the government should be used to reduce social sins, such as drinking. Liturgical churches (Roman Catholics, German Lutherans, Episcopalians) comprised over a quarter of the vote and wanted the government to stay out of the morality business. Prohibition debates and referenda heated up politics in most states over a period of decade, as national prohibition was finally passed in 1918 (and repealed in 1933), serving as a major issue in the North between the wet Democracy and the dry GOP.<ref>In the South the Democrats were mostly on the dry side. Kleppner (1979).</ref>

===The Bryan Movement===
[[Image:Mark Hanna 1896 election.jpg|thumb|right|Democratic attack ad in 1896 against GOP National Chairman [[Mark Hanna]]; cartoon by Davenport depicts Hanna as a slave driver; from Hearst's ''New York Journal'']]
[[Grover Cleveland]] led the conservative, pro-business [[Bourbon Democrat]]s but as the [[Panic of 1893|depression of 1893]] deepened his enemies multiplied. The Panic of 1893 started in February 1893, a full month before Cleveland became president. Convinced that the [[Sherman Silver Purchase Act]], passed under the administration of [[Benjamin Harrison]], was largely responsible for the alarming drain on federal gold, President Cleveland called Congress into special session to urge its repeal. Congress consented, but only after bitter debate that divided the Democratic party into two hostile camps-the eastern "goldbugs" and the silver wing of the West and South that was to propel young [[William Jennings Bryan]] to the fore in 1896.<ref name="presidents" /> At the 1896 convention the silverite-agrarian faction repudiated the president, and nominated the crusading orator [[William Jennings Bryan]] on a platform of inflation through "free" silver. The idea was that minting huge numbers of silver dollars would flood the economy with cash and end the depression. Eastern Democrats, unable to accept the party's free-silver platform and unwilling to support McKinley for his tariff views, nominated their own candidate, John M. Palmer of Illinois and called themselves the National, or Gold, Democrats.<ref name="presidents" /> The [[Gold Democrats]] attracted politicians and intellectuals (including [[Woodrow Wilson]] and [[Frederick Jackson Turner]]) who refused to vote Republican.

Bryan, an overnight sensation because of his phenomenal "Cross of Gold" speech, crusaded against the gold standard. Crisscrossing the Midwest and East by special train, he gave over 500 speeches to audiences in the millions. In St. Louis he gave 36 speeches to workingmen's audiences all over the city, all in one day. Most Democratic newspapers were hostile (except [[William Randolph Hearst]]'s ''New York Journal'') but Bryan seized control of the media by making the news every day, as he hurled thunderbolts against Eastern monied interests. The rural folk in South and Midwest were ecstatic, showing an enthusiasm never before seen. Ethnic Democrats, especially Germans, however, were alarmed and frightened by Bryan. The middle classes, businessmen, newspaper editors, factory workers, railroad workers, and prosperous farmers generally rejected Bryan's crusade. Bryan was overwhelmed by [[William McKinley]] in the most exciting race in national history.<ref>Refuting Bryan's charges, historians have discovered there was little coercion of workers.</ref> McKinley promised a return to prosperity based on the gold standard, support for industry, railroads and banks, and pluralism that would enable every group to move ahead. Bryan did however, win the hearts and minds of a majority of Democrats. The election of 1896 was a political realignment. The victory of the Republican Party marked the start of the "Progressive Era," from 1896 to 1932, in which the GOP usually was dominant.

===Fourth Party System: Bryan, Wilson, Progressivism: 1896-1932 ===
The [[Fourth Party System]] began with the 1896 election, a realignment during which the GOP controlled the presidency for 28 of 36 years. The GOP dominated most of the Northeast and Midwest, and half the West. Bryan, with a base in the South and Plains states, was strong enough to get the nomination in 1900 (losing to McKinley) and 1908 (losing to Taft). [[Theodore Roosevelt]] dominated the first decade of the century—and to the annoyance of Democrats "stole" the trust issue by crusading against trusts.

[[Image:Steal~trust.JPG|thumb|[[Theodore Roosevelt]] steals the anti-trust issue from the Democrats, 1904]]

Anti-Bryan conservatives controlled the convention in 1904, but they faced a [[Theodore Roosevelt]] landslide. Bryan dropped his free silver and anti-imperialism rhetoric and supported mainstream progressive issues, such as the income tax, anti-trust, and direct election of Senators. He backed Woodrow Wilson in 1912, was rewarded with the State Department, then resigned in protest against Wilson's non-pacifistic policies in 1916. Northern Democrats were progressive on most issues, but generally opposed prohibition, were lukewarm regarding woman's suffrage, and were reluctant to undercut the "boss system" in the big cities.

Taking advantage of a deep split in the GOP, the Democrats took control of the House in 1910, and elected the intellectual reformer Woodrow Wilson in 1912 and 1916. Wilson successfully led Congress to a series of Progressive laws, including a reduced tariff, stronger antitrust laws, the [[Federal Reserve System]], hours-and-pay benefits for railroad workers, and outlawing of child labor (which was reversed by the Supreme Court). Furthermore, constitutional amendments for prohibition and woman suffrage were passed in his second term. In effect, Wilson laid to rest the issues of tariffs, money and antitrust that had dominated politics for 40 years.

Wilson ordered [[Jim Crow]] segregation in the federal government offices in Washington DC, wiping out 50 years of social progress for African-Americans. No longer could blacks and whites work together in government offices, eat in the same cafeterias, our use the same bathrooms. The Wilson administration went a step further. Through the Treasury Department's Office of the Architect, the bureau charged with construction and maintenance of federal buildings, federal buildings throughout the nation were ordered to furnish segregated bathrooms, even in Northern states were practices as such were virtually unknown.<ref>''American Nightmare: The History of Jim Crow'', Jerrold M. Packard, St. Martin's Press, 2003, pp. 124-125</ref>

Wilson led the U.S. to victory in the World War, and turned his attention to foreign affairs. He wrote parts of the [[Versailles Treaty]], especially the new [[League of Nations]]. But in 1919 Wilson's political skills faltered, and suddenly everything turned sour. The Senate rejected Versailles and the League, a nationwide wave of strikes and violence caused unrest, and Wilson's health collapsed. The GOP came roaring back in a landslide in 1920, as [[Warren G. Harding]] defeated a Democratic ticket memorable for having [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] as the vice presidential nominee.

[[Image:D-Edge-Congress.JPG|thumb|Before 1932 Republicans usually controlled Congress; after 1932 the Democrats usually were in control]]

At the 1924 Democratic National Convention, the big fight was over a resolution denouncing by name the [[Ku Klux Klan]]; it was pushed by New York governor [[Al Smith]] and Alabama Senator [[Oscar W. Underwood]] in order to embarrass the front-runner, [[William McAdoo]] of California. After furious debate, the resolution failed by just a single vote. The KKK faded away soon after, but the deep split in the party over cultural issues, especially Prohibition, facilitated Republican landslides in 1920, 1924 and 1928. However [[Al Smith]] did build a strong Catholic base in the big cities in 1928, and [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]]'s election as Governor of New York that year brought a new leader to center stage.

=== Fifth Party System: The New Deal ===
[[Image:509px-FDR in 1933.jpg|thumb|left|200px|President [[Franklin Delano Roosevelt]] (1933-1945)]]
The [[Wall Street Crash 1929|stock market crash of 1929]] and the ensuing [[Great Depression]] set the stage for a more progressive government and [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] won a [[landslide victory]] in the [[U.S. presidential election, 1932|election of 1932]], campaigning on a platform of "Relief, Recovery, and Reform." This came to be termed "[[New Deal|The New Deal]]" after a phrase in his acceptance speech. The Democrats also swept to large majorities in both houses of Congress, and among state Governors. Roosevelt altered the nature of the Party, away from laissez-faire capitalism, and towards an ideology of economic regulation and insurance against hardship. Conservative Democrats were outraged; led by [[Al Smith]] they formed the [[American Liberty League]] in 1934 and counterattacked. They failed and either retired from politics or joined the GOP. A few of them, such as [[Dean Acheson]] found their way back to the Democratic Party.

After making gains in Congress in 1934 Roosevelt moved left and embarked on an ambitious legislative program called "The Second New Deal." It was characterized by building up labor unions, nationalizing welfare by the [[WPA]] (which 2 million employed unemployed men), setting up [[Social Security]] and raising taxes on business profits.<ref>In general the New Deal, 1933-40, did not raise taxes, except for the Social Security tax that went into effect in 1937.</ref>

Roosevelt's [[New Deal]] programs focused on job creation through public works projects as well as Social Security. In the name of "reform" it imposed strong regulations on the banking and financial system, transportation, communications, stock markets and labor-management relations.

Roosevelt successfully built up the "[[New Deal Coalition]]", a powerful coalition of voters and interest groups that supported liberalism. Key components included big city machines and labor unions. Key voter groups included traditional Democrats, white Southerners, Catholics, Jews, and liberals, as well as many blacks. This united voter base allowed Democrats to be elected to Congress and the presidency for much of the next 30 years.

After a sweeping landslide reelection in 1936—losing only Maine and Vermont—Roosevelt stunned the nation, and his party, by calling for legislation to enlarge the Supreme Court by five new members. A firestorm of opposition erupted, led by his own vice president [[John Nance Garner]]. Roosevelt was defeated by an alliance of Republicans and conservative Democrats, who formed a [[Conservative coalition]] that managed to block nearly all liberal legislation. (Only a minimum wage law got through.) Angry with the conservative wing of his own party, Roosevelt tried to destroy it. In 1938, he actively campaigned against five incumbent conservative Democratic senators; all five senators won re-election. In 1940, Roosevelt broke with tradition and sought a third term as President.

Under FDR, the Democratic Party became identified closely with modern liberalism, which included the promotion of social welfare, unions and regulation of the economy. Civil rights were not on the party agenda at this time. FDR slways opposed the federal anti-lynching law a courted racist Southern Democrats.

Mayor Fiorello La Guardia of New York, a Republican [[New Deal]]er who supported Roosevelt, made the first efforts to court African-Americans, who were traditional Lincoln Republicans, into the New Deal coalition. Roosevelt provided federal funds to La Guardia and withheld support from his opponents. La Guardia decreed that African-Americans were not to be arrested for anything, and that police patrolling [[Harlem]] could not carry night sticks. Not until the presidential election of 1960 when John Kennedy intervened for the release of Martin Luther King, who was jailed two weeks before the election in Atlanta following a non-violent protest, did the majority of Blacks begin voting Democratic ''en bloc''. The transition was solidified four years later when the Republican presidential nominee, Barry Goldwater, who defied Republican Congressional leadership and voted with Southern Democrat segregationists to oppose the 1964 Civil Rights Act.

===Truman to Kennedy: 1945-1963===
Harry Truman took over unexpectedly in 1945, and the rifts inside the party that Roosevelt had papered over began to emerge. Former Vice President [[Henry A. Wallace]] denounced Truman as a war-monger for his anti-Soviet programs, the [[Truman Doctrine]], [[Marshall Plan]], and [[NATO]]. By cooperating with internationalist Republicans, Truman succeeded in defeating isolationists on the right and pro-Soviets on the left to establish a [[Cold War]] program that lasted until the fall of Communism in 1991. Wallace supporters and fellow travelers of the far left were pushed out of the party and the CIO in 1946-48 by young anti-Communists like [[Hubert Humphrey]], [[Walter Reuther]], and [[Arthur Schlesinger, Jr.]]. [[Hollywood]] emerged in the 1940s as an importance new base in the party, led by movie-star politicians such as [[Ronald Reagan]], who at this point in time strongly supported Roosevelt and Truman.<ref>Reagan became a conservative around 1960, saying the Democratic party had left him.</ref>

On the right the Republicans blasted Truman’s domestic policies. "Had Enough?" was the winning slogan as Republicans recaptured Congress in 1946. Many party leaders were ready to dump Truman, but they lacked an alternative. Truman counterattacked, pushing [[J. Strom Thurmond]] and his [[Dixiecrats]] out, and taking advantage of the splits inside the GOP. He was reelected in a stunning surprise. However all of Truman’s Fair Deal proposals, such as universal health care were defeated by the [[Conservative Coalition]] in Congress. His seizure of the steel industry was reversed by the Supreme Court.

In foreign policy, Europe was safe but troubles mounted in Asia. China fell to the Communists in 1949. Truman entered the [[Korean War]] without formal Congressional approval—the last time a president would ever do so. When the war turned to a stalemate in 1951 he fired General [[Douglas MacArthur]], a hero to conservatives. Republicans blasted Truman's failure to stop Communist gains in Asia. A series of petty scandals among friends and buddies of Truman further tarnished his image, allowing [[Dwight Eisenhower]] and the Republicans in 1952 to crusade against "Korea, Communism and Corruption." Truman dropped out of the presidential race early in 1952, leaving no obvious successor. The convention nominated [[Adlai Stevenson]] in 1952 and 1956, only to see him overwhelmed by two Eisenhower landslides.

[[Image:1952-32.jpg|thumb|right|Stevenson and labor unions warn against a return of the Republican policies of Herbert Hoover in 1952 campaign poster]]

In Congress the powerful duo of House Speaker [[Sam Rayburn]] and Senate Majority leader [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] held the party together, often by compromising with Eisenhower. In 1958 the party made dramatic gains in the midterms and seemed to have a permanent lock on Congress. Indeed, Democrats had majorities in the House every election from 1930 to 1992 (except 1946 and 1952). Most southern Congressmen were conservative Democrats, however, and they usually worked with conservative Republicans. The result was a [[Conservative Coalition]] that blocked practically all liberal domestic legislation from 1937 to the 1970s, except for a brief spell 1964-65, when Johnson neutralized its power.

The nomination of [[John F. Kennedy]] in 1960 energized the Catholic population, which jammed motorcades and turned out in heavy numbers (over 80% voted for Kennedy), while also causing a backlash among white Protestants (over 70% of whom voted for Republican candidate [[Richard Nixon]]. Reaching beyond the traditional Irish, German, Italian and Polish Catholic ethnics, Viva Kennedy set out to mobilize the previously passive Latino vote, and it perhaps provided the margin of victory for Kennedy in Texas and New Mexico. Kennedy's victory reinvigorated the party. His youth, vigor and intelligence caught the popular imagination. In foreign policy he was strongly anti-Communist, and promptly launched an invasion of casto's Cuba; it failed badly. A few new programs like the Peace Corps harnessed idealism. In terms of legislation, Kennedy was stalemated by the [[Conservative Coalition]], and anyway his proposals were all cautious and incremental. In three years he was unable to pass any significant new legislation.

Kennedy's election did mark the coming of age of the Catholic component of the New Deal Coalition. After 1964 middle class Catholics started voting Republicans in the same proportion as their Protestant neighbors. Except for the Chicago of [[Richard J. Daley]], the last of the Democratic machines faded away. His involvement in Vietnam proved momentous, for his successor Lyndon Johnson decided to stay, and double the investment, and double the bet again and again until over 500,000 American soldiers were fighting in that small country.

===Civil Rights, Riots, War and collapse of the New Deal Coalition===
[[Image:LBJ-64.jpg|left|thumb|President Lyndon Johnson ran for reelection in the shadow of Kennedy]]

The New Deal Coalition began to fracture as union and religious leaders demanded support for [[civil rights]], upsetting the party's traditional base of conservative Southern Democrats. After Harry Truman's platform showed support for civil rights and anti-segregation policies during the 1948 Democratic National Convention, many Southern Democratic delegates decided to split from the Party and formed the "[[Dixiecrats]]," led by [[South Carolina]] governor [[Strom Thurmond]] (who, as a Senator, would later join the Republican Party). Over the next few years, many conservative Democrats in the "[[Solid South]]" drifted away from the party. By 1940 most northern Blacks had shifted to the Democratic Party due to its New Deal relief programs and support for civil rights.

The party's dramatic reversal on civil rights issues culminated when Democratic President [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] signed into law the [[Civil Rights Act of 1964]]. The new laws ended segregation and also ended the main argument Democrats had used to block Republican gains in the South (that is, only the Democrats could protect segregation). The South became competitive in presidential politics in the 1970s and 1980s, giving strong support to Republican Ronald Reagan and rejecting the liberal northern candidates. The Democrats responded by nominating Southerners (Carter in 1976 and 1980, Clinton in 1992 and 1996, Gore in 2000). Few southern states were won by Democratic presidential candidates from the North (Humphrey in 1968, McGovern in 1972, Mondale in 1984, Dukakis in 1988, Kerry in 2004). At the state and local level the Republicans made slow, steady gains, especially among upscale middle class whites and migrants from the North. By the 1990s the GOP was competitive at the state and local level throughout the South. The Democrats made gains in the west, converting California to a Democratic stronghold and gaining in fast-growing Arizona and Nevada. The Northeast became more and more a Democratic enclave, especially after 2006 when numerous Republican moderates were defeated for reelection. The Midwest remained a battleground. The Democrats made strong gains in Illinois, but slipped a little in Minnesota.
[[Image:Demfight1968.jpg|thumb|290px|By 1968 Democrats were bitterly fighting over Vietnam and the failures of the Great Society]]

===1968 to 1999===
The Democratic party split five ways in 1968 and became a minority party in presidential elections for decades; after 1964 they won a national majority of the popular presidential vote only in 2008. However, the Democrats won a plurality of the popular vote in 1976, 1992, 1996 and 2000.

In 1972, the Democrats nominated Sen. [[George McGovern]] (SD) as the presidential candidate on a platform which advocated, among other things, U.S. withdrawal from Vietnam and a guaranteed minimum income for all Americans. McGovern's forces at the national convention ousted Mayor [[Richard J. Daley]] and the entire Chicago delegation, replacing them with insurgents led by [[Jesse Jackson]]. After it became know that McGovern's running mate, [[Thomas Eagleton]], had received electric shock therapy, McGovern said he supported Eagleton "1000%" but he was soon forced to drop him and find a new running mate. With his campaign stalled for several weeks McGovern finally selected [[Sargent Shriver]], a Kennedy-in-law who was close to Mayor Daley. On July 14, 1972, McGovern appointed his campaign manager, Jean Westwood as the first woman chair of the Democratic National Committee. McGovern was defeated in a landslide by incumbent [[Richard Nixon]], winning only Massachusetts and Washington, D.C. The [[Watergate affair]] of 1973-74 made corruption a central issue, especially after [[Gerald Ford]] pardoned Nixon in September 1974. The Democrats made major gains in the 1974 off-year elections.

[[Image:Carter.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Jimmy Carter was elected in 1976 and defeated in 1980.]]
In 1976, mistrust of the administration, complicated by a combination of economic recession and inflation, sometimes called ''[[stagflation]]'', led to Ford's narrow defeat in 1976 by [[Jimmy Carter]], a former governor of Georgia.

Carter represented the total outsider, who promised honesty in government. He had served as a naval officer, a farmer, a state senator, and a one-term governor. His only experience with federal politics was when he chaired the Democratic National Committee's congressional and gubernatorial elections in 1974. Some of Carter's major accomplishments consisted of the creation of a national energy policy and the consolidation of governmental agencies, resulting in two new cabinet departments, the [[United States Department of Energy]] and the [[United States Department of Education]]. Carter also successfully deregulated the trucking, airline, rail, finance, communications, and oil industries, bolstered the [[social security]] system, and appointed record numbers of women and minorities to significant government and judicial posts. He also enacted strong legislation on environmental protection, through the expansion of the [[National Park Service]] in [[Alaska]], adding 103 million acres of park land. In foreign affairs, Carter's accomplishments consisted of the [[Camp David Accords]], the [[Panama Canal Treaties]], the creation of full diplomatic relations with the [[People's Republic of China]], and the negotiation of the [[SALT II]] Treaty. In addition, he championed human rights throughout the world and used human rights as the center of his administration's foreign policy.

Even with all of these successes, Carter failed to implement a national health plan or to reform the tax system, as he had promised in his campaign. Inflation was also on the rise. Abroad, the Iranians held 52 Americans hostage for 444 days, and Carter's diplomatic and military rescue attempts failed. The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan later that year weakened the perception Americans had of Carter. Even though he had already been defeated for re-election, Carter fortunately was able to negotiate the release of every American hostage. They were lifted out of Iran minutes after Reagan was inaugurated and Carter served as Reagan's emissary to greet them when they arrived in Germany. In 1980, Carter defeated liberal champion [[Edward Kennedy]] to gain renomination, but lost to conservative [[Ronald Reagan]] by a landslide. The Democrats lost 12 Senate seats, and for the first time since 1954, the Republicans controlled the Senate. The House, however, remained in Democratic hands.

====1980s: Battling Reaganism====
Instrumental in the election of Republican [[Ronald Reagan]] in 1980, were Democrats who supported many conservative policies. Among legislators, one of the most prominent of these consevative Democrats was Georgia congressman and second chairman of the [[John Birch Society]], [[Larry McDonald]], who was a passenger on [[Korean Airlines Flight 007]] shot down by the Soviets near [[Moneron Island]] on September 1, 1983. The "Reagan Democrats" were Democrats before the Reagan years, and afterward, but they voted for Ronald Reagan in 1980 and 1984 (and for [[George H. W. Bush]] in 1988), producing their landslide victories. They were mostly white ethnics in the Northeast who were attracted to Reagan's social conservatism on issues such as abortion, and to his strong foreign policy. They did not continue to vote Republican in 1992 or 1996, so the term fell into disuse except as a reference to the 1980s. The term is not used to describe southern whites who became permanent Republicans in presidential elections. Stanley Greenberg, a Democratic pollster analyzed white ethnic voters, largely unionized auto workers, in suburban Macomb County, Michigan, just north of Detroit. The county voted 63 percent for Kennedy in 1960 and 66 percent for Reagan in 1984. He concluded that Reagan Democrats no longer saw Democrats as champions of their middle class aspirations, but instead saw it as being a party working primarily for the benefit of others, especially African Americans and the very poor. Bill Clinton targeted the Reagan Democrats with considerable success in 1992 and 1996.

[[Image:Liberal1984.jpg|thumb]] The failure to hold the Reagan Democrats and the white South led to the final collapse of the [[New Deal coalition]]. Reagan carried 49 states against former Vice President and Minnesota Senator [[Walter Mondale]], a New Deal stalwart, in 1984. Massachusetts Governor [[Michael Dukakis]], running not as a New Dealer but as an efficiency expert in public administration, lost by a landslide in 1988 to Vice President [[George H. W. Bush]], who had pledged "no new taxes."

In response to these landslide defeats, the [[Democratic Leadership Council]] was created. It worked to move the Party rightwards to the ideological center in order to recover some of the fundraising that had been lost to the Republicans due to corporate donors supporting Reagan. With the Party retaining left-of-center supporters as well as supporters holding moderate or conservative views on some issues, the Democrats became generally a "big tent" or "catch all party" with widespread appeal to most opponents of the Republicans.

====The South moves toward Republicans====
In the century after the end of [[Reconstruction]] in 1877, the white South identified with Democratic Party. The Democrats' lock on power was so strong, the region was called the [[Solid South]]. The Republicans only controlled parts of the Appalachian mountains, but they sometimes did compete for statewide office in the border states. Before 1964, the southern Democrats saw their party as the defender of the southern way of life, which included a respect for states' rights and an appreciation for traditional southern "values" (including [[segregation]] of blacks). They repeatedly warned against the aggressive designs of Northern liberals and Republicans, as well as civil rights activists whom they denounced as "outside agitators."

However, between 1964 and 2004, the Democratic Party's lock on the South was broken. The long-term cause had to do with the South becoming more like the rest of the nation. It could not long stand apart in terms of racial segregation. Modernization had brought factories, national businesses, and larger, more cosmopolitan cities to the South, as well as millions of migrants from the North and more opportunities for higher education. Meanwhile, the cotton and tobacco economy of the traditional rural South faded away, as former farmers commuted to factory jobs.

Integration and the civil rights movement caused enormous controversy in the white South, with many attacking it as a violation of states' rights. When segregation was outlawed by court order and by the Civil Rights acts of 1964 and 1965, a die-hard element resisted integration, led by Democratic governors [[Orval Faubus]] of Arkansas, [[Lester Maddox]] of Georgia, and, especially [[George Wallace]] of Alabama. These populist governors appealed to a less-educated, blue-collar electorate that on economic grounds favored the Democratic Party, but opposed desegregation. After 1965 most Southerners accepted integration (with the exception of public schools). Believing themselves betrayed by the Democratic Party, traditional white southerners joined the new middle-class and the Northern transplants in moving toward the Republican Party. Meanwhile, newly enfranchised Black voters began supporting Democratic candidates at the 80-90-percent levels, producing Democratic leaders such as [[Julian Bond]] and [[John Lewis]] of Georgia, and [[Barbara Jordan]] of Texas. Just as Martin Luther King had promised, integration had brought about a new day in Southern politics, freeing both blacks and whites from old hatreds and fears.

Using issues of cultural conservatism, especially opposition to abortion and homosexuality and support for school prayer, Republicans attracted strong majorities among evangelical Christians. They were nationwide, but strongest in the South; before the 1980s they were largely apolitical. Exit polls in 2004 showed that Bush led Kerry by 70-30% among Southern whites, who comprised 71% of the voters. Kerry had a 90-9 lead among the 18% of Southern voters who were black. One third of the Southern voters said they were white evangelicals; they voted for Bush by 80-20.<ref>See the exit polls at {{cite web|url=http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2004/pages/results/states/US/P/00/epolls.3.html |date=2004-11-02\|accessdate=2006-11-18|title=U.S. PRESIDENT / REGION: SOUTH / EXIT POLL}}</ref>

====1990s====
In the 1990s the Democratic Party revived itself, in part by moving to the right on economic and social policy. President [[Bill Clinton]], who defeated the incumbent [[George H. W. Bush]] in 1992, implemented a balanced federal budget and [[welfare reform]] (cutting benefits and requiring many recipients to take jobs), traditionally conservative causes. Labor unions, which had been steadily losing membership since the 1960s, found they had also lost political clout inside the Democratic Party: Clinton enacted the [[NAFTA]] free trade agreement with Canada and Mexico over the strong objection of these labor unions, much to the disappointment of those on the left of the party. The [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican Party]] took control of both the House of Representatives and the United States Senate after the 1994 election. Clinton was impeached in 1998 and subsequently acquitted in 1999.

When the [[Democratic Leadership Council]] (DLC) attempted to move the Democratic agenda in favor of more centrist positions, prominent Democrats from both the centrist and conservative factions assumed leadership of the party and its direction. Some liberals and progressives felt alienated by the Democratic Party, which they felt had become unconcerned with the interests of the common people and left-wing issues in general. Some Democrats challenged the validity of such critiques, citing the Democratic role in pushing for progressive reforms.

===21st century===
====Election of 2000====
During the presidential election of 2000, the Democrats chose Vice President [[Al Gore]] to be the party's candidate for the presidency. Gore and [[George W. Bush]], the Republican candidate and son of former President George H.W. Bush, disagreed on a number of issues, including abortion, gun control, environmentalism, gay rights, tax cuts, foreign policy, public education, global warming, judicial appointments, and affirmative action. Nevertheless, Gore's affiliation with Clinton and the DLC caused critics—Green Party presidential candidate [[Ralph Nader]] in particular—to assert that Bush and Gore were too similar, especially on free trade, reductions in social welfare, and the death penalty. "We want to punish the Democrats, we want to hurt them, wound them," Nader's closest advisor said.<ref>Harry G. Levinem "Ralph Nader, Suicide Bomber." ''The Village Voice'' May 3, 2004 at [http://www.villagevoice.com/news/0418,levine,53179,1.html]</ref>

Gore won a popular plurality of over 500,000 votes over Bush, but lost in the electoral vote by four votes. In a close election anything can be decisive, but many angry Democrats blamed Nader's third-party spoiler role for Gore's defeat. Controversy plagued the election, and Gore largely dropped from politics for years; by 2005 however he was making speeches critical of Bush's foreign and environmental policies.

Despite Gore's close defeat, the Democrats gained five seats in the Senate (including the election of [[Hillary Clinton]] in New York), to turn a 55-45 Republican edge into a 50-50 split (with a Republican Vice President breaking a tie). However, when Republican Senator [[Jim Jeffords]] of Vermont decided in 2001 to become an independent and caucus with the Democrats, the majority status shifted along with the seat, including control of the floor (by the Majority Leader) and control of all committee chairmanships. However, the Republicans regained their Senate majority with gains in 2002 and 2004, leaving the Democrats with only 44 seats, the fewest since the 1920s.

====2001-2003====
In the aftermath of the [[9-11 Attacks]], the nation's focus was changed to issues of national security. All but one Democrat<ref>Representative [[Barbara Lee]] of Texas</ref> joined the Republicans to authorize President Bush to invade invasion of Afghanistan and overthrow the Taliban. House leader [[Richard Gephardt]] and Senate leader [[Thomas Daschle]] pushed Democrats to vote for the [[USA PATRIOT Act]] and the 2003 invasion of Iraq. The Democrats were split over entering Iraq in 2003 and increasingly expressed concerns about both the justification and progress of the [[War on Terrorism]], as well as the domestic effects, including supposed threats to civil rights and civil liberties from the PATRIOT Act. Senator [[Russ Feingold]] was the only Senator to vote against the act; it received more resistance when it came up for renewal, but was renewed in 2006.

In the wake of the financial fraud scandal of the [[Enron Corporation]] and other corporations, Congressional Democrats pushed for a legal overhaul of business accounting with the intention of preventing further accounting fraud. This led to the bipartisan [[Sarbanes-Oxley Act]] in 2002. Economic issues did not work well in 2002, as the Democrats lost a few seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. They lost three seats in the Senate. While Democrats gained governorships in New Mexico (where [[Bill Richardson]] was elected), Arizona ([[Janet Napolitano]]) and Wyoming ([[Dave Freudenthal]]), other Democrats lost governorships in South Carolina ([[Jim Hodges]]), Alabama ([[Don Siegelman]]) and, for the first time in more than a century, Georgia ([[Roy Barnes]]). The election led to another round of soul searching about the party's narrowing base. The party's miseries mounted in 2003, when a voter recall unseated their unpopular governor of California, [[Gray Davis]], and replaced him which a charismatic liberal Republican [[Arnold Schwarzenegger]]. By the end of 2003 the four largest states had Republican governors: California, Texas, New York and Florida.

====Election of 2004====
The 2004 campaign began in late 2002, when Gore said he would not run again. [[Howard Dean]], former Governor of Vermont, an opponent of the war and a critic of the Democratic establishment, was the front-runner leading into the Democratic primaries. Dean had immense grassroots support, especially from the left wing of the party. Massachusetts Senator [[John Kerry]], a more centrist figure with heavy support from the DLC, was nominated because he was seen as more "electable" than Dean. Democrats moved to populist anti-business positions that denounced free trade and the [[NAFTA]] agreement. The party rhetoric attacked the Bush administration rather than propose alternative programs.

In the end, Kerry lost both the popular vote (by 3 million out of over 120 million votes cast) and the [[Electoral College]]. Republicans also gained four seats in the Senate and three seats in the House of Representatives, and for the first time since 1952, the Democratic leader of the Senate lost re-election. In the end, there were 3,660 Democratic state legislators across the nation to the Republicans' 3,557. Democrats gained governorships in Louisiana, New Hampshire and Montana. However, they lost the governorship of Missouri and a legislative majority in Georgia, which had long been a Democratic stronghold.

There were many reasons for the defeat. After the election most analysts concluded that Kerry was a poor campaigner.<ref>Evan Thomas and Staff of Newsweek,''Election 2004: How Bush Won and What You Can Expect in the Future''(2005)</ref> A group of Vietnam veterans opposed to Kerry called the "Swift Boat Veterans for Truth" undercut Kerry's use of his military past as a campaign strategy. Kerry was unable to reconcile his initial support of the [[Iraq War]] with his opposition to the war in 2004, or manage the deep split in the Democratic Party between those who favored and opposed the war. Republicans ran thousands of television commercials to argue that Kerry had flip-flopped on Iraq. When Kerry's home state of Massachusetts legalized same-sex marriage, the issue split liberal and conservative Democrats and independents (Kerry publicly stated throughout his campaign that he opposed same sex marriage, but favored civil unions). Republicans exploited the same-sex marriage issue by promoting ballot initiatives in 11 states that brought conservatives to the polls in large numbers; all 11 initiatives passed. Some Democrats argued that flaws in vote-counting systems may also have played a role in Kerry's defeat in Ohio. Other factors include a healthy job market, a rising stock market, strong home sales, and low unemployment.

After the 2004 election, prominent Democrats began to rethink the party's direction, and a variety of strategies for moving forward were voiced. Some Democrats proposed moving towards the right; others demanded that the party move more to the left and become a stronger opposition party. Rethinking the party's position on gun control became a matter of discussion, brought up by [[Howard Dean]], [[Bill Richardson]], [[Brian Schweitzer]] and other Democrats who had won governorships in states where Second Amendment rights were important to many voters.

====2005 - 2007====
These debates were reflected in the 2005 campaign for Chairman of the [[Democratic National Committee]], which [[Howard Dean]] won. He sought to move the Democratic strategy away from the establishment, and bolster support for the party's state organizations, even in Red states.

When the 109th Congress convened in 2005, [[Harry Reid]], the new Senate Minority Leader, tried to convince the Democratic Senators to vote more as a bloc on important issues; he forced the Republicans to abandon their push for privatization of Social Security. In 2005, the Democrats retained their governorships in Virginia and New Jersey, electing [[Tim Kaine]] and [[Jon Corzine]], respectively. However, the party lost the mayoral race in New York City, a Democratic stronghold, for the fourth straight time.

In 2006, with scandals involving Republican lobbyist [[Jack Abramoff]], as well as GOP House leader [[Tom DeLay]], Ohio GOP governor [[Bob Taft]] and others, the Democrats used the slogan "Culture of corruption." Negative public opinion on the war in Iraq, along with widespread dissatisfaction among conservatives over government spending, dragged President Bush's job approval ratings down to the lowest levels of his presidency. To win control the Democrats had to add 15 seats in the House (they added 30), and 6 in the Senate (they added 6).

The Democratic Party's electoral success has been attributed to running relatively conservative Democrats in close seats, such as the Senate races in Virginia, Pennsylvania and Montana.<ref>Dewan Shaila and Anne E. Kornblut, "In Key House Races, Democrats Run to the Right," ''New York Times,'' 2006-10-30; but compare Rick Perlstein, "Who deserves credit for the Democratic comeback?" ''The New Republic'' 2006-11-08 at [https://ssl.tnr.com/p/docsub.mhtml?i=w061106&s=perlstein110806]</ref> Exit polling suggested that corruption was a key issue for many voters.<ref>CNN, "Corruption named as key issue by voters in exit polls," 2006-11-08 at [http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/11/07/election.exitpolls/]</ref>

In 2006 Democrats gained a majority of governorships and made gains in many state legislatures. No Democratic incumbent was defeated in any major race.

====2007-2010====
[[File:Obama_approval_index_december_22_2009.jpg‎|thumb]]
House Democrats chose Rep. [[Nancy Pelosi]] of California for Speaker, the first woman ever, but rejected her choice for House Majority Leader, electing Steny Hoyer instead of John Murtha. Senate Democrats promoted Harry Reid to Majority Leader. Neither have been very effective.

The presidential campaign of 2008 featured a remarkable duel between Obama—the first major black candidate, and [[Hillary Clinton]], the first major woman contender. Obama won with his charismatic oratory and his highly efficient fund-raising and strong organization in the caucus states, while Clinton went downscale to pick up big majorities among poor whites and Hispanics. The contest between Obama and GOP nominee [[John McCain]] showed Obama being the clear favorite, with the vast majority of polls (with the exception of early September) depicting Obama as the clear favorite.

The [[Obama Administration]] got off to a fast start in 2009, especially in vigorous efforts to combat the [[Recession of 2008]] with heavy new stimulus spending, massive loans to banks, increased regulation, and deep intervention in the automobile industry. All those policies were begun by Bush, and had failed to reverse the decline of the economy in late 2008. Whether they will now succeed remains an open question, with the GOP now voting solidly against them and some conservatives like [[Rush Limbaugh]] hoping that the Democrats will fail badly and that the people will again turn to the Republican party. The Democratic Party is feeling the sting from the opposition and many Democrats are beginning to question their own leadership. Liberals are disenchanted with Obama's hawkish position on the [[Afghanistan War]]. The health care reform that consumed most of 2009 remains unsettled, as public opinion has turned against it. Environmentalists now seem resigned to the failure of a [[cap and trade]] program to reduce CO2 emissions. Most of all the recession drags on. The stimulus bill was passed quickly in February 2009 over almost unanimous GOP opposition, but despite promises of "shovel ready" projects, most of the money has not been spent a year later and the economy remains in the doldrums.

The elections in November 2009 in New Jersey and Virginia went badly for the Democrats, as the GOP gained both governorships and many local races, not to mention the Democrats' fifth straight loss for the mayoralty of New York City.

In the [[2010 Midterm Elections]], the Republican Party gained 63 Representatives in the House (one of the largest amounts in its history and surpassing the 1994 landslide), almost gained a majority in the Senate, and gained a majority of governorships and state legislatures in one of its best election results in its history.

====2011-present====
Liberal Democrat [[Barack Obama]] won re-election in [[2012 United States Presidential Election|2012]], even though the Republican Party held on to all its 2010 gains.

Although the Democrats had the opportunity to reverse the massive GOP gains in 2014, they completely failed and allowed the GOP to make even larger victories. For example, even though the GOP held a majority of governorships so large that it would be extremely difficult to hold them all, they actually gained two states, expanding their majority to 31 out of 50.

Again, in 2016, the Democrats performed very poorly, allowing the GOP to win the presidency with [[Donald Trump]],<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/11/08/first-polls-close-in-2016-race-trump-projected-to-win-ind-ky-clinton-wins-vt.html Trump wins presidency, defeats Clinton in historic election upset]. ''Fox News''. November 8, 2016. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref> to maintain their House and Senate majorities,<ref>Bresnahan, John (November 9, 2016). [http://www.politico.eu/article/republicans-on-cusp-of-keeping-the-senate/ Republicans hold the Senate in a stunner]. ''Politico''. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref><ref>Hughes, Siobhan (November 9, 2016). [http://www.wsj.com/articles/republicans-are-confident-about-retaining-control-of-the-house-1478634160 Democrats Gain Seats in House, But GOP Retains Majority]. ''The Wall Street Journal''. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref> to win the largest amount of governorships since 1922,<ref>Lieb, David A. (November 9, 2016). [http://www.usnews.com/news/us/articles/2016-11-09/republicans-expand-control-of-governorships-legislatures Republicans governorships rise to highest mark since 1922]. ''U.S. News & World Report''. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref> and to win the most state legislative chambers in history.<ref>Bosman, Julie & Davey, Monica (November 11, 2016). [http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/12/us/republicans-expand-control-in-a-deeply-divided-nation.html Republicans Expand Control in a Deeply Divided Nation]. ''The New York Times''. Retrieved November 14, 2016.</ref> The Democrats held a record low amount of party trifectas in the states.<ref>Greenblatt, Alan (November 9, 2016). [http://www.governing.com/topics/elections/gov-republicans-add-dominance-state-legislatures.html Republicans Add to Their Dominance of State Legislatures]. ''Governing''. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref><ref>Siegel, Josh (November 9, 2016). [http://dailysignal.com/2016/11/09/republicans-maintain-strong-control-of-state-capitols-what-that-means/ Republicans Maintain Strong Control of State Capitols. Here’s What That Means.] ''The Daily Signal''. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref> Democrats lost 1,042 seats—including U.S. House, Senate, state governorship, and state legislative seats—during the eight years of [[Barack Obama]]'s tenure as U.S. president.<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/12/27/democrats-lost-over-1000-seats-under-obama.html?refresh=true Democrats lost over 1,000 seats under Obama]. ''Fox News''. December 27, 2016. Retrieved December 27, 2016.</ref>

Although the Democrats had earlier derided conservative Republicans as being the "party of No", the aftermath of the 2016 elections showed that the Democrats would rightfully assume that label.<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/12/26/new-party-no-dems-prepare-for-battle-with-trump-on-cabinet-picks-agenda.html?refresh=true New Party of No? Dems prepare for battle with Trump on Cabinet picks, agenda]. ''Fox News''. December 26, 2016. Retrieved December 26, 2016.</ref>

==Symbols==
The most common symbol for the party is the donkey, although the party itself never officially adopted this symbol.<ref>[http://www.democrats.org/a/2005/06/history_of_the.php History of the Democratic Donkey].</ref> Some historians suggest the jackass was born 1828 when Jackson was sometimes called a jackass by his opponents as a play on his name. A political cartoon depicting Jackson riding and directing a donkey (representing the Democratic Party) was published in 1837. A political cartoon by [[Thomas Nast]] in an 1870 revived the donkey as a symbol for the Democratic Party. Cartoonists ever since have followed Nast and used the donkey to represent the Democrats, and the elephant to represent the Republicans.

In the early 20th century, the traditional symbol of the Democratic Party in many states was the rooster, as opposed to the Republican eagle.

There is no official color, but since election night 2000 blue has become the identification color of the Democratic Party for maps, while the red has become the color of the Republicans. Increasingly blue is used by Democrats for promotions (e.g. BuyBlue, BlueFund) and by the party itself, which in 2006 unveiled the "Red to Blue Program" to support Democratic candidates running against Republican incumbents in the 2006 midterm election.

The song "[[Happy Days Are Here Again]]" is the unofficial song of the Democratic Party. It was used prominently when Roosevelt was nominated for president at the 1932 Democratic National Convention and remains a sentimental favorite for Democrats today. During the [[Bill Clinton|Clinton]] era, the [[Fleetwood Mac]] song "Don't Stop Thinking About Tomorrow" became a popular song at Democratic events, reflecting the growing prominence of Baby Boomers in the party.

Some critics refer to the group disparagingly as the [[Democrat Party]].
==Jefferson – Jackson Dinners==
The United States Democratic Party claims Jefferson and [[Andrew Jackson]] as two of its key founding members. Although this claim is a bit of a stretch, for decades the Democrats have honored these two presidents by holding fund-raising events called "Jefferson-Jackson Dinners." Recently, in an act of extreme "political correctness", activists have demanded that these events be renamed on the grounds that Jefferson held slaves and Jackson mistreated Native Americans. Many units of the Democratic Party have given into these arguments and are denouncing and dishonoring two of what most Americans view as great Presidents.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/09/us/jefferson-jackson-dinner-will-be-renamed.html|title=Jefferson-Jackson Dinner Will Be Renamed|date=August 8, 2015|work=New York Times|accessdate=April 19, 2016|first=Ashley|last=Southhall}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://blogs.denverpost.com/thespot/2015/11/16/colorado-democratic-party-considers-renaming-annual-jefferson-jackson-dinner/123835/|title=Colorado Democrats consider renaming Jefferson Jackson dinner|work=The Denver Post|first=John|last= Frank|date=November 16, 2015|accessdate=April 19, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=
http://www.nola.com/politics/index.ssf/2015/07/jefferson_jackson_renamed_loui.html|title=As state Democratic parties rename their Jefferson-Jackson dinners, will Louisiana change 'J-J?'|work=The Times Picayune|first=Kevin |last=Litten|date= July 23, 2015|accessdate=April 21, 2016}}</ref>

==Democratic Presidents==
* [[Andrew Jackson]] (1829-1837)
* [[Martin Van Buren]] (1837-1841)
* [[James K. Polk]] (1845-1849)
* [[Franklin Pierce]] (1853-1857)
* [[James Buchanan]] (1857-1861)
* [[Grover Cleveland]] (1885-1889) (1893-1897)
* [[Woodrow Wilson]] (1913-1921)
* [[Franklin Roosevelt]] (1933-1945)
* [[Harry S Truman]] (1945-1953)
* [[John F. Kennedy]] (1961-1963)
* [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] (1963-1969)
* [[Jimmy Carter]] (1977-1981)
* [[Bill Clinton]] (1993-2001)
* [[Barack Obama]] (2009–2017)

==See also==
*[[Racism and the Democratic Party]]
*[[Clinton Foundation conflicts of interest]]
*[[Obamacare]]
*[[Democratic party (disambiguation)]]
*[[Previous Breaking News/Democrats|Articles about '''Democrats''' from previous "Breaking News"]]
*[[Democrats (Brazil)]]

==Bibliography==
===Current===
*Barone, Michael, and Grant Ujifusa, ''The Almanac of American Politics 2008: The Senators, the Representatives and the Governors: Their Records and Election Results, Their States and Districts'' (2007) covers all the live politicians with amazing detail. New edition every two years since 1975.
* Brownstein, Ronald. ''The Second Civil War: How Extreme Partisanship Has Paralyzed Washington and Polarized America''(2007)
* Crane, Michael. ''The Political Junkie Handbook: The Definitive Reference Books on Politics'' (2004) covers all the major issues explaining the parties' positions
*Sabato, Larry J. ''Divided States of America: The Slash and Burn Politics of the 2004 Presidential Election'' (2005).
*Sabato, Larry J. ed. ''The Sixth Year Itch: The Rise and Fall of the George W. Bush Presidency'' (1907), in-depth essays by scholars on key states in 2006
* Sabato, Larry J., and Howard R. Ernst eds. ''Political Parties and Elections'' (2007), 540pp; an encyclopedia with 450 entries by scholars; focus is 1945 to present
* Sabato, Larry J. and Bruce Larson. ''The Party's Just Begun: Shaping Political Parties for America's Future'' (2001) textbook.
* Shafer, Byron E. and Anthony J. Badger, eds. ''Contesting Democracy: Substance and Structure in American Political History, 1775-2000'' (2001), long essays by specialists on each time period
* Shafer, Byron and Richard Johnston. ''The End of Southern Exceptionalism'' (2006), uses statistical election data & polls to argue GOP growth was primarily a response to economic change
===Historical===
* ''American National Biography'' (20 volumes, 1999) covers all politicians no longer alive; online and paper copies at many academic libraries.
* Jensen, Richard. ''Grass Roots Politics: Parties, Issues, and Voters, 1854-1983'' (1983) [http://www.questia.com/library/book/grass-roots-politics-parties-issues-and-voters-1854-1983-by-christopher-c-gibbs-richard-j-jensen-steven-l-piott.jsp online edition]; survey by conservative scholar, with primary sources
* Kennedy, David M. ''Freedom from Fear: The American People in Depression and War, 1929-1945'' (2001), synthesis by leading scholar; Pulitzer prize [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=52284041 online edition]
* Kleppner, Paul et al. ''The Evolution of American Electoral Systems'' (1983), essays by scholars (some of them conservatives), 1790s to 1980s.
* Kleppner, Paul. ''The Third Electoral System 1853-1892: Parties, Voters, and Political Cultures'' (1979), analysis of voting behavior, with emphasis on region, ethnicity, religion and class. [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=24451028 online edition]
* Ling, Peter J. ''The Democratic Party: A Photographic History'' (2003).
* Patterson, James T. ''Grand Expectations: The United States, 1945-1974'' (1997) synthesis by leading scholar. [http://www.amazon.com/Grand-Expectations-United-1945-1974-History/dp/0195117972/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1211911625&sr=1-2 excerpt and text search]
* Patterson, James T. ''Restless Giant: The United States from Watergate to Bush vs. Gore'' (2005) synthesis by leading scholar. [http://www.amazon.com/Restless-Giant-United-Watergate-History/dp/0195305221/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1211911625&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Ritchie, Donald A. ''Electing FDR: The New Deal Campaign of 1932'' (2007) [http://www.amazon.com/Electing-FDR-Campaign-Presidential-Elections/dp/0700615504/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1195784762&sr=8-2 excerpt and text search]
* Rutland, Robert Allen. ''The Democrats: From Jefferson to Clinton'' (1995).
* Shafer, Byron E. and Anthony J. Badger, eds. ''Contesting Democracy: Substance and Structure in American Political History, 1775-2000'' (2001), most recent collection of new essays by specialists on each time period:
**includes: "State Development in the Early Republic: 1775–1840" by Ronald P. Formisano; "The Nationalization and Racialization of American Politics: 1790–1840" by David Waldstreicher; "'To One or Another of These Parties Every Man Belongs;": 1820–1865 by Joel H. Silbey; "Change and Continuity in the Party Period: 1835–1885" by Michael F. Holt; "The Transformation of American Politics: 1865–1910" by Peter H. Argersinger; "Democracy, Republicanism, and Efficiency: 1885–1930" by Richard Jensen; "The Limits of Federal Power and Social Policy: 1910–1955" by Anthony J. Badger; "The Rise of Rights and Rights Consciousness: 1930–1980" by James T. Patterson, Brown University; and "Economic Growth, Issue Evolution, and Divided Government: 1955–2000" by Byron E. Shafer
* Schlisinger, Galbraith. ''Of the People: The 200 Year History of the Democratic Party'' (1992)
* Sundquist, James L. ''Dynamics of the Party System: Alignment and Realignment of Political Parties in the United States'', (1983) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=29223022 online edition]
* Wilentz, Sean. ''The Rise of American Democracy: Jefferson to Lincoln'' (2005), detailed synthesis by a leading liberal scholar. [http://www.amazon.com/Rise-American-Democracy-Jefferson-Lincoln/dp/0393058204/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1195784940&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
* Witcover, Jules. ''Party of the People: A History of the Democrats'' (2003)
* Schlesinger, Arthur Meier, Jr. ed. ''History of American Presidential Elections, 1789-2000'' (various multivolume editions, latest is 2001). For each election includes a short history by a leading scholar and a selection of primary documents.

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==External links==
*[http://www.democrats.org/ Democratic Party Official Site]
*[http://www.demconvention.com/assets/downloads/2008-Democratic-Platform-final.pdf 2008 Democratic Platform (pdf download)]
*[http://bertschlossberg.blogspot.com/2012/11/lawrence-patton-mcdonald-b_15.html A Forgotten Man: Congressman Larry McDonald]

[[Category:United States Political Organizations]]
[[Category:United States Political Parties]]
[[Category:Democratic Party]]
[[Category:Progressive Era]]
[[Category:Gilded Age]]
[[Category:New Deal]]
[[Category:Reagan Era]]
[[Category:1960s]]
[[Category:Obama Presidency]]
[[Category:Liberals]]
[[Category:Jacksonian Democracy]]
[[Category:111th United States Congress]]
[[Category:Liberal Organizations]]
[[Category:Anti Second Amendment]]

Democratic Party

2017-04-20T01:52:48Z

Teapublican: racism segregationism

{{AmericanPoliticalParty
| party_name=Democratic Party
| party_articletitle = Democratic Party (United States)
| party_logo = [[Image:democraticpartyusalogo.png|200px]]
| website = [http://www.democrats.org www.democrats.org]
| headquarters = 430 South Capitol Street SE [[Washington, D.C.]] 20003
| chairman = [[Thomas Perez]]
| houseleader = [[Nancy Pelosi]]
| senateleader = [[Chuck Schumer]]
| foundation = 1828
| ideology = [[Liberalism]] [[Keynes]]ianism [[Socialism]] [[Progressivism]] [[Marxism]] [[Communism]] Historically: [[Racism]] [[White Supremacy]] Segregationism
| fiscalpolicy = [[Left-wing]]
| socialpolicy = Left-wing
| colors = Blue (unofficial)
| footnotes =
}}
:''This article is about the Democratic Party of the United States. For Democratic Parties in other countries, see [[Democratic party (disambiguation)]]''
:''For the grammatically-correct name of the party, see [[Democrat Party]]''
The '''Democratic Party'''<ref>This is the official name of the party.[https://www.democrats.org/about/our-party/party-organization] Some argue that its proper name is the "Democrat" Party, not the "Democratic" Party. No one says the "Republicanic Party," for example. Some Republicans and conservatives commonly refer to it as such, implying the party is not democratic. The term is said to grate on Democrats' ears.</ref> ('''D''') is one of the two major political [[parties]] in the [[United States of America]]. It is [[pro-abortion]] and anti-[[free enterprise]], supporting higher taxes, anti-gun policies, and a much larger, more invasive government, while the [[Republican Party]] is generally [[pro-life]] and pro-free enterprise, supporting lower taxes and small, responsible government.<ref>http://www.diffen.com/difference/Democrat_vs_Republican#Role_of_Government</ref> [[Barack Obama]] and other Democrats are left-wing on the political spectrum. Voters in 2010, 2014, and 2016 rejected Democratic Party candidates at the local, state and national levels in record-setting proportions. On February 25, 2017, the Democratic National Committee selected [[Thomas Perez]] to lead the party.

Members of the Democratic Party are known as Democrats. Founded in 1828, slavery and segregation were cornerstones of the party's ideology. Both were exclusively Democratic issues which the GOP was founded to oppose.<ref>The rights and dignity of the individual remain the core principal of the Republican party, be it opposition to slavery, abortion, big government, or high taxes.</ref> A Congressional faction known as [[Blue Dogs]] made up of [[conservative]] Democrats, was largely "shellacked" after it was offered up on the altar of Obamacare by [[Progressive]]s, defying and abandoning their constituents. In 2009 Bluedogs boasted 44 [[centrist]]s but by 2011 it had only 8 members. A [[bi-partisan]] core in the House was destroyed by radical leftists who now dominate the party.

In the doldrums after 2000, the party led by [[anti-war]] radicals roared back with major gains in 2006, which it expanded in 2008 to sweep control of the national government and leave the GOP in a state of confusion and decline. The GOP bounced back in 2009, with near-unanimous opposition to contentious Democratic policies, especially stimulus spending and Obamacare. Polls show Obama's popularity began to erode after his [[Barack Obama approval ratings#Declines after the Gates flap|anti-police stance]] became apparent in the summer of 2009.

For the first two Obama years, the Democrats controlled the White House and a veto-proof Congress, ramming through unpopular legislation without bipartisan support such as [[Obamacare]]. In the 2010 midterm elections, the Republican party won decisive control of the House of Representatives; suburbs and rural areas are still more likely to be in Republican hands.<ref>[http://www.multistate.com/Site.nsf/Elections2006PostMaps?OpenPage Multistate.com] Post-Election 2006 Maps</ref> Polls at the time indicated that 50% of voters identified themselves with the Democrats as opposed to 35% for the Republican Party.<ref>[http://people-press.org/reports/display.php3?ReportID=312 Trends in Political Values and Core Attitudes: 1987-2007] Pew Research Center, 22 March 2007</ref> On the one hand, the Democrats claim to have won the popular vote for President in 2016 by more than 2.7 million votes (although, contrary to [[liberal denial]], over 800,000 illegal immigrants likely voted<ref>Lucas, Fred, "[http://dailysignal.com/2016/11/28/more-than-800000-noncitizens-could-have-voted-in-2016-election-experts-say/ More Than 800,000 Noncitizens May Have Voted in 2016 Election, Expert Says]," ''The Daily Signal''.</ref><ref>O'Reilly, Bill (November 29, 2016). [http://www.foxnews.com/transcript/2016/11/29/bill-oreilly-amazing-amount-confusion-over-illegal-aliens-voting/ Bill O'Reilly: Amazing amount of confusion over illegal aliens voting]. ''Fox News''. Retrieved November 2016.</ref><ref>Scarborough, Rowan (January 26, 2017). [http://m.washingtontimes.com/news/2017/jan/26/hillary-clinton-received-800000-votes-from-nonciti/ Trump argument bolstered: Clinton could have received 800,000 votes from noncitizens, study finds]. ''The Washington Times''. Retrieved January 27, 2017.</ref>), and Republican candidates received 49.13% of the nationwide total votes cast for House races in 2016 and won 55.4% of U.S. House seats.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://ballotpedia.org/United_States_House_of_Representatives_elections,_2016|title=United States House of Representatives elections, 2016|accessdate=February 8, 2017}}</ref> However, because the Presidential election is decided by the Electoral College and the House seats are elected by defined districts, Republicans won the White House as well as the majority of House seats.

==Policies and criticism==
The views of individual Democrats sometimes diverge from the party's official stance as expressed in its national [[party platform]], however unlike the Republican party, the Democratic National Committee has not allowed dissenting opinions to share the podium on matters such as abortion at National Conventions.<ref>[http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2005_03/005787.php] , http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2005_03/005787.php, March 6, 2005</ref> The Democratic party also adopts policy positions and platforms at the state, Congressional district and local levels.

===Economic policy===
[[Image:Unemployment.jpg|thumb|right|''Source: Bureau of Labor Statisitcs'' [http://astuteblogger.blogspot.com/2009/07/anti-stimulus-in-pictures-any-questions.html]]]
In the field of economic policy, Democrats tend to favor high progressive taxes, more regulation, less personal freedom and more government control and spending.

The Democratic Party has historically had ties to [[labor union|organized labor]].<ref>http://weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/013/913wopoz.asp Paying Dues - The Democrats settle up with their union bosses, [[Weekly Standard]], July 25, 2007</ref> However, the influence of organized labor has waned as the portion of the unionized workforce has dropped in the "gig economy" that is more service oriented.

The [[National Education Association]],<ref>[http://www.nea.org/index.html National Education Association homepage]</ref> the largest union of public school teachers, is a backbone of the party, supplying the largest number of delegates to its national conventions.

Democrats typically claim that they want to help low-income Americans and claim to want to accomplish this by increasing the tax burden on the wealthiest Americans. However now only half of Americans pay federal taxes, and the other half receive federal benefits.

Since passage of the Economic Recovery Act of 2009, [[unemployment]] increased from below 7% to slightly under 10% and then fell to 6.2%.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.nr0.htm|title=Employment Situation Summary|work=Bureau of Labor Statistics|date=August 1, 2014|accessdate=August 5, 2014}}</ref>

Many Democrats support a minimum wage that increases with the increases in the cost of living and currently advocate setting the minimum wage at $15.00 per hour. President Obama signed an executive order imposing this minimum wage on federal contractors, a meanigless gesture as few federal contracts and little money is handed out to unskilled workers. Congress did not adopted a proposed $10.10 wage for all interstate commerce.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/06/12/minimum-wage-federal-contractors_n_5489027.html|title=Obama Moves On Minimum Wage Without Congress|date=June 12, 2014|accessdate=August 5, 2014}}</ref> Currently, only 4.3% of all hourly wage workers receive the current minimum wage of $7.25.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bls.gov/cps/minwage2013.pdf|title=Characteristics of Minimum Wage Workers, 2013|work=Bureau of Labor Statistics|date=March 2014|accessdate=August 5, 2014}}</ref>

===Foreign and military policy===
According to its platform, the Democratic Party is alleged to have the objective of strengthening America. Democratic national leadership has shown itself lax on terrorism while it grew exponentially on President Obama's watch<ref>[http://www.news10.net/display_story.aspx?storyid=22045 "Democrats, ACLU Outraged Over Traveler Terrorism Screening Program"] C. Johnson, Associated Press</ref> and insufficiently patriotic.<ref>[http://edition.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0112/01/smn.19.html CNN Saturday Morning News] Transcript: December 1, 2001</ref> A poll conducted by [[Fox News]] released in October 2007 found that 1 in 5 Democrats – nearly 10 million voters – think the world will be better off if the [[United States]] were to lose the [[War in Iraq]].<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,299374,00.html Nearly 1 in 5 Democrats Say World Will Be Better Off if U.S. Loses War], FOX News Poll, October 04, 2007.</ref> The poll found this sentiment 3 to 4 times higher among Democrats than among moderate, centrist, and Republican voters.

In general, the Democratic Party has been pro-Israel and, in a reversal of roles, anti-Russia. In contrast, some critics claim that Russia interefered in the 2016 Presidential election and worked to undermine Hillary Clinton's campaign, promoted Donald J. Trump while President Obama did nothing to prevent it. The Democratic Party has favored free trade agreements, environmental regulation and so-called "trade impact assistance" or government handouts after trade agreements destroy private sector, taxpaying jobs. Many traditional Republicans have also favored free trade agreements, but President Elect Donald J. Trump has called for the re-negotiation of free trade agreements.

===Education===
An organization affiliated with the [[Democratic Leadership Council]] called the [[Progressive Policy Institute]] claims a long-standing opposition to school vouchers.<ref>21st Century Schools Project Bulletin: Special Edition [http://www.ppionline.org/ppi_ci.cfm?knlgAreaID=110&subsecID=900001&contentID=250630 ''Putting Vouchers in Perspective''], PPI E-newsletter 2 July 2002</ref> Jonathan Alter of ''Newsweek'' warned that opposition to vouchers might alienate some traditional Democratic voting blocs:
:"Can wealthy white liberals - many of whom send their kids to private school - really say to poor parents: 'We can have choices, but you must not?'...This is a glaring hypocrisy sitting at the heart of the liberal opposition to targeted vouchers… Right now, Democrats are in a highly compromised position on education."<ref>[http://www.edreform.com/index.cfm?fuseAction=newsLetter&sectionID=29&NLissueID=4&articleID=11&altCol=2 Center For Education Reform, Monthly Letter to Friends No. 75], Back to School 2002.</ref>
Democrats favor expanded taxpayer funding of higher education, particularly for scientific research, land-grant colleges, community colleges and historically black colleges.<ref name=ed/> President Obama established a White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/executive-order-historically-black-colleges-and-universities|title=Executive Order 13532 -- Historically Black Colleges and Universities|date=February 26, 2010|accessdate=November 2, 2012}}</ref> Democrats subsidized the interest rate out of the federal treasury for Stafford loan voters by cutting the rate to 3.4% and eliminated private banks as middlemen in federal student loans.<ref name=ed>{{cite web|url=http://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/education/higher-education|title=Higher Education|accessdate=November 2, 2012}}</ref>

===Environment vs Labor===
Two other important coalition groups also find themselves in direct conflict with each other within the Democratic party coalition--[[Environmentalist]]s and Labor Unions. While environmentalists support efforts like clean air and alternative fuels, for example, this creates tension with the workers of American automobile manufactures whose jobs are threatened by environmental policies such as increasing regulations and high costs. Such policies can lead to cutbacks and layoffs. Balancing these issues is difficult because some sacrifices of interests must be made by both sides.

===Health care===
Democratic leaders have endorsed various [[Democratic Health Care Plans]]; the question in 2009 was whether a new trillion dollar plan could pass in a time of economic crisis. Many Democrats advocate a [[socialist]] [[big government]] single-payer health insurance system and used the budget reconciliation act to ram through an unpopular plan that required individuals to purchase insurance with the threat of fines for non-compliance. A new entitlement and income transfer program was created which favored some of their core constituents. On March 21, 2010, [[ObamaCare]] was passed on a straight partyline vote, and President Obama signed it into law on March 23, 2010.

The party grossly overplayed its hand, mistaking its internal unity as a national consensus. And the Obamacare plan was promoted by mainstream media sources with thousands of fake news stories, blatant lies, distortions, and deceptions, even by President Obama himself promising Americans if they liked their insurance policy, they could keep it. Many Democrats argued that there may be some advantages to a universal health care system. Democrats generally regard [[universal health care]] coverage to be a priority because of the appeal to voters with nothing to contribute to their own care and are without any kind of [[health insurance]]. Others argue that the United States must compete with foreign countries where the public treasury covers all health care costs which supposedly gives foreign companies an advantage over U.S. products. Another argument is that prior to ObamaCare, uninsured people would fail to get preventative care and would go to hospital emergency rooms for treatment, resulting in higher health care costs and large subsidies paid by people with health insurance.

The employer mandate required employers with 50 or more employees to provide some sort of health insurance plan for their workers. The net result was job loss and little new job creation, as many existing small businesses were forced to pare down their workforce to 49 employees and other jobs were never created because of the added costs and burden.

===Voting Rights and Civil Rights===
Democrats have generally favored legislation that makes it more convenient to vote, including early voting and no-excuse absentee voting. Democrats have supported litigation to address redistricting that hinders minorities from electing officials. Democrats have favored extension of the [[Voting Rights Act]].

===Homosexual "Rights"===
White Democratic leaders — but not blacks or Latinos — consistently favor measures such as the establishment of [[same-sex civil union]]s or "marriage". On May 9, 2012, [[Barack Obama|President Obama]] announced that he supports same-sex "marriage".<ref name="ABC News">{{cite web|url=http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/obama-sex-marriage-legal-16312904|title=Obama Affirms Support for Same-Sex Marriage|date=May 9, 2012|work=ABC News}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2012/05/09/politics/obama-same-sex-marriage/index.html|title=Obama announces he supports same-sex marriage|last=Gast|first=Phil|date=May 9, 2012|publisher=CNN|accessdate=November 1, 2012}}</ref>

===Abortion===
'''''In 2016, the Democrats adopted one of the most extreme, pro-abortion platforms in its history, supporting unrestricted abortion, supporting the repeal of every single law in existence that limits abortion including those that formerly received bipartisian support, and forcing taxpayers to fund murder.<ref>Bilger, Micaiah (June 28, 2016). [http://www.lifenews.com/2016/06/28/democratic-party-platform-calls-for-forcing-americans-to-pay-for-abortions/ Democratic Party Platform Calls for Forcing Americans to Pay for Abortions]. ''LifeNews.com''. Retrieved December 26, 2016.</ref>''''' Additionally, the Democrat presidential nominee [[Hillary Clinton]] was one of the strongest supporters of abortion in U.S. history.<ref>Ertelt, Steven (October 19, 2016). [http://www.lifenews.com/2016/10/19/hillary-clinton-defends-killing-babies-in-partial-birth-abortions-government-shouldnt-step-in/ Hillary Clinton Defends Killing Babies in Partial-Birth Abortions: “Government Shouldn’t Step In”]. ''LifeNews.com''. Retrieved December 26, 2016.</ref>

===Other Policies===
Democrats frequently support the [[minimum wage]], workplace protections, the legal "right" to [[abortion|murder unborn human beings]], [[gun control]], the [[homosexual agenda]], and the [[separation of church and state]].

==Religion==
In the United States, there is some correlation between religious and political affiliation, though people of all faiths and denominations can be found among the supporters of each of the main parties.

Historically, [[Roman Catholic Church|Catholic]] voters have had a tendency to identify with the Democratic Party; in recent decades there has been little difference. However, Catholic politicians are mostly Democrats, including Speaker of the House [[Nancy Pelosi]]. However, several general ideals of the Democratic Party's platform — most notably, the party's overall support for the legality of [[abortion]] and many methods of [[contraception]] — are contrary to the position of the [[Catholic Church]]. In 2012, there was a controversy regarding a national organization of religious women ("nuns") speaking out against House Republican budget proposals. This resulted in a national publicity tour and protests called "Nuns on the Bus".

With regard to Protestants, members of [[Evangelical]] churches in recent years have voted about 70-80% Republican. However, the large majority of Democratic Party members are Protestants. One unusual feature of the Democratic Party, however, is that it draws substantial support both from committed African-American Protestants (most of whom are Baptists) and from secular and atheist voters. The strong opposition to [[homosexuality]] found among many Black Protestants contrasts strikingly with the support frequently shown by other Democrats for the [[homosexual agenda]]. One reason for this contrast could be the Democrats' strong support for minority rights.

Democrats also generally believe that organized religion should be separate from public life, and as such are typically supported by the [[ACLU]]. For example, in 1999 the Congress took up a bill to protect the display of the [[Ten Commandments]]. In the House of Representatives, over 3/4ths of the Democratic party members voted to remove the display.<ref>http://www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/stories/1999/06/18/gun.rollcall/ten.commandments.html</ref> The measure did not pass the Congress, and as a result when a member of the Alabama Supreme Court, [[Roy Moore]], posted a [[Ten Commandments]] display in his courthouse, the ACLU was able to have the display removed.

=== Religious affiliation and voting for Barack Obama ===

Pew Forum reports about the religious affiliation of voters who voted for Barack Obama in 2012:
{{Cquote|About seven-in-ten religiously unaffiliated voters (70%) and Jews (69%) voted for Obama in 2012. A similar share of Jews in our survey (64%) say they are Democrats, while all three subsets of religious “[[nones]]” ([[Atheism|atheists]], [[Agnosticism|agnostics]] and those who say their religion is “nothing in particular”) lean in that direction as well.<ref>[http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/02/23/u-s-religious-groups-and-their-political-leanings/ U.S. religious groups and their political leanings]</ref>}}

==History==
[[File:Dem-leaders.jpg|thumb|Clockwise from far left: presidents Carter, Kennedy, Clinton, Wilson, Johnson, Truman, Jackson, Roosevelt]]
===First Party System===
Democrats claim that [[Thomas Jefferson]] founded their party in 1792 at the start of the [[First Party System]]. The [[Republicans (Jeffersonian)|Jeffersonian Republicans]] was a political party established under the leadership of Jefferson and [[James Madison]]. At the time, it was generally called the Republicans, but it had no relationship to today's Republican Party, founded in 1854. The 1816 election was the last occasion when the Federalist Party nominated a presidential candidate. In the 1820s, the Jeffersonian Republicans split into several fractions. [[Andrew Jackson]] emerged as the candidate of one of these groups and was elected president in 1828.

===Origins===
Most historians regard Jackson's 1832 campaign organization as the beginning of today's Democratic Party. The Democratic Party itself traces its origin to Jefferson's Republicans.<ref>[[World Book]]</ref> The leadership of the Jeffersonian Republicans, including [[John Quincy Adams]] and [[Henry Clay]], created the [[National Republican Party]]. Adams supporters called themselves National Republicans, antecedents of the Whig and later the Republican parties.<ref name="presidents">William DeGregorio, ''The Complete Book of U.S. Presidents'', Gramercy 1997</ref>

The modern Democratic party was formed during 1828-34, under the national leadership of Jackson and Van Buren, with organizations in all the states comprised of local political leaders. This became the era of [[Jacksonian Democracy]]. The Jacksonians resembled the [[Jeffersonian Democracy|Jeffersonians]] especially in terms of anti-elite rhetoric of opposition to "aristocracy" (that is, wealthy old families), distrust of banks (and paper money), and faith in "the people." By his extensive use of federal [[Spoils system|patronage]], President Jackson removed old office-holders to make way for party loyalists. With the emergence of the Whig Party, the nation now had a new party system, the [[Second Party System]], which lasted until 1854.

The party held its first national convention in 1832 to choose a new running mate for Jackson; it nominated Martin Van Buren for vice president and endorsed the reelection of Jackson. Jackson easily defeated Clay in 1832. In the political realignment of 1828-32, some of Jackson's supporters from the election of 1828, especially businessmen and bankers, switched to the opposition Whig Party as Jackson crusaded against the [[Second Bank of the United States]]. The name "Democratic Party" became common by the mid-1830s.

=== Jacksonian Democracy: 1832-1854 ===
[[image:donk1837.jpg|thumb|1837 cartoon shows Democratic Party as donkey]]
The new party dominated the [[Second Party System]] (as political scientists call it; historians call it "Jacksonian Democracy", 1832-54. After 1832, the Democratic Party drew support from a cross section of the country; every group was represented. However the vast majority of rich merchants, bankers and plantation owners were Whigs, as were most evangelical Protestants. The party was strongest among traditionalistic farmers, frontiersmen, unskilled workers, Irish Catholics, and local or state political leaders. It was weakest in [[New England]], where industrialization turned most factory workers and white collar workers into Whigs, but was dominant in all other regions. The key issues it promoted were opposition to elites and aristocrats, popular democracy (in terms of voting rights and access to government patronage jobs) and opposition to the [[Bank of the United States]] (Jackson vetoed its charter renewal in 1832). The policies were known as [[Jacksonian Democracy]]. [[Image:Jackson1832.jpg|thumb|300px|left]]

Banking and tariffs were the central domestic policy issues from 1828 to 1852. The Democrats favored the [[Mexican-American War]]; Whigs opposed it. Democrats attracted Catholic Irish and German immigrants and denounced anti-immigrant nativism. Both the Democrats and Whigs were divided on the issue of slavery.

In the 1830s the [[Loco-Focos]] in New York City were radically democratic, anti-monopoly, and proponents of [[laissez-faire]]. Their chief spokesman was writer [[William Leggett]]. At this time labor unions were few; some were loosely affiliated with the party.

The economy went sour in the late 1830s with Van Buren getting the blame; he lost reelection as president in 1840 to the Whig [[William Henry Harrison]]. The Democrats gained the White House back in 1844 with [[James K. Polk]]. He had a successful term, then retired. The Democratic National Committee was created in 1848 at the convention that nominated General [[Lewis Cass]], who lost to General [[Zachary Taylor]] of the Whigs. In state after state the Democrats gained small but permanent advantages over the Whigs, until by 1852 the Whig Party was fatally weakened by divisions regarding the issue of slavery and they soon vanished.

The Democratic party dominated the North from the 1840s to 1854. Northern Democrats opposed banks, criticized corporate practices, and preached the ideals of a free society. They called for rapid territorial expansion of the United States, saying that in territorial expansion lay a means for thwarting the pretensions of the [[Slave Power]].

[[Franklin Pierce]] of New Hampshire was elected president in 1852, followed by [[James Buchanan]] of Pennsylvania in 1856. They proved poor presidents who lost control of the slavery issue, and the party, as the nation broke apart and fought the [[American Civil War]].

===Third Party System: Civil War, Gilded Age: 1854-1896===
During the [[Third Party System]] (1854-1896) the Democrats (still split in two due to the issue over slavery) became the minority in the face of the newly formed Republican Party (formed by former Whigs and abolitionists), which controlled nearly all northern states by 1860, bringing a solid majority in the Electoral College. A powerful Republican issue was the allegation that northern Democrats, including "Doughfaces" like Pierce and Buchanan, and advocates of popular sovereignty like [[Stephen A. Douglas]] and [[Lewis Cass]], were accomplices to the [[Slave Power]]. The Republicans meant by Slave Power the conspiracy of slaveholders to seize control of the federal government and block the progress of liberty.

[[Image:DEM1860.JPG|thumb|left|To vote for Douglas in Virginia, a man had to deposit the ticket in the official ballot box.]]
In 1860 the Democrats were unable to stop the election of Republican [[Abraham Lincoln]], even as they feared his election would lead to civil war. The party split in two due to the issue of slavery. The northern wing nominated Douglas, and the southern wing nominated Vice President [[John C. Breckinridge]]. Douglas campaigned across the country and came in second in the popular vote, but carried only Missouri. Breckinridge carried 11 slave states.

The Republican Party was beginning a 50-year era of dominance (1858-1910). During the war, Northern Democrats divided into two factions, [[War Democrats]], who supported the military policies of President Lincoln, and [[Copperheads]], who strongly opposed them. Historian Kenneth Stampp has captured the Copperhead spirit in his depiction of Democratic Congressman [[Daniel W. Voorhees]] of Indiana:
<blockquote>There was an earthy quality in Voorhees, "the tall sycamore of the Wabash." On the stump his hot temper, passionate partisanship, and stirring eloquence made an irresistible appeal to the western Democracy. His bitter cries against protective tariffs and national banks, his intense race prejudice, his suspicion of the eastern Yankee, his devotion to personal liberty, his defense of the Constitution and state rights faithfully reflected the views of his constituents. Like other Jacksonian agrarians he resented the political and economic revolution then in progress. Voorhees idealized a way of life which he thought was being destroyed by the current rulers of his country. His bold protests against these dangerous trends made him the idol of the Democracy of the Wabash Valley.<ref>Stampp, 211.</ref></blockquote>

The Democrats lost consecutive presidential elections from 1860 through 1880 (but 1876 was in dispute); 1884 was their next victory. The Democrats were weakened by their record of opposition to the Civil War but nevertheless benefited from white Southerners' resentment of Reconstruction and consequent hostility to the Republican Party. The [[Redeemers]] gave the Democrats control of every Southern state; the disenfranchisement of black voters in most of the South took place 1890-1900. From 1880 to 1960 the "[[Solid South]]" voted Democratic in all presidential elections (except 1928). After 1900 the key election in southern states was the Democratic primary; victory in the that primary was "tantamount to election" because the GOP was so weak.

Though Republicans continued to control the White House until 1912 (except 1884 and 1892), the Democrats remained competitive in the states, especially in the mid-Atlantic and lower Midwest, and controlled the House of Representatives for most of that period. In the election of 1884, [[Grover Cleveland]], the conservative Democratic Governor of New York, won the presidency, a feat he repeated in 1892, having lost in the election of 1888.

[[Image:1893cleveland-typewriter.jpg|thumb|Typewriters were new in 1893 and this Gillam cartoon from ''Puck'' shows that Cleveland can't get the Democratic "machine" to work as the keys (key politicians) won't respond to his efforts.]]

Cleveland was the leader of the [[Bourbon Democrats]], the conservative wing of the party. They represented business interests, supported banking and railroad goals, promoted capitalism, opposed imperialism and U.S. verseas expansion, opposed the annexation of [[Hawaii]], fought for the [[gold standard]], and opposed [[Bimetallism]]. They strongly supported reform movements such as [[Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act|Civil Service Reform]] and opposed corruption of city bosses, leading the fight against the [[Tweed Ring]]. The leading Bourbons included [[Samuel J. Tilden]], [[David Bennett Hill]] and [[William C. Whitney]] of New York, [[Arthur Pue Gorman]] of Maryland, [[Thomas F. Bayard]] of Delaware, [[William L. Wilson]] of West Virginia, [[John Griffin Carlisle]] of Kentucky, [[William F. Vilas]] of Wisconsin, [[J. Sterling Morton]] of Nebraska, [[John M. Palmer]] of Illinois, [[Horace Boies]] of Iowa, [[L.Q.C. Lamar]] of Mississippi, and railroad builder [[James J. Hill]] of Minnesota. A prominent intellectual was [[Woodrow Wilson]]. The Bourbons were in power when the [[Panic of 1893]] hit; it was a deep depression and they took the blame. A fierce struggle inside the party ensued, with catastrophic losses for both the Bourbon and agrarian factions in 1894, leading to the showdown in 1896.
[[Image:Dead-dem1880.jpg|thumb|550px|In 1880 when General Hancock (right) became the presidential nominee of the Democrats, Republican cartoonists showed the Democratic party history as a horror chamber featuring atrocities in the Civil War era; the donkey" shows the party as a coalition of the rear end of the South joined to the rear end of the North]]

====Ethnocultural voting: pietistic Republicans versus liturgical Democrats====
Religious lines were sharply drawn.<ref>Kleppner (1979).</ref> Methodists, Congregationalists, Presbyterians, Scandinavian Lutherans and other pietists and evangelicals in the North were tightly linked to the Republican Party. In sharp contrast, liturgical groups, especially the Catholics, Episcopalians, and German Lutherans, looked to the Democratic Party for protection from pietistic moralism, especially prohibition. Both parties cut across the class structure, with the Democrats more bottom-heavy.

Cultural issues, especially prohibition and foreign language schools became important because of the sharp religious divisions in the electorate. In the North, about 50% of the voters were pietistic or evangelical Protestants who believed the government should be used to reduce social sins, such as drinking. Liturgical churches (Roman Catholics, German Lutherans, Episcopalians) comprised over a quarter of the vote and wanted the government to stay out of the morality business. Prohibition debates and referenda heated up politics in most states over a period of decade, as national prohibition was finally passed in 1918 (and repealed in 1933), serving as a major issue in the North between the wet Democracy and the dry GOP.<ref>In the South the Democrats were mostly on the dry side. Kleppner (1979).</ref>

===The Bryan Movement===
[[Image:Mark Hanna 1896 election.jpg|thumb|right|Democratic attack ad in 1896 against GOP National Chairman [[Mark Hanna]]; cartoon by Davenport depicts Hanna as a slave driver; from Hearst's ''New York Journal'']]
[[Grover Cleveland]] led the conservative, pro-business [[Bourbon Democrat]]s but as the [[Panic of 1893|depression of 1893]] deepened his enemies multiplied. The Panic of 1893 started in February 1893, a full month before Cleveland became president. Convinced that the [[Sherman Silver Purchase Act]], passed under the administration of [[Benjamin Harrison]], was largely responsible for the alarming drain on federal gold, President Cleveland called Congress into special session to urge its repeal. Congress consented, but only after bitter debate that divided the Democratic party into two hostile camps-the eastern "goldbugs" and the silver wing of the West and South that was to propel young [[William Jennings Bryan]] to the fore in 1896.<ref name="presidents" /> At the 1896 convention the silverite-agrarian faction repudiated the president, and nominated the crusading orator [[William Jennings Bryan]] on a platform of inflation through "free" silver. The idea was that minting huge numbers of silver dollars would flood the economy with cash and end the depression. Eastern Democrats, unable to accept the party's free-silver platform and unwilling to support McKinley for his tariff views, nominated their own candidate, John M. Palmer of Illinois and called themselves the National, or Gold, Democrats.<ref name="presidents" /> The [[Gold Democrats]] attracted politicians and intellectuals (including [[Woodrow Wilson]] and [[Frederick Jackson Turner]]) who refused to vote Republican.

Bryan, an overnight sensation because of his phenomenal "Cross of Gold" speech, crusaded against the gold standard. Crisscrossing the Midwest and East by special train, he gave over 500 speeches to audiences in the millions. In St. Louis he gave 36 speeches to workingmen's audiences all over the city, all in one day. Most Democratic newspapers were hostile (except [[William Randolph Hearst]]'s ''New York Journal'') but Bryan seized control of the media by making the news every day, as he hurled thunderbolts against Eastern monied interests. The rural folk in South and Midwest were ecstatic, showing an enthusiasm never before seen. Ethnic Democrats, especially Germans, however, were alarmed and frightened by Bryan. The middle classes, businessmen, newspaper editors, factory workers, railroad workers, and prosperous farmers generally rejected Bryan's crusade. Bryan was overwhelmed by [[William McKinley]] in the most exciting race in national history.<ref>Refuting Bryan's charges, historians have discovered there was little coercion of workers.</ref> McKinley promised a return to prosperity based on the gold standard, support for industry, railroads and banks, and pluralism that would enable every group to move ahead. Bryan did however, win the hearts and minds of a majority of Democrats. The election of 1896 was a political realignment. The victory of the Republican Party marked the start of the "Progressive Era," from 1896 to 1932, in which the GOP usually was dominant.

===Fourth Party System: Bryan, Wilson, Progressivism: 1896-1932 ===
The [[Fourth Party System]] began with the 1896 election, a realignment during which the GOP controlled the presidency for 28 of 36 years. The GOP dominated most of the Northeast and Midwest, and half the West. Bryan, with a base in the South and Plains states, was strong enough to get the nomination in 1900 (losing to McKinley) and 1908 (losing to Taft). [[Theodore Roosevelt]] dominated the first decade of the century—and to the annoyance of Democrats "stole" the trust issue by crusading against trusts.

[[Image:Steal~trust.JPG|thumb|[[Theodore Roosevelt]] steals the anti-trust issue from the Democrats, 1904]]

Anti-Bryan conservatives controlled the convention in 1904, but they faced a [[Theodore Roosevelt]] landslide. Bryan dropped his free silver and anti-imperialism rhetoric and supported mainstream progressive issues, such as the income tax, anti-trust, and direct election of Senators. He backed Woodrow Wilson in 1912, was rewarded with the State Department, then resigned in protest against Wilson's non-pacifistic policies in 1916. Northern Democrats were progressive on most issues, but generally opposed prohibition, were lukewarm regarding woman's suffrage, and were reluctant to undercut the "boss system" in the big cities.

Taking advantage of a deep split in the GOP, the Democrats took control of the House in 1910, and elected the intellectual reformer Woodrow Wilson in 1912 and 1916. Wilson successfully led Congress to a series of Progressive laws, including a reduced tariff, stronger antitrust laws, the [[Federal Reserve System]], hours-and-pay benefits for railroad workers, and outlawing of child labor (which was reversed by the Supreme Court). Furthermore, constitutional amendments for prohibition and woman suffrage were passed in his second term. In effect, Wilson laid to rest the issues of tariffs, money and antitrust that had dominated politics for 40 years.

Wilson ordered [[Jim Crow]] segregation in the federal government offices in Washington DC, wiping out 50 years of social progress for African-Americans. No longer could blacks and whites work together in government offices, eat in the same cafeterias, our use the same bathrooms. The Wilson administration went a step further. Through the Treasury Department's Office of the Architect, the bureau charged with construction and maintenance of federal buildings, federal buildings throughout the nation were ordered to furnish segregated bathrooms, even in Northern states were practices as such were virtually unknown.<ref>''American Nightmare: The History of Jim Crow'', Jerrold M. Packard, St. Martin's Press, 2003, pp. 124-125</ref>

Wilson led the U.S. to victory in the World War, and turned his attention to foreign affairs. He wrote parts of the [[Versailles Treaty]], especially the new [[League of Nations]]. But in 1919 Wilson's political skills faltered, and suddenly everything turned sour. The Senate rejected Versailles and the League, a nationwide wave of strikes and violence caused unrest, and Wilson's health collapsed. The GOP came roaring back in a landslide in 1920, as [[Warren G. Harding]] defeated a Democratic ticket memorable for having [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] as the vice presidential nominee.

[[Image:D-Edge-Congress.JPG|thumb|Before 1932 Republicans usually controlled Congress; after 1932 the Democrats usually were in control]]

At the 1924 Democratic National Convention, the big fight was over a resolution denouncing by name the [[Ku Klux Klan]]; it was pushed by New York governor [[Al Smith]] and Alabama Senator [[Oscar W. Underwood]] in order to embarrass the front-runner, [[William McAdoo]] of California. After furious debate, the resolution failed by just a single vote. The KKK faded away soon after, but the deep split in the party over cultural issues, especially Prohibition, facilitated Republican landslides in 1920, 1924 and 1928. However [[Al Smith]] did build a strong Catholic base in the big cities in 1928, and [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]]'s election as Governor of New York that year brought a new leader to center stage.

=== Fifth Party System: The New Deal ===
[[Image:509px-FDR in 1933.jpg|thumb|left|200px|President [[Franklin Delano Roosevelt]] (1933-1945)]]
The [[Wall Street Crash 1929|stock market crash of 1929]] and the ensuing [[Great Depression]] set the stage for a more progressive government and [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] won a [[landslide victory]] in the [[U.S. presidential election, 1932|election of 1932]], campaigning on a platform of "Relief, Recovery, and Reform." This came to be termed "[[New Deal|The New Deal]]" after a phrase in his acceptance speech. The Democrats also swept to large majorities in both houses of Congress, and among state Governors. Roosevelt altered the nature of the Party, away from laissez-faire capitalism, and towards an ideology of economic regulation and insurance against hardship. Conservative Democrats were outraged; led by [[Al Smith]] they formed the [[American Liberty League]] in 1934 and counterattacked. They failed and either retired from politics or joined the GOP. A few of them, such as [[Dean Acheson]] found their way back to the Democratic Party.

After making gains in Congress in 1934 Roosevelt moved left and embarked on an ambitious legislative program called "The Second New Deal." It was characterized by building up labor unions, nationalizing welfare by the [[WPA]] (which 2 million employed unemployed men), setting up [[Social Security]] and raising taxes on business profits.<ref>In general the New Deal, 1933-40, did not raise taxes, except for the Social Security tax that went into effect in 1937.</ref>

Roosevelt's [[New Deal]] programs focused on job creation through public works projects as well as Social Security. In the name of "reform" it imposed strong regulations on the banking and financial system, transportation, communications, stock markets and labor-management relations.

Roosevelt successfully built up the "[[New Deal Coalition]]", a powerful coalition of voters and interest groups that supported liberalism. Key components included big city machines and labor unions. Key voter groups included traditional Democrats, white Southerners, Catholics, Jews, and liberals, as well as many blacks. This united voter base allowed Democrats to be elected to Congress and the presidency for much of the next 30 years.

After a sweeping landslide reelection in 1936—losing only Maine and Vermont—Roosevelt stunned the nation, and his party, by calling for legislation to enlarge the Supreme Court by five new members. A firestorm of opposition erupted, led by his own vice president [[John Nance Garner]]. Roosevelt was defeated by an alliance of Republicans and conservative Democrats, who formed a [[Conservative coalition]] that managed to block nearly all liberal legislation. (Only a minimum wage law got through.) Angry with the conservative wing of his own party, Roosevelt tried to destroy it. In 1938, he actively campaigned against five incumbent conservative Democratic senators; all five senators won re-election. In 1940, Roosevelt broke with tradition and sought a third term as President.

Under FDR, the Democratic Party became identified closely with modern liberalism, which included the promotion of social welfare, unions and regulation of the economy. Civil rights were not on the party agenda at this time. FDR slways opposed the federal anti-lynching law a courted racist Southern Democrats.

Mayor Fiorello La Guardia of New York, a Republican [[New Deal]]er who supported Roosevelt, made the first efforts to court African-Americans, who were traditional Lincoln Republicans, into the New Deal coalition. Roosevelt provided federal funds to La Guardia and withheld support from his opponents. La Guardia decreed that African-Americans were not to be arrested for anything, and that police patrolling [[Harlem]] could not carry night sticks. Not until the presidential election of 1960 when John Kennedy intervened for the release of Martin Luther King, who was jailed two weeks before the election in Atlanta following a non-violent protest, did the majority of Blacks begin voting Democratic ''en bloc''. The transition was solidified four years later when the Republican presidential nominee, Barry Goldwater, who defied Republican Congressional leadership and voted with Southern Democrat segregationists to oppose the 1964 Civil Rights Act.

===Truman to Kennedy: 1945-1963===
Harry Truman took over unexpectedly in 1945, and the rifts inside the party that Roosevelt had papered over began to emerge. Former Vice President [[Henry A. Wallace]] denounced Truman as a war-monger for his anti-Soviet programs, the [[Truman Doctrine]], [[Marshall Plan]], and [[NATO]]. By cooperating with internationalist Republicans, Truman succeeded in defeating isolationists on the right and pro-Soviets on the left to establish a [[Cold War]] program that lasted until the fall of Communism in 1991. Wallace supporters and fellow travelers of the far left were pushed out of the party and the CIO in 1946-48 by young anti-Communists like [[Hubert Humphrey]], [[Walter Reuther]], and [[Arthur Schlesinger, Jr.]]. [[Hollywood]] emerged in the 1940s as an importance new base in the party, led by movie-star politicians such as [[Ronald Reagan]], who at this point in time strongly supported Roosevelt and Truman.<ref>Reagan became a conservative around 1960, saying the Democratic party had left him.</ref>

On the right the Republicans blasted Truman’s domestic policies. "Had Enough?" was the winning slogan as Republicans recaptured Congress in 1946. Many party leaders were ready to dump Truman, but they lacked an alternative. Truman counterattacked, pushing [[J. Strom Thurmond]] and his [[Dixiecrats]] out, and taking advantage of the splits inside the GOP. He was reelected in a stunning surprise. However all of Truman’s Fair Deal proposals, such as universal health care were defeated by the [[Conservative Coalition]] in Congress. His seizure of the steel industry was reversed by the Supreme Court.

In foreign policy, Europe was safe but troubles mounted in Asia. China fell to the Communists in 1949. Truman entered the [[Korean War]] without formal Congressional approval—the last time a president would ever do so. When the war turned to a stalemate in 1951 he fired General [[Douglas MacArthur]], a hero to conservatives. Republicans blasted Truman's failure to stop Communist gains in Asia. A series of petty scandals among friends and buddies of Truman further tarnished his image, allowing [[Dwight Eisenhower]] and the Republicans in 1952 to crusade against "Korea, Communism and Corruption." Truman dropped out of the presidential race early in 1952, leaving no obvious successor. The convention nominated [[Adlai Stevenson]] in 1952 and 1956, only to see him overwhelmed by two Eisenhower landslides.

[[Image:1952-32.jpg|thumb|right|Stevenson and labor unions warn against a return of the Republican policies of Herbert Hoover in 1952 campaign poster]]

In Congress the powerful duo of House Speaker [[Sam Rayburn]] and Senate Majority leader [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] held the party together, often by compromising with Eisenhower. In 1958 the party made dramatic gains in the midterms and seemed to have a permanent lock on Congress. Indeed, Democrats had majorities in the House every election from 1930 to 1992 (except 1946 and 1952). Most southern Congressmen were conservative Democrats, however, and they usually worked with conservative Republicans. The result was a [[Conservative Coalition]] that blocked practically all liberal domestic legislation from 1937 to the 1970s, except for a brief spell 1964-65, when Johnson neutralized its power.

The nomination of [[John F. Kennedy]] in 1960 energized the Catholic population, which jammed motorcades and turned out in heavy numbers (over 80% voted for Kennedy), while also causing a backlash among white Protestants (over 70% of whom voted for Republican candidate [[Richard Nixon]]. Reaching beyond the traditional Irish, German, Italian and Polish Catholic ethnics, Viva Kennedy set out to mobilize the previously passive Latino vote, and it perhaps provided the margin of victory for Kennedy in Texas and New Mexico. Kennedy's victory reinvigorated the party. His youth, vigor and intelligence caught the popular imagination. In foreign policy he was strongly anti-Communist, and promptly launched an invasion of casto's Cuba; it failed badly. A few new programs like the Peace Corps harnessed idealism. In terms of legislation, Kennedy was stalemated by the [[Conservative Coalition]], and anyway his proposals were all cautious and incremental. In three years he was unable to pass any significant new legislation.

Kennedy's election did mark the coming of age of the Catholic component of the New Deal Coalition. After 1964 middle class Catholics started voting Republicans in the same proportion as their Protestant neighbors. Except for the Chicago of [[Richard J. Daley]], the last of the Democratic machines faded away. His involvement in Vietnam proved momentous, for his successor Lyndon Johnson decided to stay, and double the investment, and double the bet again and again until over 500,000 American soldiers were fighting in that small country.

===Civil Rights, Riots, War and collapse of the New Deal Coalition===
[[Image:LBJ-64.jpg|left|thumb|President Lyndon Johnson ran for reelection in the shadow of Kennedy]]

The New Deal Coalition began to fracture as union and religious leaders demanded support for [[civil rights]], upsetting the party's traditional base of conservative Southern Democrats. After Harry Truman's platform showed support for civil rights and anti-segregation policies during the 1948 Democratic National Convention, many Southern Democratic delegates decided to split from the Party and formed the "[[Dixiecrats]]," led by [[South Carolina]] governor [[Strom Thurmond]] (who, as a Senator, would later join the Republican Party). Over the next few years, many conservative Democrats in the "[[Solid South]]" drifted away from the party. By 1940 most northern Blacks had shifted to the Democratic Party due to its New Deal relief programs and support for civil rights.

The party's dramatic reversal on civil rights issues culminated when Democratic President [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] signed into law the [[Civil Rights Act of 1964]]. The new laws ended segregation and also ended the main argument Democrats had used to block Republican gains in the South (that is, only the Democrats could protect segregation). The South became competitive in presidential politics in the 1970s and 1980s, giving strong support to Republican Ronald Reagan and rejecting the liberal northern candidates. The Democrats responded by nominating Southerners (Carter in 1976 and 1980, Clinton in 1992 and 1996, Gore in 2000). Few southern states were won by Democratic presidential candidates from the North (Humphrey in 1968, McGovern in 1972, Mondale in 1984, Dukakis in 1988, Kerry in 2004). At the state and local level the Republicans made slow, steady gains, especially among upscale middle class whites and migrants from the North. By the 1990s the GOP was competitive at the state and local level throughout the South. The Democrats made gains in the west, converting California to a Democratic stronghold and gaining in fast-growing Arizona and Nevada. The Northeast became more and more a Democratic enclave, especially after 2006 when numerous Republican moderates were defeated for reelection. The Midwest remained a battleground. The Democrats made strong gains in Illinois, but slipped a little in Minnesota.
[[Image:Demfight1968.jpg|thumb|290px|By 1968 Democrats were bitterly fighting over Vietnam and the failures of the Great Society]]

===1968 to 1999===
The Democratic party split five ways in 1968 and became a minority party in presidential elections for decades; after 1964 they won a national majority of the popular presidential vote only in 2008. However, the Democrats won a plurality of the popular vote in 1976, 1992, 1996 and 2000.

In 1972, the Democrats nominated Sen. [[George McGovern]] (SD) as the presidential candidate on a platform which advocated, among other things, U.S. withdrawal from Vietnam and a guaranteed minimum income for all Americans. McGovern's forces at the national convention ousted Mayor [[Richard J. Daley]] and the entire Chicago delegation, replacing them with insurgents led by [[Jesse Jackson]]. After it became know that McGovern's running mate, [[Thomas Eagleton]], had received electric shock therapy, McGovern said he supported Eagleton "1000%" but he was soon forced to drop him and find a new running mate. With his campaign stalled for several weeks McGovern finally selected [[Sargent Shriver]], a Kennedy-in-law who was close to Mayor Daley. On July 14, 1972, McGovern appointed his campaign manager, Jean Westwood as the first woman chair of the Democratic National Committee. McGovern was defeated in a landslide by incumbent [[Richard Nixon]], winning only Massachusetts and Washington, D.C. The [[Watergate affair]] of 1973-74 made corruption a central issue, especially after [[Gerald Ford]] pardoned Nixon in September 1974. The Democrats made major gains in the 1974 off-year elections.

[[Image:Carter.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Jimmy Carter was elected in 1976 and defeated in 1980.]]
In 1976, mistrust of the administration, complicated by a combination of economic recession and inflation, sometimes called ''[[stagflation]]'', led to Ford's narrow defeat in 1976 by [[Jimmy Carter]], a former governor of Georgia.

Carter represented the total outsider, who promised honesty in government. He had served as a naval officer, a farmer, a state senator, and a one-term governor. His only experience with federal politics was when he chaired the Democratic National Committee's congressional and gubernatorial elections in 1974. Some of Carter's major accomplishments consisted of the creation of a national energy policy and the consolidation of governmental agencies, resulting in two new cabinet departments, the [[United States Department of Energy]] and the [[United States Department of Education]]. Carter also successfully deregulated the trucking, airline, rail, finance, communications, and oil industries, bolstered the [[social security]] system, and appointed record numbers of women and minorities to significant government and judicial posts. He also enacted strong legislation on environmental protection, through the expansion of the [[National Park Service]] in [[Alaska]], adding 103 million acres of park land. In foreign affairs, Carter's accomplishments consisted of the [[Camp David Accords]], the [[Panama Canal Treaties]], the creation of full diplomatic relations with the [[People's Republic of China]], and the negotiation of the [[SALT II]] Treaty. In addition, he championed human rights throughout the world and used human rights as the center of his administration's foreign policy.

Even with all of these successes, Carter failed to implement a national health plan or to reform the tax system, as he had promised in his campaign. Inflation was also on the rise. Abroad, the Iranians held 52 Americans hostage for 444 days, and Carter's diplomatic and military rescue attempts failed. The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan later that year weakened the perception Americans had of Carter. Even though he had already been defeated for re-election, Carter fortunately was able to negotiate the release of every American hostage. They were lifted out of Iran minutes after Reagan was inaugurated and Carter served as Reagan's emissary to greet them when they arrived in Germany. In 1980, Carter defeated liberal champion [[Edward Kennedy]] to gain renomination, but lost to conservative [[Ronald Reagan]] by a landslide. The Democrats lost 12 Senate seats, and for the first time since 1954, the Republicans controlled the Senate. The House, however, remained in Democratic hands.

====1980s: Battling Reaganism====
Instrumental in the election of Republican [[Ronald Reagan]] in 1980, were Democrats who supported many conservative policies. Among legislators, one of the most prominent of these consevative Democrats was Georgia congressman and second chairman of the [[John Birch Society]], [[Larry McDonald]], who was a passenger on [[Korean Airlines Flight 007]] shot down by the Soviets near [[Moneron Island]] on September 1, 1983. The "Reagan Democrats" were Democrats before the Reagan years, and afterward, but they voted for Ronald Reagan in 1980 and 1984 (and for [[George H. W. Bush]] in 1988), producing their landslide victories. They were mostly white ethnics in the Northeast who were attracted to Reagan's social conservatism on issues such as abortion, and to his strong foreign policy. They did not continue to vote Republican in 1992 or 1996, so the term fell into disuse except as a reference to the 1980s. The term is not used to describe southern whites who became permanent Republicans in presidential elections. Stanley Greenberg, a Democratic pollster analyzed white ethnic voters, largely unionized auto workers, in suburban Macomb County, Michigan, just north of Detroit. The county voted 63 percent for Kennedy in 1960 and 66 percent for Reagan in 1984. He concluded that Reagan Democrats no longer saw Democrats as champions of their middle class aspirations, but instead saw it as being a party working primarily for the benefit of others, especially African Americans and the very poor. Bill Clinton targeted the Reagan Democrats with considerable success in 1992 and 1996.

[[Image:Liberal1984.jpg|thumb]] The failure to hold the Reagan Democrats and the white South led to the final collapse of the [[New Deal coalition]]. Reagan carried 49 states against former Vice President and Minnesota Senator [[Walter Mondale]], a New Deal stalwart, in 1984. Massachusetts Governor [[Michael Dukakis]], running not as a New Dealer but as an efficiency expert in public administration, lost by a landslide in 1988 to Vice President [[George H. W. Bush]], who had pledged "no new taxes."

In response to these landslide defeats, the [[Democratic Leadership Council]] was created. It worked to move the Party rightwards to the ideological center in order to recover some of the fundraising that had been lost to the Republicans due to corporate donors supporting Reagan. With the Party retaining left-of-center supporters as well as supporters holding moderate or conservative views on some issues, the Democrats became generally a "big tent" or "catch all party" with widespread appeal to most opponents of the Republicans.

====The South moves toward Republicans====
In the century after the end of [[Reconstruction]] in 1877, the white South identified with Democratic Party. The Democrats' lock on power was so strong, the region was called the [[Solid South]]. The Republicans only controlled parts of the Appalachian mountains, but they sometimes did compete for statewide office in the border states. Before 1964, the southern Democrats saw their party as the defender of the southern way of life, which included a respect for states' rights and an appreciation for traditional southern "values" (including [[segregation]] of blacks). They repeatedly warned against the aggressive designs of Northern liberals and Republicans, as well as civil rights activists whom they denounced as "outside agitators."

However, between 1964 and 2004, the Democratic Party's lock on the South was broken. The long-term cause had to do with the South becoming more like the rest of the nation. It could not long stand apart in terms of racial segregation. Modernization had brought factories, national businesses, and larger, more cosmopolitan cities to the South, as well as millions of migrants from the North and more opportunities for higher education. Meanwhile, the cotton and tobacco economy of the traditional rural South faded away, as former farmers commuted to factory jobs.

Integration and the civil rights movement caused enormous controversy in the white South, with many attacking it as a violation of states' rights. When segregation was outlawed by court order and by the Civil Rights acts of 1964 and 1965, a die-hard element resisted integration, led by Democratic governors [[Orval Faubus]] of Arkansas, [[Lester Maddox]] of Georgia, and, especially [[George Wallace]] of Alabama. These populist governors appealed to a less-educated, blue-collar electorate that on economic grounds favored the Democratic Party, but opposed desegregation. After 1965 most Southerners accepted integration (with the exception of public schools). Believing themselves betrayed by the Democratic Party, traditional white southerners joined the new middle-class and the Northern transplants in moving toward the Republican Party. Meanwhile, newly enfranchised Black voters began supporting Democratic candidates at the 80-90-percent levels, producing Democratic leaders such as [[Julian Bond]] and [[John Lewis]] of Georgia, and [[Barbara Jordan]] of Texas. Just as Martin Luther King had promised, integration had brought about a new day in Southern politics, freeing both blacks and whites from old hatreds and fears.

Using issues of cultural conservatism, especially opposition to abortion and homosexuality and support for school prayer, Republicans attracted strong majorities among evangelical Christians. They were nationwide, but strongest in the South; before the 1980s they were largely apolitical. Exit polls in 2004 showed that Bush led Kerry by 70-30% among Southern whites, who comprised 71% of the voters. Kerry had a 90-9 lead among the 18% of Southern voters who were black. One third of the Southern voters said they were white evangelicals; they voted for Bush by 80-20.<ref>See the exit polls at {{cite web|url=http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2004/pages/results/states/US/P/00/epolls.3.html |date=2004-11-02\|accessdate=2006-11-18|title=U.S. PRESIDENT / REGION: SOUTH / EXIT POLL}}</ref>

====1990s====
In the 1990s the Democratic Party revived itself, in part by moving to the right on economic and social policy. President [[Bill Clinton]], who defeated the incumbent [[George H. W. Bush]] in 1992, implemented a balanced federal budget and [[welfare reform]] (cutting benefits and requiring many recipients to take jobs), traditionally conservative causes. Labor unions, which had been steadily losing membership since the 1960s, found they had also lost political clout inside the Democratic Party: Clinton enacted the [[NAFTA]] free trade agreement with Canada and Mexico over the strong objection of these labor unions, much to the disappointment of those on the left of the party. The [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican Party]] took control of both the House of Representatives and the United States Senate after the 1994 election. Clinton was impeached in 1998 and subsequently acquitted in 1999.

When the [[Democratic Leadership Council]] (DLC) attempted to move the Democratic agenda in favor of more centrist positions, prominent Democrats from both the centrist and conservative factions assumed leadership of the party and its direction. Some liberals and progressives felt alienated by the Democratic Party, which they felt had become unconcerned with the interests of the common people and left-wing issues in general. Some Democrats challenged the validity of such critiques, citing the Democratic role in pushing for progressive reforms.

===21st century===
====Election of 2000====
During the presidential election of 2000, the Democrats chose Vice President [[Al Gore]] to be the party's candidate for the presidency. Gore and [[George W. Bush]], the Republican candidate and son of former President George H.W. Bush, disagreed on a number of issues, including abortion, gun control, environmentalism, gay rights, tax cuts, foreign policy, public education, global warming, judicial appointments, and affirmative action. Nevertheless, Gore's affiliation with Clinton and the DLC caused critics—Green Party presidential candidate [[Ralph Nader]] in particular—to assert that Bush and Gore were too similar, especially on free trade, reductions in social welfare, and the death penalty. "We want to punish the Democrats, we want to hurt them, wound them," Nader's closest advisor said.<ref>Harry G. Levinem "Ralph Nader, Suicide Bomber." ''The Village Voice'' May 3, 2004 at [http://www.villagevoice.com/news/0418,levine,53179,1.html]</ref>

Gore won a popular plurality of over 500,000 votes over Bush, but lost in the electoral vote by four votes. In a close election anything can be decisive, but many angry Democrats blamed Nader's third-party spoiler role for Gore's defeat. Controversy plagued the election, and Gore largely dropped from politics for years; by 2005 however he was making speeches critical of Bush's foreign and environmental policies.

Despite Gore's close defeat, the Democrats gained five seats in the Senate (including the election of [[Hillary Clinton]] in New York), to turn a 55-45 Republican edge into a 50-50 split (with a Republican Vice President breaking a tie). However, when Republican Senator [[Jim Jeffords]] of Vermont decided in 2001 to become an independent and caucus with the Democrats, the majority status shifted along with the seat, including control of the floor (by the Majority Leader) and control of all committee chairmanships. However, the Republicans regained their Senate majority with gains in 2002 and 2004, leaving the Democrats with only 44 seats, the fewest since the 1920s.

====2001-2003====
In the aftermath of the [[9-11 Attacks]], the nation's focus was changed to issues of national security. All but one Democrat<ref>Representative [[Barbara Lee]] of Texas</ref> joined the Republicans to authorize President Bush to invade invasion of Afghanistan and overthrow the Taliban. House leader [[Richard Gephardt]] and Senate leader [[Thomas Daschle]] pushed Democrats to vote for the [[USA PATRIOT Act]] and the 2003 invasion of Iraq. The Democrats were split over entering Iraq in 2003 and increasingly expressed concerns about both the justification and progress of the [[War on Terrorism]], as well as the domestic effects, including supposed threats to civil rights and civil liberties from the PATRIOT Act. Senator [[Russ Feingold]] was the only Senator to vote against the act; it received more resistance when it came up for renewal, but was renewed in 2006.

In the wake of the financial fraud scandal of the [[Enron Corporation]] and other corporations, Congressional Democrats pushed for a legal overhaul of business accounting with the intention of preventing further accounting fraud. This led to the bipartisan [[Sarbanes-Oxley Act]] in 2002. Economic issues did not work well in 2002, as the Democrats lost a few seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. They lost three seats in the Senate. While Democrats gained governorships in New Mexico (where [[Bill Richardson]] was elected), Arizona ([[Janet Napolitano]]) and Wyoming ([[Dave Freudenthal]]), other Democrats lost governorships in South Carolina ([[Jim Hodges]]), Alabama ([[Don Siegelman]]) and, for the first time in more than a century, Georgia ([[Roy Barnes]]). The election led to another round of soul searching about the party's narrowing base. The party's miseries mounted in 2003, when a voter recall unseated their unpopular governor of California, [[Gray Davis]], and replaced him which a charismatic liberal Republican [[Arnold Schwarzenegger]]. By the end of 2003 the four largest states had Republican governors: California, Texas, New York and Florida.

====Election of 2004====
The 2004 campaign began in late 2002, when Gore said he would not run again. [[Howard Dean]], former Governor of Vermont, an opponent of the war and a critic of the Democratic establishment, was the front-runner leading into the Democratic primaries. Dean had immense grassroots support, especially from the left wing of the party. Massachusetts Senator [[John Kerry]], a more centrist figure with heavy support from the DLC, was nominated because he was seen as more "electable" than Dean. Democrats moved to populist anti-business positions that denounced free trade and the [[NAFTA]] agreement. The party rhetoric attacked the Bush administration rather than propose alternative programs.

In the end, Kerry lost both the popular vote (by 3 million out of over 120 million votes cast) and the [[Electoral College]]. Republicans also gained four seats in the Senate and three seats in the House of Representatives, and for the first time since 1952, the Democratic leader of the Senate lost re-election. In the end, there were 3,660 Democratic state legislators across the nation to the Republicans' 3,557. Democrats gained governorships in Louisiana, New Hampshire and Montana. However, they lost the governorship of Missouri and a legislative majority in Georgia, which had long been a Democratic stronghold.

There were many reasons for the defeat. After the election most analysts concluded that Kerry was a poor campaigner.<ref>Evan Thomas and Staff of Newsweek,''Election 2004: How Bush Won and What You Can Expect in the Future''(2005)</ref> A group of Vietnam veterans opposed to Kerry called the "Swift Boat Veterans for Truth" undercut Kerry's use of his military past as a campaign strategy. Kerry was unable to reconcile his initial support of the [[Iraq War]] with his opposition to the war in 2004, or manage the deep split in the Democratic Party between those who favored and opposed the war. Republicans ran thousands of television commercials to argue that Kerry had flip-flopped on Iraq. When Kerry's home state of Massachusetts legalized same-sex marriage, the issue split liberal and conservative Democrats and independents (Kerry publicly stated throughout his campaign that he opposed same sex marriage, but favored civil unions). Republicans exploited the same-sex marriage issue by promoting ballot initiatives in 11 states that brought conservatives to the polls in large numbers; all 11 initiatives passed. Some Democrats argued that flaws in vote-counting systems may also have played a role in Kerry's defeat in Ohio. Other factors include a healthy job market, a rising stock market, strong home sales, and low unemployment.

After the 2004 election, prominent Democrats began to rethink the party's direction, and a variety of strategies for moving forward were voiced. Some Democrats proposed moving towards the right; others demanded that the party move more to the left and become a stronger opposition party. Rethinking the party's position on gun control became a matter of discussion, brought up by [[Howard Dean]], [[Bill Richardson]], [[Brian Schweitzer]] and other Democrats who had won governorships in states where Second Amendment rights were important to many voters.

====2005 - 2007====
These debates were reflected in the 2005 campaign for Chairman of the [[Democratic National Committee]], which [[Howard Dean]] won. He sought to move the Democratic strategy away from the establishment, and bolster support for the party's state organizations, even in Red states.

When the 109th Congress convened in 2005, [[Harry Reid]], the new Senate Minority Leader, tried to convince the Democratic Senators to vote more as a bloc on important issues; he forced the Republicans to abandon their push for privatization of Social Security. In 2005, the Democrats retained their governorships in Virginia and New Jersey, electing [[Tim Kaine]] and [[Jon Corzine]], respectively. However, the party lost the mayoral race in New York City, a Democratic stronghold, for the fourth straight time.

In 2006, with scandals involving Republican lobbyist [[Jack Abramoff]], as well as GOP House leader [[Tom DeLay]], Ohio GOP governor [[Bob Taft]] and others, the Democrats used the slogan "Culture of corruption." Negative public opinion on the war in Iraq, along with widespread dissatisfaction among conservatives over government spending, dragged President Bush's job approval ratings down to the lowest levels of his presidency. To win control the Democrats had to add 15 seats in the House (they added 30), and 6 in the Senate (they added 6).

The Democratic Party's electoral success has been attributed to running relatively conservative Democrats in close seats, such as the Senate races in Virginia, Pennsylvania and Montana.<ref>Dewan Shaila and Anne E. Kornblut, "In Key House Races, Democrats Run to the Right," ''New York Times,'' 2006-10-30; but compare Rick Perlstein, "Who deserves credit for the Democratic comeback?" ''The New Republic'' 2006-11-08 at [https://ssl.tnr.com/p/docsub.mhtml?i=w061106&s=perlstein110806]</ref> Exit polling suggested that corruption was a key issue for many voters.<ref>CNN, "Corruption named as key issue by voters in exit polls," 2006-11-08 at [http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/11/07/election.exitpolls/]</ref>

In 2006 Democrats gained a majority of governorships and made gains in many state legislatures. No Democratic incumbent was defeated in any major race.

====2007-2010====
[[File:Obama_approval_index_december_22_2009.jpg‎|thumb]]
House Democrats chose Rep. [[Nancy Pelosi]] of California for Speaker, the first woman ever, but rejected her choice for House Majority Leader, electing Steny Hoyer instead of John Murtha. Senate Democrats promoted Harry Reid to Majority Leader. Neither have been very effective.

The presidential campaign of 2008 featured a remarkable duel between Obama—the first major black candidate, and [[Hillary Clinton]], the first major woman contender. Obama won with his charismatic oratory and his highly efficient fund-raising and strong organization in the caucus states, while Clinton went downscale to pick up big majorities among poor whites and Hispanics. The contest between Obama and GOP nominee [[John McCain]] showed Obama being the clear favorite, with the vast majority of polls (with the exception of early September) depicting Obama as the clear favorite.

The [[Obama Administration]] got off to a fast start in 2009, especially in vigorous efforts to combat the [[Recession of 2008]] with heavy new stimulus spending, massive loans to banks, increased regulation, and deep intervention in the automobile industry. All those policies were begun by Bush, and had failed to reverse the decline of the economy in late 2008. Whether they will now succeed remains an open question, with the GOP now voting solidly against them and some conservatives like [[Rush Limbaugh]] hoping that the Democrats will fail badly and that the people will again turn to the Republican party. The Democratic Party is feeling the sting from the opposition and many Democrats are beginning to question their own leadership. Liberals are disenchanted with Obama's hawkish position on the [[Afghanistan War]]. The health care reform that consumed most of 2009 remains unsettled, as public opinion has turned against it. Environmentalists now seem resigned to the failure of a [[cap and trade]] program to reduce CO2 emissions. Most of all the recession drags on. The stimulus bill was passed quickly in February 2009 over almost unanimous GOP opposition, but despite promises of "shovel ready" projects, most of the money has not been spent a year later and the economy remains in the doldrums.

The elections in November 2009 in New Jersey and Virginia went badly for the Democrats, as the GOP gained both governorships and many local races, not to mention the Democrats' fifth straight loss for the mayoralty of New York City.

In the [[2010 Midterm Elections]], the Republican Party gained 63 Representatives in the House (one of the largest amounts in its history and surpassing the 1994 landslide), almost gained a majority in the Senate, and gained a majority of governorships and state legislatures in one of its best election results in its history.

====2011-present====
Liberal Democrat [[Barack Obama]] won re-election in [[2012 United States Presidential Election|2012]], even though the Republican Party held on to all its 2010 gains.

Although the Democrats had the opportunity to reverse the massive GOP gains in 2014, they completely failed and allowed the GOP to make even larger victories. For example, even though the GOP held a majority of governorships so large that it would be extremely difficult to hold them all, they actually gained two states, expanding their majority to 31 out of 50.

Again, in 2016, the Democrats performed very poorly, allowing the GOP to win the presidency with [[Donald Trump]],<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/11/08/first-polls-close-in-2016-race-trump-projected-to-win-ind-ky-clinton-wins-vt.html Trump wins presidency, defeats Clinton in historic election upset]. ''Fox News''. November 8, 2016. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref> to maintain their House and Senate majorities,<ref>Bresnahan, John (November 9, 2016). [http://www.politico.eu/article/republicans-on-cusp-of-keeping-the-senate/ Republicans hold the Senate in a stunner]. ''Politico''. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref><ref>Hughes, Siobhan (November 9, 2016). [http://www.wsj.com/articles/republicans-are-confident-about-retaining-control-of-the-house-1478634160 Democrats Gain Seats in House, But GOP Retains Majority]. ''The Wall Street Journal''. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref> to win the largest amount of governorships since 1922,<ref>Lieb, David A. (November 9, 2016). [http://www.usnews.com/news/us/articles/2016-11-09/republicans-expand-control-of-governorships-legislatures Republicans governorships rise to highest mark since 1922]. ''U.S. News & World Report''. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref> and to win the most state legislative chambers in history.<ref>Bosman, Julie & Davey, Monica (November 11, 2016). [http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/12/us/republicans-expand-control-in-a-deeply-divided-nation.html Republicans Expand Control in a Deeply Divided Nation]. ''The New York Times''. Retrieved November 14, 2016.</ref> The Democrats held a record low amount of party trifectas in the states.<ref>Greenblatt, Alan (November 9, 2016). [http://www.governing.com/topics/elections/gov-republicans-add-dominance-state-legislatures.html Republicans Add to Their Dominance of State Legislatures]. ''Governing''. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref><ref>Siegel, Josh (November 9, 2016). [http://dailysignal.com/2016/11/09/republicans-maintain-strong-control-of-state-capitols-what-that-means/ Republicans Maintain Strong Control of State Capitols. Here’s What That Means.] ''The Daily Signal''. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref> Democrats lost 1,042 seats—including U.S. House, Senate, state governorship, and state legislative seats—during the eight years of [[Barack Obama]]'s tenure as U.S. president.<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/12/27/democrats-lost-over-1000-seats-under-obama.html?refresh=true Democrats lost over 1,000 seats under Obama]. ''Fox News''. December 27, 2016. Retrieved December 27, 2016.</ref>

Although the Democrats had earlier derided conservative Republicans as being the "party of No", the aftermath of the 2016 elections showed that the Democrats would rightfully assume that label.<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/12/26/new-party-no-dems-prepare-for-battle-with-trump-on-cabinet-picks-agenda.html?refresh=true New Party of No? Dems prepare for battle with Trump on Cabinet picks, agenda]. ''Fox News''. December 26, 2016. Retrieved December 26, 2016.</ref>

==Symbols==
The most common symbol for the party is the donkey, although the party itself never officially adopted this symbol.<ref>[http://www.democrats.org/a/2005/06/history_of_the.php History of the Democratic Donkey].</ref> Some historians suggest the jackass was born 1828 when Jackson was sometimes called a jackass by his opponents as a play on his name. A political cartoon depicting Jackson riding and directing a donkey (representing the Democratic Party) was published in 1837. A political cartoon by [[Thomas Nast]] in an 1870 revived the donkey as a symbol for the Democratic Party. Cartoonists ever since have followed Nast and used the donkey to represent the Democrats, and the elephant to represent the Republicans.

In the early 20th century, the traditional symbol of the Democratic Party in many states was the rooster, as opposed to the Republican eagle.

There is no official color, but since election night 2000 blue has become the identification color of the Democratic Party for maps, while the red has become the color of the Republicans. Increasingly blue is used by Democrats for promotions (e.g. BuyBlue, BlueFund) and by the party itself, which in 2006 unveiled the "Red to Blue Program" to support Democratic candidates running against Republican incumbents in the 2006 midterm election.

The song "[[Happy Days Are Here Again]]" is the unofficial song of the Democratic Party. It was used prominently when Roosevelt was nominated for president at the 1932 Democratic National Convention and remains a sentimental favorite for Democrats today. During the [[Bill Clinton|Clinton]] era, the [[Fleetwood Mac]] song "Don't Stop Thinking About Tomorrow" became a popular song at Democratic events, reflecting the growing prominence of Baby Boomers in the party.

Some critics refer to the group disparagingly as the [[Democrat Party]].
==Jefferson – Jackson Dinners==
The United States Democratic Party claims Jefferson and [[Andrew Jackson]] as two of its key founding members. Although this claim is a bit of a stretch, for decades the Democrats have honored these two presidents by holding fund-raising events called "Jefferson-Jackson Dinners." Recently, in an act of extreme "political correctness", activists have demanded that these events be renamed on the grounds that Jefferson held slaves and Jackson mistreated Native Americans. Many units of the Democratic Party have given into these arguments and are denouncing and dishonoring two of what most Americans view as great Presidents.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/09/us/jefferson-jackson-dinner-will-be-renamed.html|title=Jefferson-Jackson Dinner Will Be Renamed|date=August 8, 2015|work=New York Times|accessdate=April 19, 2016|first=Ashley|last=Southhall}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://blogs.denverpost.com/thespot/2015/11/16/colorado-democratic-party-considers-renaming-annual-jefferson-jackson-dinner/123835/|title=Colorado Democrats consider renaming Jefferson Jackson dinner|work=The Denver Post|first=John|last= Frank|date=November 16, 2015|accessdate=April 19, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=
http://www.nola.com/politics/index.ssf/2015/07/jefferson_jackson_renamed_loui.html|title=As state Democratic parties rename their Jefferson-Jackson dinners, will Louisiana change 'J-J?'|work=The Times Picayune|first=Kevin |last=Litten|date= July 23, 2015|accessdate=April 21, 2016}}</ref>

==Democratic Presidents==
* [[Andrew Jackson]] (1829-1837)
* [[Martin Van Buren]] (1837-1841)
* [[James K. Polk]] (1845-1849)
* [[Franklin Pierce]] (1853-1857)
* [[James Buchanan]] (1857-1861)
* [[Grover Cleveland]] (1885-1889) (1893-1897)
* [[Woodrow Wilson]] (1913-1921)
* [[Franklin Roosevelt]] (1933-1945)
* [[Harry S Truman]] (1945-1953)
* [[John F. Kennedy]] (1961-1963)
* [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] (1963-1969)
* [[Jimmy Carter]] (1977-1981)
* [[Bill Clinton]] (1993-2001)
* [[Barack Obama]] (2009–2017)

==See also==
*[[Racism and the Democratic Party]]
*[[Clinton Foundation conflicts of interest]]
*[[Obamacare]]
*[[Democratic party (disambiguation)]]
*[[Previous Breaking News/Democrats|Articles about '''Democrats''' from previous "Breaking News"]]
*[[Democrats (Brazil)]]

==Bibliography==
===Current===
*Barone, Michael, and Grant Ujifusa, ''The Almanac of American Politics 2008: The Senators, the Representatives and the Governors: Their Records and Election Results, Their States and Districts'' (2007) covers all the live politicians with amazing detail. New edition every two years since 1975.
* Brownstein, Ronald. ''The Second Civil War: How Extreme Partisanship Has Paralyzed Washington and Polarized America''(2007)
* Crane, Michael. ''The Political Junkie Handbook: The Definitive Reference Books on Politics'' (2004) covers all the major issues explaining the parties' positions
*Sabato, Larry J. ''Divided States of America: The Slash and Burn Politics of the 2004 Presidential Election'' (2005).
*Sabato, Larry J. ed. ''The Sixth Year Itch: The Rise and Fall of the George W. Bush Presidency'' (1907), in-depth essays by scholars on key states in 2006
* Sabato, Larry J., and Howard R. Ernst eds. ''Political Parties and Elections'' (2007), 540pp; an encyclopedia with 450 entries by scholars; focus is 1945 to present
* Sabato, Larry J. and Bruce Larson. ''The Party's Just Begun: Shaping Political Parties for America's Future'' (2001) textbook.
* Shafer, Byron E. and Anthony J. Badger, eds. ''Contesting Democracy: Substance and Structure in American Political History, 1775-2000'' (2001), long essays by specialists on each time period
* Shafer, Byron and Richard Johnston. ''The End of Southern Exceptionalism'' (2006), uses statistical election data & polls to argue GOP growth was primarily a response to economic change
===Historical===
* ''American National Biography'' (20 volumes, 1999) covers all politicians no longer alive; online and paper copies at many academic libraries.
* Jensen, Richard. ''Grass Roots Politics: Parties, Issues, and Voters, 1854-1983'' (1983) [http://www.questia.com/library/book/grass-roots-politics-parties-issues-and-voters-1854-1983-by-christopher-c-gibbs-richard-j-jensen-steven-l-piott.jsp online edition]; survey by conservative scholar, with primary sources
* Kennedy, David M. ''Freedom from Fear: The American People in Depression and War, 1929-1945'' (2001), synthesis by leading scholar; Pulitzer prize [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=52284041 online edition]
* Kleppner, Paul et al. ''The Evolution of American Electoral Systems'' (1983), essays by scholars (some of them conservatives), 1790s to 1980s.
* Kleppner, Paul. ''The Third Electoral System 1853-1892: Parties, Voters, and Political Cultures'' (1979), analysis of voting behavior, with emphasis on region, ethnicity, religion and class. [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=24451028 online edition]
* Ling, Peter J. ''The Democratic Party: A Photographic History'' (2003).
* Patterson, James T. ''Grand Expectations: The United States, 1945-1974'' (1997) synthesis by leading scholar. [http://www.amazon.com/Grand-Expectations-United-1945-1974-History/dp/0195117972/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1211911625&sr=1-2 excerpt and text search]
* Patterson, James T. ''Restless Giant: The United States from Watergate to Bush vs. Gore'' (2005) synthesis by leading scholar. [http://www.amazon.com/Restless-Giant-United-Watergate-History/dp/0195305221/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1211911625&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Ritchie, Donald A. ''Electing FDR: The New Deal Campaign of 1932'' (2007) [http://www.amazon.com/Electing-FDR-Campaign-Presidential-Elections/dp/0700615504/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1195784762&sr=8-2 excerpt and text search]
* Rutland, Robert Allen. ''The Democrats: From Jefferson to Clinton'' (1995).
* Shafer, Byron E. and Anthony J. Badger, eds. ''Contesting Democracy: Substance and Structure in American Political History, 1775-2000'' (2001), most recent collection of new essays by specialists on each time period:
**includes: "State Development in the Early Republic: 1775–1840" by Ronald P. Formisano; "The Nationalization and Racialization of American Politics: 1790–1840" by David Waldstreicher; "'To One or Another of These Parties Every Man Belongs;": 1820–1865 by Joel H. Silbey; "Change and Continuity in the Party Period: 1835–1885" by Michael F. Holt; "The Transformation of American Politics: 1865–1910" by Peter H. Argersinger; "Democracy, Republicanism, and Efficiency: 1885–1930" by Richard Jensen; "The Limits of Federal Power and Social Policy: 1910–1955" by Anthony J. Badger; "The Rise of Rights and Rights Consciousness: 1930–1980" by James T. Patterson, Brown University; and "Economic Growth, Issue Evolution, and Divided Government: 1955–2000" by Byron E. Shafer
* Schlisinger, Galbraith. ''Of the People: The 200 Year History of the Democratic Party'' (1992)
* Sundquist, James L. ''Dynamics of the Party System: Alignment and Realignment of Political Parties in the United States'', (1983) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=29223022 online edition]
* Wilentz, Sean. ''The Rise of American Democracy: Jefferson to Lincoln'' (2005), detailed synthesis by a leading liberal scholar. [http://www.amazon.com/Rise-American-Democracy-Jefferson-Lincoln/dp/0393058204/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1195784940&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
* Witcover, Jules. ''Party of the People: A History of the Democrats'' (2003)
* Schlesinger, Arthur Meier, Jr. ed. ''History of American Presidential Elections, 1789-2000'' (various multivolume editions, latest is 2001). For each election includes a short history by a leading scholar and a selection of primary documents.

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==External links==
*[http://www.democrats.org/ Democratic Party Official Site]
*[http://www.demconvention.com/assets/downloads/2008-Democratic-Platform-final.pdf 2008 Democratic Platform (pdf download)]
*[http://bertschlossberg.blogspot.com/2012/11/lawrence-patton-mcdonald-b_15.html A Forgotten Man: Congressman Larry McDonald]

[[Category:United States Political Organizations]]
[[Category:United States Political Parties]]
[[Category:Democratic Party]]
[[Category:Progressive Era]]
[[Category:Gilded Age]]
[[Category:New Deal]]
[[Category:Reagan Era]]
[[Category:1960s]]
[[Category:Obama Presidency]]
[[Category:Liberals]]
[[Category:Jacksonian Democracy]]
[[Category:111th United States Congress]]
[[Category:Liberal Organizations]]
[[Category:Anti Second Amendment]]

Democratic Party

2017-04-20T01:49:43Z

Teapublican: marxism

{{AmericanPoliticalParty
| party_name=Democratic Party
| party_articletitle = Democratic Party (United States)
| party_logo = [[Image:democraticpartyusalogo.png|200px]]
| website = [http://www.democrats.org www.democrats.org]
| headquarters = 430 South Capitol Street SE [[Washington, D.C.]] 20003
| chairman = [[Thomas Perez]]
| houseleader = [[Nancy Pelosi]]
| senateleader = [[Chuck Schumer]]
| foundation = 1828
| ideology = [[Liberalism]] [[Keynes]]ianism [[Socialism]] [[Progressivism]] [[Marxism]] [[Welafre]]ism
| fiscalpolicy = [[Left-wing]]
| socialpolicy = Left-wing
| colors = Blue (unofficial)
| footnotes =
}}
:''This article is about the Democratic Party of the United States. For Democratic Parties in other countries, see [[Democratic party (disambiguation)]]''
:''For the grammatically-correct name of the party, see [[Democrat Party]]''
The '''Democratic Party'''<ref>This is the official name of the party.[https://www.democrats.org/about/our-party/party-organization] Some argue that its proper name is the "Democrat" Party, not the "Democratic" Party. No one says the "Republicanic Party," for example. Some Republicans and conservatives commonly refer to it as such, implying the party is not democratic. The term is said to grate on Democrats' ears.</ref> ('''D''') is one of the two major political [[parties]] in the [[United States of America]]. It is [[pro-abortion]] and anti-[[free enterprise]], supporting higher taxes, anti-gun policies, and a much larger, more invasive government, while the [[Republican Party]] is generally [[pro-life]] and pro-free enterprise, supporting lower taxes and small, responsible government.<ref>http://www.diffen.com/difference/Democrat_vs_Republican#Role_of_Government</ref> [[Barack Obama]] and other Democrats are left-wing on the political spectrum. Voters in 2010, 2014, and 2016 rejected Democratic Party candidates at the local, state and national levels in record-setting proportions. On February 25, 2017, the Democratic National Committee selected [[Thomas Perez]] to lead the party.

Members of the Democratic Party are known as Democrats. Founded in 1828, slavery and segregation were cornerstones of the party's ideology. Both were exclusively Democratic issues which the GOP was founded to oppose.<ref>The rights and dignity of the individual remain the core principal of the Republican party, be it opposition to slavery, abortion, big government, or high taxes.</ref> A Congressional faction known as [[Blue Dogs]] made up of [[conservative]] Democrats, was largely "shellacked" after it was offered up on the altar of Obamacare by [[Progressive]]s, defying and abandoning their constituents. In 2009 Bluedogs boasted 44 [[centrist]]s but by 2011 it had only 8 members. A [[bi-partisan]] core in the House was destroyed by radical leftists who now dominate the party.

In the doldrums after 2000, the party led by [[anti-war]] radicals roared back with major gains in 2006, which it expanded in 2008 to sweep control of the national government and leave the GOP in a state of confusion and decline. The GOP bounced back in 2009, with near-unanimous opposition to contentious Democratic policies, especially stimulus spending and Obamacare. Polls show Obama's popularity began to erode after his [[Barack Obama approval ratings#Declines after the Gates flap|anti-police stance]] became apparent in the summer of 2009.

For the first two Obama years, the Democrats controlled the White House and a veto-proof Congress, ramming through unpopular legislation without bipartisan support such as [[Obamacare]]. In the 2010 midterm elections, the Republican party won decisive control of the House of Representatives; suburbs and rural areas are still more likely to be in Republican hands.<ref>[http://www.multistate.com/Site.nsf/Elections2006PostMaps?OpenPage Multistate.com] Post-Election 2006 Maps</ref> Polls at the time indicated that 50% of voters identified themselves with the Democrats as opposed to 35% for the Republican Party.<ref>[http://people-press.org/reports/display.php3?ReportID=312 Trends in Political Values and Core Attitudes: 1987-2007] Pew Research Center, 22 March 2007</ref> On the one hand, the Democrats claim to have won the popular vote for President in 2016 by more than 2.7 million votes (although, contrary to [[liberal denial]], over 800,000 illegal immigrants likely voted<ref>Lucas, Fred, "[http://dailysignal.com/2016/11/28/more-than-800000-noncitizens-could-have-voted-in-2016-election-experts-say/ More Than 800,000 Noncitizens May Have Voted in 2016 Election, Expert Says]," ''The Daily Signal''.</ref><ref>O'Reilly, Bill (November 29, 2016). [http://www.foxnews.com/transcript/2016/11/29/bill-oreilly-amazing-amount-confusion-over-illegal-aliens-voting/ Bill O'Reilly: Amazing amount of confusion over illegal aliens voting]. ''Fox News''. Retrieved November 2016.</ref><ref>Scarborough, Rowan (January 26, 2017). [http://m.washingtontimes.com/news/2017/jan/26/hillary-clinton-received-800000-votes-from-nonciti/ Trump argument bolstered: Clinton could have received 800,000 votes from noncitizens, study finds]. ''The Washington Times''. Retrieved January 27, 2017.</ref>), and Republican candidates received 49.13% of the nationwide total votes cast for House races in 2016 and won 55.4% of U.S. House seats.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://ballotpedia.org/United_States_House_of_Representatives_elections,_2016|title=United States House of Representatives elections, 2016|accessdate=February 8, 2017}}</ref> However, because the Presidential election is decided by the Electoral College and the House seats are elected by defined districts, Republicans won the White House as well as the majority of House seats.

==Policies and criticism==
The views of individual Democrats sometimes diverge from the party's official stance as expressed in its national [[party platform]], however unlike the Republican party, the Democratic National Committee has not allowed dissenting opinions to share the podium on matters such as abortion at National Conventions.<ref>[http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2005_03/005787.php] , http://www.washingtonmonthly.com/archives/individual/2005_03/005787.php, March 6, 2005</ref> The Democratic party also adopts policy positions and platforms at the state, Congressional district and local levels.

===Economic policy===
[[Image:Unemployment.jpg|thumb|right|''Source: Bureau of Labor Statisitcs'' [http://astuteblogger.blogspot.com/2009/07/anti-stimulus-in-pictures-any-questions.html]]]
In the field of economic policy, Democrats tend to favor high progressive taxes, more regulation, less personal freedom and more government control and spending.

The Democratic Party has historically had ties to [[labor union|organized labor]].<ref>http://weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/013/913wopoz.asp Paying Dues - The Democrats settle up with their union bosses, [[Weekly Standard]], July 25, 2007</ref> However, the influence of organized labor has waned as the portion of the unionized workforce has dropped in the "gig economy" that is more service oriented.

The [[National Education Association]],<ref>[http://www.nea.org/index.html National Education Association homepage]</ref> the largest union of public school teachers, is a backbone of the party, supplying the largest number of delegates to its national conventions.

Democrats typically claim that they want to help low-income Americans and claim to want to accomplish this by increasing the tax burden on the wealthiest Americans. However now only half of Americans pay federal taxes, and the other half receive federal benefits.

Since passage of the Economic Recovery Act of 2009, [[unemployment]] increased from below 7% to slightly under 10% and then fell to 6.2%.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bls.gov/news.release/empsit.nr0.htm|title=Employment Situation Summary|work=Bureau of Labor Statistics|date=August 1, 2014|accessdate=August 5, 2014}}</ref>

Many Democrats support a minimum wage that increases with the increases in the cost of living and currently advocate setting the minimum wage at $15.00 per hour. President Obama signed an executive order imposing this minimum wage on federal contractors, a meanigless gesture as few federal contracts and little money is handed out to unskilled workers. Congress did not adopted a proposed $10.10 wage for all interstate commerce.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/06/12/minimum-wage-federal-contractors_n_5489027.html|title=Obama Moves On Minimum Wage Without Congress|date=June 12, 2014|accessdate=August 5, 2014}}</ref> Currently, only 4.3% of all hourly wage workers receive the current minimum wage of $7.25.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.bls.gov/cps/minwage2013.pdf|title=Characteristics of Minimum Wage Workers, 2013|work=Bureau of Labor Statistics|date=March 2014|accessdate=August 5, 2014}}</ref>

===Foreign and military policy===
According to its platform, the Democratic Party is alleged to have the objective of strengthening America. Democratic national leadership has shown itself lax on terrorism while it grew exponentially on President Obama's watch<ref>[http://www.news10.net/display_story.aspx?storyid=22045 "Democrats, ACLU Outraged Over Traveler Terrorism Screening Program"] C. Johnson, Associated Press</ref> and insufficiently patriotic.<ref>[http://edition.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/0112/01/smn.19.html CNN Saturday Morning News] Transcript: December 1, 2001</ref> A poll conducted by [[Fox News]] released in October 2007 found that 1 in 5 Democrats – nearly 10 million voters – think the world will be better off if the [[United States]] were to lose the [[War in Iraq]].<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,299374,00.html Nearly 1 in 5 Democrats Say World Will Be Better Off if U.S. Loses War], FOX News Poll, October 04, 2007.</ref> The poll found this sentiment 3 to 4 times higher among Democrats than among moderate, centrist, and Republican voters.

In general, the Democratic Party has been pro-Israel and, in a reversal of roles, anti-Russia. In contrast, some critics claim that Russia interefered in the 2016 Presidential election and worked to undermine Hillary Clinton's campaign, promoted Donald J. Trump while President Obama did nothing to prevent it. The Democratic Party has favored free trade agreements, environmental regulation and so-called "trade impact assistance" or government handouts after trade agreements destroy private sector, taxpaying jobs. Many traditional Republicans have also favored free trade agreements, but President Elect Donald J. Trump has called for the re-negotiation of free trade agreements.

===Education===
An organization affiliated with the [[Democratic Leadership Council]] called the [[Progressive Policy Institute]] claims a long-standing opposition to school vouchers.<ref>21st Century Schools Project Bulletin: Special Edition [http://www.ppionline.org/ppi_ci.cfm?knlgAreaID=110&subsecID=900001&contentID=250630 ''Putting Vouchers in Perspective''], PPI E-newsletter 2 July 2002</ref> Jonathan Alter of ''Newsweek'' warned that opposition to vouchers might alienate some traditional Democratic voting blocs:
:"Can wealthy white liberals - many of whom send their kids to private school - really say to poor parents: 'We can have choices, but you must not?'...This is a glaring hypocrisy sitting at the heart of the liberal opposition to targeted vouchers… Right now, Democrats are in a highly compromised position on education."<ref>[http://www.edreform.com/index.cfm?fuseAction=newsLetter&sectionID=29&NLissueID=4&articleID=11&altCol=2 Center For Education Reform, Monthly Letter to Friends No. 75], Back to School 2002.</ref>
Democrats favor expanded taxpayer funding of higher education, particularly for scientific research, land-grant colleges, community colleges and historically black colleges.<ref name=ed/> President Obama established a White House Initiative on Historically Black Colleges and Universities.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/executive-order-historically-black-colleges-and-universities|title=Executive Order 13532 -- Historically Black Colleges and Universities|date=February 26, 2010|accessdate=November 2, 2012}}</ref> Democrats subsidized the interest rate out of the federal treasury for Stafford loan voters by cutting the rate to 3.4% and eliminated private banks as middlemen in federal student loans.<ref name=ed>{{cite web|url=http://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/education/higher-education|title=Higher Education|accessdate=November 2, 2012}}</ref>

===Environment vs Labor===
Two other important coalition groups also find themselves in direct conflict with each other within the Democratic party coalition--[[Environmentalist]]s and Labor Unions. While environmentalists support efforts like clean air and alternative fuels, for example, this creates tension with the workers of American automobile manufactures whose jobs are threatened by environmental policies such as increasing regulations and high costs. Such policies can lead to cutbacks and layoffs. Balancing these issues is difficult because some sacrifices of interests must be made by both sides.

===Health care===
Democratic leaders have endorsed various [[Democratic Health Care Plans]]; the question in 2009 was whether a new trillion dollar plan could pass in a time of economic crisis. Many Democrats advocate a [[socialist]] [[big government]] single-payer health insurance system and used the budget reconciliation act to ram through an unpopular plan that required individuals to purchase insurance with the threat of fines for non-compliance. A new entitlement and income transfer program was created which favored some of their core constituents. On March 21, 2010, [[ObamaCare]] was passed on a straight partyline vote, and President Obama signed it into law on March 23, 2010.

The party grossly overplayed its hand, mistaking its internal unity as a national consensus. And the Obamacare plan was promoted by mainstream media sources with thousands of fake news stories, blatant lies, distortions, and deceptions, even by President Obama himself promising Americans if they liked their insurance policy, they could keep it. Many Democrats argued that there may be some advantages to a universal health care system. Democrats generally regard [[universal health care]] coverage to be a priority because of the appeal to voters with nothing to contribute to their own care and are without any kind of [[health insurance]]. Others argue that the United States must compete with foreign countries where the public treasury covers all health care costs which supposedly gives foreign companies an advantage over U.S. products. Another argument is that prior to ObamaCare, uninsured people would fail to get preventative care and would go to hospital emergency rooms for treatment, resulting in higher health care costs and large subsidies paid by people with health insurance.

The employer mandate required employers with 50 or more employees to provide some sort of health insurance plan for their workers. The net result was job loss and little new job creation, as many existing small businesses were forced to pare down their workforce to 49 employees and other jobs were never created because of the added costs and burden.

===Voting Rights and Civil Rights===
Democrats have generally favored legislation that makes it more convenient to vote, including early voting and no-excuse absentee voting. Democrats have supported litigation to address redistricting that hinders minorities from electing officials. Democrats have favored extension of the [[Voting Rights Act]].

===Homosexual "Rights"===
White Democratic leaders — but not blacks or Latinos — consistently favor measures such as the establishment of [[same-sex civil union]]s or "marriage". On May 9, 2012, [[Barack Obama|President Obama]] announced that he supports same-sex "marriage".<ref name="ABC News">{{cite web|url=http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/obama-sex-marriage-legal-16312904|title=Obama Affirms Support for Same-Sex Marriage|date=May 9, 2012|work=ABC News}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.cnn.com/2012/05/09/politics/obama-same-sex-marriage/index.html|title=Obama announces he supports same-sex marriage|last=Gast|first=Phil|date=May 9, 2012|publisher=CNN|accessdate=November 1, 2012}}</ref>

===Abortion===
'''''In 2016, the Democrats adopted one of the most extreme, pro-abortion platforms in its history, supporting unrestricted abortion, supporting the repeal of every single law in existence that limits abortion including those that formerly received bipartisian support, and forcing taxpayers to fund murder.<ref>Bilger, Micaiah (June 28, 2016). [http://www.lifenews.com/2016/06/28/democratic-party-platform-calls-for-forcing-americans-to-pay-for-abortions/ Democratic Party Platform Calls for Forcing Americans to Pay for Abortions]. ''LifeNews.com''. Retrieved December 26, 2016.</ref>''''' Additionally, the Democrat presidential nominee [[Hillary Clinton]] was one of the strongest supporters of abortion in U.S. history.<ref>Ertelt, Steven (October 19, 2016). [http://www.lifenews.com/2016/10/19/hillary-clinton-defends-killing-babies-in-partial-birth-abortions-government-shouldnt-step-in/ Hillary Clinton Defends Killing Babies in Partial-Birth Abortions: “Government Shouldn’t Step In”]. ''LifeNews.com''. Retrieved December 26, 2016.</ref>

===Other Policies===
Democrats frequently support the [[minimum wage]], workplace protections, the legal "right" to [[abortion|murder unborn human beings]], [[gun control]], the [[homosexual agenda]], and the [[separation of church and state]].

==Religion==
In the United States, there is some correlation between religious and political affiliation, though people of all faiths and denominations can be found among the supporters of each of the main parties.

Historically, [[Roman Catholic Church|Catholic]] voters have had a tendency to identify with the Democratic Party; in recent decades there has been little difference. However, Catholic politicians are mostly Democrats, including Speaker of the House [[Nancy Pelosi]]. However, several general ideals of the Democratic Party's platform — most notably, the party's overall support for the legality of [[abortion]] and many methods of [[contraception]] — are contrary to the position of the [[Catholic Church]]. In 2012, there was a controversy regarding a national organization of religious women ("nuns") speaking out against House Republican budget proposals. This resulted in a national publicity tour and protests called "Nuns on the Bus".

With regard to Protestants, members of [[Evangelical]] churches in recent years have voted about 70-80% Republican. However, the large majority of Democratic Party members are Protestants. One unusual feature of the Democratic Party, however, is that it draws substantial support both from committed African-American Protestants (most of whom are Baptists) and from secular and atheist voters. The strong opposition to [[homosexuality]] found among many Black Protestants contrasts strikingly with the support frequently shown by other Democrats for the [[homosexual agenda]]. One reason for this contrast could be the Democrats' strong support for minority rights.

Democrats also generally believe that organized religion should be separate from public life, and as such are typically supported by the [[ACLU]]. For example, in 1999 the Congress took up a bill to protect the display of the [[Ten Commandments]]. In the House of Representatives, over 3/4ths of the Democratic party members voted to remove the display.<ref>http://www.cnn.com/ALLPOLITICS/stories/1999/06/18/gun.rollcall/ten.commandments.html</ref> The measure did not pass the Congress, and as a result when a member of the Alabama Supreme Court, [[Roy Moore]], posted a [[Ten Commandments]] display in his courthouse, the ACLU was able to have the display removed.

=== Religious affiliation and voting for Barack Obama ===

Pew Forum reports about the religious affiliation of voters who voted for Barack Obama in 2012:
{{Cquote|About seven-in-ten religiously unaffiliated voters (70%) and Jews (69%) voted for Obama in 2012. A similar share of Jews in our survey (64%) say they are Democrats, while all three subsets of religious “[[nones]]” ([[Atheism|atheists]], [[Agnosticism|agnostics]] and those who say their religion is “nothing in particular”) lean in that direction as well.<ref>[http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/02/23/u-s-religious-groups-and-their-political-leanings/ U.S. religious groups and their political leanings]</ref>}}

==History==
[[File:Dem-leaders.jpg|thumb|Clockwise from far left: presidents Carter, Kennedy, Clinton, Wilson, Johnson, Truman, Jackson, Roosevelt]]
===First Party System===
Democrats claim that [[Thomas Jefferson]] founded their party in 1792 at the start of the [[First Party System]]. The [[Republicans (Jeffersonian)|Jeffersonian Republicans]] was a political party established under the leadership of Jefferson and [[James Madison]]. At the time, it was generally called the Republicans, but it had no relationship to today's Republican Party, founded in 1854. The 1816 election was the last occasion when the Federalist Party nominated a presidential candidate. In the 1820s, the Jeffersonian Republicans split into several fractions. [[Andrew Jackson]] emerged as the candidate of one of these groups and was elected president in 1828.

===Origins===
Most historians regard Jackson's 1832 campaign organization as the beginning of today's Democratic Party. The Democratic Party itself traces its origin to Jefferson's Republicans.<ref>[[World Book]]</ref> The leadership of the Jeffersonian Republicans, including [[John Quincy Adams]] and [[Henry Clay]], created the [[National Republican Party]]. Adams supporters called themselves National Republicans, antecedents of the Whig and later the Republican parties.<ref name="presidents">William DeGregorio, ''The Complete Book of U.S. Presidents'', Gramercy 1997</ref>

The modern Democratic party was formed during 1828-34, under the national leadership of Jackson and Van Buren, with organizations in all the states comprised of local political leaders. This became the era of [[Jacksonian Democracy]]. The Jacksonians resembled the [[Jeffersonian Democracy|Jeffersonians]] especially in terms of anti-elite rhetoric of opposition to "aristocracy" (that is, wealthy old families), distrust of banks (and paper money), and faith in "the people." By his extensive use of federal [[Spoils system|patronage]], President Jackson removed old office-holders to make way for party loyalists. With the emergence of the Whig Party, the nation now had a new party system, the [[Second Party System]], which lasted until 1854.

The party held its first national convention in 1832 to choose a new running mate for Jackson; it nominated Martin Van Buren for vice president and endorsed the reelection of Jackson. Jackson easily defeated Clay in 1832. In the political realignment of 1828-32, some of Jackson's supporters from the election of 1828, especially businessmen and bankers, switched to the opposition Whig Party as Jackson crusaded against the [[Second Bank of the United States]]. The name "Democratic Party" became common by the mid-1830s.

=== Jacksonian Democracy: 1832-1854 ===
[[image:donk1837.jpg|thumb|1837 cartoon shows Democratic Party as donkey]]
The new party dominated the [[Second Party System]] (as political scientists call it; historians call it "Jacksonian Democracy", 1832-54. After 1832, the Democratic Party drew support from a cross section of the country; every group was represented. However the vast majority of rich merchants, bankers and plantation owners were Whigs, as were most evangelical Protestants. The party was strongest among traditionalistic farmers, frontiersmen, unskilled workers, Irish Catholics, and local or state political leaders. It was weakest in [[New England]], where industrialization turned most factory workers and white collar workers into Whigs, but was dominant in all other regions. The key issues it promoted were opposition to elites and aristocrats, popular democracy (in terms of voting rights and access to government patronage jobs) and opposition to the [[Bank of the United States]] (Jackson vetoed its charter renewal in 1832). The policies were known as [[Jacksonian Democracy]]. [[Image:Jackson1832.jpg|thumb|300px|left]]

Banking and tariffs were the central domestic policy issues from 1828 to 1852. The Democrats favored the [[Mexican-American War]]; Whigs opposed it. Democrats attracted Catholic Irish and German immigrants and denounced anti-immigrant nativism. Both the Democrats and Whigs were divided on the issue of slavery.

In the 1830s the [[Loco-Focos]] in New York City were radically democratic, anti-monopoly, and proponents of [[laissez-faire]]. Their chief spokesman was writer [[William Leggett]]. At this time labor unions were few; some were loosely affiliated with the party.

The economy went sour in the late 1830s with Van Buren getting the blame; he lost reelection as president in 1840 to the Whig [[William Henry Harrison]]. The Democrats gained the White House back in 1844 with [[James K. Polk]]. He had a successful term, then retired. The Democratic National Committee was created in 1848 at the convention that nominated General [[Lewis Cass]], who lost to General [[Zachary Taylor]] of the Whigs. In state after state the Democrats gained small but permanent advantages over the Whigs, until by 1852 the Whig Party was fatally weakened by divisions regarding the issue of slavery and they soon vanished.

The Democratic party dominated the North from the 1840s to 1854. Northern Democrats opposed banks, criticized corporate practices, and preached the ideals of a free society. They called for rapid territorial expansion of the United States, saying that in territorial expansion lay a means for thwarting the pretensions of the [[Slave Power]].

[[Franklin Pierce]] of New Hampshire was elected president in 1852, followed by [[James Buchanan]] of Pennsylvania in 1856. They proved poor presidents who lost control of the slavery issue, and the party, as the nation broke apart and fought the [[American Civil War]].

===Third Party System: Civil War, Gilded Age: 1854-1896===
During the [[Third Party System]] (1854-1896) the Democrats (still split in two due to the issue over slavery) became the minority in the face of the newly formed Republican Party (formed by former Whigs and abolitionists), which controlled nearly all northern states by 1860, bringing a solid majority in the Electoral College. A powerful Republican issue was the allegation that northern Democrats, including "Doughfaces" like Pierce and Buchanan, and advocates of popular sovereignty like [[Stephen A. Douglas]] and [[Lewis Cass]], were accomplices to the [[Slave Power]]. The Republicans meant by Slave Power the conspiracy of slaveholders to seize control of the federal government and block the progress of liberty.

[[Image:DEM1860.JPG|thumb|left|To vote for Douglas in Virginia, a man had to deposit the ticket in the official ballot box.]]
In 1860 the Democrats were unable to stop the election of Republican [[Abraham Lincoln]], even as they feared his election would lead to civil war. The party split in two due to the issue of slavery. The northern wing nominated Douglas, and the southern wing nominated Vice President [[John C. Breckinridge]]. Douglas campaigned across the country and came in second in the popular vote, but carried only Missouri. Breckinridge carried 11 slave states.

The Republican Party was beginning a 50-year era of dominance (1858-1910). During the war, Northern Democrats divided into two factions, [[War Democrats]], who supported the military policies of President Lincoln, and [[Copperheads]], who strongly opposed them. Historian Kenneth Stampp has captured the Copperhead spirit in his depiction of Democratic Congressman [[Daniel W. Voorhees]] of Indiana:
<blockquote>There was an earthy quality in Voorhees, "the tall sycamore of the Wabash." On the stump his hot temper, passionate partisanship, and stirring eloquence made an irresistible appeal to the western Democracy. His bitter cries against protective tariffs and national banks, his intense race prejudice, his suspicion of the eastern Yankee, his devotion to personal liberty, his defense of the Constitution and state rights faithfully reflected the views of his constituents. Like other Jacksonian agrarians he resented the political and economic revolution then in progress. Voorhees idealized a way of life which he thought was being destroyed by the current rulers of his country. His bold protests against these dangerous trends made him the idol of the Democracy of the Wabash Valley.<ref>Stampp, 211.</ref></blockquote>

The Democrats lost consecutive presidential elections from 1860 through 1880 (but 1876 was in dispute); 1884 was their next victory. The Democrats were weakened by their record of opposition to the Civil War but nevertheless benefited from white Southerners' resentment of Reconstruction and consequent hostility to the Republican Party. The [[Redeemers]] gave the Democrats control of every Southern state; the disenfranchisement of black voters in most of the South took place 1890-1900. From 1880 to 1960 the "[[Solid South]]" voted Democratic in all presidential elections (except 1928). After 1900 the key election in southern states was the Democratic primary; victory in the that primary was "tantamount to election" because the GOP was so weak.

Though Republicans continued to control the White House until 1912 (except 1884 and 1892), the Democrats remained competitive in the states, especially in the mid-Atlantic and lower Midwest, and controlled the House of Representatives for most of that period. In the election of 1884, [[Grover Cleveland]], the conservative Democratic Governor of New York, won the presidency, a feat he repeated in 1892, having lost in the election of 1888.

[[Image:1893cleveland-typewriter.jpg|thumb|Typewriters were new in 1893 and this Gillam cartoon from ''Puck'' shows that Cleveland can't get the Democratic "machine" to work as the keys (key politicians) won't respond to his efforts.]]

Cleveland was the leader of the [[Bourbon Democrats]], the conservative wing of the party. They represented business interests, supported banking and railroad goals, promoted capitalism, opposed imperialism and U.S. verseas expansion, opposed the annexation of [[Hawaii]], fought for the [[gold standard]], and opposed [[Bimetallism]]. They strongly supported reform movements such as [[Pendleton Civil Service Reform Act|Civil Service Reform]] and opposed corruption of city bosses, leading the fight against the [[Tweed Ring]]. The leading Bourbons included [[Samuel J. Tilden]], [[David Bennett Hill]] and [[William C. Whitney]] of New York, [[Arthur Pue Gorman]] of Maryland, [[Thomas F. Bayard]] of Delaware, [[William L. Wilson]] of West Virginia, [[John Griffin Carlisle]] of Kentucky, [[William F. Vilas]] of Wisconsin, [[J. Sterling Morton]] of Nebraska, [[John M. Palmer]] of Illinois, [[Horace Boies]] of Iowa, [[L.Q.C. Lamar]] of Mississippi, and railroad builder [[James J. Hill]] of Minnesota. A prominent intellectual was [[Woodrow Wilson]]. The Bourbons were in power when the [[Panic of 1893]] hit; it was a deep depression and they took the blame. A fierce struggle inside the party ensued, with catastrophic losses for both the Bourbon and agrarian factions in 1894, leading to the showdown in 1896.
[[Image:Dead-dem1880.jpg|thumb|550px|In 1880 when General Hancock (right) became the presidential nominee of the Democrats, Republican cartoonists showed the Democratic party history as a horror chamber featuring atrocities in the Civil War era; the donkey" shows the party as a coalition of the rear end of the South joined to the rear end of the North]]

====Ethnocultural voting: pietistic Republicans versus liturgical Democrats====
Religious lines were sharply drawn.<ref>Kleppner (1979).</ref> Methodists, Congregationalists, Presbyterians, Scandinavian Lutherans and other pietists and evangelicals in the North were tightly linked to the Republican Party. In sharp contrast, liturgical groups, especially the Catholics, Episcopalians, and German Lutherans, looked to the Democratic Party for protection from pietistic moralism, especially prohibition. Both parties cut across the class structure, with the Democrats more bottom-heavy.

Cultural issues, especially prohibition and foreign language schools became important because of the sharp religious divisions in the electorate. In the North, about 50% of the voters were pietistic or evangelical Protestants who believed the government should be used to reduce social sins, such as drinking. Liturgical churches (Roman Catholics, German Lutherans, Episcopalians) comprised over a quarter of the vote and wanted the government to stay out of the morality business. Prohibition debates and referenda heated up politics in most states over a period of decade, as national prohibition was finally passed in 1918 (and repealed in 1933), serving as a major issue in the North between the wet Democracy and the dry GOP.<ref>In the South the Democrats were mostly on the dry side. Kleppner (1979).</ref>

===The Bryan Movement===
[[Image:Mark Hanna 1896 election.jpg|thumb|right|Democratic attack ad in 1896 against GOP National Chairman [[Mark Hanna]]; cartoon by Davenport depicts Hanna as a slave driver; from Hearst's ''New York Journal'']]
[[Grover Cleveland]] led the conservative, pro-business [[Bourbon Democrat]]s but as the [[Panic of 1893|depression of 1893]] deepened his enemies multiplied. The Panic of 1893 started in February 1893, a full month before Cleveland became president. Convinced that the [[Sherman Silver Purchase Act]], passed under the administration of [[Benjamin Harrison]], was largely responsible for the alarming drain on federal gold, President Cleveland called Congress into special session to urge its repeal. Congress consented, but only after bitter debate that divided the Democratic party into two hostile camps-the eastern "goldbugs" and the silver wing of the West and South that was to propel young [[William Jennings Bryan]] to the fore in 1896.<ref name="presidents" /> At the 1896 convention the silverite-agrarian faction repudiated the president, and nominated the crusading orator [[William Jennings Bryan]] on a platform of inflation through "free" silver. The idea was that minting huge numbers of silver dollars would flood the economy with cash and end the depression. Eastern Democrats, unable to accept the party's free-silver platform and unwilling to support McKinley for his tariff views, nominated their own candidate, John M. Palmer of Illinois and called themselves the National, or Gold, Democrats.<ref name="presidents" /> The [[Gold Democrats]] attracted politicians and intellectuals (including [[Woodrow Wilson]] and [[Frederick Jackson Turner]]) who refused to vote Republican.

Bryan, an overnight sensation because of his phenomenal "Cross of Gold" speech, crusaded against the gold standard. Crisscrossing the Midwest and East by special train, he gave over 500 speeches to audiences in the millions. In St. Louis he gave 36 speeches to workingmen's audiences all over the city, all in one day. Most Democratic newspapers were hostile (except [[William Randolph Hearst]]'s ''New York Journal'') but Bryan seized control of the media by making the news every day, as he hurled thunderbolts against Eastern monied interests. The rural folk in South and Midwest were ecstatic, showing an enthusiasm never before seen. Ethnic Democrats, especially Germans, however, were alarmed and frightened by Bryan. The middle classes, businessmen, newspaper editors, factory workers, railroad workers, and prosperous farmers generally rejected Bryan's crusade. Bryan was overwhelmed by [[William McKinley]] in the most exciting race in national history.<ref>Refuting Bryan's charges, historians have discovered there was little coercion of workers.</ref> McKinley promised a return to prosperity based on the gold standard, support for industry, railroads and banks, and pluralism that would enable every group to move ahead. Bryan did however, win the hearts and minds of a majority of Democrats. The election of 1896 was a political realignment. The victory of the Republican Party marked the start of the "Progressive Era," from 1896 to 1932, in which the GOP usually was dominant.

===Fourth Party System: Bryan, Wilson, Progressivism: 1896-1932 ===
The [[Fourth Party System]] began with the 1896 election, a realignment during which the GOP controlled the presidency for 28 of 36 years. The GOP dominated most of the Northeast and Midwest, and half the West. Bryan, with a base in the South and Plains states, was strong enough to get the nomination in 1900 (losing to McKinley) and 1908 (losing to Taft). [[Theodore Roosevelt]] dominated the first decade of the century—and to the annoyance of Democrats "stole" the trust issue by crusading against trusts.

[[Image:Steal~trust.JPG|thumb|[[Theodore Roosevelt]] steals the anti-trust issue from the Democrats, 1904]]

Anti-Bryan conservatives controlled the convention in 1904, but they faced a [[Theodore Roosevelt]] landslide. Bryan dropped his free silver and anti-imperialism rhetoric and supported mainstream progressive issues, such as the income tax, anti-trust, and direct election of Senators. He backed Woodrow Wilson in 1912, was rewarded with the State Department, then resigned in protest against Wilson's non-pacifistic policies in 1916. Northern Democrats were progressive on most issues, but generally opposed prohibition, were lukewarm regarding woman's suffrage, and were reluctant to undercut the "boss system" in the big cities.

Taking advantage of a deep split in the GOP, the Democrats took control of the House in 1910, and elected the intellectual reformer Woodrow Wilson in 1912 and 1916. Wilson successfully led Congress to a series of Progressive laws, including a reduced tariff, stronger antitrust laws, the [[Federal Reserve System]], hours-and-pay benefits for railroad workers, and outlawing of child labor (which was reversed by the Supreme Court). Furthermore, constitutional amendments for prohibition and woman suffrage were passed in his second term. In effect, Wilson laid to rest the issues of tariffs, money and antitrust that had dominated politics for 40 years.

Wilson ordered [[Jim Crow]] segregation in the federal government offices in Washington DC, wiping out 50 years of social progress for African-Americans. No longer could blacks and whites work together in government offices, eat in the same cafeterias, our use the same bathrooms. The Wilson administration went a step further. Through the Treasury Department's Office of the Architect, the bureau charged with construction and maintenance of federal buildings, federal buildings throughout the nation were ordered to furnish segregated bathrooms, even in Northern states were practices as such were virtually unknown.<ref>''American Nightmare: The History of Jim Crow'', Jerrold M. Packard, St. Martin's Press, 2003, pp. 124-125</ref>

Wilson led the U.S. to victory in the World War, and turned his attention to foreign affairs. He wrote parts of the [[Versailles Treaty]], especially the new [[League of Nations]]. But in 1919 Wilson's political skills faltered, and suddenly everything turned sour. The Senate rejected Versailles and the League, a nationwide wave of strikes and violence caused unrest, and Wilson's health collapsed. The GOP came roaring back in a landslide in 1920, as [[Warren G. Harding]] defeated a Democratic ticket memorable for having [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] as the vice presidential nominee.

[[Image:D-Edge-Congress.JPG|thumb|Before 1932 Republicans usually controlled Congress; after 1932 the Democrats usually were in control]]

At the 1924 Democratic National Convention, the big fight was over a resolution denouncing by name the [[Ku Klux Klan]]; it was pushed by New York governor [[Al Smith]] and Alabama Senator [[Oscar W. Underwood]] in order to embarrass the front-runner, [[William McAdoo]] of California. After furious debate, the resolution failed by just a single vote. The KKK faded away soon after, but the deep split in the party over cultural issues, especially Prohibition, facilitated Republican landslides in 1920, 1924 and 1928. However [[Al Smith]] did build a strong Catholic base in the big cities in 1928, and [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]]'s election as Governor of New York that year brought a new leader to center stage.

=== Fifth Party System: The New Deal ===
[[Image:509px-FDR in 1933.jpg|thumb|left|200px|President [[Franklin Delano Roosevelt]] (1933-1945)]]
The [[Wall Street Crash 1929|stock market crash of 1929]] and the ensuing [[Great Depression]] set the stage for a more progressive government and [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] won a [[landslide victory]] in the [[U.S. presidential election, 1932|election of 1932]], campaigning on a platform of "Relief, Recovery, and Reform." This came to be termed "[[New Deal|The New Deal]]" after a phrase in his acceptance speech. The Democrats also swept to large majorities in both houses of Congress, and among state Governors. Roosevelt altered the nature of the Party, away from laissez-faire capitalism, and towards an ideology of economic regulation and insurance against hardship. Conservative Democrats were outraged; led by [[Al Smith]] they formed the [[American Liberty League]] in 1934 and counterattacked. They failed and either retired from politics or joined the GOP. A few of them, such as [[Dean Acheson]] found their way back to the Democratic Party.

After making gains in Congress in 1934 Roosevelt moved left and embarked on an ambitious legislative program called "The Second New Deal." It was characterized by building up labor unions, nationalizing welfare by the [[WPA]] (which 2 million employed unemployed men), setting up [[Social Security]] and raising taxes on business profits.<ref>In general the New Deal, 1933-40, did not raise taxes, except for the Social Security tax that went into effect in 1937.</ref>

Roosevelt's [[New Deal]] programs focused on job creation through public works projects as well as Social Security. In the name of "reform" it imposed strong regulations on the banking and financial system, transportation, communications, stock markets and labor-management relations.

Roosevelt successfully built up the "[[New Deal Coalition]]", a powerful coalition of voters and interest groups that supported liberalism. Key components included big city machines and labor unions. Key voter groups included traditional Democrats, white Southerners, Catholics, Jews, and liberals, as well as many blacks. This united voter base allowed Democrats to be elected to Congress and the presidency for much of the next 30 years.

After a sweeping landslide reelection in 1936—losing only Maine and Vermont—Roosevelt stunned the nation, and his party, by calling for legislation to enlarge the Supreme Court by five new members. A firestorm of opposition erupted, led by his own vice president [[John Nance Garner]]. Roosevelt was defeated by an alliance of Republicans and conservative Democrats, who formed a [[Conservative coalition]] that managed to block nearly all liberal legislation. (Only a minimum wage law got through.) Angry with the conservative wing of his own party, Roosevelt tried to destroy it. In 1938, he actively campaigned against five incumbent conservative Democratic senators; all five senators won re-election. In 1940, Roosevelt broke with tradition and sought a third term as President.

Under FDR, the Democratic Party became identified closely with modern liberalism, which included the promotion of social welfare, unions and regulation of the economy. Civil rights were not on the party agenda at this time. FDR slways opposed the federal anti-lynching law a courted racist Southern Democrats.

Mayor Fiorello La Guardia of New York, a Republican [[New Deal]]er who supported Roosevelt, made the first efforts to court African-Americans, who were traditional Lincoln Republicans, into the New Deal coalition. Roosevelt provided federal funds to La Guardia and withheld support from his opponents. La Guardia decreed that African-Americans were not to be arrested for anything, and that police patrolling [[Harlem]] could not carry night sticks. Not until the presidential election of 1960 when John Kennedy intervened for the release of Martin Luther King, who was jailed two weeks before the election in Atlanta following a non-violent protest, did the majority of Blacks begin voting Democratic ''en bloc''. The transition was solidified four years later when the Republican presidential nominee, Barry Goldwater, who defied Republican Congressional leadership and voted with Southern Democrat segregationists to oppose the 1964 Civil Rights Act.

===Truman to Kennedy: 1945-1963===
Harry Truman took over unexpectedly in 1945, and the rifts inside the party that Roosevelt had papered over began to emerge. Former Vice President [[Henry A. Wallace]] denounced Truman as a war-monger for his anti-Soviet programs, the [[Truman Doctrine]], [[Marshall Plan]], and [[NATO]]. By cooperating with internationalist Republicans, Truman succeeded in defeating isolationists on the right and pro-Soviets on the left to establish a [[Cold War]] program that lasted until the fall of Communism in 1991. Wallace supporters and fellow travelers of the far left were pushed out of the party and the CIO in 1946-48 by young anti-Communists like [[Hubert Humphrey]], [[Walter Reuther]], and [[Arthur Schlesinger, Jr.]]. [[Hollywood]] emerged in the 1940s as an importance new base in the party, led by movie-star politicians such as [[Ronald Reagan]], who at this point in time strongly supported Roosevelt and Truman.<ref>Reagan became a conservative around 1960, saying the Democratic party had left him.</ref>

On the right the Republicans blasted Truman’s domestic policies. "Had Enough?" was the winning slogan as Republicans recaptured Congress in 1946. Many party leaders were ready to dump Truman, but they lacked an alternative. Truman counterattacked, pushing [[J. Strom Thurmond]] and his [[Dixiecrats]] out, and taking advantage of the splits inside the GOP. He was reelected in a stunning surprise. However all of Truman’s Fair Deal proposals, such as universal health care were defeated by the [[Conservative Coalition]] in Congress. His seizure of the steel industry was reversed by the Supreme Court.

In foreign policy, Europe was safe but troubles mounted in Asia. China fell to the Communists in 1949. Truman entered the [[Korean War]] without formal Congressional approval—the last time a president would ever do so. When the war turned to a stalemate in 1951 he fired General [[Douglas MacArthur]], a hero to conservatives. Republicans blasted Truman's failure to stop Communist gains in Asia. A series of petty scandals among friends and buddies of Truman further tarnished his image, allowing [[Dwight Eisenhower]] and the Republicans in 1952 to crusade against "Korea, Communism and Corruption." Truman dropped out of the presidential race early in 1952, leaving no obvious successor. The convention nominated [[Adlai Stevenson]] in 1952 and 1956, only to see him overwhelmed by two Eisenhower landslides.

[[Image:1952-32.jpg|thumb|right|Stevenson and labor unions warn against a return of the Republican policies of Herbert Hoover in 1952 campaign poster]]

In Congress the powerful duo of House Speaker [[Sam Rayburn]] and Senate Majority leader [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] held the party together, often by compromising with Eisenhower. In 1958 the party made dramatic gains in the midterms and seemed to have a permanent lock on Congress. Indeed, Democrats had majorities in the House every election from 1930 to 1992 (except 1946 and 1952). Most southern Congressmen were conservative Democrats, however, and they usually worked with conservative Republicans. The result was a [[Conservative Coalition]] that blocked practically all liberal domestic legislation from 1937 to the 1970s, except for a brief spell 1964-65, when Johnson neutralized its power.

The nomination of [[John F. Kennedy]] in 1960 energized the Catholic population, which jammed motorcades and turned out in heavy numbers (over 80% voted for Kennedy), while also causing a backlash among white Protestants (over 70% of whom voted for Republican candidate [[Richard Nixon]]. Reaching beyond the traditional Irish, German, Italian and Polish Catholic ethnics, Viva Kennedy set out to mobilize the previously passive Latino vote, and it perhaps provided the margin of victory for Kennedy in Texas and New Mexico. Kennedy's victory reinvigorated the party. His youth, vigor and intelligence caught the popular imagination. In foreign policy he was strongly anti-Communist, and promptly launched an invasion of casto's Cuba; it failed badly. A few new programs like the Peace Corps harnessed idealism. In terms of legislation, Kennedy was stalemated by the [[Conservative Coalition]], and anyway his proposals were all cautious and incremental. In three years he was unable to pass any significant new legislation.

Kennedy's election did mark the coming of age of the Catholic component of the New Deal Coalition. After 1964 middle class Catholics started voting Republicans in the same proportion as their Protestant neighbors. Except for the Chicago of [[Richard J. Daley]], the last of the Democratic machines faded away. His involvement in Vietnam proved momentous, for his successor Lyndon Johnson decided to stay, and double the investment, and double the bet again and again until over 500,000 American soldiers were fighting in that small country.

===Civil Rights, Riots, War and collapse of the New Deal Coalition===
[[Image:LBJ-64.jpg|left|thumb|President Lyndon Johnson ran for reelection in the shadow of Kennedy]]

The New Deal Coalition began to fracture as union and religious leaders demanded support for [[civil rights]], upsetting the party's traditional base of conservative Southern Democrats. After Harry Truman's platform showed support for civil rights and anti-segregation policies during the 1948 Democratic National Convention, many Southern Democratic delegates decided to split from the Party and formed the "[[Dixiecrats]]," led by [[South Carolina]] governor [[Strom Thurmond]] (who, as a Senator, would later join the Republican Party). Over the next few years, many conservative Democrats in the "[[Solid South]]" drifted away from the party. By 1940 most northern Blacks had shifted to the Democratic Party due to its New Deal relief programs and support for civil rights.

The party's dramatic reversal on civil rights issues culminated when Democratic President [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] signed into law the [[Civil Rights Act of 1964]]. The new laws ended segregation and also ended the main argument Democrats had used to block Republican gains in the South (that is, only the Democrats could protect segregation). The South became competitive in presidential politics in the 1970s and 1980s, giving strong support to Republican Ronald Reagan and rejecting the liberal northern candidates. The Democrats responded by nominating Southerners (Carter in 1976 and 1980, Clinton in 1992 and 1996, Gore in 2000). Few southern states were won by Democratic presidential candidates from the North (Humphrey in 1968, McGovern in 1972, Mondale in 1984, Dukakis in 1988, Kerry in 2004). At the state and local level the Republicans made slow, steady gains, especially among upscale middle class whites and migrants from the North. By the 1990s the GOP was competitive at the state and local level throughout the South. The Democrats made gains in the west, converting California to a Democratic stronghold and gaining in fast-growing Arizona and Nevada. The Northeast became more and more a Democratic enclave, especially after 2006 when numerous Republican moderates were defeated for reelection. The Midwest remained a battleground. The Democrats made strong gains in Illinois, but slipped a little in Minnesota.
[[Image:Demfight1968.jpg|thumb|290px|By 1968 Democrats were bitterly fighting over Vietnam and the failures of the Great Society]]

===1968 to 1999===
The Democratic party split five ways in 1968 and became a minority party in presidential elections for decades; after 1964 they won a national majority of the popular presidential vote only in 2008. However, the Democrats won a plurality of the popular vote in 1976, 1992, 1996 and 2000.

In 1972, the Democrats nominated Sen. [[George McGovern]] (SD) as the presidential candidate on a platform which advocated, among other things, U.S. withdrawal from Vietnam and a guaranteed minimum income for all Americans. McGovern's forces at the national convention ousted Mayor [[Richard J. Daley]] and the entire Chicago delegation, replacing them with insurgents led by [[Jesse Jackson]]. After it became know that McGovern's running mate, [[Thomas Eagleton]], had received electric shock therapy, McGovern said he supported Eagleton "1000%" but he was soon forced to drop him and find a new running mate. With his campaign stalled for several weeks McGovern finally selected [[Sargent Shriver]], a Kennedy-in-law who was close to Mayor Daley. On July 14, 1972, McGovern appointed his campaign manager, Jean Westwood as the first woman chair of the Democratic National Committee. McGovern was defeated in a landslide by incumbent [[Richard Nixon]], winning only Massachusetts and Washington, D.C. The [[Watergate affair]] of 1973-74 made corruption a central issue, especially after [[Gerald Ford]] pardoned Nixon in September 1974. The Democrats made major gains in the 1974 off-year elections.

[[Image:Carter.jpg|thumb|left|200px|Jimmy Carter was elected in 1976 and defeated in 1980.]]
In 1976, mistrust of the administration, complicated by a combination of economic recession and inflation, sometimes called ''[[stagflation]]'', led to Ford's narrow defeat in 1976 by [[Jimmy Carter]], a former governor of Georgia.

Carter represented the total outsider, who promised honesty in government. He had served as a naval officer, a farmer, a state senator, and a one-term governor. His only experience with federal politics was when he chaired the Democratic National Committee's congressional and gubernatorial elections in 1974. Some of Carter's major accomplishments consisted of the creation of a national energy policy and the consolidation of governmental agencies, resulting in two new cabinet departments, the [[United States Department of Energy]] and the [[United States Department of Education]]. Carter also successfully deregulated the trucking, airline, rail, finance, communications, and oil industries, bolstered the [[social security]] system, and appointed record numbers of women and minorities to significant government and judicial posts. He also enacted strong legislation on environmental protection, through the expansion of the [[National Park Service]] in [[Alaska]], adding 103 million acres of park land. In foreign affairs, Carter's accomplishments consisted of the [[Camp David Accords]], the [[Panama Canal Treaties]], the creation of full diplomatic relations with the [[People's Republic of China]], and the negotiation of the [[SALT II]] Treaty. In addition, he championed human rights throughout the world and used human rights as the center of his administration's foreign policy.

Even with all of these successes, Carter failed to implement a national health plan or to reform the tax system, as he had promised in his campaign. Inflation was also on the rise. Abroad, the Iranians held 52 Americans hostage for 444 days, and Carter's diplomatic and military rescue attempts failed. The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan later that year weakened the perception Americans had of Carter. Even though he had already been defeated for re-election, Carter fortunately was able to negotiate the release of every American hostage. They were lifted out of Iran minutes after Reagan was inaugurated and Carter served as Reagan's emissary to greet them when they arrived in Germany. In 1980, Carter defeated liberal champion [[Edward Kennedy]] to gain renomination, but lost to conservative [[Ronald Reagan]] by a landslide. The Democrats lost 12 Senate seats, and for the first time since 1954, the Republicans controlled the Senate. The House, however, remained in Democratic hands.

====1980s: Battling Reaganism====
Instrumental in the election of Republican [[Ronald Reagan]] in 1980, were Democrats who supported many conservative policies. Among legislators, one of the most prominent of these consevative Democrats was Georgia congressman and second chairman of the [[John Birch Society]], [[Larry McDonald]], who was a passenger on [[Korean Airlines Flight 007]] shot down by the Soviets near [[Moneron Island]] on September 1, 1983. The "Reagan Democrats" were Democrats before the Reagan years, and afterward, but they voted for Ronald Reagan in 1980 and 1984 (and for [[George H. W. Bush]] in 1988), producing their landslide victories. They were mostly white ethnics in the Northeast who were attracted to Reagan's social conservatism on issues such as abortion, and to his strong foreign policy. They did not continue to vote Republican in 1992 or 1996, so the term fell into disuse except as a reference to the 1980s. The term is not used to describe southern whites who became permanent Republicans in presidential elections. Stanley Greenberg, a Democratic pollster analyzed white ethnic voters, largely unionized auto workers, in suburban Macomb County, Michigan, just north of Detroit. The county voted 63 percent for Kennedy in 1960 and 66 percent for Reagan in 1984. He concluded that Reagan Democrats no longer saw Democrats as champions of their middle class aspirations, but instead saw it as being a party working primarily for the benefit of others, especially African Americans and the very poor. Bill Clinton targeted the Reagan Democrats with considerable success in 1992 and 1996.

[[Image:Liberal1984.jpg|thumb]] The failure to hold the Reagan Democrats and the white South led to the final collapse of the [[New Deal coalition]]. Reagan carried 49 states against former Vice President and Minnesota Senator [[Walter Mondale]], a New Deal stalwart, in 1984. Massachusetts Governor [[Michael Dukakis]], running not as a New Dealer but as an efficiency expert in public administration, lost by a landslide in 1988 to Vice President [[George H. W. Bush]], who had pledged "no new taxes."

In response to these landslide defeats, the [[Democratic Leadership Council]] was created. It worked to move the Party rightwards to the ideological center in order to recover some of the fundraising that had been lost to the Republicans due to corporate donors supporting Reagan. With the Party retaining left-of-center supporters as well as supporters holding moderate or conservative views on some issues, the Democrats became generally a "big tent" or "catch all party" with widespread appeal to most opponents of the Republicans.

====The South moves toward Republicans====
In the century after the end of [[Reconstruction]] in 1877, the white South identified with Democratic Party. The Democrats' lock on power was so strong, the region was called the [[Solid South]]. The Republicans only controlled parts of the Appalachian mountains, but they sometimes did compete for statewide office in the border states. Before 1964, the southern Democrats saw their party as the defender of the southern way of life, which included a respect for states' rights and an appreciation for traditional southern "values" (including [[segregation]] of blacks). They repeatedly warned against the aggressive designs of Northern liberals and Republicans, as well as civil rights activists whom they denounced as "outside agitators."

However, between 1964 and 2004, the Democratic Party's lock on the South was broken. The long-term cause had to do with the South becoming more like the rest of the nation. It could not long stand apart in terms of racial segregation. Modernization had brought factories, national businesses, and larger, more cosmopolitan cities to the South, as well as millions of migrants from the North and more opportunities for higher education. Meanwhile, the cotton and tobacco economy of the traditional rural South faded away, as former farmers commuted to factory jobs.

Integration and the civil rights movement caused enormous controversy in the white South, with many attacking it as a violation of states' rights. When segregation was outlawed by court order and by the Civil Rights acts of 1964 and 1965, a die-hard element resisted integration, led by Democratic governors [[Orval Faubus]] of Arkansas, [[Lester Maddox]] of Georgia, and, especially [[George Wallace]] of Alabama. These populist governors appealed to a less-educated, blue-collar electorate that on economic grounds favored the Democratic Party, but opposed desegregation. After 1965 most Southerners accepted integration (with the exception of public schools). Believing themselves betrayed by the Democratic Party, traditional white southerners joined the new middle-class and the Northern transplants in moving toward the Republican Party. Meanwhile, newly enfranchised Black voters began supporting Democratic candidates at the 80-90-percent levels, producing Democratic leaders such as [[Julian Bond]] and [[John Lewis]] of Georgia, and [[Barbara Jordan]] of Texas. Just as Martin Luther King had promised, integration had brought about a new day in Southern politics, freeing both blacks and whites from old hatreds and fears.

Using issues of cultural conservatism, especially opposition to abortion and homosexuality and support for school prayer, Republicans attracted strong majorities among evangelical Christians. They were nationwide, but strongest in the South; before the 1980s they were largely apolitical. Exit polls in 2004 showed that Bush led Kerry by 70-30% among Southern whites, who comprised 71% of the voters. Kerry had a 90-9 lead among the 18% of Southern voters who were black. One third of the Southern voters said they were white evangelicals; they voted for Bush by 80-20.<ref>See the exit polls at {{cite web|url=http://www.cnn.com/ELECTION/2004/pages/results/states/US/P/00/epolls.3.html |date=2004-11-02\|accessdate=2006-11-18|title=U.S. PRESIDENT / REGION: SOUTH / EXIT POLL}}</ref>

====1990s====
In the 1990s the Democratic Party revived itself, in part by moving to the right on economic and social policy. President [[Bill Clinton]], who defeated the incumbent [[George H. W. Bush]] in 1992, implemented a balanced federal budget and [[welfare reform]] (cutting benefits and requiring many recipients to take jobs), traditionally conservative causes. Labor unions, which had been steadily losing membership since the 1960s, found they had also lost political clout inside the Democratic Party: Clinton enacted the [[NAFTA]] free trade agreement with Canada and Mexico over the strong objection of these labor unions, much to the disappointment of those on the left of the party. The [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican Party]] took control of both the House of Representatives and the United States Senate after the 1994 election. Clinton was impeached in 1998 and subsequently acquitted in 1999.

When the [[Democratic Leadership Council]] (DLC) attempted to move the Democratic agenda in favor of more centrist positions, prominent Democrats from both the centrist and conservative factions assumed leadership of the party and its direction. Some liberals and progressives felt alienated by the Democratic Party, which they felt had become unconcerned with the interests of the common people and left-wing issues in general. Some Democrats challenged the validity of such critiques, citing the Democratic role in pushing for progressive reforms.

===21st century===
====Election of 2000====
During the presidential election of 2000, the Democrats chose Vice President [[Al Gore]] to be the party's candidate for the presidency. Gore and [[George W. Bush]], the Republican candidate and son of former President George H.W. Bush, disagreed on a number of issues, including abortion, gun control, environmentalism, gay rights, tax cuts, foreign policy, public education, global warming, judicial appointments, and affirmative action. Nevertheless, Gore's affiliation with Clinton and the DLC caused critics—Green Party presidential candidate [[Ralph Nader]] in particular—to assert that Bush and Gore were too similar, especially on free trade, reductions in social welfare, and the death penalty. "We want to punish the Democrats, we want to hurt them, wound them," Nader's closest advisor said.<ref>Harry G. Levinem "Ralph Nader, Suicide Bomber." ''The Village Voice'' May 3, 2004 at [http://www.villagevoice.com/news/0418,levine,53179,1.html]</ref>

Gore won a popular plurality of over 500,000 votes over Bush, but lost in the electoral vote by four votes. In a close election anything can be decisive, but many angry Democrats blamed Nader's third-party spoiler role for Gore's defeat. Controversy plagued the election, and Gore largely dropped from politics for years; by 2005 however he was making speeches critical of Bush's foreign and environmental policies.

Despite Gore's close defeat, the Democrats gained five seats in the Senate (including the election of [[Hillary Clinton]] in New York), to turn a 55-45 Republican edge into a 50-50 split (with a Republican Vice President breaking a tie). However, when Republican Senator [[Jim Jeffords]] of Vermont decided in 2001 to become an independent and caucus with the Democrats, the majority status shifted along with the seat, including control of the floor (by the Majority Leader) and control of all committee chairmanships. However, the Republicans regained their Senate majority with gains in 2002 and 2004, leaving the Democrats with only 44 seats, the fewest since the 1920s.

====2001-2003====
In the aftermath of the [[9-11 Attacks]], the nation's focus was changed to issues of national security. All but one Democrat<ref>Representative [[Barbara Lee]] of Texas</ref> joined the Republicans to authorize President Bush to invade invasion of Afghanistan and overthrow the Taliban. House leader [[Richard Gephardt]] and Senate leader [[Thomas Daschle]] pushed Democrats to vote for the [[USA PATRIOT Act]] and the 2003 invasion of Iraq. The Democrats were split over entering Iraq in 2003 and increasingly expressed concerns about both the justification and progress of the [[War on Terrorism]], as well as the domestic effects, including supposed threats to civil rights and civil liberties from the PATRIOT Act. Senator [[Russ Feingold]] was the only Senator to vote against the act; it received more resistance when it came up for renewal, but was renewed in 2006.

In the wake of the financial fraud scandal of the [[Enron Corporation]] and other corporations, Congressional Democrats pushed for a legal overhaul of business accounting with the intention of preventing further accounting fraud. This led to the bipartisan [[Sarbanes-Oxley Act]] in 2002. Economic issues did not work well in 2002, as the Democrats lost a few seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. They lost three seats in the Senate. While Democrats gained governorships in New Mexico (where [[Bill Richardson]] was elected), Arizona ([[Janet Napolitano]]) and Wyoming ([[Dave Freudenthal]]), other Democrats lost governorships in South Carolina ([[Jim Hodges]]), Alabama ([[Don Siegelman]]) and, for the first time in more than a century, Georgia ([[Roy Barnes]]). The election led to another round of soul searching about the party's narrowing base. The party's miseries mounted in 2003, when a voter recall unseated their unpopular governor of California, [[Gray Davis]], and replaced him which a charismatic liberal Republican [[Arnold Schwarzenegger]]. By the end of 2003 the four largest states had Republican governors: California, Texas, New York and Florida.

====Election of 2004====
The 2004 campaign began in late 2002, when Gore said he would not run again. [[Howard Dean]], former Governor of Vermont, an opponent of the war and a critic of the Democratic establishment, was the front-runner leading into the Democratic primaries. Dean had immense grassroots support, especially from the left wing of the party. Massachusetts Senator [[John Kerry]], a more centrist figure with heavy support from the DLC, was nominated because he was seen as more "electable" than Dean. Democrats moved to populist anti-business positions that denounced free trade and the [[NAFTA]] agreement. The party rhetoric attacked the Bush administration rather than propose alternative programs.

In the end, Kerry lost both the popular vote (by 3 million out of over 120 million votes cast) and the [[Electoral College]]. Republicans also gained four seats in the Senate and three seats in the House of Representatives, and for the first time since 1952, the Democratic leader of the Senate lost re-election. In the end, there were 3,660 Democratic state legislators across the nation to the Republicans' 3,557. Democrats gained governorships in Louisiana, New Hampshire and Montana. However, they lost the governorship of Missouri and a legislative majority in Georgia, which had long been a Democratic stronghold.

There were many reasons for the defeat. After the election most analysts concluded that Kerry was a poor campaigner.<ref>Evan Thomas and Staff of Newsweek,''Election 2004: How Bush Won and What You Can Expect in the Future''(2005)</ref> A group of Vietnam veterans opposed to Kerry called the "Swift Boat Veterans for Truth" undercut Kerry's use of his military past as a campaign strategy. Kerry was unable to reconcile his initial support of the [[Iraq War]] with his opposition to the war in 2004, or manage the deep split in the Democratic Party between those who favored and opposed the war. Republicans ran thousands of television commercials to argue that Kerry had flip-flopped on Iraq. When Kerry's home state of Massachusetts legalized same-sex marriage, the issue split liberal and conservative Democrats and independents (Kerry publicly stated throughout his campaign that he opposed same sex marriage, but favored civil unions). Republicans exploited the same-sex marriage issue by promoting ballot initiatives in 11 states that brought conservatives to the polls in large numbers; all 11 initiatives passed. Some Democrats argued that flaws in vote-counting systems may also have played a role in Kerry's defeat in Ohio. Other factors include a healthy job market, a rising stock market, strong home sales, and low unemployment.

After the 2004 election, prominent Democrats began to rethink the party's direction, and a variety of strategies for moving forward were voiced. Some Democrats proposed moving towards the right; others demanded that the party move more to the left and become a stronger opposition party. Rethinking the party's position on gun control became a matter of discussion, brought up by [[Howard Dean]], [[Bill Richardson]], [[Brian Schweitzer]] and other Democrats who had won governorships in states where Second Amendment rights were important to many voters.

====2005 - 2007====
These debates were reflected in the 2005 campaign for Chairman of the [[Democratic National Committee]], which [[Howard Dean]] won. He sought to move the Democratic strategy away from the establishment, and bolster support for the party's state organizations, even in Red states.

When the 109th Congress convened in 2005, [[Harry Reid]], the new Senate Minority Leader, tried to convince the Democratic Senators to vote more as a bloc on important issues; he forced the Republicans to abandon their push for privatization of Social Security. In 2005, the Democrats retained their governorships in Virginia and New Jersey, electing [[Tim Kaine]] and [[Jon Corzine]], respectively. However, the party lost the mayoral race in New York City, a Democratic stronghold, for the fourth straight time.

In 2006, with scandals involving Republican lobbyist [[Jack Abramoff]], as well as GOP House leader [[Tom DeLay]], Ohio GOP governor [[Bob Taft]] and others, the Democrats used the slogan "Culture of corruption." Negative public opinion on the war in Iraq, along with widespread dissatisfaction among conservatives over government spending, dragged President Bush's job approval ratings down to the lowest levels of his presidency. To win control the Democrats had to add 15 seats in the House (they added 30), and 6 in the Senate (they added 6).

The Democratic Party's electoral success has been attributed to running relatively conservative Democrats in close seats, such as the Senate races in Virginia, Pennsylvania and Montana.<ref>Dewan Shaila and Anne E. Kornblut, "In Key House Races, Democrats Run to the Right," ''New York Times,'' 2006-10-30; but compare Rick Perlstein, "Who deserves credit for the Democratic comeback?" ''The New Republic'' 2006-11-08 at [https://ssl.tnr.com/p/docsub.mhtml?i=w061106&s=perlstein110806]</ref> Exit polling suggested that corruption was a key issue for many voters.<ref>CNN, "Corruption named as key issue by voters in exit polls," 2006-11-08 at [http://www.cnn.com/2006/POLITICS/11/07/election.exitpolls/]</ref>

In 2006 Democrats gained a majority of governorships and made gains in many state legislatures. No Democratic incumbent was defeated in any major race.

====2007-2010====
[[File:Obama_approval_index_december_22_2009.jpg‎|thumb]]
House Democrats chose Rep. [[Nancy Pelosi]] of California for Speaker, the first woman ever, but rejected her choice for House Majority Leader, electing Steny Hoyer instead of John Murtha. Senate Democrats promoted Harry Reid to Majority Leader. Neither have been very effective.

The presidential campaign of 2008 featured a remarkable duel between Obama—the first major black candidate, and [[Hillary Clinton]], the first major woman contender. Obama won with his charismatic oratory and his highly efficient fund-raising and strong organization in the caucus states, while Clinton went downscale to pick up big majorities among poor whites and Hispanics. The contest between Obama and GOP nominee [[John McCain]] showed Obama being the clear favorite, with the vast majority of polls (with the exception of early September) depicting Obama as the clear favorite.

The [[Obama Administration]] got off to a fast start in 2009, especially in vigorous efforts to combat the [[Recession of 2008]] with heavy new stimulus spending, massive loans to banks, increased regulation, and deep intervention in the automobile industry. All those policies were begun by Bush, and had failed to reverse the decline of the economy in late 2008. Whether they will now succeed remains an open question, with the GOP now voting solidly against them and some conservatives like [[Rush Limbaugh]] hoping that the Democrats will fail badly and that the people will again turn to the Republican party. The Democratic Party is feeling the sting from the opposition and many Democrats are beginning to question their own leadership. Liberals are disenchanted with Obama's hawkish position on the [[Afghanistan War]]. The health care reform that consumed most of 2009 remains unsettled, as public opinion has turned against it. Environmentalists now seem resigned to the failure of a [[cap and trade]] program to reduce CO2 emissions. Most of all the recession drags on. The stimulus bill was passed quickly in February 2009 over almost unanimous GOP opposition, but despite promises of "shovel ready" projects, most of the money has not been spent a year later and the economy remains in the doldrums.

The elections in November 2009 in New Jersey and Virginia went badly for the Democrats, as the GOP gained both governorships and many local races, not to mention the Democrats' fifth straight loss for the mayoralty of New York City.

In the [[2010 Midterm Elections]], the Republican Party gained 63 Representatives in the House (one of the largest amounts in its history and surpassing the 1994 landslide), almost gained a majority in the Senate, and gained a majority of governorships and state legislatures in one of its best election results in its history.

====2011-present====
Liberal Democrat [[Barack Obama]] won re-election in [[2012 United States Presidential Election|2012]], even though the Republican Party held on to all its 2010 gains.

Although the Democrats had the opportunity to reverse the massive GOP gains in 2014, they completely failed and allowed the GOP to make even larger victories. For example, even though the GOP held a majority of governorships so large that it would be extremely difficult to hold them all, they actually gained two states, expanding their majority to 31 out of 50.

Again, in 2016, the Democrats performed very poorly, allowing the GOP to win the presidency with [[Donald Trump]],<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/11/08/first-polls-close-in-2016-race-trump-projected-to-win-ind-ky-clinton-wins-vt.html Trump wins presidency, defeats Clinton in historic election upset]. ''Fox News''. November 8, 2016. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref> to maintain their House and Senate majorities,<ref>Bresnahan, John (November 9, 2016). [http://www.politico.eu/article/republicans-on-cusp-of-keeping-the-senate/ Republicans hold the Senate in a stunner]. ''Politico''. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref><ref>Hughes, Siobhan (November 9, 2016). [http://www.wsj.com/articles/republicans-are-confident-about-retaining-control-of-the-house-1478634160 Democrats Gain Seats in House, But GOP Retains Majority]. ''The Wall Street Journal''. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref> to win the largest amount of governorships since 1922,<ref>Lieb, David A. (November 9, 2016). [http://www.usnews.com/news/us/articles/2016-11-09/republicans-expand-control-of-governorships-legislatures Republicans governorships rise to highest mark since 1922]. ''U.S. News & World Report''. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref> and to win the most state legislative chambers in history.<ref>Bosman, Julie & Davey, Monica (November 11, 2016). [http://www.nytimes.com/2016/11/12/us/republicans-expand-control-in-a-deeply-divided-nation.html Republicans Expand Control in a Deeply Divided Nation]. ''The New York Times''. Retrieved November 14, 2016.</ref> The Democrats held a record low amount of party trifectas in the states.<ref>Greenblatt, Alan (November 9, 2016). [http://www.governing.com/topics/elections/gov-republicans-add-dominance-state-legislatures.html Republicans Add to Their Dominance of State Legislatures]. ''Governing''. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref><ref>Siegel, Josh (November 9, 2016). [http://dailysignal.com/2016/11/09/republicans-maintain-strong-control-of-state-capitols-what-that-means/ Republicans Maintain Strong Control of State Capitols. Here’s What That Means.] ''The Daily Signal''. Retrieved November 9, 2016.</ref> Democrats lost 1,042 seats—including U.S. House, Senate, state governorship, and state legislative seats—during the eight years of [[Barack Obama]]'s tenure as U.S. president.<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/12/27/democrats-lost-over-1000-seats-under-obama.html?refresh=true Democrats lost over 1,000 seats under Obama]. ''Fox News''. December 27, 2016. Retrieved December 27, 2016.</ref>

Although the Democrats had earlier derided conservative Republicans as being the "party of No", the aftermath of the 2016 elections showed that the Democrats would rightfully assume that label.<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2016/12/26/new-party-no-dems-prepare-for-battle-with-trump-on-cabinet-picks-agenda.html?refresh=true New Party of No? Dems prepare for battle with Trump on Cabinet picks, agenda]. ''Fox News''. December 26, 2016. Retrieved December 26, 2016.</ref>

==Symbols==
The most common symbol for the party is the donkey, although the party itself never officially adopted this symbol.<ref>[http://www.democrats.org/a/2005/06/history_of_the.php History of the Democratic Donkey].</ref> Some historians suggest the jackass was born 1828 when Jackson was sometimes called a jackass by his opponents as a play on his name. A political cartoon depicting Jackson riding and directing a donkey (representing the Democratic Party) was published in 1837. A political cartoon by [[Thomas Nast]] in an 1870 revived the donkey as a symbol for the Democratic Party. Cartoonists ever since have followed Nast and used the donkey to represent the Democrats, and the elephant to represent the Republicans.

In the early 20th century, the traditional symbol of the Democratic Party in many states was the rooster, as opposed to the Republican eagle.

There is no official color, but since election night 2000 blue has become the identification color of the Democratic Party for maps, while the red has become the color of the Republicans. Increasingly blue is used by Democrats for promotions (e.g. BuyBlue, BlueFund) and by the party itself, which in 2006 unveiled the "Red to Blue Program" to support Democratic candidates running against Republican incumbents in the 2006 midterm election.

The song "[[Happy Days Are Here Again]]" is the unofficial song of the Democratic Party. It was used prominently when Roosevelt was nominated for president at the 1932 Democratic National Convention and remains a sentimental favorite for Democrats today. During the [[Bill Clinton|Clinton]] era, the [[Fleetwood Mac]] song "Don't Stop Thinking About Tomorrow" became a popular song at Democratic events, reflecting the growing prominence of Baby Boomers in the party.

Some critics refer to the group disparagingly as the [[Democrat Party]].
==Jefferson – Jackson Dinners==
The United States Democratic Party claims Jefferson and [[Andrew Jackson]] as two of its key founding members. Although this claim is a bit of a stretch, for decades the Democrats have honored these two presidents by holding fund-raising events called "Jefferson-Jackson Dinners." Recently, in an act of extreme "political correctness", activists have demanded that these events be renamed on the grounds that Jefferson held slaves and Jackson mistreated Native Americans. Many units of the Democratic Party have given into these arguments and are denouncing and dishonoring two of what most Americans view as great Presidents.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.nytimes.com/2015/08/09/us/jefferson-jackson-dinner-will-be-renamed.html|title=Jefferson-Jackson Dinner Will Be Renamed|date=August 8, 2015|work=New York Times|accessdate=April 19, 2016|first=Ashley|last=Southhall}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=http://blogs.denverpost.com/thespot/2015/11/16/colorado-democratic-party-considers-renaming-annual-jefferson-jackson-dinner/123835/|title=Colorado Democrats consider renaming Jefferson Jackson dinner|work=The Denver Post|first=John|last= Frank|date=November 16, 2015|accessdate=April 19, 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=
http://www.nola.com/politics/index.ssf/2015/07/jefferson_jackson_renamed_loui.html|title=As state Democratic parties rename their Jefferson-Jackson dinners, will Louisiana change 'J-J?'|work=The Times Picayune|first=Kevin |last=Litten|date= July 23, 2015|accessdate=April 21, 2016}}</ref>

==Democratic Presidents==
* [[Andrew Jackson]] (1829-1837)
* [[Martin Van Buren]] (1837-1841)
* [[James K. Polk]] (1845-1849)
* [[Franklin Pierce]] (1853-1857)
* [[James Buchanan]] (1857-1861)
* [[Grover Cleveland]] (1885-1889) (1893-1897)
* [[Woodrow Wilson]] (1913-1921)
* [[Franklin Roosevelt]] (1933-1945)
* [[Harry S Truman]] (1945-1953)
* [[John F. Kennedy]] (1961-1963)
* [[Lyndon B. Johnson]] (1963-1969)
* [[Jimmy Carter]] (1977-1981)
* [[Bill Clinton]] (1993-2001)
* [[Barack Obama]] (2009–2017)

==See also==
*[[Racism and the Democratic Party]]
*[[Clinton Foundation conflicts of interest]]
*[[Obamacare]]
*[[Democratic party (disambiguation)]]
*[[Previous Breaking News/Democrats|Articles about '''Democrats''' from previous "Breaking News"]]
*[[Democrats (Brazil)]]

==Bibliography==
===Current===
*Barone, Michael, and Grant Ujifusa, ''The Almanac of American Politics 2008: The Senators, the Representatives and the Governors: Their Records and Election Results, Their States and Districts'' (2007) covers all the live politicians with amazing detail. New edition every two years since 1975.
* Brownstein, Ronald. ''The Second Civil War: How Extreme Partisanship Has Paralyzed Washington and Polarized America''(2007)
* Crane, Michael. ''The Political Junkie Handbook: The Definitive Reference Books on Politics'' (2004) covers all the major issues explaining the parties' positions
*Sabato, Larry J. ''Divided States of America: The Slash and Burn Politics of the 2004 Presidential Election'' (2005).
*Sabato, Larry J. ed. ''The Sixth Year Itch: The Rise and Fall of the George W. Bush Presidency'' (1907), in-depth essays by scholars on key states in 2006
* Sabato, Larry J., and Howard R. Ernst eds. ''Political Parties and Elections'' (2007), 540pp; an encyclopedia with 450 entries by scholars; focus is 1945 to present
* Sabato, Larry J. and Bruce Larson. ''The Party's Just Begun: Shaping Political Parties for America's Future'' (2001) textbook.
* Shafer, Byron E. and Anthony J. Badger, eds. ''Contesting Democracy: Substance and Structure in American Political History, 1775-2000'' (2001), long essays by specialists on each time period
* Shafer, Byron and Richard Johnston. ''The End of Southern Exceptionalism'' (2006), uses statistical election data & polls to argue GOP growth was primarily a response to economic change
===Historical===
* ''American National Biography'' (20 volumes, 1999) covers all politicians no longer alive; online and paper copies at many academic libraries.
* Jensen, Richard. ''Grass Roots Politics: Parties, Issues, and Voters, 1854-1983'' (1983) [http://www.questia.com/library/book/grass-roots-politics-parties-issues-and-voters-1854-1983-by-christopher-c-gibbs-richard-j-jensen-steven-l-piott.jsp online edition]; survey by conservative scholar, with primary sources
* Kennedy, David M. ''Freedom from Fear: The American People in Depression and War, 1929-1945'' (2001), synthesis by leading scholar; Pulitzer prize [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=52284041 online edition]
* Kleppner, Paul et al. ''The Evolution of American Electoral Systems'' (1983), essays by scholars (some of them conservatives), 1790s to 1980s.
* Kleppner, Paul. ''The Third Electoral System 1853-1892: Parties, Voters, and Political Cultures'' (1979), analysis of voting behavior, with emphasis on region, ethnicity, religion and class. [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=24451028 online edition]
* Ling, Peter J. ''The Democratic Party: A Photographic History'' (2003).
* Patterson, James T. ''Grand Expectations: The United States, 1945-1974'' (1997) synthesis by leading scholar. [http://www.amazon.com/Grand-Expectations-United-1945-1974-History/dp/0195117972/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1211911625&sr=1-2 excerpt and text search]
* Patterson, James T. ''Restless Giant: The United States from Watergate to Bush vs. Gore'' (2005) synthesis by leading scholar. [http://www.amazon.com/Restless-Giant-United-Watergate-History/dp/0195305221/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1211911625&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Ritchie, Donald A. ''Electing FDR: The New Deal Campaign of 1932'' (2007) [http://www.amazon.com/Electing-FDR-Campaign-Presidential-Elections/dp/0700615504/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1195784762&sr=8-2 excerpt and text search]
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* Shafer, Byron E. and Anthony J. Badger, eds. ''Contesting Democracy: Substance and Structure in American Political History, 1775-2000'' (2001), most recent collection of new essays by specialists on each time period:
**includes: "State Development in the Early Republic: 1775–1840" by Ronald P. Formisano; "The Nationalization and Racialization of American Politics: 1790–1840" by David Waldstreicher; "'To One or Another of These Parties Every Man Belongs;": 1820–1865 by Joel H. Silbey; "Change and Continuity in the Party Period: 1835–1885" by Michael F. Holt; "The Transformation of American Politics: 1865–1910" by Peter H. Argersinger; "Democracy, Republicanism, and Efficiency: 1885–1930" by Richard Jensen; "The Limits of Federal Power and Social Policy: 1910–1955" by Anthony J. Badger; "The Rise of Rights and Rights Consciousness: 1930–1980" by James T. Patterson, Brown University; and "Economic Growth, Issue Evolution, and Divided Government: 1955–2000" by Byron E. Shafer
* Schlisinger, Galbraith. ''Of the People: The 200 Year History of the Democratic Party'' (1992)
* Sundquist, James L. ''Dynamics of the Party System: Alignment and Realignment of Political Parties in the United States'', (1983) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=29223022 online edition]
* Wilentz, Sean. ''The Rise of American Democracy: Jefferson to Lincoln'' (2005), detailed synthesis by a leading liberal scholar. [http://www.amazon.com/Rise-American-Democracy-Jefferson-Lincoln/dp/0393058204/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1195784940&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
* Witcover, Jules. ''Party of the People: A History of the Democrats'' (2003)
* Schlesinger, Arthur Meier, Jr. ed. ''History of American Presidential Elections, 1789-2000'' (various multivolume editions, latest is 2001). For each election includes a short history by a leading scholar and a selection of primary documents.

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==External links==
*[http://www.democrats.org/ Democratic Party Official Site]
*[http://www.demconvention.com/assets/downloads/2008-Democratic-Platform-final.pdf 2008 Democratic Platform (pdf download)]
*[http://bertschlossberg.blogspot.com/2012/11/lawrence-patton-mcdonald-b_15.html A Forgotten Man: Congressman Larry McDonald]

[[Category:United States Political Organizations]]
[[Category:United States Political Parties]]
[[Category:Democratic Party]]
[[Category:Progressive Era]]
[[Category:Gilded Age]]
[[Category:New Deal]]
[[Category:Reagan Era]]
[[Category:1960s]]
[[Category:Obama Presidency]]
[[Category:Liberals]]
[[Category:Jacksonian Democracy]]
[[Category:111th United States Congress]]
[[Category:Liberal Organizations]]
[[Category:Anti Second Amendment]]

Occupy Democrats

2017-04-20T01:14:11Z

Teapublican: http://thefederalistpapers.org/us/dumbest-lib-meme-on-spending-priorities-of-all-time-blown-to-bits-by-facts

'''Occupy Democrats''' is a far-left progressive [[social media]] and fake news site that has become infamous for its outrageous lies and propaganda. Occupy Democrats routinely calls Republicans and [[Donald Trump|Trump]] "racist" for criticizing Obama <ref>http://thefederalistpapers.org/us/ridiculous-liberal-meme-destroyed-with-us-history-lesson</ref>.. Occupy Democrats makes outrageously false claims about [[Barack Hussein Obama|Obama]]'s record of achievements claiming Obama created 15 Million jobs and reduced the deficit by more than half. Occupy Democrats represents the extreme left wing of the Democrat party and promotes [[communist]] and [[socialist]] propaganda <ref>http://thefederalistpapers.org/us/boom-another-liberal-meme-on-socialism-ripped-to-shreds</ref> (such as calling opponents of a job-killing $15 minimum wage "racist"). The fact checking website Politifact has found no "facts" promoted by Occupy Democrats to be true.<ref>http://www.politifact.com/personalities/occupy-democrats</ref> <ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MGKedHf5g2M</ref>
The Occupy Democrats even claim that the Republicans started the KKK ignoring the fact that the "Occupy" Democrats started it <ref>http://thefederalistpapers.org/us/occupy-democrats-forget-it-was-their-ilk-who-started-the-kkk</ref> Occupy Democrats go as far to claim Obama is the "greatest president ever" <ref>http://thefederalistpapers.org/us/the-dumbest-anti-trump-meme-from-the-left-of-all-time</ref> Occupy Democrats, like all Democrats, falsely portray republicans as racist, sexist, gun-loving rednecks while making themselves look ignorant <ref>http://thefederalistpapers.org/us/truth-democrats-take-more-from-everyone-which-leaves-everyone-with-less-everything</ref> Occupy Democrats claim that all the things the Republicans acomplished such as ending slavery, passing the civil rights act, giving women the right to vote, and giving balcks the right to vote were done by liberals and completely ignore the fact that liberal Democrats opposed all of those things <ref>http://thefederalistpapers.org/us/doozy-of-a-liberal-meme-debunked</ref> Occupy Democrats stupidly and foolishly claim that the Republican party is more dangerous than ISIS <ref>http://thefederalistpapers.org/us/this-is-who-liberals-are-now-calling-worse-than-isis</ref>. Occupy Democrats claims all conservatives are "racist" for supporting traditional family values <ref>http://thefederalistpapers.org/us/democrat-gets-it-wrong-on-republicans-in-the-south</ref> Occupy Democrats claim that capitalist Republican spending priorities add more to the debt than socialist democrat spending priorities <ref>http://thefederalistpapers.org/us/dumbest-lib-meme-on-spending-priorities-of-all-time-blown-to-bits-by-facts</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}
https://www.facebook.com/OccupyDemocratsLogic/
[[Category:Hate Groups]]
[[Category:Democratic Party]]
[[Category:Liberalism]]
[[Category:Socialists]]
[[Category:Communism]]
[[Category:Anti Second Amendment]]
[[Category:Propaganda]]
[[Category:Fascism]]
[[Category:Liberal News Organizations]]
[[Category:Liberal Deceit]]
[[Category:Anti-American]]

Conservative video

2017-04-20T00:23:08Z

Teapublican: https://www.youtube.com/user/catoinstitutevideo

'''Below are some excellent conservative video resources:'''

'''Conservative news and political commentary:'''

*[http://www.youtube.com/user/HumanEvents Human events]

*[http://www.popmodal.com/ Pop Modal]

*[http://www.youtube.com/user/ConservativeNewMedia Conservative New Media]

'''Economic News and information:'''

*[http://www.youtube.com/user/misesmedia Mises Institute Media]

'''Conservative thinktanks:'''

*[http://www.youtube.com/user/HeritageFoundation Heritage Foundation]

*[https://www.youtube.com/user/FreedomWorksAction Freedomworks]

*[https://www.youtube.com/user/TheJohnBirchSociety John Birch Society]

*[https://www.youtube.com/user/TPPatriots Tea Party Patriots]

*[https://www.youtube.com/user/catoinstitutevideo Cato Institute]

'''Creation science:'''

*[http://www.youtube.com/user/creationclips Creationclips] by [[Creation Ministries International]]
*[[Creation vs. Evolution Videos]]

'''Humorous conservative videos:'''

*[[Humorous conservative videos]]

'''Videos about Conservapedia:'''

*[[Conservapedia:Videos on Conservapedia|Videos about Conservapedia]]

{{Conservatism}}

[[Category:Conservatives]]

Conservative video

2017-04-20T00:21:14Z

Teapublican: https://www.youtube.com/user/TheJohnBirchSociety https://www.youtube.com/user/TPPatriots

'''Below are some excellent conservative video resources:'''

'''Conservative news and political commentary:'''

*[http://www.youtube.com/user/HumanEvents Human events]

*[http://www.popmodal.com/ Pop Modal]

*[http://www.youtube.com/user/ConservativeNewMedia Conservative New Media]

'''Economic News and information:'''

*[http://www.youtube.com/user/misesmedia Mises Institute Media]

'''Conservative thinktanks:'''

*[http://www.youtube.com/user/HeritageFoundation Heritage Foundation]

*[https://www.youtube.com/user/FreedomWorksAction Freedomworks]

*[https://www.youtube.com/user/TheJohnBirchSociety John Birch Society]

*[https://www.youtube.com/user/TPPatriots Tea Party Patriots]

'''Creation science:'''

*[http://www.youtube.com/user/creationclips Creationclips] by [[Creation Ministries International]]
*[[Creation vs. Evolution Videos]]

'''Humorous conservative videos:'''

*[[Humorous conservative videos]]

'''Videos about Conservapedia:'''

*[[Conservapedia:Videos on Conservapedia|Videos about Conservapedia]]

{{Conservatism}}

[[Category:Conservatives]]

Category:Pro Second Amendment

2017-04-20T00:15:12Z

Teapublican: Rudy Giuliani Ronald Reeagn Newsmax

{{Main|Second Amendment}}

The Pro [[Second Amendment]] Category is based on A or B ratings from [[Gun Owners of America]] (GOA http://gunowners.org/113srat.htm and http://gunowners.org/113hrat.htm) and/or [[Second Amendment Foundation]] and/or the [[National Rifle Association]] (http://web.archive.org/web/20130120221338/http://www.nraila.org/Issues/FactSheets/Read.aspx?ID=15 and http://2ndamendmentright.org/2011/03/26/anti-gun-companies-organizations-media-and-celebrities-compiled-by-the-nra-institute-for-legislative-action).

According to the GOA and NRA, the category represents strong defenders of the [[unalienable rights]] of the [[Second Amendment]] and [[Bill of Rights]] such as pro-gun [[politician]]s, [[judge]]s or [[celebrities]] (see [[Essay:List of celebrities for Second Amendment]]):
* Certain American [[federal]], [[state]], [[county]] or [[city]] laws that are pro-gun / pro-[[self-defense]] such as the [[Second Amendment]]
* [[United States Senators]] such as [[Idaho]]'s [[Mike Crapo]] or [[Texas]]' [[Ted Cruz]]
* [[United States House of Representatives]] congressmen such as [[Arizona]]'s [[Paul Gosar]] and [[Idaho]]'s [[Raul Labrador]]
* [[United States President]]s such as [[Thomas Jefferson]], [[Theodore Roosevelt]], [[Ronald Reagan]] and [[John F. Kennedy]]
* [[United States Supreme Court Justice]] such as [[Clarence Thomas]] and [[Antonin Scalia]].
* State [[Governor]]'s such as [[Matt Mead]] of [[Wyoming]] and [[Greg Abbott]] of [[Texas]].
* Local representatives of the State Assemblies and State Senates.
* [[Mayor]]s of [[American]] cities such as [[Rudy Giuliani]].
* Certain American [[cities]] that are known for their pro-gun, pro-[[self-defense]] laws.
* Certain [[business]]es that are known for their pro-gun, pro-[[self-defense]] policies, such as ____________.
* Certain [[media]] that are known for their pro-gun, pro-[[self-defense]] policies, such as [[Drudge Report]] and [[NewsMax]].
* Certain [[television]] shows that are known for pro-gun, pro-[[self-defense]] policies such as .

==Ratings Explanation==
* D & D- Leans Anti-Gun: usually against [[firearms]].
* F Anti-Gun Voter: a philosophically committed anti-gunner.
* F- Anti-Gun Leader: outspoken anti-gun advocate who carries anti-gun legislation such [[Universal Background Checks]] and [[Assault Weapons Ban]]

[[Category:Gun Control]]
[[Category:Second Amendment]]
[[Category:Free States]]
[[Category:Red States]]
[[Category:Second Amendment]]
[[Category:Anti-Communism]]
[[Category:Firearms]]
[[Category:Conservatism]]
[[Category:Conservatives]]
[[Category:Libertarians]]
[[Category:Libertarianism]]

Lyndon B. Johnson

2017-04-20T00:09:19Z

Teapublican: Category:Liberals Category:Welfare State Category:Liberalism

{{Officeholder
|name=Lyndon B. Johnson
|image=LBJ by Shoumatoff.jpg
|party=[[Democratic]]
|spouse=[[Lady Bird Johnson]]
|religion=[[Disciple of Christ]]
|offices=
{{Officeholder/president
|country=the United States
|number=36th
|terms=November 22, 1963 – January 20, 1969
|vp=[[Hubert Humphrey]]
|preceded=[[John F. Kennedy]]
|former=y
|succeeded=[[Richard Nixon]]
}}
{{Officeholder/vice president
|country=the United States
|number=37th
|terms=January 20, 1961 – November 22, 1963
|president=[[John F. Kennedy]]
|preceded=[[Richard Nixon]]
|former=y
|succeeded=[[Hubert Humphrey]]
}}
{{Officeholder/senator
|state=Texas
|terms=January 3, 1949 – January 3, 1961
|preceded=W. Lee O'Daniel
|former=y
|succeeded=[[William Blakley]]
}}
{{Officeholder/representative
|state=Texas
|district=10th
|terms=April 10, 1937 – January 3, 1949
|preceded=[[James P. Buchanan]]
|former=y
|succeeded=[[Homer Thornberry]]
}}
}}
'''Lyndon Baines Johnson''' (1908–1973), often referred to as '''LBJ''', was the 36th [[President of the United States of America]] (1963–1969). After serving in the House and Senate since 1937, Johnson was elected Vice President in 1960, and in November, 1963, he succeeded to the presidency following President [[John F. Kennedy]]'s assassination. Johnson began his career as a liberal [[New Deal]]er, later when he became a senator he initially aligned himself with the [[Southern Democrats]], although by the time he ascended to Senate Leadership he espoused moderate politics in an attempt to bridge both wings of the fractious [[Democratic Party]]. However, as President he seized the leadership of liberalism citing [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] as his role model. Johnson moved the [[Democratic Party]] to the left, and pushed through Congress the [[Great Society]], comprising liberal economic policy including Medicare (free health care for the elderly), Medicaid (free health care for the poor), aid to education, and a major "War on Poverty". As part of his jobs program he greatly escalated the American troop strength in [[Vietnam]] through [[conscription]], from 16,000 in 1963 to 23,000 by the end of 1964 and finally to 550,000 by early 1968. [[Unemployment]] consequently, remained in check.

Johnson won reelection in a landslide in 1964 over conservative leader [[Barry Goldwater]], and in 1965 succeeded in obtaining new civil rights legislation with GOP senators, in particular the [[Voting Rights Act]] of 1965, over a Democratic Filibuster. Johnson's popularity steadily declined after 1966 and his reelection bid in 1968 collapsed as a result of turmoil in his Democratic party over conscription, race, Vietnam and widespread crime and rioting. He withdrew from the race to concentrate on peacemaking. Johnson was renowned for his domineering personality and arm twisting of powerful politicians.

==Early years==
Johnson was maternally descended from a pioneer Baptist clergyman, George Washington Baines, who pastored numerous small rural churches in Texas, Arkansas, and Louisiana. Baines was also the president of [[Baylor University]] during the [[American Civil War]]. George Baines was the grandfather of Johnson's mother, Rebekah Baines Johnson.

Johnson was born in Stonewall, Texas, in a small farmhouse in a poor farming area along the Pedernales River. His parents, Samuel Ealy Johnson, Jr. and the former Rebekah Baines, had three girls and two boys. The nearby village of Johnson City, Texas, was named after a relative who came from Georgia. In school, Johnson was an awkward, talkative youth and was elected president of his eleventh-grade class.<ref>http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/presidents/36_l_johnson/tguide/l_johnson_dk.html</ref> He graduated from Johnson City High School in 1924.<ref>http://www.lbjlib.utexas.edu/johnson/archives.hom/biographys.hom/lbj_bio.asp</ref>

In 1926, Johnson enrolled in Southwest Texas State Teachers' College (now called Texas State University-San Marcos). He worked his way through school, participated in debate and campus politics, edited the school newspaper, and graduated in 1931. Biographer Robert Caro asserts he was known as "the biggest liar on campus." <ref>Caro, Robert A. The Years of Lyndon Johnson: The Path to Power. New York: Alfred A Knopf, Inc. 1982. p. xx</ref> The college years refined his remarkable skills of persuasion and political organization. One year Johnson taught mostly Mexican American children at the Welhausen School in Cotulla, Texas. When he returned to San Marcos in 1965, after having signed the [[Higher Education Act]], Johnson looked back:
:"''I shall never forget the faces of the boys and the girls in that little Welhausen Mexican School, and I remember even yet the pain of realizing and knowing then that college was closed to practically every one of those children because they were too poor. And I think it was then that I made up my mind that this Nation could never rest while the door to knowledge remained closed to any American''."<ref>see [http://www.lbjlib.utexas.edu/johnson/lbjforkids/edu_whca370-text.shtm "Remarks at Southwest Texas State College Upon Signing the Higher Education Act of 1965"]</ref>

==Early political career==
After graduation, Johnson briefly taught public speaking at Genesee Community College and debate in a Houston high school, then entered politics. Johnson's father had served five terms in the Texas legislature and was a close friend to one of Texas's rising political figures, Congressman [[Sam Rayburn]]. In 1930, Johnson campaigned for Texas state Senator Welly Hopkins in his run for Congress. Hopkins recommended him to Congressman [[Richard M. Kleberg]], who appointed Johnson as Kleberg's legislative secretary. LBJ was elected speaker of the "Little Congress," a group of Congressional aides, where he cultivated Congressmen, newspapermen and lobbyists. Johnson's friends soon included aides to President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]], as well as fellow Texans such as Vice President [[John Nance Garner]]. He became a surrogate son to Sam Rayburn.

Johnson married Claudia Alta Taylor (already nicknamed "Lady Bird") of Karnack, Texas on November 17, 1934 after she had attended Georgetown University Law School for several months. They had two daughters, Lynda Bird Johnson, born in 1944, and Luci Baines Johnson, born in 1947. Johnson enjoyed giving people and animals his own LBJ initials; his daughters' given names are examples, as was his dog Little Beagle Johnson.

In 1935, he was appointed head of the Texas [[National Youth Administration]] (NYA), which enabled him to use the government to create educational and job opportunities for young people. He resigned two years later to run for Congress. Johnson was a notoriously tough boss throughout his career, often demanding long workdays and work on weekends; he worked as hard as any of them.<ref>Woods, (2006), p. 131</ref>

==House years==
Johnson resigned from his NYA job in 1937 to run successfully in a special election for a seat in the [[House of Representatives]] representing [[Austin, Texas|Austin]] and the surrounding Hill Country. He ran on a [[New Deal]] platform and was effectively aided by his wife, Lady Bird Johnson.

President Roosevelt found Johnson to be a welcome ally and conduit for information, particularly with regards to issues concerning internal politics in Texas (informally dubbed "Operation Texas") and the machinations of Vice President Garner and House Speaker Sam Rayburn. Johnson was immediately appointed to the powerful Naval Affairs Committee. He worked for rural electrification and other improvements for his district. Johnson steered the projects towards contractors which he personally knew, such as the Brown Brothers, Herman and George, who would finance much of Johnson's future career.<ref>Caro, (1982) is full of details.</ref> In 1941, he ran for the U.S. Senate (while not giving up his House seat) in a special election against the sitting governor, radio personality W. Lee "Pappy" O'Daniel. Johnson was not expected to win against the popular governor, but he ran a strong race and was declared the winner in unofficial returns. He ultimately was defeated by controversial official returns in an election marked by massive fraud on the part of both campaigns.

==Senate years==

In 1948, Johnson ran in another controversial Senate race, this time against former governor Coke Stevenson. After no candidate won a majority of the votes in the election, Johnson defeated Stevenson in a run-off election. The result of this election was highly controversial, most historians, even those sympathetic to Johnson consider Johnson's 87 vote victory over Stevenson to be fraudulent.<ref>See eg Robert A Caro Master of the ''Senate Means of Assent''</ref> After joining the Senate, Johnson established relationships with several senior senators, including [[Richard Russell]]. Johnson was appointed to the powerful [[Armed Services Committee]] in 1950, and became chairman of the Preparedness Subcommittee which brought him into the public spotlight much like [[Harry Truman]] used the "Truman Committee" during the Second World War. He was named minority whip in 1951 under Democratic leader Bob McFarland, and he became the leader of the [[Democratic Party]] in the Senate in 1953. His first major policy, with the support of Russell, was to bypass the Seniority rule in committee assignments, which meant that Senators became reliant on his favour in order to obtain positions on important committees. This move, in combination with his strong personality gave him power of senators that had not been seen before (or since) in Senate History. He is often referred to as the "Master of the Senate". Surprisingly, after he bacame majority leader in 1955 he supported many of Eisenhower's proposals despite the partisan resistance of the liberal wing of the Democratic party. This allowed him to bask in the reflected glow of Eisenhower's immense popularity and gain a reputation for working across the aisle and getting things done.

Although publicly posing as a Civil Rights hero, in private Johnson was—like most southern Democrats of the 1960s—a racist: When his sometime chauffeur, Robert Parker, told LBJ he’d prefer to be called by his name rather than "boy," "nigger" or "chief," Johnson replied, "As long as you are black, and you're gonna be black till the day you die, no one's gonna call you by your goddamn name. So no matter what you are called, nigger, you just let it roll off your back like water, and you’ll make it. Just pretend you’re a goddamn piece of furniture."<ref>Robert Parker and Richard L. Rashke, ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=JKhpZMj8Z6wC Capitol Hill in Black and White]'' (Penguin Group, 1989), ISBN 0515101893, p. v.</ref>

In his capacity as Majority Leader of the Senate, Johnson joined with [[Strom Thurmond]] to kill the Civil Rights Act of 1957. But when Senate Republicans re-introduced the bill, LBJ said, "I'm going to have to bring up the nigger bill again," according to LBJ's White House Special Counsel Harry McPherson.<ref>Michael L. Gillette, [http://www.lbjlib.utexas.edu/johnson/archives.hom/oralhistory.hom/mcpherson/mcpher06.pdf Transcript, Harry McPherson Oral History Interview VI], 5/16/85, LBJ Library, 16 May 1985.</ref> "Let's face it. Our ass is in a crack. We're gonna have to let this nigger bill pass," he told Senator John Stennis (D-MS), according to a Pulitzer Prize winning<ref>[http://www.pulitzer.org/bycat/Biography-or-Autobiography Biography or Autobiography]. Past winners & finalists by category. The Pulitzer Prizes. Retrieved 2012-03-24.</ref> biography.<ref>Caro, Robert A. (2002). ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=U87rzAqVhbwC The Years of Lyndon Johnson: Master of the Senate, Volume 3]''. New York: Knopf. p. 954. ISBN 0394528360.</ref> According to Bancroft Prize winning<ref>[http://library.columbia.edu/about/awards/bancroft/previous_awards.html The Bancroft Prizes: Previous Awards]. The Columbia University Libraries/Information Services</ref> biographer Robert Dallek, he asked Senator Sam Rayburn (D-TX), "Sam, why don't you all let this nigger bill pass?"<ref>Dallek, Robert (1991). ''[http://books.google.com/books?id=t_LjEJdaAiYC Lone Star Rising: Lyndon Johnson and His Times, 1908-1960]''. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press. p. 519. ISBN 0195054350.</ref> According to former Harvard historian and Johnson staffer Doris Kearns Goodwin, LBJ explained his position to Senator Richard Russell, Jr. (D-GA) thus:
{{cquote|These Negroes, they’re getting pretty uppity these days and that’s a problem for us since they’ve got something now they never had before, the political pull to back up their uppityness. Now we’ve got to do something about this, we’ve got to give them a little something, just enough to quiet them down, not enough to make a difference.<ref>Goodwin, Doris Kearns (1977). [http://books.google.com/books?id=HS9aAAAAYAAJ Lyndon Johnson and the American Dream]. New York: New American Library. p. 155. ISBN 0451140826</ref>}}

Johnson saw to it that once the bill reached the Senate judiciary committee it was weakened enough to ensure passage, the first passed since Reconstruction. Johnson then took credit. He was a master at balancing the powerful southern wing of the Democratic party with the liberal northern and eastern wing. He would employ very effective tactics of persuasion with senators; including intimidation, flattery, threats and promises. Johnson sought the Democratic nomination for president prior to the [[United States presidential election, 1960|1960 election]], but accepted the nomination for vice-president following Kennedy's nomination.

==Presidency==
{{see also|Great Society}}
Lyndon B. Johnson was sworn into the [[President of the United States of America|Office of the President]] just hours after John F. Kennedy was assassinated. The [[Oath of Office]] took place aboard [[Air Force One]] just prior to the flight to [[Washington DC]] from [[Dallas]]. It was administered by [[Sarah T. Hughes]] (one of the first justices to hear and write the decision for [[Roe v. Wade]] in favor of [[abortion]]).<ref>University of North Texas Libraries, Sarah T. Hughes Collection, http://www.library.unt.edu/archives/historical-manuscripts/historical-manuscripts-exhibits/hughes/</ref> Also, since no Bible could be found aboard Air Force One, Johnson recited the oath with his hand on a [[Roman Catholic]] [[missal]] which had been in Kennedy's desk.<ref>New York Times, "After a Time of Tragedy, a Beginning Toward the 'Great Society,'" January 1973. Online at http://www.nytimes.com/books/98/04/12/specials/johnson-tragedy.html</ref>

As President, Johnson greatly expanded the federal government with his [[Great Society]] programs. He played a key role in helping the [[civil rights movement]] win legislative victories, pushing for the adoption of the [[Civil Rights Act]] (1964), which outlawed segregation, and the [[Voting Rights Act]] (1965), which guaranteed African-Americans' right to vote. President Johnson's support for civil rights was purely partisan. Discussing the Civil Rights Act of 1964 with two southern governors on Air Force One, LBJ stated, “I’ll have them niggers voting Democratic for two hundred years,” according to Air Force One steward Robert M. MacMillan. “That was the reason he was pushing the bill," added MacMillan, an African American, "not because he wanted equality for everyone. It was strictly a political ploy for the Democratic Party. He was phony from the word go.”<ref>Interview with Robert M. MacMillan, March 23, 1993, cited in Ronald Kessler, ''[http://books.google.com/books/about/Inside_the_White_House.html?id=lJz-yIZNE2sC Inside the White House]'' (New York: Simon and Schuster, 1996), p. 33, ISBN 0671879197.</ref>

Johnson also appointed [[NAACP]] lawyer [[Thurgood Marshall]] the first African American Supreme Court Justice. When a young White House attorney recommended Federal Judge William Henry Hastie—who had been Marshall's professor at Harvard Law School—as a more qualified African American candidate, LBJ rejected the light-skinned Hastie, explaining, "Son, when I appoint a nigger to the court, I want everyone to know he's a nigger."<ref>Dallek, Robert (1991). ''[http://books.google.com/books?id=t_LjEJdaAiYC Lone Star Rising: Lyndon Johnson and His Times, 1908-1960]''. Oxford, England: Oxford University Press. p. 519. ISBN 0195054350. Hastie had previously been considered for the Court by Eisenhower in 1956, who shelved the idea because Hastie's nomination would have been "[https://books.google.com/books?id=RAVl_KwcBuAC&pg=PA122#v=onepage&q&f=false filibustered to death] by Southerners on the floor of the Senate" (All 22 southern Senators at the time were [http://historycms.house.gov/WorkArea/DownloadAsset.aspx?id=40930 white Democrats]); and again in 1962 by Kennedy, who rejected him after white liberals -- Chief Justice Earl Warren and Justice William O. Douglas -- objected that Hastie, an African American, was [https://books.google.com/books?id=7UTPwJNHQG4C&pg=PA143#v=onepage&q&f=false too conservative] (As Warren put it, "He's not a liberal, and he'll be opposed to the measures we're interested in.") During World War II, Hastie had laid the groundwork for the 1947 integration of the US armed forces when he [http://www.theroot.com/articles/history/2014/09/_1st_black_federal_judges_who_were_they.html resigned as aide to Secretary of War Henry Stimson] in protest of segregated training in the US Army Air Force for the Tuskeegee Airmen.</ref>

During the 1964 Presidential campaign, Johnson ran "[http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/10/24/revisiting-the-daisy-ad-revolution/ the most negative political ad in American history]," a campaign ad titled "Daisy," smearing Republican challenger [[Barry Goldwater]] as a warmonger who threatened nuclear devastation. Thus "[http://www.pophistorydig.com/topics/lbjs-atomic-ad1964-daisy-girl/ the negative political ad was born], initiating the clever use of image and sound to paint an opponent in negative or scary terms."

Johnson won the 1964 presidential election in a landslide over Goldwater but, ironically, greatly expanded American involvement in [[Vietnam]] (see [[Vietnam War]]). His popularity plunged as the death toll from the conflict in Vietnam steadily increased. In early 1968, faced with plummeting poll numbers and mounting public opposition to his foreign policy, Johnson announced that he would neither seek nor accept his party's nomination for the presidency in 1968. This decision may have been brought about by his supprisingly narrow victory in the New Hampshire primary over Eugene McCarthy, a liberal anti-war Democrat. It is widely thought that had he run, he would have been trounced in the primaries or in the subsequent general election—eventually won by Republican [[Richard M. Nixon]].

==Bibliography==
===Biographies===
* Caro, Robert A. ''The Years of Lyndon Johnson'' (3 volumes as of 2006): ''The Path to Power'' (1982); ''Means of Ascent'' (1990); ''Master of the Senate: The Years of Lyndon Johnson'' (2002). The most detailed biography, extends to 1960; generally hostile to LBJ; See Dallek and Woods for balanced biographies; [http://www.amazon.com/Path-Power-Years-Lyndon-Johnson/dp/0679729453/ref=sr_1_2/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1189836030&sr=1-2 vol 1 excerpt and online search from Amazon.com]; [http://www.amazon.com/Means-Ascent-Years-Lyndon-Johnson/dp/067973371X/ref=sr_1_3/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1189836030&sr=1-3 vol 2 excerpt and online search from Amazon.com]; [http://www.amazon.com/Master-Senate-Lyndon-Johnson-Vintage/dp/0394720954/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1189836030&sr=1-1 vol 3 excerpt and online search from Amazon.com]
* Dallek, Robert. ''Lone Star Rising: Lyndon Johnson and His Times, 1908–1960'' (1991), [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=59394514 online edition vol 1]; ''Flawed Giant: Lyndon Johnson and His Times, 1961–1973'' (1998) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=65196503 online edition vol 2]; also: '' Lyndon B. Johnson: Portrait of a President'' (2004). A 400-page abridged version of his 2 volume scholarly biography, [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=103184871 online edition of short version].
* Goodwin, Doris Kearns. ''Lyndon Johnson & the American Dream'' (1977). A character study.
* Schulman, Bruce J. ''Lyndon B. Johnson and American Liberalism: A Brief Biography with Documents'' (1995)
* Woods, Randall. ''LBJ: Architect of American Ambition'' (2006). A highly detailed scholarly biography (1000 pages). [http://www.amazon.com/LBJ-Architect-American-Randall-Woods/dp/0684834588/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1189835998&sr=1-1 excerpt and online search from Amazon.com]

===Presidential years===
* Altschuler, Bruce E.; ''LBJ and the Polls'' (1990) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=37809550 online edition]
* Andrew, John A. ''Lyndon Johnson and the Great Society'' (1999) 224 pp. [http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/1566631858/ref=sib_dp_pt/103-4827826-5463040#reader-link excerpt and online search from Amazon.com]
* Bernstein, Irving. ''Guns or Butter: The Presidency of Lyndon Johnson'' 1994.
* Bornet, Vaughn Davis. ''The Presidency of Lyndon B. Johnson''. 1983
* Branch, Taylor. ''Parting the Waters: America in the King Years 1954-63'' (1989) [http://www.amazon.com/Parting-Waters-America-Years-1954-63/dp/0671687425/ref=sr_1_31?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1208722057&sr=1-31 excerpt and text search]
* Branch, Taylor. ''Pillar of Fire: America in the King Years 1963-65'' (1999) [http://www.amazon.com/Pillar-Fire-America-Years-1963-65/dp/0684848090/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1208722178&sr=1-5 excerpt and text search]
* Branch, Taylor. ''At Canaan's Edge: America in the King Years, 1965-68'' (2007)
* Divine, Robert A., ed. ''The Johnson Years. Vol. 1: Foreign Policy, the Great Society and the White House.'' 1981; essays by scholars
* Divine, Robert A., ed. ''The Johnson Years. Vol. 2: Vietnam, the Environment, and Science.'' 1987; essays by scholars
* Divine, Robert A., ed. ''The Johnson Years. Vol. 3: LBJ at Home and Abroad''. 1994; essays by scholars [http://www.amazon.com/Johnson-Years-Three-Home-Abroad/dp/0700606556/ref=sr_1_5/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1189836030&sr=1-5 excerpt and online search from Amazon.com]
* Firestone, Bernard J., and Robert C. Vogt, eds. ''Lyndon Baines Johnson and the Uses of Power.'' (1988); essays by scholars [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=23324778 online edition]
* Graham, Hugh Davis. ''The Civil Rights Era: Origins and Development of National Policy, 1960-1972'' (1990)
* Gould, Lewis L. ''Lady Bird Johnson and the Environment.'' 1988.
* Lichtenstein, Nelson, ed. ''Political Profiles: The Johnson Years''. 1976. short biographies of 400+ key politicians
* Mann, Robert. ''The Walls of Jericho: Lyndon Johnson, Hubert Humphrey, Richard Russell, and the Struggle for Civil Rights.'' 1996.
* Milkis, Sidney M. and Jerome M. Mileur, eds. ''The Great Society And The High Tide Of Liberalism'' (2005) 490pp of essays by scholars; [http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/1558494936/ref=sib_dp_pt/103-4827826-5463040#reader-link excerpt and online search from Amazon.com]
* Redford, Emmette S., and Marlan Blissett. ''Organizing the Executive Branch: The Johnson Presidency.'' 1981.
* Shesol, Jeff. ''Mutual Contempt: Lyndon Johnson, Robert Kennedy, and the Feud That Shaped a Decade'' 1997.
* White, Theodore H. ''The Making of the President, 1964'' 1965. [http://www.historyebook.org/ online at ACLS e-books]
* Zarefsky, David. ''President Johnson's War on Poverty'' 1986.

===Vietnam===
* Barrett, David Marshall. ''Advice and Dissent: An Organizational Analysis of the Evolution of Lyndon Johnson's Vietnam Advisory System, 1965–1968.'' (University of Notre Dame, 1990)
* Berman, Larry. ''Lyndon Johnson's War: The Road to Stalemate in Vietnam'' (1991)
* Brands, H. W. ''The Wages of Globalism: Lyndon Johnson and the Limits of American Power '' (1997)
* Casey, Francis Michael. ''The Vietnam Policy of President Lyndon Baines Johnson in Response to the Theory of the Protracted Conflict as Applied in the Politics of Indochina: A Case Study of Threat Perception and Assessment in the Crisis Management Process of a Pluralistic Society.'' (Claremont Graduate School, 1976)
* Cherwitz, Richard Arnold. ''The Rhetoric of the Gulf of Tonkin: A Study of the Crisis Speaking of President Lyndon B. Johnson.'' (University of Iowa, 1978)
* Goodnight, Lisa Jo. ''The Conservative Voice of a Liberal President: An Analysis of Lyndon B. Johnson's Vietnam Rhetoric.'' (Purdue University, 1993)
* Kaiser, David E. ''American tragedy: Kennedy, Johnson, and the origins of the Vietnam War.'' (Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2000) ISBN 0-674-00225-3
* Karnow, Stanley. ''Vietnam, A History.'' (Penguin, 1991), balanced assessment
* Logevall, Fredrik Bengt Johan. ''Fear to Negotiate: Lyndon Johnson and the Vietnam War, 1963–1965.'' (Yale University, 1993)
* Turner, Kathleen Jane. ''The Effect of Presidential-Press Interaction on Lyndon B. Johnson's Vietnam War Rhetoric.'' (Purdue University, 1978)
* Vandiver, Frank E. ''Shadows of Vietnam: Lyndon Johnson's Wars'' (1997) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=53311933 online edition]
* Woods, Randall B. "The Politics of Idealism: Lyndon Johnson, Civil Rights, and Vietnam," ''Diplomatic History'' (2007) 31 (1), 1–18. [http://www.blackwell-synergy.com/doi/abs/10.1111/J.1467-7709.2007.00599.X online at Blackwell-Synergy]

==Primary sources==
* Barrett David M. ed. "Lyndon B. Johnson's Vietnam Papers: A Documentary Collection" (1997). Documents from LBJ Library and other archives.
* Beschloss Michael R. ed. ''Taking Charge: The Johnson White House Tapes, 1963–1964'' (1997). Transcribed recordings of LBJ's phone calls.
* Beschloss, Michael R. ed. ''Reaching for Glory: Lyndon Johnson's Secret White House Tapes, 1964-1965'' (2002) [http://www.amazon.com/Reaching-Glory-Lyndon-Johnsons-1964-1965/dp/074322714X/ref=sr_1_7/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1189836030&sr=1-7 excerpt and online search from Amazon.com]
* Califano Joseph A., Jr. ''The Triumph & Tragedy of Lyndon Johnson'' (1991). By a cabinet member.
* [http://fraser.stlouisfed.org/publications/ERP/ Council of Economic Advisors, ''Economic Report of the President'' (annual 1947- )], complete series online; important analysis of current trends and policies, plus statistcial tables
* Gallup, George H. ed. ''The Gallup Poll: Public Opinion, 1935–1971, volume 3: 1959–1971'' (1972). Summary of poll data.
* Johnson Lyndon B. ''The Vantage Point: Perspectives on the Presidency, 1963–1969'' (1971). LBJ's memoirs.
* ''Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: Lyndon B. Johnson'' (10 volumes, GPO, 1965–70). All speeches and official statements.
* Reedy, George ''Lyndon B. Johnson: A Memoir'' (1982), ISBN 0-8362-6610-2. A memoir by the press secretary.

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

==External links==
* [https://librivox.org/author/11302 Works by Lyndon B. Johnson - text and free audio] - [[LibriVox]]

{{USPresidents}}
{{USVicePresidents}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Johnson, Lyndon B.}}

[[Category:Democrats]]
[[Category:Liberals]]
[[Category:Welfare State]]
[[Category:Liberalism]]
[[Category:Anti Second Amendment]]

Category:Anti Second Amendment

2017-04-20T00:04:52Z

Teapublican: lyndon johnson third reeich

The Anti [[Second Amendment]] Category is a broad category based on D or F ratings from [[Gun Owners of America]] (GOA http://gunowners.org/113srat.htm and http://gunowners.org/113hrat.htm) and/or [[Second Amendment Foundation]] and/or the [[National Rifle Association]] (http://web.archive.org/web/20130120221338/http://www.nraila.org/Issues/FactSheets/Read.aspx?ID=15 and http://2ndamendmentright.org/2011/03/26/anti-gun-companies-organizations-media-and-celebrities-compiled-by-the-nra-institute-for-legislative-action).

According to the GOA and NRA, the category represents [[gun control|anti-gun]] [[politician]]s, [[judge]]s or [[celebrities]] (see [[List of celebrities against Second Amendment]]):
*Certain American [[federal]], [[state]], [[county]] or [[city]] laws that are anti-gun / anti-[[self-defense]] such as the [[Brady Handgun Violence Prevention Act]]
*Many [[United States Senators]], for example, [[Diane Feinstein]], [[Hillary Clinton]] and [[Charles Schumer]] support gun control.
*Many [[United States House of Representatives]] congressmen, for example, [[Nancy Pelosi]] support gun control.
*Several past and present [[United States President]]s, for example, [[Barack Obama]], [[Lyndon Johnson]] and [[Bill Clinton]] support gun control.
*Some [[United States Supreme Court Justice]], for example, [[Elena Kagan]], [[Sonia Sotomayor]] and [[Ruth Bader Ginsburg]] support gun control.
*Several State [[Governor]]s, for example, [[Andrew Cuomo]] of [[New York]] and [[Jerry Brown]] of [[California]] support gun control.
*Local representatives of the State Assemblies and State Senates.
*[[Mayor]]s of [[American]] cities such as former [[New York City]] mayor [[Michael Bloomberg]].
*Certain American [[cities]] are known for their gun bans or extremely anti-[[self-defense]] laws, such as [[San Francisco]], [[Chicago]] and [[New York City]]
*Certain [[business]]es that are known for their gun bans or extremely anti-[[self-defense]] policies, such as [[PayPal]] and [[Comcast]].
*Certain [[media]] that are known for their anti-gun [[propaganda]] and [[demonization]] or extremely anti-[[self-defense]] policies, such as [[New York Times]] and [[Time Magazine]].
*Certain [[television]] shows are known for anti-gun propaganda and demonization or extremely anti-[[self-defense]] policies.
*Most foreign countries have stricter gun regulations than the United States (as did past regimes such as the [[Union of Soviet Socialist Republics|Soviet Union]] and the [[Third Reich]], both of which favored gun control to keep their subjugated citizens under control and prevent uprisings against their corrupt and totalitarian regimes).

==Ratings Explanation==
* D & D- Leans Anti-Gun: usually against [[firearms]].
* F Anti-Gun Voter: a philosophically committed anti-gunner.
* F- Anti-Gun Leader: outspoken anti-gun advocate who carries anti-gun legislation such [[Universal Background Checks]] and [[Assault Weapons Ban]]

[[Category:Gun Control]]
[[Category:Police State]]
[[Category:Second Amendment]]
[[Category:Guns]]

Longest liberal denials

2017-04-19T23:54:15Z

Teapublican: |

[[Liberal denial]] is a familiar phenomenon. What are the ''longest'' liberal denials in history? Here's a growing list:

{| class="wikitable"
|-
|'''Denial'''
|'''Beginning of denial'''
|'''Ending of denial'''
|'''Length of denial'''
|-
|[[Piltdown Man]] hoax
|1912
|1953
|41 years
|-
|[[Lenin]] and [[Leon Trotsky|Trotsky]] being as genocidal as Stalin
|1917
|present
|92 years and continuing
|-
|[[Alger Hiss]] as a communist spy
|1947
|1998
|51 years
|-
|[[Joseph Stalin]] starving millions
|1930?
|1980?
|50? years
|-
|[[Population bomb]] hoax
|1968
|1987
|19 years
|-
|[[global warming]] hoax
|
|present
|
|-
|Effectiveness of [[supply-side economics]]
|1975
|present
|34 years and counting
|-
|How Reagan caused the fall of [[communism]]
|1991
|present
|18 years and counting
|-
|Harm caused by the [[New Deal]] during the Depression
|1933
|present
|76 years and counting
|-
|The falsehood of [[Charles Darwin]]'s theory of [[evolution]]
|1859
|present
|151 years and counting
|-
|That [[materialism]] and evolutionary thought played a role in [[Hitler]]'s rise to power
|1933
|present
|77 years and counting
|}
|-
|The racist Southern Democrats did not become Republicans after LBJ reluctantly passed the Civil Rights Act
|1964
|present
|53 years and counting
|-
(please add)

[[Category:Liberalism]]

Longest liberal denials

2017-04-19T23:53:47Z

Teapublican: |The racist Southern Democrats did not become Republicans after LBJ reluctantly passed the Civil Rights Act |1964 |present |53 years and counting |}

Longest liberal denials

2017-04-19T23:53:07Z

Teapublican: |The racist Southern Democrats did not become Republicans after LBJ reluctantly passed the Civil Rights Act |1964 |present |53 years and counting |}

Longest liberal denials

2017-04-19T23:52:41Z

Teapublican: |The racist Southern Democrats did not become Republicans after LBJ reluctantly passed the Civil Rights Act |1964 |present |53 years and counting |}

[[Liberal denial]] is a familiar phenomenon. What are the ''longest'' liberal denials in history? Here's a growing list:

{| class="wikitable"
|-
|'''Denial'''
|'''Beginning of denial'''
|'''Ending of denial'''
|'''Length of denial'''
|-
|[[Piltdown Man]] hoax
|1912
|1953
|41 years
|-
|[[Lenin]] and [[Leon Trotsky|Trotsky]] being as genocidal as Stalin
|1917
|present
|92 years and continuing
|-
|[[Alger Hiss]] as a communist spy
|1947
|1998
|51 years
|-
|[[Joseph Stalin]] starving millions
|1930?
|1980?
|50? years
|-
|[[Population bomb]] hoax
|1968
|1987
|19 years
|-
|[[global warming]] hoax
|
|present
|
|-
|Effectiveness of [[supply-side economics]]
|1975
|present
|34 years and counting
|-
|How Reagan caused the fall of [[communism]]
|1991
|present
|18 years and counting
|-
|Harm caused by the [[New Deal]] during the Depression
|1933
|present
|76 years and counting
|-
|The falsehood of [[Charles Darwin]]'s theory of [[evolution]]
|1859
|present
|151 years and counting
|-
|That [[materialism]] and evolutionary thought played a role in [[Hitler]]'s rise to power
|1933
|present
|77 years and counting
|}
|The racist Southern Democrats did not become Republicans after LBJ reluctantly passed the Civil Rights Act
|1964
|present
|53 years and counting
|}
(please add)

[[Category:Liberalism]]

FreedomWorks

2017-04-19T21:07:53Z

Teapublican: 2004

[[File:Fw.JPG|right]]

'''FreedomWorks''' is a [[conservative]] organization founded in 2004, headquartered in [[Washington, DC]], and has hundreds of thousands of [[grassroots]] volunteers nationwide.<ref>[http://www.freedomworks.org/about/about-freedomworks About FreedomWorks]</ref> FreedomWorks drives policy change by training and mobilizing grassroots [[American]]s to engage their fellow citizens and encourage their political representatives to act in defense of individual freedom and economic opportunity. FreedomWorks believes individual liberty and the freedom to compete increases consumer choices and provides individuals with the greatest control over what they own and earn. The organization was formerly led by former U.S. House Majority Leader [[Dick Armey]], who has since severed all ties and their President is Matt Kibbe. FreedomWorks is a major player in the emerging [[Tea Party Movement]].

==Mission==
FreedomWorks fights for lower taxes, less government and more economic freedom for all Americans. Dick Armey has said that the organizations core motivation and mission driver is to inform all Americans about [[government]] policy which may threaten individual [[liberty]].

{{Cquote|Conservatives are afraid the public will not understand, liberals are afraid the public will understand.<ref>http://www.freedomworks.org/</ref>}}

FreedomWorks combines the stature and experience of America’s greatest policy entrepreneurs with the grassroots power of hundreds of thousands of volunteer activists all over the Nation.

==Tea Party==
In 2010, FreedomWorks is active on many fronts. They are holding the Take Back America conference in the nations capitol. Also, they are organizing the Taxpayer March on Washington event September 9-12th. Dick Armey's new book was published ''Give Us Liberty. A Tea Party Manifesto.''

==Other Issues==
FreedomWorks offers an extensive list of issues to fight for such as tax reform, school choice, work not welfare, lawsuit abuse and personal retirement accounts in place of [[Social Security]]. In addition, border security, environment, free trade, anti-card check, anti-internet tax, anti-[[global warming]], judicial nominees, budgets and spending.

In 2012, a major split occurred. Establishment Republicans attempted a hostile takeover of the organization and forced out conservatives/ libertarians. A few weeks later, the FreedomWorks Trustee board reversed the decision reinstating all those purged. This led to Dick Armey cutting all ties to the organization.<ref>[http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2012/12/dick-armey-freedomworks-hostile-takeover-memo FreedomWorks Feud: War Inside Tea Party Group Gets Nastier, MotherJones.com, December 24th, 2012]</ref> The feud was said to have been about funding true conservative candidates, Tea Party favorites versus the establishment GOP's moderate choices.

==In The News==
* [http://www.newsmax.com/InsideCover/freedomworks-death-threats-move/2010/08/26/id/368506 FreedomWorks moving to a more secure location due to daily death threats from liberals.]

== References ==
{{reflist}}

==FreedomWorks Links==
* [http://www.freedomworks.org/ FreedomWorks homepage]
* [http://www.facebook.com/FreedomWorks Facebook page]
* [http://twitter.com/freedomworks Twitter page]
* [http://www.youtube.com/FreedomWorksAction YouTube page]
* [http://teaparty.freedomworks.org/ Tea Party HQ]
* [http://nolameduck.com/ No Lame Ducks]
* [http://truthinjobs.com/ Truth In Jobs]
* [http://iheartchrischristie.com/ I Heart Chris Christie]
* [http://www.freedomworks.org/groups/entrepreneur/ Defend The Entrepreneur]
* [http://earmarkpledge.com/ Earmark Pledge]
* [http://www.freedomworks.com/keyvotes/ Key Votes Scorecard]
* [http://www.scrapthecode.org/ Scrap The Code]
* [http://stoptheraid08.com/ Stop The Raid]
* [http://www.usteaparty.com/ US Tea Party]

{{Conservatism}}

[[Category:Tax Revolts]]
[[Category:Politics]]
[[Category:Tea Party Movement]]

Liberal

2017-04-19T21:02:44Z

Teapublican: /* Liberal Organizations of thought */ splc nazi

[[File:President Barack Obama.jpg|thumbnail|right|175px|[[Barack Hussein Obama]] advocates the use of unsuccessful [[Keynesian economics|Keynesian economic concepts]]. He is known to be the most liberal and least successful president in history.]]

A '''liberal''' is someone who craves an increase in [[government]] spending, power, and control, such as [[ObamaCare]]. Liberals also support the [[censorship]] and [[denial]] of [[Christianity]].<ref>http://www.worldviewweekend.com/worldview-times/article.php?articleid=2062</ref> Liberals who are a part of the [[secular left]] prefer the [[atheism|atheist religion]] over the Christian faith, as atheism has no objective morality to hinder their big government plans.<ref>http://www.deathandtaxesmag.com/232212/fox-contributor-claims-rolling-stone-uva-story-part-of-liberal-plot-to-romanticize-being-a-victim-of-rape/</ref> Increasingly, liberals side with the [[homosexual agenda]], including [[same-sex marriage|homosexual "marriage"]]. Liberals favor a [[welfare state]] where people receive endless entitlements without working.<ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/right-turn/wp/2014/05/23/reform-conservatives-tackle-the-failed-liberal-welfare-state/ Reform conservatives tackle the failed liberal welfare state], [[Washington Post]]</ref> The liberal ideology has degenerated into economically unsound views and intolerant ideology. All liberals support, in knee-jerk fashion, the opposite of [[conservative]] principles, while lacking an actual ideology or values of their own.<ref>http://eaglerising.com/22901/liberal-crybabies-get-offended-by-caitlyn-jenner-costume/</ref> [[Secular left|Many of them]] cannot understand Christian language.<ref>Williams, Thomas D., Ph.D. (December 26, 2016). [http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2016/12/26/religiously-ignorant-liberals-mistake-new-king-at-christmas-for-donald-trump/ Religiously-Ignorant Liberals Mistake ‘New King’ at Christmas for Donald Trump]. ''Breitbart''. Retrieved December 26, 2016.</ref>

Polling data has consistently shown that an increasingly large percentage of Americans identify as conservative, rather than as liberal, currently by 38% to 21%.<ref>[http://www.pewresearch.org/2008/11/25/winds-of-political-change-havent-shifted-publics-ideology-balance/ Winds of Political Change Haven’t Shifted Public’s Ideology Balance]</ref> However, liberals and "progressives" oftentimes falsely say the exact opposite.

'''Liberals support the following political positions and practices''':<ref>http://townhall.com/columnists/jonahgoldberg/2014/02/21/liberal-students-have-a-funny-definition-of-diversity-n1798157</ref>

* Wasting money on ineffective government programs (the significant economic problems in the [[Eurozone]] due to government debt will no doubt increasingly discredit this aspect of liberal ideology and make things more difficult for advocates of liberal economic ideologies)
* Denial of science<ref>[http://www.postlibertarian.com/2012/09/why-do-liberals-hate-science/ Why Do Liberals Hate Science?]</ref> (especially [[creation science]])
* Government's ability to solve economic problems<ref name=studentNews>[http://www.studentnewsdaily.com/conservative-vs-liberal-beliefs Conservative vs. Liberal Beliefs]</ref>
* [[Liberal Hypocrisy|Hypocrisy]]<ref>http://images.sodahead.com/polls/002849963/3038298682_real_verse_liberal_hypocrisy_xlarge.png</ref>
* The belief that terrorism is not a huge threat, and that the main reason for Muslim extremists' hostility towards America is because of bad foreign policy <ref name=studentNews />
* Brainwashing voters with propaganda
* [[Liberal hedonism|Hedonism]]
* Taxpayer-funded and state-encouraged [[abortion]]
* Rejection of Biblical standards
* [[Hate|Hatred]]<ref>[http://www.conservapedia.com/Liberal_hate_speech]</ref>
* [[Murder]] (through abortion, infanticide, assisted suicide, and euthanasia)
* Censorship<ref>[http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/06/07/watch-what-you-say-the-new-liberal-power-elite-won-t-tolerate-dissent.html Watch What You Say, The New Liberal Power Elite Won’t Tolerate Dissent], [[The Daily Beast]]</ref>
* Socialism<ref>[http://famguardian.org/subjects/Politics/Articles/Liberals.htm 60 Hard Truths about "Liberals"]</ref>
* Unsuccessful Keynesian economics as opposed to sound free market economics
* Crying instead of accepting reality<ref>http://liberaltears.net/</ref>
* Cessation of teacher-led [[prayer]] in classrooms and school/state-sponsored religious events.
* Ending Western morality<ref>[http://townhall.com/columnists/johnhawkins/2012/07/13/5_ways_liberalism_destroys_virtue]</ref>
* [[Gun control]]
* [[Tyranny]]<ref>http://www.history.com/topics/british-history/george-iii</ref>
* [[Treason]]<ref>http://crooksandliars.com/2016/07/mikes-blog-round-25</ref>
* [[Elitism]]<ref>https://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20130604122602AANvhvF</ref>
* Pseudo-intellectualism<ref>[http://eljam.blogspot.com/2005/09/i-hate-pseudo-intellectuals.html I hate pseudo-intellectuals]</ref>
* Affirmative action<ref name=studentNews />
* Opposition to government regulation or restriction of obscenity, pornography and violence in video games as a [[First Amendment]] right<ref>The [[Warren Court]], led by '''liberal''' Justices [[William O. Douglas]], [[Hugo Black]], [[Abe Fortas]], [[William Brennan]] and Chief Justice [[Earl Warren]] issued 36 decisions granting [[First Amendment]] rights to obscenity and pornography. These decisions remain fully supported by liberals today.</ref>
* Authoritarian government<ref>[http://econlog.econlib.org/archives/2014/07/liberal_authori.html Liberal Authoritarianism]</ref>
* [[Genocide]]<ref>http://www.amnation.com/vfr/archives/020512.html</ref>
* Government-funded medical care, such as [[Obamacare]]
* [[Liberal Fascism|Fascism]]
* [[evolution and liberalism|Belief in evolution]]
* Destroying the Christian foundations on which America was built on.
* Destroying conservative family values and replacing them with immoral [[Hollywood values]], such as abortion
* Brainwashing through government-censored [[public education]]
* Limiting personal freedom.<ref>[http://conservative.wikia.com/wiki/Democratic_Party Democratic Party]</ref> Liberal support for gun control is an example of this.
* High progressive taxes<ref>[http://www.ijreview.com/2014/07/157256-course-lower-state-taxes-helps-growth-studys-results-prove/ This Nationwide Study Challenges Everything Liberals Have Told You About Raising Taxes]</ref> as a form of class warfare against wealthy business owners.<ref>[http://www.conservapedia.com/Progressive_taxation Progressive taxation]</ref>
* Placement of men and women in the same jobs in the [[military]]
* Slowly eroding the U.S. through [[Progressivism]].<ref>[http://americanprogressivism.wordpress.com/ What Is Progressivism?]</ref>
* Legalized [[same-sex marriage|same-sex "marriage"]] and homosexual adoption
* Failed [[tax and spend]] economics
* Smearing<ref>http://www.truthnation.com/trumps-slogan-is-a-throwback-to-reagan-and-liberals-are-furious-make-america-great-again/</ref>
* Libertine sexual morality. See: [[Evolutionary belief and sexual immorality]] and [[Liberal Christianity and marital infidelity]]
* Economic sector regulations<ref name=studentNews />
* Denial of conservative roles in history. For example, liberals frequently claim<ref>[http://www.deism.com/washington.htm George Washington and Deism]</ref> that George Washington was a deist when he was actually a devout Episcopalian.
* Corruption<ref>http://www.infowars.com/correction-liberals-not-conservatives-are-psychotic</ref>
* Spreading of [[political correctness]]
* [[Sadism]]<ref>http://catholiccitizens.org/views/66534/uses-disgust-%E2%80%A8%E2%80%A8/</ref>
* Government mass-surveillance
* Non-syndicalist [[labor union]]s
* [[Racism]]<ref>http://mrconservative.com/2013/03/9062-25-examples-of-liberal-racism-in-quotes/7/</ref>
* [[Bigotry]]
* [[Anti-Semitism]]
* Advocating incorrect policies <ref>[http://www.motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2016/04/liberals-smug-condescending]</ref>
* Encouraging promiscuity and immorality through sexual education rather than teaching [[abstinence]] from premarital sex<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,286671,00.html Democrats Aim To Kill Abstinence-Only Program Funding], [[Fox News]], Monday, June 25, 2007</ref>
* A "[[living Constitution]]" that is reinterpreted as liberals prefer, rather than how it is thought to have been intended.
* Government programs to [[rehabilitate criminals]]
* Slander<ref>https://www.amazon.com/Slander-Liberal-About-American-Right/dp/1400049520</ref>
* Gender Equality
* [[Obesity]]<ref>http://www.thepoliticalinsider.com/rosie-odonnell-said-she-will-leave-america-youll-love-the-reason/</ref>
* [[Anti-Americanism]]
* Bestiality as a human right<ref>[http://www.peterheck.com/libtree/liberty_tree/view/1677/liberals_repeal_ban_on_bestiality_in_the_military Liberals Repeal Ban on Bestiality in the Military]</ref>
* Abolition of the [[death penalty]]
* [[Environmentalism]]<ref>and environmental organizations, for example [[Greenpeace]]</ref>
* [[Globalism]]
* Pedophilia<ref>[http://www.nowtheendbegins.com/liberals-hard-pressed-make-pedophilia-legal-get-ready-sharia-law/]</ref>
* Unconstitutionally mandated separation of church and state.
* Opposition to full private property rights.<ref>For example, the liberal wing of the [[U.S. Supreme Court]] issued the 5-4 [[Kelo v. City of New London]] decision authorizing the taking of private property by government in order to give the property to another private entity rather than convert it to a public use.</ref>
* Reinstatement of the [[Fairness Doctrine]]
* Welfare
* Stalinism
* Opposition to domestic wire-tapping as authorized in the [[Patriot Act]]
* [[China and involuntary organ harvesting|Mutilating corpses]]<ref>https://www.amazon.com/Slaughter-Killings-Harvesting-Solution-Dissident/dp/161614940X?ie=UTF8&*Version*=1&*entries*=0</ref>
* Oppression of business rather than a laissez-faire capitalist economy
* Enforced homosexuality<ref>http://letterstotheeditorblog.dallasnews.com/2014/04/weve-gone-from-tolerance-of-homosexuality-to-forced-celebration-of-it.html/</ref>
* Opposition to the Constitution. Liberals seek to expand federal power at the expense of local government and silence the conservatives who hold them back, violating the 10th and 1st Amendments respectively.
* [[Liberal Denial|Denial]] of traditional [[gender roles]]
* Robbery and other forms of crime (see [[Gun control]])
* Support of financially irresponsible policies
* [[Slavery]]<ref>http://russp.us/racism.htm</ref>
* Encouragement of [[Global Warming|"global warming" alarmism]]
* Rejection of logical<ref>[http://www.pjstar.com/article/20140711/OPINION/140719804/2011/OPINION Liberals are illogical, and good at it]</ref> standards
Liberals currently use two Clauses of the Constitution to try to expand their power: the Commerce Clause and the General Welfare Clause. The General Welfare Clause mentions "promoting the general welfare". This to a liberal means taxing the rich at increased rates and redistributing that money. The Commerce Clause, on the other hand, says that Congress has the power to regulate trade with foreign nations, between the states and with the Indian tribes. Since the days of FDR this Clause has been interpreted very loosely and has resulted in the federal government expanding its power. The latest example is The Affordable Care Act (ACA), better known as [[Obamacare]]. In the ACA, the liberals justify the individual mandate by saying it regulates commerce between the states.

The decline in liberal principles can be illustrated by how [[Franklin Delano Roosevelt]] opposed and condemned public sector unions, stating that the idea of collective bargaining can't be transferred from the private to the public sector, as that would result in the government being unable to carry out its duties. Yet today, decades later, [[Democrats]] and liberals are in lock-step with public sector unions, as they "donate" money to the reelection campaign in exchange for more taxpayer money in their wallets and fluffed up pensions.

Current dictionaries describe the liberal ideology by pretending that a liberal is "a person who favors a political philosophy of progress and reform and the protection of civil liberties" or "a person who favors an economic theory of laissez-faire and self-regulating markets,"<ref>[http://wordnetweb.princeton.edu/perl/webwn?s=liberal&sub=Search+WordNet&o2=&o0=1&o7=&o5=&o1=1&o6=&o4=&o3=&h=00 Noun S: (n) liberal]</ref> or "open-minded or tolerant, especially free of or not bound by traditional or conventional ideas, values, etc." or "favorable to or in accord with concepts of maximum individual freedom possible, especially as guaranteed by law and secured by governmental protection of civil liberties."<ref>[http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/liberal liberal]</ref> In practical usage, the term "liberal" is more closely synonymous with "radical," "immoral," "anti-freedom," "elitist," or "bad."

==Liberals and uncharitableness==
''See also'': [[Liberals and uncharitableness]] and [[Atheism and charity]]
[[File:Beggar.jpg|thumb|right|240px|[[United States|American]] liberals have been observed to give less to charity than American conservatives.<ref name=georgeWill>[http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2008/03/conservatives_more_liberal_giv.html Conservatives More Liberal Givers], [[RealClearPolitics]]</ref> ]]
In March 2008, [[George Will]] wrote at [[RealClearPolitics]] concerning the [[United States]]:
{{cquote|Sixteen months ago, [[Arthur C. Brooks]], a professor at [[Syracuse University]], published "Who Really Cares: The Surprising Truth About Compassionate Conservatism." The surprise is that liberals are markedly less charitable than [[conservative]]s....

If many conservatives are liberals who have been mugged by reality, Brooks, a registered independent, is, as a reviewer of his book said, a social scientist who has been mugged by data. They include these findings:

-- Although liberal families' incomes average 6 percent higher than those of conservative families, conservative-headed households give, on average, 30 percent more to charity than the average liberal-headed household ($1,600 per year vs. $1,227).

-- Conservatives also donate more time and give more blood.<ref name=georgeWill />}}
[[Atheism|Atheists]] and [[agnosticism|agnostics]] often reject [[Bible|Biblical]] [[morality]] (and therefore [[conservative Christianity]] ) and hold to [[moral relativism]]. Therefore, it is not surprising that [[per capita]] atheists and agnostics in [[United States|America]] [[Atheism and charity|give significantly less to charity than theists even when church giving is not counted for theists]].<ref>[http://www.barna.org/barna-update/article/12-faithspirituality/102-atheists-and-agnostics-take-aim-at-christians Atheists and Agnostics Take Aim at Christians]</ref>

=== Liberal politicians and uncharitableness ===
The political magazine the [[American Spectator]] featured an article which focused on [[liberal politicians and uncharitableness]] exposing the hypocrisy of the liberal politicians it featured.<ref>[http://www.liveleak.com/view?i=1c5_1238044128&c=1 Charity Donations and Liberal Hypocrisy]</ref>

In addition, [[Barack Obama]] has been criticized concerning [[Barack Obama and uncharitableness|his lack of charitable giving]].

==Liberals and superstition==
[[Image:2384975035_230a0eac30.jpg‎‎|thumb|right|170px|The [[Wall Street Journal]] reported: "A comprehensive new study released by Baylor University yesterday, shows ...that the irreligious and the members of more liberal Protestant denominations, far from being resistant to [[superstition]], tend to be much more likely to believe in the paranormal and in [[pseudoscience]] than evangelical Christians."<ref>http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122178219865054585.html</ref>]]

''See also:'' [[Irreligion and superstition]]

The [[Wall Street Journal]] reported: "A comprehensive new study released by Baylor University, shows that [[Conservative Christianity|traditional Christian religion]] greatly decreases belief in everything from the efficacy of palm readers to the usefulness of [[astrology]].<ref name=irrational>[http://online.wsj.com/article/SB122178219865054585.html Look Who's Irrational Now]</ref>

Also, in September of 2008, the [[Wall Street Journal]] reported:
{{cquote|The reality is that the [[New Atheism|New Atheist]] campaign, by discouraging [[religion]], won't create a new group of intelligent, skeptical, enlightened beings. Far from it: It might actually encourage new levels of mass superstition. And that's not a conclusion to take on faith — it's what the empirical data tell us.

"What Americans Really Believe," a comprehensive new study released by Baylor University yesterday, shows that [[Conservative Christianity|traditional Christian religion]] greatly decreases belief in everything from the efficacy of palm readers to the usefulness of [[astrology]]. It also shows that the irreligious and the members of more liberal Protestant denominations, far from being resistant to superstition, tend to be much more likely to believe in the paranormal and in pseudoscience, such as evolution than evangelical Christians....

This is not a new finding. In his 1983 book "The Whys of a Philosophical Scrivener," skeptic and science writer Martin Gardner cited the decline of traditional religious belief among the better educated as one of the causes for an increase in [[pseudoscience]], cults and superstition. He referenced a 1980 study published in the magazine Skeptical Inquirer that showed irreligious college students to be by far the most likely to embrace paranormal beliefs, while born-again Christian college students were the least likely.<ref name=irrational />}}

== Secular left ==
''See also:'' [[Secular left]]

The [[secular left]] consists of [[leftist|left]]-wing secularists who are able to exert their influence in many countries. They support "strict government [[secularism]]".<ref>http://www.secularleft.us/about</ref>

=== Decline of the secular left ===
''See also:'' [[Decline of the secular left]]

In some regions where the secular left has considerable influence, they [[Decline of the secular left|are losing]] an increasing amount of their power.

== Liberal Christianity and marital infidelity ==
''See also:'' [[Liberal Christianity and marital infidelity]] and [[Liberal Christianity]]

According to a 2007 study reported in the ''Journal of Family Issues'', adherents of [[liberal Christianity]] are more likely to engage in marital infidelity than theologically [[Conservative Christianity|conservative Christians]].<ref>[http://www.sagepub.com/hillhsstudy/articles/Chapter10_Article%2001.pdf Are There Religious Variations in Marital Infidelity?]</ref>

As noted above, liberals are [[Evolution and liberalism|more likely]] to adhere to evolutionary belief than conservatives. A study conducted by the Australian National University, revealed that belief in evolution is associated with moral permissiveness.<ref>[http://creation.com/morals-decline-linked-to-belief-in-evolution Morals decline linked to evolution]</ref>

== Liberalism in the United States Today ==
[[File:Smear merchants.jpg|right|200px]]
[[Democrats]] and most media outlets in the [[U.S.]] are blatantly liberal.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mrc.org/biasbasics/biasbasics1.asp|title=Media Bias basics|publisher=[[Media Research Center]]}}</ref> Liberalism in North America today practices three primary tactics to attack the Republican Party, and sometimes to attack American values in general. These three liberal tactics can be pronounced using the following [[acronym]]: SIN. Liberals (1) '''s'''hift the subject, they (2) '''i'''gnore the facts, and they (3) '''n'''ame call.<ref>Scott Baker. [http://www.theblaze.com/stories/did-herman-cain-give-the-dont-miss-speech-at-cpac/ Did Herman Cain Give the ‘Don’t Miss’ Speech at CPAC?], ''[[The Blaze]], February 12, 2011.</ref><ref>[[YouTube]]. [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-N3-j3HM7-A& Herman Cain: "Stupid People Are Ruining America"], February 11, 2011.</ref>

* Liberals typically support a "mixed" economy, a policy similar to that of [[fascism]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://fora.tv/2008/01/30/Liberal_Traits_of_Fascism|title=Video discussion about how modern liberalism is actually fascist by author Jonah Goldberg.}}</ref>

* Liberals claimed a monopoly on [[compassion]], [[decency]], and [[social justice]] (as defined by themselves), posing as the sole defenders of [[civic virtue]] against a horde of backwoodsmen, racists, and religious fanatics. [http://www.americanthinker.com/2008/03/the_disgrace_of_liberalism.html]
{{cquote|There's another goal, from my point of view, which is to try to lay the groundwork for a radical political force which would conceive of itself as distinctly to the left of moderate, reformist American liberals. And that has two aspects. One is to try to change that liberalism, to transform it by analysis, critique, and activism; the second is to build a radical movement which would be an autonomous force in its own right, which would be distinct from the traditional American liberal consensus. This radical part of the program involves not simply supporting the liberal students against conservative students and conservative professors, but trying to act on them, to push them to the left. It also involves trying to find and support, even trying to help create, networks of radical students in law school and of radical professors around the country — students and teachers who see themselves as wanting to go a lot further than most people want to go.<ref>[http://66.218.69.11/search/cache?ei=UTF-8&p=liberal+teachers&fr=yfp-t-501&fp_ip=MX&u=duncankennedy.net/documents/Liberal%2520Values%2520in%2520Legal%2520Education.pdf&w=liberal+liberals+teachers+teacher&d=BNZFhPReRjC1&icp=1&.intl=us Liberal Values in Legal Education] Duncan Kennedy (professor at Harvard Law School)</ref>}}

===Liberal Rankings of Congress Members===
The National Journal compiles the votes of each congress member each year and uses the information to create rankings<ref>[http://nationaljournal.com/voteratings/index.htm How the House voted]</ref> of how liberal each member of the United States [[Congress]] is. In addition to showing the voting records of each member and given an overall all ranking of liberalness, the National Journal also ranks congress members by liberalness in the areas of social, economic, and foreign policy.

=== American liberalism, demographics and expected tipping point in the decline of American liberalism ===
''See also:'' [[American atheism]] and [[Decline of atheism]] and [[Global atheism]]

Due to the explosive growth of [[global Christianity]] in traditional cultures and their influence on Western [[Christianity]] and the higher birth rate of [[Conservative Christianity|conservative Christians]] and religious conservatives, social conservatism is expected to rise.

The Birkbeck College, University of London professor Eric Kaufman wrote in his 2010 book ''Shall the Righteous Inherit the Earth?'' concerning America:
{{cquote|High evangelical fertility rates more than compensated for losses to liberal Protestant sects during the twentieth century. In recent decades, white secularism has surged, but Latino and Asian religious immigration has taken up the slack, keeping secularism at bay. Across denominations, the fertility advantage of religious fundamentalists of all colours is significant and growing. After 2020, their demographic weight will to tip the balance in the [[Culture War|culture wars]] towards the conservative side, ramping up pressure on hot-button issues such as abortion. By the end of the century, three quarters of America may be pro-life. Their activism will leap over the borders of the 'Redeemer Nation' to evangelize the world. Already, the rise of the World Congress of Families has launched a global religious right, its arms stretching across the bloody lines of the War on Terror to embrace the entire Abrahamic family.<ref>[http://questionevolution.blogspot.com/2012/05/why-are-years-2012-and-2020-key-years.html Why are 2012 and 2020 key years for Christian creationists and pro-lifers?]</ref>}}

==Liberalism in Europe today==
In Europe, on the other hand, parties that call themselves ''liberal'' are moderate in outlook, ranging from centre-left to centre-right, promote typically economic and business freedom. The Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe<ref>[http://www.alde.eu Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe in the European Parliament]</ref> is a party of the European Parliament that represents most ''liberal'' parties from European countries. Similar policies are promoted by many ''liberal'' parties throughout the world,<ref>[http://www.liberal-international.org/ World Federation of Liberalism]</ref> such as the Liberal Party of Australia.<ref>[http://www.liberal.org.au/ Liberal Party of Australia]</ref>

Trade unions and socialist parties often criticize politicians for promoting lower taxes on business, or more flexible hiring and firing laws, by calling them "liberals" or [[neoliberal]]s. Thus, just as in the US, "liberal" may occasionally be used as a term of abuse. But when someone is called "liberal" in Europe, it has an entirely different meaning than in the US. In fact, the US meaning of liberal is more similar to the politics of European [[socialist]] or [[social democracy|social democratic]] parties.<ref>[http://www.pes.org Party of European Socialism]</ref>

==Historical Liberalism ==
In history, the word "liberal" has meant different things at different times, and was associated with individual liberty in prior centuries. In the postwar period, liberals supported government intervention in the economy and welfare state policies, as well as peaceful coexistence with the communist block, which are not liberal policies in the sense of classical liberalism. After the end of the cold war, with the demise of socialism and communism, many liberals embraced some ideas from economic neo-liberalism, and coined it the "Third Way". In the area of national security and foreign policy liberals in the [[U.S.]] failed to define a consistent stance, even after the events of 9/11 and the beginning of the war in Iraq. Liberals generally support affirmative action, gay marriage, and abortion.<ref>[http://ai.eecs.umich.edu/people/conway/TS/Bailey/Greenberg-Bailey/Homosexual%20Eugenics.pdf Parental Selection of Children’s Sexual Orientation], '''PDF''', "Political liberals tend, for whatever reason, to be ardent supporters of both gay rights and pro-choice programs." Greenberg and Bailey</ref>

==Original meaning: Classical Liberalism==
Liberalism is a political philosophy with freedom as its core value. The term was originally applied to supporters of individual liberties and equal rights, but, in America, the term has come to represent a movement of social change that often conflicts with [[conservative]] values such as moral values and traditions derived from Northern European Protestantism.

See [[Classical Liberal]]ism. Compare [[Libertarianism]].

== Notable liberal "intellects" ==
''See also:'' [[Infamous liberals]]

* [[Margaret Sanger]]

* [[King George III]]

* [[Barack Hussein Obama]]<ref>[http://www.businessinsider.com/cheney-obama-is-the-worst-president-of-my-lifetime-2014-7 CHENEY: Obama Is 'The Worst President Of My Lifetime']</ref>

* [[John Maynard Keynes]]

* [[Vlad III Tepes|Dracula]]

* [[David Thorstad]],<ref>http://hunterbear.org/shooting_lupus.htm</ref> a founding member of NAMBLA.

* [[Al Gore]]

* [[Adolf Hitler]]<ref>http://louderwithcrowder.com/myth-busted-actually-yes-hitler-was-a-socialist-liberal/</ref>

* [[Karl Marx]]

* [[Pope Francis]]

* [[Lee Harvey Oswald]]

* [[Che Guevara]]

* [[Francisco Franco]]

* [[Kim Jong-un]]

* [[Hillary Rodham Clinton]]

* [[Mao Zedong]]

* [[Benito Mussolini]]

* [[Albert Einstein]]

* [[Pol Pot]]

* [[Margaret Thatcher]] - Conservative by UK standards, but decriminalized homosexuality.

* [[Joseph Stalin]]

* [[Bill Nye]]

* [[Attila the Hun]]

* [[Osama bin Laden]]

* [[John Wayne Gacy]] - In an interview where he denied killing any of his victims, [[serial killer]] John Wayne Gacy said he was [[bisexuality|bisexual]]<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=YDyGCgAAQBAJ&pg=PT129 John Wayne Gacy: Defending a Monster], Transcript</ref> and "very liberal".<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=YDyGCgAAQBAJ&pg=PT20 John Wayne Gacy: Defending a Monster], Transcript</ref> Gacy was also a [[Democratic Party]] activist who had his picture taken with [[Rosalynn Carter]].<ref>[http://www.digitaljournal.com/image/45527 Johnwaynegacyrosalynncarter.jpg]</ref>

==Liberal Organizations of thought==
*[[AARP|AARP - American Association of Retired People]]
*[[ACLU|ACLU - American Civil Liberties Union]]
*[[ACORN|ACORN - Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now]]
*[[AFL-CIO|AFL-CIO - American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations]]
*[[Amnesty International|AI - Amnesty International]]
*[[A.N.S.W.E.R.|ANSWER - Act Now to Stop War and End Racism]]
*[[CAIR|CAIR - Council on American-Islamic Relations]]
*[[Committees of Correspondence for Democracy and Socialism]]
*[[Democratic National Committee]]
*[[Greenpeace]]
*[[MoveOn.org]]
*[[NARAL|NARAL - National Abortion and Reproductive Rights Action League]]
*[[NAACP|NAACP - National Association for the Advancement of Colored People]]
*[[National Committee for an Effective Congress]]
*[[National Education Association]]
*[[National Organization of Women|NOW - National Organization of Women]]
*[[PETA|PETA - People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals]]
*[[Planned Parenthood|Planned Parenthood Federation of America]]
*[[Progressives for Obama]]
*[[Rainbow/PUSH Coalition]]
*[[SEIU|SEIU - Service Employees International Union]]
*[[U.S. Peace Council]]
*[[Southern Poverty Law Center]]
*[[Nazi Party]]
Source: [http://www.politixgroup.com/lo.htm The Politix Group]

==Quotes on Liberals==
"I never use the words [[Democrats]] and [[Republicans]]. It's [[liberals]] and [[Americans]]." -James Watt, Secretary of the Interior under [[Ronald Reagan]]

"The trouble with our liberal friends is not that they're ignorant; it's just that they know so much that isn't so." -[[Ronald Reagan]]

“Liberals see racism where it doesn't exist, fabricate it when they can't find it and ignore it within their own ranks.” ―[[Michelle Malkin]]

"Words mean nothing to liberals. They say whatever will help advance their cause at the moment, switch talking points in a heartbeat, and then act indignant if anyone uses the exact same argument they were using five minutes ago." -[[Ann Coulter]]<ref>[http://townhall.com/columnists/johnhawkins/2010/11/23/the_25_best_quotes_about_liberals The 25 Best Quotes About Liberals]</ref>

"The reason any conservative's failing is always major news is that it allows liberals to engage in their very favorite taunt: Hypocrisy! Hypocrisy is the only sin that really inflames them. Inasmuch as liberals have no morals, they can sit back and criticize other people for failing to meet the standards that liberals simply renounce. It's an intriguing strategy. By openly admitting to being philanderers, draft dodgers, liars, weasels and cowards, liberals avoid ever being hypocrites." -Ann Coulter

"If you can somehow force a liberal into a point-counterpoint argument, his retorts will bear no relation to what you've said -- unless you were in fact talking about your looks, your age, your weight, your personal obsessions, or whether you are a fascist. In the famous liberal two-step, they leap from one idiotic point to the next, so you can never nail them. It's like arguing with someone with Attention Deficit Disorder." -[[Ann Coulter]]

"Inside many liberals is a totalitarian screaming to get out. They don't like to have another point of view in the room that they don't squash and the way they try to squash it is by character assassination and name calling." -David Horowitz

"End results that work that don't involve government threaten liberals." -[[Rush Limbaugh]]

==Quotes by Liberals==
"The number one job facing the middle class, and it happens to be, as Barack says, a three-letter word: jobs. J-O-B-S." -[[Joe Biden]]

"There is no reason the nation of Africa cannot, and should not, join the ranks of the worlds most prosperous nations." -Joe Biden<ref>[https://www.facebook.com/StupidStuffDemocratsSay Stupid Stuff Democrats Say]</ref>

"Romney wants to give EIGHT HUNDRED MILLION BILLION in tax breaks to the rich." -Joe Biden

"Will the Mars Rover be able to show the flag the astronauts planted there before?" -Sheila Jackson Lee

"Isn't it a little racist to call it Black Friday?" -Joy Behar

"Is there such a thing as a man-made stroke? …I know what this [Republican] party is capable of." -Joy Behar

"During my service in the United States Congress, I took the initiative in creating the Internet." -[[Al Gore]]

"The center of the earth is about a million degrees." -Al Gore

"A zebra does not change its spots." -Al Gore

"The government lied about inventing the HIV virus as a means of genocide against people of color. The government lied." -[[Jeremiah Wright]]

"Every month that we do not have an economic recovery package 500 million Americans lose their jobs." -[[Nancy Pelosi]]

"My favorite word, that is really easy, my favorite word is 'the word'." -Nancy Pelosi

"We have to pass the bill so that you can find out what is in it” -Nancy Pelosi

"Why can't I just eat my waffle?" -[[Barack Hussein Obama]]

"Over the last 15 months, we’ve traveled to every corner of the United States. I’ve now been in 57 states? I think one left to go." -[[Barack Hussein Obama]]

"Welcome to Cinco de Quattro!" -Barack Obama

"The time has changed for come." -Barack Obama

"They support democratic institutions in Kyrzakhstan" -John Kerry

"My fear is that the whole island (of Guam) will become so overly populated that it will tip over and capsize." -Democrat Congressman Hank Johnson<ref>[http://townhall.com/columnists/johnhawkins/2013/08/17/the-25-stupidest-liberal-quotes-of-the-last-decade-n1666619 The 25 Stupidest Liberal Quotes Of The Last Decade]</ref>

"Winnie the Pooh seems to me to be a fundamental text on national security." -Obama foreign policy adviser Richard Danzig

"If you take out the killings, Washington actually has a very very low crime rate." -Former D.C. Mayor Marion Barry<ref>http://conservative.wikia.com/wiki/Hilarious_Liberal_Quotes</ref>

"What right does Congress have to go around making laws just because they deem it necessary?" -Marion Barry

"My appetite is so good that I can eat the table cloth right off the chair." -Democratic Congressman Joe Moakley

"Those who died in the earthquake, their lives will never be the same again." -Barbara Boxer

"I dare you, you little fruitcake!" -Democratic Congressman Pete Stark

"I root for hurricanes" -James Wolcott

"I've got a secret for you: Kiss my a**." -George McGovern

"The American people will never knowingly adopt Socialism. But under the name of 'liberalism' they will adopt every fragment of the Socialist program, until one day America will be a Socialist nation, without knowing how it happened." -[[Norman Thomas]], six-time U.S. Presidential candidate for the Socialist Party of America<ref>http://quotes.liberty-tree.ca/quote_blog/Norman.Thomas.Quote.FFB1</ref>

== Modern liberalism and the use of mockery rather than reasonable argumentation ==
''See also:'' [[Atheism and mockery]]

In a ''BloombergView'' article, Stephen L. Carter wrote about modern liberalism:
{{Cquote|But the left has work to do, not only on policy and organization but also on attitude. Too many of my [[progressivism|progressive]] friends seem to have forgotten how to make actual arguments, and have become expert instead at condemnation, derision and mockery. On issue after issue, they’re very good at explaining why no one could oppose their policy positions except for the basest of motives. As to those positions themselves, they are too often announced with a zealous solemnity suggesting that their views are Holy Writ -- and those who disagree are cast into the outer political darkness. In short, the left has lately been dripping with hubris, which in classic literature always portends a fall.<ref>[https://www.bloomberg.com/view/articles/2016-11-11/trump-and-the-fall-of-liberalism Trump and the Fall of Liberalism] by Stephen L. Carter, BloombergView</ref>}}

==References==
{{reflist|3}}

==See also==
{|background="none" width="100%" border="0"
|valign="top"|
* [[Conservative resources]]
* [[Conservapedia:Articles about liberals|Articles about liberals]]
* [[Classical liberal]]
* [[Drinking Liberally]]
* [[Godless liberal]]
* [[Last wordism]]
* [[Essay:Liberal celebrity obsession|Liberal celebrity obsession]]
* [[Essay:Liberal Behavior on Conservapedia|Liberal Behavior on Conservapedia]]
* [[Liberal Christianity]]
* [[Liberal Christianity and marital infidelity]]
* [[Liberal Democrats]]
* [[Liberal Elite]]
* [[Essay: Liberal Falsehoods|Liberal Falsehoods]]
* [[Liberal Fascism]]
|valign="top"|
* [[Liberal friendship]]
* [[Liberal Gloss]]
* [[Liberal grading]]
* [[Liberal hypocrisy]]
* [[Essay:Liberal hysteria|Liberal hysteria]]
* [[Essay:Liberal Intellectualism|Liberal Intellectualism]]
* [[Liberal labels]]
* [[Slander: Liberal Lies About the American Right|Liberal Lies About the American Right]]
* [[Liberal logic]]
* [[The Liberal Mind: The Psychological Causes of Political Madness|Liberal Mind]]
* [[Liberal Party]]
* [[Liberal supremacist]]
* [[Massachusetts liberal]]
* [[Progressives]]
|valign="top"|
* [[Scientific Illiteracy and Liberals]]
* [[European Liberalism]]
* [[Liberal and conservative]]
* [[Liberal anger]]
* [[Liberal competitiveness]]
* [[Liberal concealment]]
* [[Liberal conscience]]
* [[Liberal dislikes]]
* [[Liberal excuses]]
* [[Liberal fear]]
* [[Liberal gossip]]
* [[Liberal guilt]]
* [[Liberal confusion]]
* [[Liberal hedonism]]
|valign="top"|
* [[Liberal hyperbole]]
* [[Liberal infiltration]]
* [[Liberal media hype]]
* [[Liberal opinion]]
* [[Liberal relativism]]
* [[Liberal revisionists]]
* [[Liberal self-righteousness]]
* [[Liberalism-ism]]
* [[Liberals and conservatives]]
* [[Essay:Liberal Intelligence]]
* [[Essay:Incoherence of liberal thought]]
* [[Essay:Liberal Predictions of the Decade]]
|}

==Further Information==
* [[Best New Conservative Words#New Liberal Terms|New Liberal Terms]]
* [[Conservative Links]]
* http://www.studentnewsdaily.com/conservative-vs-liberal-beliefs/

{{liberalism}}

[[Category:Political Ideologies]]
[[Category:Politics]]
[[Category:Liberals]]

John Birch Society

2017-04-19T21:01:24Z

Teapublican: /* Criticism of the Illuminati and Government */

[[Image:John Birch Society.png|right]]
The '''John Birch Society''' is an American [[paleoconservative]] organization founded in 1958 by [[Massachusetts]] businessman [[Robert Welch]] (1900-1985). Until the collapse of the [[Soviet Union]] in 1991, it focused on [[Communism]] as the enemy of [[American values]], warning that the extremist ideology already exerted a powerful control on the [[United States government|United States federal government]].

Originally based in Belmont, Massachusetts, its headquarters are now in Appleton, [[Wisconsin]],<ref>{{Cite news|author = Dan Barry |url= http://www.nytimes.com/2009/06/26/us/26Land.html |title = Holding Firm Against Plots by Evildoers |work = [[The New York Times]] |date = June 25, 2009 |accessdate = January 1, 2017}}</ref> with local chapters throughout the United States. The organization owns American Opinion Publishing, which publishes ''[[The New American]]''.<ref name="newamerican">{{Cite web |url= http://www.thenewamerican.com/ |title = The New American }}</ref>

At its peak in 1964 the Society claimed to have hundreds of chapters throughout the country, 100,000 members, 400 American Opinion bookstores to distribute and sell its magazine and pamphlets, and an active cadre of speakers that crisscrossed the country. Welch ruled with an iron hand,<ref>Schoenwald, (2001) pp. 83-91</ref> sending out his agents to make sure the local units never engaged in operations on their own, such as endorsing candidates or lobbying for legislation. All the dues went to national headquarters in Belmont, Massachusetts and the members were to spend their energy writing letters that echoed Welch's thesis that that Communists were already in power in Washington and were about to fully take over the country. Welch sponsored "Support Your Local Police"
campaign which opposed civilian review boards to monitor police brutality.<ref>Some chapters without Welch's approval did organize opposition to fluoridation of local water supplies or pushed a slate for election to local school boards.</ref> The one notable national campaign was to demand the impeachment of Chief Justice [[Earl Warren]]. Not a single member of Congress was willing to present an impeachment resolution.

Over the years only three Congressmen were members, most notably [[Larry McDonald]] (1935-1983), the Society president when his plane, [[Korean Airlines Flight 007]], was shot down by the Soviet Air Force on Sept. 1, 1983 in international air space in between Soviet [[Moneron Island]] and [[Sakhalin]] island.<ref>Since June of 2012, there is a petition drive, supported by Senator [[Scott Brown]], to be presented to President Obama and Speaker of the House John Boehner, to reopen the investigation into the shooting down of KAL 007 and reports of the survival of Congressman McDonald [http://www.change.org/petitions/president-barack-obama-speaker-of-the-house-john-boehner-conduct-an-investigation-of-flight-kal-007].</ref> One of the society's most popular spokesmen was [[John Rousselot]], a former Republican congressman from southern [[California]]. Another was [[John Schmitz]] (1930-2001), briefly a Congressman from Southern California.

==History==
The organization was founded by [[Robert Welch]] in 1958 to fight subversive infiltration of the United States.<ref>Welch said he named the Society after [[John Birch]], the first American to die in the [[Cold War]].</ref> He designed the Society like the Communist movement, with a strong leader at the top (himself), with each lower level following the orders they were given. Society literature denounced collectivist infiltration from Communists, the [[United Nations]], and various front groups.

In the 1960s, the John Birch Society spread its beliefs through paperback books and sending organizers to campuses, local coffee houses and other places where young people congregated. Today, it relies more upon social media and the internet.

==Ideology==
The Society works towards educating Americans about the original intent of the [[Founding Fathers]]. The John Birch Society strongly believes that the United States is a [[Constitutional Republic]], not a democracy. The John Birch Society opposes [[Communism]], [[Socialism]], [[Fascism]], and [[Collectivism]]. The John Birch Society supports free market Austrian economics as opposed to socialist Keynesian economics. [http://www.jbs.org/issues-pages/economy] The John Birch Society also advocates abolishing the federal reserve [https://www.jbs.org/issues-pages/federal-reserve].

Although the JBS is considered to be "right-wing", the group has vigorously attacked President [[George H. W. Bush]] as a pawn of neo-conservatism seeking a "New World order" that would swallow up America. <ref>[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=txukr5zgHnw]</ref> That is only the latest of a long line of conspiracy theories it has promoted.

Since June 2012, there has been is a petition drive, supported by Senator [[Scott Brown]], to be presented to President Obama and Speaker of the House John Boehner, to reopen the investigation into the shooting down of KAL 007 and reports of the survival of Congressman McDonald [http://www.change.org/petitions/president-barack-obama-speaker-of-the-house-john-boehner-conduct-an-investigation-of-flight-kal-007].

==Criticism of the Illuminati and Government==
A leader of the John Birch Society, John McManus, decided that the root cause of most of the troubles was a two-century-long conspiracy of the "[[Illuminati]]," a group supposedly founded in Bavaria in 1776. He declared it was responsible for the French and [[Russian Revolution]]s and the two world wars, the rise of fascism and communism as well as evils of Wilson's Federal Reserve and income tax, Roosevelt's New Deal, Lyndon Johnson's Great Society but most insidious of all was the United Nations. It also controlled the Communist party and the [[Trilateral Commission]]. The only member of the Illuminati he could identify by name was [[Nelson Rockefeller]]. Reagan was suspect because he picked for vice president the choice of the Illuminati, [[George H.W. Bush]]. Welch argued that the Illuminati was subversive of good government, destructive of religion, and used professional agitators and massive terror to destroy the good people, while manufacturing smears to destroy the brave souls who tried to expose it.<ref>There's more; see Stewart (2002).</ref>

In October 2009, JBS criticized the Department of Homeland Security's TSA:
:''It’s not enough that the federal [[Transportation Security Administration]] (TSA) gropes us at checkpoints in airports, photographs passengers naked, steals from them, and even killed one. Now it’s recruiting the nation’s truck- and bus-drivers as snitches against us in a scheme it calls First Observer. The logic is diabolical, totalitarian, and simple...."<ref>Becky Akers, "Eyes on the Road" Oct. 15, 2009 [http://www.thenewamerican.com/index.php/opinion/948-becky-akers/1988-eyes-on-the-road on JBS official website]</ref>

===Eisenhower and Johnson===
Welch wrote in a widely circulated statement, ''The Politician'', "Could Eisenhower really be simply a smart politician, entirely without principles and hungry for glory, who is only the tool of the Communists? The answer is yes." He went on. "With regard to ... Eisenhower, it is difficult to avoid raising the question of deliberate treason."<ref>Quoted at [http://www.jbs.org/jbs-news-feed/1375-glenn-beck-talks-with-jbs-president-john-f-mcmanus "Glenn Beck talks with JBS President John F. McManus" Aug. 15, 2006]</ref>

In the 1960s Welch insisted that the Johnson administration's fight against communism in Vietnam was part of a communist plot aimed at taking over the United States. Welch demanded that the United States get out of Vietnam.<ref>Stephen Earl Bennett, "Modes of Resolution of a 'Belief Dilemma' in the Ideology of the John Birch Society," ''Journal of Politics'' 1971 33(3): 735-772</ref>

===Smart Meters and Technology===
The John Birch Society opposes the deployment of utility smart meters at residences out of a concern for both privacy and radiation health risks.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thenewamerican.com/tech/energy/item/24569-the-great-smart-meter-con|title=The Great Smart Meter Con|work=New American|accessdate=January 2, 2017}}</ref> The John Birch Society worries that society will become so dependent upon technology that it will evolved into a "technocracy" where technologist will be in control.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thenewamerican.com/tech/environment/item/24927-alex-newma-patrick-wood-warns-technocracy-takeover|title=Researcher Warns of Technocracy Takeover|work=New American|accessdate=January 2, 2017}}</ref>

==Relationship with other conservative groups==
It was moderately active in the 1960s with numerous chapters, but rarely engaged in coalition building with other conservatives. The singular focus of JBS was against communism. But the [[mainstream media]] so relentlessly smeared JBS that quasi-conservative groups, such as [[William F. Buckley]] and his ''National Review'', regularly attacked [[Robert Welch]] and JBS perhaps to gain favor with [[liberals]]. Buckley was ultimately given a show on [[PBS]].

Eisenhower cabinet member [[Ezra Taft Benson]], a leading [[Mormon]], spoke in favor of the John Birch Society, but in January 1963 the Mormon church issued a statement distancing itself from JBS.<ref>Gregory A. Prince, "The Red Peril, the Candy Maker, and the Apostle: David O. Mckay's Confrontation with Communism," ''Dialogue: a Journal of Mormon Thought'' 2004 37(2): 37-94,</ref> In 2010, the American Conservative Union allowed it to be a co-sponsor of [[CPAC]], a leading conservative conference. In 2012, the American Conservative Union board voted to not invite the JBS to [[CPAC]].

==Liberal target==
The John Birch Society has always been a favorite target of liberals who want to embarrass the conservative movement by citing some ridiculous conspiracy theory on the right. Some liberals just laugh and employ misinterpretations of social anxieties to warn that Birchers are misfits; most warn darkly that the John Birch Society is a dangerous manifestation of the "radical right" that aimed to subvert democracy. In practice, the Society actually did little more than publish pamphlets and sponsor local discussion groups.

Historian [[Richard Hofstadter]] claimed the Birch Society was the leader of the right wing in the 1960s.<ref>Hofstadter himself later turned right. Hofstadter, ''The Paranoid Style in American Politics and Other Essays'' (1967) p. 70</ref> In 1968 Governor Pat Brown of California, about to be defeated for reelection by Reagan, unleashed a 13-page report calling Reagan a puppet of the John Birch Society. (Reagan considered the JBS leaders to be kooky and kept them out of his campaign.)<ref>Rick Perlstein, ''Nixonland: The Rise of a President and the Fracturing of America'' (2008) p. 113</ref> As late as 1980, House Speaker [[Tip O'Neill]] warned that "John Birchers control the Republican Party," overlooking the fact that the only Birch Society member in Congress at the time was a Democrat from Georgia, [[Larry McDonald]] who caucused with O'Neill. In fact the John Birch Society never controlled the Republican party in any state at any level at any time.<ref>Steven F. Hayward, ''The Age of Reagan: The Fall of the Old Liberal Order, 1964-1980'' (2001) pp 101, 675;</ref> The John Birch Society has been labeled by the left as "racist", "fascist", and "anti-semitic". The John Birch Society has been falsely associated with the Ku Klux Klan and American Nazi Party by the [[Southern Poverty Law Center]] and at the 1964 Republican National Convention, establishment [[RINO]] candidate [[Nelson Rockefeller]] mentioned the John Birch Society's name with the Communists and the Ku Klux Klan. But the John Birch Society was never a hate group and the society accepts non-whites, Jews and Freemasons.<ref>https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=VjtYovgRxF4</ref> And the reason it was called "racist" by leftists is its opposition to certain aspects of the Civil Rights movement that were communist-influenced. The JBS opposed the civil rights movement because it was campaigning for federal government legislation which would restrict the freedoms of all Americans, of all races as well as create federal government programs which would expand the government's power. They did not oppose rights for blacks, they opposed restriction of rights in the name of "anti-discrimination" and expansion of federal government power and spending.<ref>https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=LSqiX-vcgg8</ref><ref>https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=kLqQK-jKLZg</ref> An historical analysis by a leader of the JBS suggested that some generals and government officials during the [[Civil War]] were communists.<ref>https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=E0XeYmHBNw8</ref>

==Publications==
''[[The New American]]'' is the official magazine of the John Birch Society since 1985. It replaced ''American Opinion'', which was published from 1958 to 1985.

The Birch Society has an active publication and reprint program. Reflecting its distrust of national leadership over the last 70 years, many of its books blame the White House and national leaders for deliberately damaging the national interest—for example, by encouraging the Japanese to sink the American fleet at Pearl Harbor.

==Members==
There are unofficial JBS chapters on many college campuses throughout the United States.

One survey in the early 1970s found the typical John Birch Society member was middle or upper-middle class, Republican and Protestant. He was also fairly young and well educated: the majority of the sample was under 40 at time of recruitment and had completed at least three years of college. A later survey in the mid 1980s found the membership then was disproportionately Southwesterners, young, urban, male, and Catholic. They were consistently conservative on secular issues, antigovernment, and negative toward communism. The evidence does not support liberal notions that irrationality, social strains, or status anxiety explained their beliefs.<ref>Stone (1974); Wilcox (1988)</ref>

==Further reading==
* Grigg, William Norman. "Global Gun Grab: The United Nations Campaign to Disarm Americans". John Birch Society, 2001.
* Jasper, William F. "The United Nations Exposed". John Birch Society, 2001.
* McManus, John F. "Changing Commands: The Betrayal of America's Military". John Birch Society, 1995.
* Perloff, James. "The Shadows of Power: The Council on Foreign Relations and the American Decline". Western Islands, 1988.
* Smoot, Dan. "The Invisible Government". Western Islands, 1962.
* Stewart, Charles J. "The Master Conspiracy of the John Birch Society: From Communism to the New World Order," ''Western Journal of Communication'' (2002) v.66#4 pp 424+ [http://www.questia.com/read/5002503885?title=The%20Master%20Conspiracy%20of%20the%20John%20Birch%20Society%3a%20From%20Communism%20to%20the%20New%20World%20Order online edition]
* Stone, Barbara S. "The John Birch Society: a Profile," ''Journal of Politics'' 1974 36(1): 184-197,
* Wilcox, Clyde. "Sources of Support for the Old Right: a Comparison of the John Birch Society and the Christian Anti-Communism Crusade." ''Social Science History'' 1988 12(4): 429-450,
===Primary sources===
*Robert W. Welch Jr. ''The Blue Book of the John Birch Society''. Boston: Western Islands, 1961.
*Robert W. Welch Jr. and the John Birch Society ''The White Book of the John Birch Society for 1964.'' Belmont: John Birch Society, 1961.
*Robert W. Welch Jr. ''The New Americanism and Other Speeches.'' Boston: Western Islands, 1966.
*Gary Allen. ''None Dare Call It Conspiracy.'' G S G & Associates, Inc., 1971.
*[[Korean Airlines Flight 007]] - Congressman [[Larry McDonald]], the 2nd President of the JBS, was a passenger of this flight downed by the Soviets on Sept. 1, 1983 in international waters near [[Moneron Island]] west of Sakhalin Island. Since June 2012, there is a petition drive, supported by Senator [[Scott Brown]], to be presented to President Obama and Speaker of the House John Boehner, to reopen the investigation into the shooting down of KAL 007 and reports of the survival of Congressman McDonald [http://www.change.org/petitions/president-barack-obama-speaker-of-the-house-john-boehner-conduct-an-investigation-of-flight-kal-007].
*https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCD_PvRz7fvX9WOBL6T4P45Q The John Birch Society's YouTube Channel
*https://m.facebook.com/JohnBirchSociety The John Birch Society's Facebook page

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

== External links ==
*[http://www.jbs.org/ The John Birch Society Website]
*[http://www.thenewamerican.com/ The New American]
*[http://johnbirchsocietyvolunteers.org/ The JBS Volunteers]
*[http://www.thenewamerican.com/node/8694 "KAL Flight 007 Remembered" New American Magazine]
*[http://www.rescue007.org/ Website of the International Committee for the Rescue of KAL 007 Survivors]
*[http://politicalgraveyard.com/group/john-birch-soc.html members prominent in politics]
*[http://bertschlossberg.blogspot.com/2012/11/lawrence-patton-mcdonald-b_15.html A Forgotten Man: Congressman Larry McDonald]
*[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=0HpDHmo5oNQ]
*[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=mthj2Z7xqvM]
*[https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=dg6ixwmcMcc]

[[Category:Political Organizations]]
[[Category:Cold War]]
[[Category:1960s]]
[[Category:Conspiracy Theorists]]
[[Category:Conservative Organizations]]
[[Category:Anti-Communism]]
[[Category:Pro Second Amendment]]

New Deal

2017-04-19T16:38:37Z

Teapublican: socialist liberal

The '''New Deal''' was a group of otherwise disjointed programs conducted by President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]], a [[Democratic Party|Democrat]], throughout the [[Great Depression]], especially from 1933-36. His program had three aspects: Relief, Recovery and Reform. It sought to provide immediate Relief for the millions of unemployed in the [[Great Depression]]. It was intended to promote Recovery of the economy to normal standards—a goal he did not fully achieve. It involved a series of Reforms, especially in the financial system and labor relations. The basic issue was how to deal with the severely damaged economy—and great social misery—caused by three years of the [[Great Depression]]. Conservatives endorsed parts of the '''First New Deal''' (the 1933 programs) and rejected the more radical '''Second New Deal''' (the 1934-35 programs).

The New Deal was popular among voters leading to the formation of the [[New Deal Coalition]], which made the Democrats the majority party during the [[Fifth Party System]] into the 1960s. However a [[Conservative Coalition]] took control of Congress in 1937 and blocked nearly all additional programs; during the war years (1941–45) the conservatives successfully rolled back many of the relief efforts on the grounds they were no longer needed since full employment was achieved. The "reforms" that regulated the economy were mostly dropped in the deregulation era (1974–87), except for oversight of Wall Street by the [[SEC]], which conservatives approved because it increased investor confidence.

The [[New Deal Coalition]] dominated national politics until it split apart in the 1960s. Ever since it has been the holy grail of liberals seeking to restore their former glory.

Although the New Deal did not fully solve the economic catastrophe that was on the verge of destroying the US economy in early 1933, it achieved many of its objectives and the period of 1933-37 saw some sectors return to economic growth.

==Broker State==
The New Deal created the "Broker State", where different interest groups compete in the national market. The government became a mediator between those interest groups, giving power to those who has enough political and economic power to demand it. One of the limitations of this Broker States was that minority groups were often ignored since they did not have political power.

==Economic planning==
:'''''Main article'': [[Economic planning]]
As the Depression set in, terms like “[[planned economy]]” and “national planning” became the watchwords of the day.<ref>[http://www.independent.org/publications/article.asp?id=1468 ''FDR: The Man, the Leader, the Legacy''], Ralph Raico, Future of Freedom Foundation, April 1, 2001. Retrieved from The Independent Institute.org 06/17/07.</ref> They had been used by theoriticians for years and popularized by best-selling writers like [[George Soule]] and [[Stuart Chase]], who lauded the Soviet Gosplan (central planning), asking plaintively, “Why should the Russians have all the fun of remaking a world?” One prominent member of the [[Brain trust]] was [[Rexford Guy Tugwell]]. Tugwell was a follower of the school of thought known as "Institutional Economics". His official position was assistant secretary of agriculture, that is, second in command to [[Henry A. Wallace]], but his influence extended far beyond that. Tugwell had traveled to the Soviet Union in 1927 and observed through scientific economic planning the Soviets were able to “carry out their industrial operations with a completely thought-out program.” “The future,” he announced, “is becoming visible in Russia.” Tugwell scorned the [[free market]] as anarchical, an uncoordinated muddle of hopelessly conflicting aims and purposes. It would have to be replaced by national planning, or [[technocracy]], another shibboleth of the day, implying rule by the technical experts and managers,<ref>James Burnham, ''The Managerial Revolution'', (1966).</ref> like himself.

==First and Second New Deals==

Historians distinguish between the "First New Deal" of 1933, which had something for almost every group, and the "Second New Deal" (1935–36), which introduced [[class conflict]], especially between business and labor unions. The First New Deal (1933–34) included many "alphabet agencies", notably ([[AAA]], [[CCC]], [[FERA]], CWA, [[FHA]],<ref>see [http://www.fha.com/fha_loans.cfm Federal Housing Administration]</ref> [[FDIC]],<ref>See [http://www.fdic.gov/ FDIC - Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation]</ref> [[NRA]], [[PWA]], [[TVA]], [[SEC]]).<ref>See [http://www.sec.gov/about/whatwedo.shtml SEC - U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission]</ref>

The Second New Deal, started in 1934-35 included the [[WPA]], a giant relief agency, and Social Security,<ref>See [http://www.ssa.gov/history/history.html SSA - Social Security History]</ref> as well as the [[NLRA]] or "Wagner Act" that promoted rapid growth of labor unions. The opponents of the New Deal, complaining of the cost and the shift of power to Washington, stopped its expansion by 1937, and abolished many of its programs by 1943. The Supreme Court ruled several programs unconstitutional (some parts of them were soon replaced, except for the NRA). The main New Deal programs still in existence today are Social Security the [[Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation]] (FDIC) and the [[Securities and Exchange Commission]] (SEC) which regulates Wall Street.<ref>Other major programs that still exist under their original names include the, the [[Federal Housing Administration]] (FHA)[http://www.fha.com/fha_loans.cfm Federal Housing Administration] and the [[Tennessee Valley Authority]] (TVA)[http://www.tva.gov/abouttva/history.htm TVA]</ref>

==Foreign policy==

see [[World Economic Conference of 1933]]

In foreign policy the New Deal pursued isolationism, set in motion by Roosevelt's "bombshell message" to the [[World Economic Conference of 1933]] which ended efforts to stabilize international exchange rates. Roosevelt—acting against the advice of his top aides—feared that cooperation with major nations would limit his abilities to manipulate the money supply and end the [[deflation]] that was a crippling element of the depression. The major nations were appalled. Nazi Germany, which promoted autarchy, rejoiced for it gained a free hand to expand its economic power across the globe. A series of Neutrality Laws (see [[Neutrality Act]]) were passed that prohibited American business from selling munitions to nations at war.

There was a peculiar affinity between the New Deal and the European dictatorships that on occasion extended even to [[fascism]] and [[national socialism]] Early on, FDR referred to [[Benito Mussolini]] as “the admirable Italian gentlemen,” stating to his ambassador in Rome, “I am much interested and deeply impressed by what he has accomplished." Mussolini, in turn, was flattered by what he saw as the New Deal’s copying of his own corporate state, in the [[National Recovery Act]] (NRA) and other early measures. Even [[Hitler]] had kind words at first for Roosevelt’s “dynamic” leadership, stating that “I have sympathy with President Roosevelt because he marches straight to his objective over Congress, over lobbies, over stubborn bureaucracies.”

What linked the New Deal to the regimes in Italy and Germany, as well as in Soviet Russia, was their fellowship in the wave of [[collectivism]] that was sweeping the world. In an essay published in 1933, [[John Maynard Keynes]] observed this trend, and expressed his sympathy with the “variety of politico-economic experiments” under way in the continental dictatorships as well as in the United States. All of them, he gloated, were turning their backs on the old, discredited [[laissez-faire]] and embracing national planning in one form or another.

The New Deal was a kinder, gentler form of the collectivism. In all of the national planning schemes, government gained power at the expense of the people, with the leaders seeking to impose a philosophy of life that subordinated the individual to the needs of the community—as defined by the state.

Roosevelt and the State Department promoted a "Good Neighbor" policy toward Latin America, which meant that the U.S. would no longer try to prevent or overthrow dictatorships or governments ruinous to the people. An immediate result was the takeover of [[Cuba]] by a military dictatorship.

Finally realizing the dangers posed by the Nazis, Roosevelt reversed course in 1938 and sought to repeal the neutrality laws. However, not all the New Dealers went along with FDR; many remained isolationist.

==Relief, Recovery, and Reform==

The New Deal had three components: direct relief, economic recovery, and financial reform; these were also called the 'Three Rs'.

''Relief'' was the immediate effort to help the one-third of the population that was hardest hit by the depression. Roosevelt expanded Hoover's [[Federal Emergency Relief Administration]] (FERA) work relief program, and added the [[Civilian Conservation Corps]] (CCC), [[Public Works Administration]] (PWA), and (starting in 1935) the [[Works Progress Administration]] (WPA). In 1935 the social security and unemployment insurance programs were added. Separate programs were set up for relief in rural America, such as the [[Resettlement Administration]] (RA) and [[Farm Security Administration]] (FSA). These work relief programs have been praised by most economists in retrospect.<ref>Parker 2002</ref>[[Milton Friedman]] who after taking a graduate degree in economics was employed by the WPA to analyze family budgets and studied the hardships of families said that, at the time, he and his wife "regarded [these job-creation programs] appropriate responses to the critical situation" but not "the price- and wage-fixing measures of the National Recovery Administration and the Agricultural Adjustment Administration."<ref>Friedman, ''Two Lucky People'' (1998) p. 59.</ref>

''Recovery'' was the effort in numerous programs to restore the economy to normal health. By most economic indicators this was achieved by 1937—except for unemployment, which remained stubbornly high until World War II began.

''Reform'' was based on the assumption that the depression was caused by the inherent instability of the market and that government intervention was necessary to rationalize and stabilize the economy, and to balance the interests of farmers, business and labor. It included the [[National Recovery Administration]] (NRA, 1933) (which ended in 1935), regulation of Wall Street ([[SEC]], 1934), the [[Agricultural Adjustment Act]] (AAA) farm programs (1933 and 1938), insurance of bank deposits ([[Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation]] 1933) and the [[Wagner Act]] (1935)encouraging workers to organize into labor unions. Despite urgings by some New Dealers, there was no major anti-trust program. Roosevelt rejected the opportunity to take over banks and railroads. He did not support state ownership of factories, and only one major program, the [[Tennessee Valley Authority]] (1933), involved government ownership of the means of production.

The National Recovery Act (NRA) and the [[Agricultural Adjustment Administration]] (AAA) were plans to take the whole industrial and agricultural life of the country under the wing of the government, organize it into vast farm and [[industrial cartel]]s, as they were called in Germany, [[corporative]]s as they were called in Italy, and operate business and the farms under plans made and carried out under the supervision of government. This is the complete negation of [[classical liberalism]]. It is, in fact, the essence of [[fascism]]. Fascism goes one step further and insists this cannot be done by a [[democracy|democratic]] government; that it can be done successfully only under a [[totalitarian]] regime. At the time fascism was not defined as [[anti-Semitism]]. It was a word used to describe the political system of Italian Premier [[Benito Mussolini]]. Roosevelt adopted the Italian model merely because at the moment it seemed politically expedient.

By 1934, the Supreme Court began declaring significant parts of the New Deal unconstitutional. The programs were quickly fixed to pass muster, but in 1937 Roosevelt stunned the nation by a surprise proposal to pack the Supreme Court by adding five new justices. The proposal failed and Roosevelt permanently alienated many conservative Democrats; however the Supreme Court started upholding New Deal laws. Justices then started retiring, allowing Roosevelt to select a majority of the Court. By 1942, the Supreme Court had almost completely abandoned its "judicial activism" of striking down congressional laws. The Supreme Court ruled in ''[[Wickard v. Filburn]]'' that the [[Commerce Clause]] covered almost all such regulation allowing the necessary expansion of federal power to make the New Deal "constitutional".

Two old words now took on new meaning. "Liberal" no longer referred to [[classical liberalism]] but now meant a supporter of the New Deal; conservative meant upholding the Constitution. Whether the New Deal was successful is usually approached not as a historical problem, but as a current debate whether the New Deal should be a model for government today, complicated by its conflicting goals of promising something for nothing for everyone. Liberals continue to battle conservatives. The term "New Deal" is also used to describe the [[New Deal Coalition]] that Roosevelt created to support his programs, including the Democratic party, big city machines, labor unions, Catholic and Jewish minorities, African Americans, farmers, and most Southern whites.

==The Origins of the New Deal==

On the 29th of October, 1929, the flight of capital from the over valued U.S. stock market set off a downward spiral in employment and growth in every part of the globe known as the [[Great Depression]]. Although statistics were not kept it was later estimated unemployment in the U.S. increased from 4% to 25% between 1929 and 1933 while manufacturing output plunged by approximately a third. Gross private domestic investment, which includes construction and inventories, shrank from $16.2 billion to $1.4 billion.<ref>In 1958 constant dollars. Source: Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, ''Federal Reserve Bulletin'', June 1973, p. A68.</ref> Prices everywhere fell, making the burden of the repayments of debts much harder. Heavy industry, mining, lumbering and agriculture were hard hit. The impact was much less severe in white collar and service sectors, but every city and state was hit hard.

Upon accepting the 1932 [[U.S. Democratic Party, history|Democratic]] nomination for president, Roosevelt promised "a new deal for the American people."<ref>The phrase came from the title of popular writer Stuart Chase's book ''A New Deal'' published earlier in 1932.</ref> Roosevelt entered office with no single ideology or plan for dealing with the depression. He was willing to try anything, and, indeed, in the "First New Deal" (1933–34) virtually every organized group (except the Socialists and Communists) gained much of what they demanded. This "First New Deal" thus was self-contradictory, pragmatic, and experimental. Government spending propelled the economy to recover from the deep pit of 1932, and started heading upward again until 1937, when the over emphasis on consumption of capital resources plunged the economy into the [[Recession of 1937]] and sent unemployment back to 1934 levels. Whether the New Deal was responsible for the recovery, or whether it even slowed the recovery, is a subject of debate.

The New Deal drew from many different sources over the previous half-century. Some New Dealers, led by [[Thurman Arnold]], went back to the anti-monopoly tradition in the Democratic party that stretched back a century. Monopoly was bad for America, [[Louis Brandeis]] kept insisting, because it produced waste and inefficiency. However, the anti-monopoly group never had a major impact on New Deal policy.

From the Wilson administration, other New Dealers, such as [[Hugh Samuel Johnson|Hugh Johnson]] of the [[National Recovery Administration|NRA]], were shaped by efforts to mobilize the economy for [[World War I]], They brought ideas and experience from the government controls and spending of 1917-18. And from the policy experiments of the 1920s, New Dealers picked up ideas from efforts to harmonize the economy by creating cooperative relationships among its constituent elements. Roosevelt brought together a so-called "[[Brain Trust]]" of academic advisers to assist in his recovery efforts. They sought to introduce extensive government intervention in the form of spending and regulation instead of allowing self-correcting mechanisms to run its course. New Dealers such as Donald Richberg, as the replacement head of the NRA, said "A nationally [[planned economy]] is the only salvation of our present situation and the only hope for the future."<ref name="Leuchtenburg p. 58">Leuchtenburg p. 58</ref> Historian Clarence B. Carson says:

<blockquote>

At this remove in time from the early days of the New Deal, it is difficult to recapture, even in imagination, the heady enthusiasm among a goodly number of intellectuals for a government planned economy. So far as can now be told, they believed that a bright new day was dawning, that national planning would result in an organically integrated economy in which everyone would joyfully work for the common good, and that American society would be freed at last from those antagonisms arising, as General Hugh Johnson put it, from “the murderous doctrine of savage and wolfish individualism, looking to dog-eat-dog and devil take the hindmost.<ref>Carson, Clarence B. [http://www.libertyhaven.com/theoreticalorphilosophicalissues/economichistory/relicsdeal.shtml ''The Relics of Intervention'' part 4. ''New Deal Collective Planning'']</ref>

</blockquote>

[[File:Newdealstamp.png|thumb|280px|1998 US stamp celebrates alphabet agencies of New Deal]]

The New Deal faced some very vocal [[American conservatism|conservative]] opposition. The first organized opposition in 1934 came from the [[American Liberty League]] led by Democrats such as 1924 and 1928 presidential candidates [[John W. Davis]] and [[Al Smith]]. There was also a large loose grouping of opponents of the New Deal who have come to be known as the [[Old Right (United States)|Old Right]] which included politicians, intellectuals, writers, and newspaper editors of various philosophical persuasions including classical liberals, conservatives, Democrats and Republicans.

===World Comparisons===

Britain was unable to adopt major programs to stop its depression. That led to collapse of the Labour government and replacement in 1931 by a National coalition (predominantly Conservative). There was no equivalent "New Deal" government intervention in Britain, which allowing self-correcting market mechanism to operate, brought about a higher level of sustained employment and recovered more quickly from the Depression. In Canada, Conservative Prime Minister [[R. B. Bennett]] pushed for a program similar to the New Deal but failed to get it enacted and was defeated for reelection by the Liberals under [[William Mackenzie King]]. In New Zealand a series of economic and social policies similar to the New Deal were adopted after the election of the first Labour Government in 1935 [http://www.teara.govt.nz/1966/H/HistoryEconomic/LabourPolicy/en].

In [[Nazi Germany]], economic recovery was pursued through wage controls, suppression of unions, and big government spending programs on [[Autobahn|infrastructure]] and public works; as in the United States, large-scale armament spending came later in the 1930s. In [[Mussolini]]'s Italy, the economic controls of his corporate state were tightened.

==The First Hundred Days==

Having won a decisive victory in 1932, and with his party having decisively swept Congressional elections across the nation, Roosevelt entered office with unprecedented political capital. Many Congressmen had their favorite projects, like the TVA plan of Senator [[George Norris]], which the administration adopted and treated as its own. Finally there were numerous Hoover plans that he could not get passed but were ready to go, such as the emergency banking laws. Americans of all political persuasions were demanding immediate action, and Roosevelt responded with a series of new programs in the “first hundred days” of the administration.

===The "Bank Holiday" and the Emergency Banking Act===

Roosevelt hurled the blame at businessmen and bankers with religious rhetoric: "Practices of the unscrupulous money changers stand indicted in the court of public opinion, rejected by the hearts and minds of men....The money changers have fled from their high seats in the temple of our civilization."

The failure of Credit Anstalt, a large commercial bank in Austria in 1931, brought a new wave of financial panic to Wall Street. By March 4, all banks in the country were virtually closed by their governors, and Roosevelt kept them all closed until he could pass new legislation.<ref>for details see "Bottom" in ''Time Magazine'' (March 13, 1933) online at [http://www.time.com/time/printout/0,8816,745289,00.html]</ref> On March 9, Roosevelt sent to Congress the [[Emergency Banking Act]], drafted in large part by Hoover's administration; the act was passed and signed into law the same day. It provided for a system of reopening sound banks under Treasury supervision, with federal loans available if needed. Three-quarters of the banks in the [[Federal Reserve System]] reopened within the next three days. Billions of dollars in "hoarded" currency and gold flowed back into them within a month, thus stabilizing the banking system. All was normal by April. During all of 1933, 4,004 small local banks were permanently closed and were merged into larger banks. (Their depositors eventually received 85 cents on the dollar of their deposits.) Congress created the [[Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation]] in June, which insured deposits for up to $5,000, although Roosevelt opposed it support was overwhelming. The establishment of the FDIC virtually ended the era of "runs" on banks.

The Banking Act of 1935 removed the Secretary of the Treasury from the Federal Reserve Board of Governors and established the [[Federal Open Market Committee]] to control market operations of the Federal Reserve, the buying and selling of Government securities the Federal Reserve System.

===Economic growth===

The economy hit rock bottom in March 1933 and now it started to expand. As historian Broadus Mitchell notes, "Most indexes worsened until the summer of 1932, which may be called the low point of the depression economically and psychologically."<ref>Mitchell p 404.</ref> Economic indicators show the economy reached nadir in the first days of March, then began a steady, sharp upward recovery. Thus the Federal Reserve Index of Industrial Production hit its lowest point of 52.8 in July 1932 (with 1935-39 = 100) and was practically unchanged at 54.3 in March 1933; however by July 1933, it reached 85.5, a dramatic rebound of 57% in four months. Growth was steady and strong until 1937 but job creation continued to lag. By 1941, personal consumption expenditures - despite population increase - were virtually unchanged since 1929, reflecting a general impoverishment of the nation.<ref>Personal consumption expenditures in the aggregate for 1929 were 77.2 billion, 45.8 billion in 1933, and 80.6 billion in 1941. Measured in constant 1958 dollars. Source: Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, ''Federal Reserve Bulletin'', June 1973, p. A68.</ref>

===The Economy Act===

The [[Economy Act]], drafted by Budget Director [[Lewis Douglas]] was passed on March 20, 1933. The act proposed to balance the "regular" (non-emergency) federal budget by cutting the salaries of government employees and cutting pensions to veterans by 40 percent. It saved $500 million a year and reassured deficit hawks such as Douglas that the new president was fiscally conservative. Roosevelt argued there were two budgets: the "regular" federal budget, which he balanced, and the "emergency budget," which was needed to defeat the depression. It was imbalanced on a temporary basis.

Roosevelt was ran on a platform of balancing the budget, but in office found himself running spending deficits to fund the numerous programs he created. Douglas, however, rejecting the distinction between a regular and emergency budget, resigned in 1934, and became an outspoken critic of the New Deal. Roosevelt strenuously opposed the [[Bonus Bill]] that would give World War I veterans a cash bonus. Finally, Congress passed it over his veto in 1936, and the Treasury distributed $1.5 billion in cash to 4 million of bonus welfare benefits to veterans just before the 1936 election.

These blank check appropriations led to the subservience of Congress and the rise of bureaucracy. Under the Constitution, Congress alone can write laws. The executive branch only enforces the law. But Congress now began to pass laws that created large bureaus empowered to make [[regulation]]s or directives with a wide range of authority. Under these laws the executive bureau became a quasi-legislative body authorized by Congress to make regulations which had the effect of law. This practice grew until Washington was filled with a [[New Deal agencies|vast array of bureaus]] that were making laws, enforcing them and actually interpreting them through [[administrative law court]]s set up within the bureaus, abolishing on a large scale the [[separation of powers]] between executive, legislative and judicial processes.

At least until [[John F. Kennedy]] in 1960, New Dealers never fully recognized the [[Keynesian economics|Keynesian]] argument for government spending as a vehicle for recovery. Most economists of the era, along with [[Henry Morgenthau, Jr.|Henry Morgenthau]] of the Treasury Department, rejected Keynesian solutions and favored balanced budgets.

===Minimum wage===

Shortly after his election FDR forced the Congress to scrap minimum wage and maximum hour legislation which the Senate had already passed.<ref>''The Roosevelt Myth'', John T. Flynn, Fox and Wilkes, 1948, Book 2, Ch. 3., [http://www.rooseveltmyth.com/book/fdrmyth_Chapter_Three___The_Forgotten_De.htm ''The Forgotten Deprssion''].</ref>

===The Farm Programs ===

Roosevelt was keenly interested in farm issues, and emphasized that true prosperity would not return until farming was prosperous. Many different programs were directed at farmers. The first hundred days produced a federal program to protect commercial farmers from the uncertainties of the depression through subsidies and production controls. This program began with the [[Agricultural Adjustment Act]], creating the [[Agricultural Adjustment Administration]] (AAA), which Congress passed in May 1933.

[[File:Farm-bill.jpg|thumb|350px|Would FDR's farm plan steamroller over traditional American values?]]

The AAA reflected the demands of leaders of major farm organizations, especially the Farm Bureau, and reflected debates among Roosevelt's farm advisers such as [[Henry A. Wallace]], [[Rexford Tugwell]], and [[George Peek]]. The AAA implemented a provision for crop reductions known as the "domestic allotment" system of the act. Under this system producers of corn, cotton, dairy products, hogs, rice, tobacco, and wheat would decide on production limits for their crops. The AAA would then pay land owners subsidies for leaving some of their land idle with funds provided by a new tax on food processing. Farm prices were to be subsidized up to the point of parity. Some crops were ordered to be destroyed and some livestock slaughtered to raise the prices farmers received. The idea was that the less produced, the higher the price, and the farmer would benefit. Farm incomes increased significantly in the first three years of the New Deal. A Gallup Poll revealed that a majority of the American public opposed the AAA; conservatives complained that price fixing was dangerously distorting the economy.

The milk program was especially problematic—and indeed still is in the 21st century, with state governments having a major role.

The main farm program was the [[Agricultural Adjustment Administration]] or AAA, enacted in 1933. The government rented land from farmers to take it out of production, thereby hoping the reduce the surpluses that caused such low prices. By 1936 conditions had dramatically improved in agriculture. Although the holy grail of 100% parity was not reached until 1943, incomes were much higher rising from $4.7 billion in 1932 to $8.7 billion in 1936. The heavy burden of debt that had soured the 1920s was mostly paid off or refinanced. The chimerical vision of escaping to the rich cities no longer enthralled the farm youth.

The main causes of the return to prosperity include the overall improved national economy, the severe draught of 1934 that reduced output and caused prices to rise. The AAA payments to farmers were a help. The acreage reduction program had little effect except in cotton and tobacco. In other crops the farmers improved their efficiency on the remaining acreage and output stayed level. In cotton and tobacco, however, prices were much higher and since the great majority of Southerners lived in rural areas and depended on these crops, the New Deal was very well regarded.<ref>Benedict, ''Farm Policies,'' p 353</ref>

The AAA established an important and long-lasting federal role in the planning on the entire agricultural sector of the economy, with support from liberals and conservatives alike.

In 1936, the Supreme Court declared the AAA to be [[Constitutionality|unconstitutional]], stating that "a statutory plan to regulate and control agricultural production, is a matter beyond the powers delegated to the federal government..." The AAA was replaced by a similar program that did win Court approval, and was endorsed by the both parties in the 1936 election.

Federal regulation of agricultural production has been modified many times since then, but together with large subsidies it is still in effect in 2009.

===Tenant farmers and sharecroppers===

Roosevelt, henry Wallace and many New Dealers were highly sympathetic to the marginal farmers who lived on the land in severe poverty, especially in the South. Major programs addressed to their needs included the [[Resettlement Administration]] (RA), the [[Farm Security Administration]] (FSA), the [[Rural Electrification Administration]] (REA), the [[Tennessee Valley Authority]] (TVA) and rural welfare projects sponsored by the WPA, NYA, Forest Service and CCC, including school lunches, building new schools, opening roads in remote areas, reforestation, and purchase of marginal lands to enlarge national forests.

===Relief ===

The administration launched a series of relief measures and welfare agencies to give meaningful jobs to the unemployed, especially unskilled laborers. The largest programs were the [[Civilian Conservation Corps]] (CCC), the [[Civil Works Administration]] (CWA), the [[Federal Emergency Relief Administration]] (FERA), the [[National Youth Administration]] (NYA), and above all, the [[Works Progress Administration]] (WPA). The WPA employed a maximum of 3.3 million in November 1938.<ref>According to Nancy Rose' Put to Work.</ref> However, even at this level of WPA employment, unemployment (counting WPA as employment) was still 12.5% in 1938 according to figures from Micheal Darby.<ref>Darby, Michael R.''Three and a half million U.S. Employees have been mislaid: or, an Explanation of Unemployment, 1934-1941.'' Journal of Political Economy 84, no. 1 (1976): 1-16.</ref> All these emergency programs were terminated in 1942-43, when unemployment had vanished due to World War II related employment offers.

In 1933 the administration launched the [[Tennessee Valley Authority]], a project involving dam construction planning on an unprecedented scale in order to curb flooding, generate electricity, and modernize the very poor farms in the [[Tennessee Valley]] region of the [[US South|Southern United States]].

===Repeal of prohibition===

In a measure that garnered substantial popular support, Roosevelt, in his first days of office, moved to put to rest one of the most divisive cultural issues of the 1920s. He supported and signed a bill to legalize the manufacture and sale of beer, an interim measure pending the repeal of [[Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Prohibition]], for which a constitutional amendment (the Twenty-first) was already in process. The amendment was ratified later in 1933. Prohibition had been a rather unpopular amendment and led to bootlegging, the illegal manufacture (or importation) and sale of liquor within the United States.

===Communists in the New Deal===

The New Deal was infiltrated with [[Communists]].<ref>The [[Moynihan Commission on Government Secrecy]] wrote in its final report, "The first fact is that a significant Communist conspiracy was in place in Washington, New York, and Hollywood." [http://www.fas.org/sgp/library/moynihan/appa6.html Moynihan Commission on Government Secrecy, Appendix A 6. The Experience of The Bomb]; the report also included, "At this distance it is difficult to conceive the intensity of Communist conviction in the 1930s....Looking back, however, we see more clearly the dilemma ... By 1950... the United States Government possessed information which the American public desperately needed to know: proof that there had been a serious attack on American security by the [[Soviet Union]], with considerable assistance from what was, indeed, an “enemy within.” The fact that we knew this was now known to, or sufficiently surmised by, the Soviet authorities. Only the American public was denied this information. [http://www.fas.org/sgp/library/moynihan/appa7.html Moynihan Commission on Government Secrecy, Appendix A 7. The Cold War]</ref> [[Harold Ware]] was a [[Communist Party USA]] (CPUSA) official in the AAA and founded the [[Ware group]]. The group consisted of young lawyers and economists, had about 75 members in 1934 and was divided into about eight cells. The AAA was later found [[unconstitutional]], but by that time the Communist operatives had established jobs in government employment. [[Alger Hiss]], [[Lee Pressman]], [[John Abt]], [[Charles Kramer]], [[Nathan Witt]], [[Henry Collins]], [[George Silverman]], [[Marion Bachrach]], [[John Herrmann]], [[Nathaniel Weyl]], [[Donald Hiss]] and [[Victor Perlo]] were all members. [[Harry Dexter White]], who was involved in the most auspicious policy [[subversion (political)|subversion]] as Director of the Division of Monetary Research in the [[Treasury Department]], was also affiliated with the group. The Ware group was the CPUSA's covert arm at this time. Each of these agents not only provided classified documents to Soviet intelligence, but was involved in political influence operations as well.

In 1934, a Congressional Investigation was held to examine statements by Dr. [[William A. Wirt]], who headed the U.S. [[Department of Education|Office of Education]]. Dr. Wirt had attended a dinner party with several Brain Trusters at the home of his secretary, [[Alice Barrows]].<ref>A June 1945 [[Venona project]] decryption of Soviet [[KGB]] wartime cables from the Washington D.C. KGB Office to Moscow's Eighth Department, the political intelligence wing, relayed information on matters regarding Attorney General Francis Biddle. KGB agent [[Charles Kramer]], who served on the staff of several U.S. Senate Subcommittees, and Barrows are the sources of the information. ''Venona 3706 KGB Washington to Moscow, 29 June 1945.'' Mary Van Kleek who headed the Russell Sage Foundation and also served on the Board of the National Council, visited Washington weekly to meet with Barrows and [[Greg Silvermaster|Nathan Gregory Silvermaster]].

During [[World War II]] Barrows was the Executive Secretary of the the National Council of American-Soviet Friendship. This organization was declared in 1953 to be a [[Glossary of espionage terms#Fronts and cutouts|Communist front]] organization by the [[Subversive Activities Control Board]] (SACB). In its Findings of Fact, the SACB said the National Council of American-Soviet Friendship, "advances positions...markedly pro-Soviet and...anti-United States Government...is a Communist-action organization which has as its primary purpose to advance the objectives of the world Communist movement under the [[hegemony]] of the Soviet Union; it has the policy to support and defend the Soviet Union under any and all circumstances...We conclude that the National Council of American-Soviet Friendship, Inc., is substantially directed, dominated, and controlled by the Communist Party of the United States...and is primarily operated for the purpose of giving aid and support to...the Soviet Union, a Communist foreign government." ''[http://ets.umdl.umich.edu/cgi/t/text/pageviewer-idx?c=usfexec;cc=usfexec;q1=Barrows;rgn=full%20text;idno=81242.0001.001;didno=81242.0001.001;view=image;seq=511;page=root;size=s;endseq=3;frm=frameset Reports of the Subversive Activities Control Board.]'' Washington. United States Government Printing Office. 1966. Vol. 1, p. 501.</ref>
Barrows began working for the Office of Education in 1919 and was secretly a member of the [[Communist Party of the United States]] (CPUSA) which advocated the violent overthrow of the United States Constitution. Several of the Brain Trusters present at the dinner revealed to Wirt they were CPUSA members. Wirt testified,

{{Cquote|I was told they believe that by thwarting our then evident economic recovery, they would be able to prolong the country’s destitution until they had demonstrated to the American people that the Government must operate business and commerce. By propaganda, they would destroy institutions making long term capital loans—and then push Uncle Sam into making these loans. Once Uncle Sam becomes our financier, he must also follow his money with control and management.<ref>Hearings, House Select Committee To Investigate Certain Statements of Dr. William Wirt, 73rd Congress, 2nd Session, April 10 and 17, 1934.</ref><ref>''Dr Wirt faces the cameras and tells all'', Literary Digest v. 117 (April 21, 1934) p. 7.</ref><ref>FBI Silvermaster file [http://education-research.org/PDFs/Silvermaster053.pdf Volume 53 June 1946], p. 78 pdf.</ref>}}

Outside government, the far left was exerting considerable influence in the labor movement (it dominated the new [[Congress of Industrial Organizations|CIO]]), and was building a network of membership organizations. Thus the [[American League Against War and Fascism]] was formed in 1933 and, in 1937, became the American League for Peace and Democracy. There followed the [[American Youth Congress]], 1934; League of American Writers, 1935; National Negro Congress, 1936; and the American Congress for Democracy and Intellectual Freedom, 1939. All had significant Stalinist connections, and fought furious battles with the anti-Communist left.<ref>

Leuchtenburg (1963) 281-3; Irving Howe, Lewis A. Coser, and Julius Jacobson, ''The American Communist Party: a critical history, 1919-1957'' (1957); James R. Barrett, ''William Z. Foster and the Tragedy of American Radicalism'' (2002).</ref>

===Puerto Rico===

A separate set of programs operated in [[Puerto Rico]], headed by the Puerto Rico Reconstruction Administration. It promoted [[land reform]] and helped small farms; it set up farm cooperatives, promoted crop diversification, and helped local industry. The Puerto Rico Reconstruction Administration was directed by [[Ernest Gruening]] from 1935 to 1937.

==Reform: (NIRA)==

===Business, labor, and government cooperation===

Besides programs for immediate 'relief' the New Deal embarked quickly on an agenda of long-term 'reform' aimed at avoiding another depression. The New Dealers responded to demands to inflate the currency by a variety of means. Another group of reformers sought to build consumer and farmer co-ops as a counterweight to big business. The consumer co-ops did not take off, but the [[Rural Electrification Administration]] used co-ops to bring electricity to rural areas. (As of 2007, many still operate.)

Roosevelt realized that these initial actions were nothing but short term solutions, and that more comprehensive government programs would be necessary. In the roughly three years between the Great Crash and Roosevelt's First Hundred Days, the industrial economy had been suffering from a vicious cycle of [[deflation (economics)|deflation]]. Since 1931, the [[U.S. Chamber of Commerce]], then and now the voice of the nation's organized business, had been urging the Hoover administration to adopt an anti-deflationary scheme that would permit trade associations to cooperate in stabilizing prices within their industries. While existing antitrust laws clearly forbade such practices, organized business found a receptive ear in the Roosevelt administration.

The Roosevelt administration, packed with reformers aspiring to forge all elements of society into a cooperative unit (a reaction to the worldwide specter of business-labor "class struggle"), was fairly amenable to the idea of cooperation among producers.

The Roosevelt administration insisted that business would have to ensure that the incomes of workers would rise along with their prices. The product of all these impulses and pressures was the [[National Industrial Recovery Act]] (NIRA) which was passed by Congress in June 1933. The NIRA established the [[National Planning Board]], also called the National Resources Planning Board (NRPB), to assist in planning the economy by providing recommendations and information. Fredric A. Delano was appointed head of the NRPB.

The NIRA guaranteed to workers the right of collective bargaining and helped spur some union organizing activity, but much faster growth of union membership came after the 1935 Wagner Act. The NIRA established the [[National Recovery Administration]] (NRA), which attempted to stabilize prices and wages through cooperative "code authorities" involving government, business, and labor. The NRA included a multitude of regulations imposing the pricing and production standards for all sorts of goods and services. Some ridiculed it as the "National Run Around." Most economists were dubious because it was based on fixing prices to reduce competition.<ref>Parker</ref> Historian Jim Power, in ''FDR's Folly'' says that the above-market wage rates dictated by the NRA made it more expensive for employers to hire people, and therefore unnecessarily maintained high unemployment and prolonged the Depression.

To prime the pump and cut unemployment, the NIRA created the [[Public Works Administration]] (PWA), a major program of public works. From 1933 to 1939 PWA spent $6 billion with private companies to build 34,500 projects, many of them quite large.

===The NRA "Blue Eagle" campaign===

New Deal economists argued that cut-throat competition had hurt many businesses and that with prices having fallen 20% and more, "deflation" exacerbated the burden of debt and would delay recovery. They rejected a strong move in Congress to limit the workweek to 30 hours. Instead their remedy, designed in cooperation with the Chamber of Commerce (representing big business), was the NIRA. It included billions in stimulus funds for the PWA to spend, and sought to raise prices, give more bargaining power for unions (so the workers could purchase more) and reduce harmful competition.<ref>Unions in 1933-35 were small and weak; they took off after 1935.</ref> At the center of the NIRA was the National Recovery Administration (NRA), headed by former General [[Hugh Samuel Johnson]], who had been a senior economic official in World War I. Johnson called on every business establishment in the nation to accept a stopgap "blanket code": a minimum wage of between 20 and 45 cents per hour, a maximum workweek of 35 to 45 hours, and the abolition of [[child labor]]. Johnson and Roosevelt contended that the "blanket code" would raise consumer purchasing power and increase employment.<ref>Arthur Schlesinger, Jr. ''The Coming of the New Deal'' (1959), 87-135</ref>

To mobilize political support for the NRA, Johnson launched the "NRA [[Blue Eagle]]" publicity campaign to boost what he called "industrial self-government." The NRA brought together leaders in each industry to design specific sets of codes for that industry; the most important provisions were anti-deflationary floors below which no company would lower prices or wages, and agreements on maintaining employment and production. In a remarkably short time, the NRA announced agreements from almost every major industry in the nation. By March 1934, industrial production was 45% higher than in March 1933.<ref>Federal Reserve System, ''National Summary of Business Conditions'' (1936)</ref> According to some economists, the NRA increased the cost of doing business by forty percent.<ref name="Reed">Reed, Lawrence W. [http://www.mackinac.org/archives/1998/sp1998-01.pdf ''Great Myths of the Great Depression''] Mackinac Center for Public Policy.</ref> Donald Richberg, who soon replaced Johnson as the head of the NRA said:
<blockquote>
There is no choice presented to American business between intelligently planned and uncontrolled industrial operations and a return to the gold-plated anarchy that masqueraded as "rugged individualism."...Unless industry is sufficiently socialized by its private owners and managers so that great essential industries are operated under public obligation appropriate to the public interest in them, the advance of political control over private industry is inevitable.<ref>Schlesinger, ''The Coming of the New Deal'' p. 115</ref>
</blockquote>

By the time NRA ended in May 1935, industrial production was 55% higher than in May 1933. On May 27, 1935, the NRA was found to be unconstitutional by a unanimous decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in the case of ''[[Schechter v. United States]]''. On that same day, the Court unanimously struck down the Frazier-Lemke Act portion of the New Deal as unconstitutional. Some libertarians such as [[Richard Ebeling]] see these and other rulings striking down portions of the New Deal as preventing the U.S. economic system from becoming a [[planned economy]] corporate state.<ref>[http://64.233.161.104/search?q=cache:fHF_o54pFCEJ:www.fee.org/pdf/the-freeman/1005RME "When the Supreme Court Stopped Economic Fascism in America"]. By Richard Ebeling, president of [[Foundation for Economic Education]]. Oct. 2005.</ref>

Employment in private sector factories recovered to the level of the late 1920s by 1937 (see chart 2), but did not grow much bigger until the war came; during the war manufacturing employment leaped from 11 million in 1940 to 18 million in 1943.

==Second New Deal==

===Second New Deal Enacted 1935===

In the spring of 1935, responding to the setbacks in the Court, a new skepticism in Congress, and the growing popular clamor for more dramatic action, the administration proposed or endorsed several important new initiatives. Historians refer to them as the "Second New Deal" and note that it was more radical, more pro-labor and anti-business than the "First New Deal" of 1933-34. The [[National Labor Relations Act]], also known as the '''Wagner Act''', revived and strengthened the protections of collective bargaining contained in the original (and now unconstitutional) NIRA. The result was a tremendous growth of membership in the labor unions comprising the [[American Federation of Labor]]. Labor thus became a major component of the New Deal political coalition.

Roosevelt nationalized unemployment relief through the [[Works Progress Administration]] (WPA), headed by close friend [[Harry Hopkins]]. It created hundreds of thousands of low-skilled blue collar jobs for unemployed men (and some for unemployed women and white collar workers). Applicants for WPA jobs did not have to be Democrats, but their foremen quickly explained that Roosevelt created their paychecks and that conservative Republicans wanted to abolish the program.

The [[NYA|National Youth Administration]] was the semi-autonomous WPA program for youth. Its Texas director, [[Lyndon Baines Johnson]], later used the NYA as a model for some of his [[Great Society]] programs in the 1960s.

In the very long run, the most important program of 1935, and perhaps the New Deal as a whole, was the [[Social Security Act]], which established a system of retirement pensions for people in the industrial sector (not including farmers or household workers) and unemployment insurance, as well as welfare benefits for poor families and the handicapped. It established the framework for the U.S. welfare system. Roosevelt insisted that it should be funded by payroll taxes rather than from the general fund; he said, "We put those payroll contributions there so as to give the contributors a legal, moral, and political right to collect their pensions and unemployment benefits. With those taxes in there, no damn politician can ever scrap my social security program." With the [[Unified budget Act]]  the Social Security Trust Fund was used to finance the Vietnam War and Great Society programs. The original payroll withholding was 1% of the workers gross income, with Roosevelt pledging it would never exceed 3%. Today it 6.2% and 12.4% for self-employed workers - one sixth of a workers lifetime earnings when Medicare is factored in. The withholding is on the first dollar of income with no deductions or exemptions allowed to offset contributions, and a worker was no claim or control over the assets in his account. If a worker dies before retirement, his estate has no claim on his lifetime contributions.

Social Security remains by far the single largest program driving the growth of [[National Debt]]; since it is value of [[labor]] that is withheld, the more people [[employment|employed]], the higher wages are paid. the more hours worked including overtime, all is added to the national debt as a promise by the federal government repay at some future date. And given that it is labor driving the creation of federal debt, the national debt cannot be paid down by labor. This is referred to as the "structural flaw" in the original Social Security Act. Further, FDR's assertion that "no damn politician can ever scrap my social security program" would not withstand a Constitutional challenge. In American people are born free, and no politician can the pledge that some future Congress elected by free citizens can refuse to honor the promises to pay seniors given that benefits are paid out from current workers earnings on a "[[pay as you go]]" basis, and are not held in a trust fund.

One of the last New Deal agencies was the [[United States Housing Authority]], created in 1937 with some Republican support to abolish slums.

===Defeat: Court Packing and Executive Reorganization===

Roosevelt, however, emboldened by the triumphs of his first term, set out in 1937 to consolidate authority within the government in ways that provoked powerful opposition. Early in the year, he asked Congress to [[Judiciary Reorganization Bill of 1937|expand the number of justices on the Supreme Court]] so as to allow him to appoint members sympathetic to his ideas and hence tip the ideological balance of the Court. This proposal provoked a storm of protest.

In the long run the Court shifted to the left. Justice [[Owen Josephus Roberts|Owen Roberts]], switched positions and began voting to uphold New Deal measures, effectively creating a liberal majority in ''[[West Coast Hotel Co. v. Parrish]]'' and ''[[National Labor Relations Board v. Jones & Laughlin Steel Corporation]]'' thus departing from the ''[[Lochner v. New York]]'' era and giving the government more power in questions of economic policies. Journalists called this change "[[the switch in time that saved nine]]." Recent scholars have noted that since the vote in Parrish took place several months before the court-packing plan was announced, other factors, like evolving jurisprudence, must have contributed to the Court's swing. The opinions handed down in Spring 1937, favorable to the government, also contributed to the downfall of the plan. In any case, the "court packing plan," as it was known, did lasting political damage to Roosevelt and was finally rejected by Congress in July.

[[File:Fdr-reorganize.jpg|thumb|290px|FDR alreads has too much power & demands more]]
At about the same time, the administration proposed a plan to reorganize the executive branch in ways that would significantly increase the president's control over the bureaucracy. Like the Court-packing plan, executive reorganization garnered opposition from those who feared a "Roosevelt dictatorship" and it failed in Congress; a watered-down version of the bill finally won passage in 1939.

===Attacks Right and Left ===
Historians on the left, like Conkin (1967), bemoan that FDR rescued capitalism just when the opportunity was at hand to nationalize banking, railroads and other industries. Liberal historians like Sitkoff argue that Roosevelt restored hope and self-respect to tens of millions of desperate people, built labor unions, upgraded the national infrastructure and saved capitalism in his first term when he could have destroyed it and easily nationalized the banks and the railroads.

Historians on the right like Folsom complain that FDR enlarged the powers of the federal government, built up labor unions, slowed long-term economic growth, and weakened the business community.<ref>Burton W. Folsom, ''New Deal or Raw Deal?: How FDR's Economic Legacy Has Damaged America'' (2009)</ref>

[[Image:Gop-plank.JPG|thumb|275px|A 1936 cartoon shows the GOP building its platform from the conservative planks abandoned by the Democrats.]]

Historians on the left have denounced the New Deal as a conservative phenomenon that let slip the opportunity to radically reform capitalism. Since the 1960s, "[[New Left]]" historians have been among the New Deal's harsh critics. (''For a list of relevant works, see the list of suggested readings appearing toward the bottom of the article.'') New Left historian Barton J. Bernstein, in a 1968 essay, compiled a chronicle of missed opportunities and inadequate responses to problems. The New Deal may have saved capitalism from itself, Bernstein charged, but it had failed to help—and in many cases actually harmed—those groups most in need of assistance. Conkin (1967) similarly chastised the government of the 1930s for its policies toward marginal farmers, for its failure to institute sufficiently progressive tax reform, and its excessive generosity toward select business interests. From the far left [[Howard Zinn]], in 1966, criticized the New Deal for working actively to actually preserve the worst evils of capitalism.

Since the 1970s research on the New Deal has been less interested in the question of whether the New Deal was a "conservative," "liberal" or "revolutionary" phenomenon than in the question of constraints within which it was operating. Political sociologist [[Theda Skocpol]], in an influential series of articles, has emphasized the issue of "state capacity" as an often-crippling constraint. Ambitious reform ideas often failed, she argued because of the absence of a government bureaucracy with significant strength and expertise to administer them. Other more recent works have stressed the political constraints that the New Deal encountered. Both in Congress and among certain segments of the population conservative inhibitions about government remained strong; thus some scholars have stressed that the New Deal was not just a product of its liberal backers, but also a product of the pressures of its conservative opponents.

==Government Role: balance labor, business and farming==
New Deal saw the government as an umpire or balancing force among business, labor and farming, with consumers perhaps having a role too. This approach became known as "interest group pluralism", and emphasized the role of leaders bargaining with each other and with government agencies. Congress played less of a role in New Deal thought (to the annoyance of many Congressmen.)

By the end of the 1930s, business found itself competing for influence with an increasingly powerful labor movement, one that was engaged in mass mobilization and sometimes militant action; with an organized agricultural economy, and occasionally with aroused consumers. The New Deal accomplished this by creating a series of state institutions that greatly, and permanently, expanded the role of the federal government in American life. The government was now committed to providing at least minimal assistance to the poor and unemployed; to protecting the rights of labor unions; to stabilizing the banking system; to building low-income housing; to regulating financial markets; to subsidizing agricultural production; and to doing many other things that had not previously been federal responsibilities.

Thus, perhaps the strongest legacy of the New Deal, in other words, was to make the federal government a protector of interest groups and a supervisor of competition among them. As a result of the New Deal, political and economic life became politically more competitive than before, with workers, farmers, consumers, and others now able to press their demands upon the government in ways that in the past had been available only to the corporate world. Hence the frequent description of the government the New Deal created as the "broker state," a state brokering the competing claims of numerous groups. If there was more political competition, there was less market competition. Farmers were not allowed to sell for less than the official price. The transportation industry (especially airlines, trucking and railroads) was tightly regulated so that every firm had a guaranteed market and management and labor had high profits and high wages, all at the cost of high prices and much inefficiency. Quotas in the oil industry were fixed by the [[Railroad Commission of Texas]] with the federal [[Tom Connally|Connally]] Hot Oil Act of 1935<ref>The Handbook of Texas Online: [http://www.tsha.utexas.edu/handbook/online/articles/CC/mlc3.html Connally Hot Oil Act of 1935]</ref> guaranteeing that illegal "hot oil" would not be sold. To the New Dealers, the free market meant "cut-throat competition" and they considered that evil. Not until the 1970s and 1980s would most of the New Deal regulations be relaxed.

Thus, it did not transform American capitalism in any genuinely radical way. Except in the field of labor relations, corporate power remained nearly as free from government regulation in 1939 as it had been in 1933, but that changed dramatically during the war, as Washington took control over wage rates, prices, and allocation of raw materials, and sent military officers into munitions plants. All the relief programs were closed down during the war, but one major program survived—Social Security—to become the liberal hallmark of the New Deal into the 21st century.

==Stagnation of the economy: Negative supply side==
Supply side economics<ref>The term was invented in the 1970s.</ref> can have a goal of expanding the supply of labor and capital, as typified the [[Ronald Reagan]] administration in the 1980s. But it can also be the reverse or "negative supply side," trying to reduce the unemployed, for example, by moving millions of people out of the labor force, as by relief agencies (CCC, WPA etc.), retirement (Social Security, Old Age pensions) or (staring in 1940) the military draft.\

===Practice===
Senator Hugo Black's 30-hour bill, a favorite panacea of the [[American Federation of Labor]] (AFL), did not pass, but its substitute, the [[National Industrial Recovery Act]] (NIRA), sought recovery through minimum wages and the reduction of hours. The NRA did reduce the total number of hours worked in the nation, and thus reduced the total GNP and average real income. The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) kept several hundred thousand young men at a time off the labor market. Child labor codes in the NRA effectively removed youths under sixteen from the labor market, and home work was drastically curtailed. Public opinion strongly supported federal and state efforts, echoed by many local governments, school boards, utilities, and other large employers, to prevent wives from working if the husband (the "breadwinner") had a job. Alien Mexican families were given one-way rail tickets back home. The Social Security program did not have much effect on older people until the 1950s, but meanwhile railroad retirement and old age assistance for the poor who stopped looking for jobs reduced the supply of labor. As late as 1937, Roosevelt's aides were drafting laws to shorten the work week to thirty-five hours, require premium pay for overtime, and fix the minimum hourly wage at 80 cents (far above the prevailing 63-cent rate). They failed, and the much watered down Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 established a 25-cent-per-hour minimum wage which covered 43 percent of the nation's wage earners. The final, and successful supply-side remedy was the draft, and after 1940 the increase in military personnel paralleled the reduction of unemployment.

The problem with the supply-side remedies was that they cut output as much as input, made the nation poorer, slowed long-term growth, distorted personal choices, and increased unemployment.

===Theory===
The New Dealers promoted negative supply side because they believed in the theory of economic maturity developed by Alvin Hansen to the effect that the American economy by the late 1920s was fully grown and would not be growing any more. Recovery meant return to the levels of the 1920s, but it seemed unlikely there would be much future growth. There seemed to be no new industries—the most important new industry in the 1930s was radio, but it employed few people. Therefore, pro-growth solutions, New Dealers argued, were a mistake, especially because they gave a lot of leeway to big business.<ref>George Terborgh, ''The Bogey of Economic Maturity'' (1945) is a systematic refutation. [http://www.questia.com/googleScholar.qst;jsessionid=LZXTJhxhfZFGMG8K0TbQMs2GvQX0NBvy2Gk2Tp7PLb59fkLll6Qs!-508003271!-1404068679?docId=8860128 online edition]</ref>

The most prominent spokesman for "economic maturity" was Harvard economist Alvin Hansen (1887-1975)<ref>Alvin H. Hansen, "Economic Progress and Declining Population Growth," ''American Economic Review,'' Vol. 29, No. 1 (Mar., 1939), pp. 1-15 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/1806983 in JSTOR]</ref> who called it "secular stagnation." In the late 1930s Hansen argued that "secular stagnation" had set in, so that the American economy would never grow rapidly again, because all the growth ingredients had played out, including technological innovation and population growth. The only solution, he argued, was constant deficit spending by the federal government. Critics, such as George Terborgh, attacked Hansen as a pessimist and defeatist for advancing his secular stagnation thesis. Hansen replied that secular stagnation was just another name for Keynes's underemployment equilibrium. However, the sustained economic growth beginning in 1940 undercut Hansen's predictions and his stagnation model was forgotten.<ref>W. Robert Brazelton, "Alvin Harvey Hansen: Economic Growth and a More Perfect Society: The Economist's Role in Defining the Stagnation Thesis and in Popularizing Keynesianism," ''American Journal of Economics and Sociology,'' Vol. 48, No. 4 (Oct., 1989), pp. 427-440 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/3487557 in JSTOR]</ref>
====Conservative opposition====
Conservative economists at the time opposed this idea, most notably Raymond Moley (a widely read columnist), consultants George Terborgh<ref>Benjamin Higgins, "The Doctrine of Economic Maturity," ''American Economic Review,'' Vol. 36, No. 1 (Mar., 1946), pp. 133-141 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/1802261 in JSTOR]</ref> and Wilfrid I. King,<ref>Willford I. King, "Are We Suffering From Economic Maturity?," ''Journal of Political Economy,'' Vol. 47, No. 5 (Oct., 1939), pp. 609-622 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/1824177 in JSTOR]</ref> and professors Gottfried Haberler, Frank Knight, Oskar Morgenstern, Henry Simons, Joseph Schumpeter, and William Fellner.<ref>William Fellner, " The Technological Argument of the Stagnation Thesis," ''Quarterly Journal of Economics,'' Vol. 55, No. 4 (Aug., 1941), pp. 638-651 [http://www.jstor.org/stable/1884121 in JSTOR]</ref>

==African Americans==

The New Deal set up numerous agencies to help impoverished farmers, but in the long run they had to move to the cities to become better off. Many leading New Dealers, including [[Eleanor Roosevelt]], [[Harold L. Ickes]], [[Aubrey Williams]] and [[Harry Hopkins]] worked hard to ensure Blacks received at least 10% of welfare assistance payments. Economic uplift was one thing but political revolution was another: the New Deal did not try to undercut segregation or change the second class political status of Blacks in the South. Roosevelt did appoint an unprecedented number of African Americans to second-level positions in his administration that collectively were called the Black Cabinet, perhaps due to the influence of Eleanor Roosevelt, a vocal advocate of easing discrimination. Roosevelt and Hopkins worked with big city mayors to welcome Black political organizations that made the transition from the GOP to the Democratic party in 1934-36.

The WPA, NYA, and CCC relief programs allocated 10% of their budgets to blacks (who comprised about 10% of the total population, and 20% of the poor). They operated separate all-black units with the same pay and conditions as white units. The African American community responded favorably, so that by 1936 the majority who voted (usually in the North) were voting Democratic. This was a sharp realignment from 1932, when most African Americans preferred the Republican ticket. The New Deal thus established a political alliance between African Americans and the Democratic Party that survives into the 21st century.

Some liberal historians argue the New Deal laid the ground work for black breakthroughs during World War II, the civil rights movement and the [[Great Society]] of the 1960s. Militant African Americans insist that the Civil Rights movement owed everything to black activists, and very little to the New Deal. Note that the New Deal was especially beneficial to white ethnic minorities, who responded with 80-90% of their votes for Roosevelt's reelection.

==Double dip recession ==

The Roosevelt administration was under assault during FDR's second term, which presided over a new dip in the Great Depression in the fall of 1937 that continued through most of 1938. Production declined sharply, as did profits and employment. The Government's own statistics were showing that 23.8% of the Workforce was either unemployed, or underemployed. The term for the human suffering at the hands of [[economic planning|government planners]] was "wastage." According to the Brain Trusters own statistics, of "100 Per Cent Manpower," 23.8 were "Per Cent Wastage." <ref>''Population and the Pattern of Unemployment, 1930-1937'', Rupert B. Vance and Nadia Danilevski, The Milbank Memorial Fund Quarterly, Vol. 18, No. 1. (Jan., 1940), pp. 27-43.</ref> After four years of "government solutions," contemporaneous reports were stating "much of the unemployment in 1937 was due to a decrease in the number of jobs available." <ref>''Population and the Pattern of Unemployment, 1930-1937'', Vance and Danilevski.</ref>

Keynesian economists speculated that this was a result of a premature effort to curb government spending and balance the budget, while conservatives said it was caused by attacks on business and by the huge strikes caused by the organizing activities of the [[Congress of Industrial Organizations|CIO]] and the [[American Federation of Labor]] (AFL).

Roosevelt rejected the advice of Morgenthau to cut spending, and decided big business was trying to ruin the New Deal by causing another depression that voters would react against by voting Republican. It was a "capital strike" said Roosevelt, and he ordered the FBI to look for a criminal conspiracy (they found none). Roosevelt moved left and unleashed a rhetorical campaign against monopoly power, which was cast as the cause of the new crisis. Ickes attacked automaker Henry Ford, steelmaker Tom Girdler, and the super rich "Sixty Families" who supposedly comprised "the living center of the modern industrial oligarchy which dominates the United States." Left unchecked, Ickes warned, they would create "big-business Fascist America -- an enslaved America." The president appointed Robert Jackson as the aggressive new director of the antitrust division of the Justice Department, but this effort lost its effectiveness once World War II began and big business was urgently needed to produce war supplies. [Kennedy p 352]

But the administration's other response to the 1937 deepening of the Great Depression had more tangible results. Ignoring the vitriolic pleas of the Treasury Department and responding to the urgings of the converts to Keynesian economics and others in his administration, Roosevelt embarked on an antidote to the depression, reluctantly abandoning his efforts to balance the budget and launching a $5 billion spending program in the spring of 1938, an effort to increase mass purchasing power. The New Deal had in fact engaged in deficit spending since 1933, but it was apologetic about it. The debt did NOT rise as a proportion of GDP, but did rise in terms of dollars. Now they had a theory to justify what they were doing. Roosevelt explained his program in a fireside chat in which he explained it was up to the government to "create an economic upturn" by making "additions to the purchasing power of the nation." He was opposed by [[Fiscal Conservatism|fiscal conservatives]] who thought all government spending was inefficient and generated corruption.

Business-oriented observers explained the recession and recovery in very different terms from the Keynesians. They argued that the New Deal had been very hostile to business expansion in 1935-37, had encouraged massive strikes which had a negative impact on major industries such as automobiles, and had threatened massive anti-trust legal attacks on big corporations. All those threats diminished sharply after 1938. For example, the antitrust efforts fizzled out without major cases. The CIO and AFL unions started battling each other more than corporations, and tax policy became more favorable to long-term growth.

The 1937 - 1943 Depression was longer in duration than the 1929 - 1932 crash, the result of massive government intrusion into the private economy which stunted growth. Manufacturing demand stimulated by WWII led to the 1943-1949 recovery, where finally, in 1949, the New York Stock Exchange recovered to the level it had been at 1929.

Many New Deal reforms were unpopular and criticized. In 1948 President [[Harry Truman]] ran on a reformed New Deal platform called the [[Fair Deal]], which was regarded largely as an admission the New Deal had not been fair.

==World War II and the end of the New Deal ==

Prosperity had returned by 1938 for most people—but not for the bottom third, who remained plagued by structural unemployment. The impact of war mobilization and massive war spending doubled the GNP. Businessmen ignored the mounting national debt and heavy new taxes, redoubling their efforts for greater output as an expression of patriotism. Patriotism drove most people to voluntarily work overtime and give up leisure activities to make money after so many hard years. Patriotism meant that people accepted rationing and price controls for the first time. "Cost-plus" pricing in munitions contracts guaranteed that businesses would make a profit no matter how many mediocre workers they employed, no matter how inefficient the techniques they used. The demand was for a vast quantity of war supplies as soon as possible, regardless of cost. Business hired every person in sight, even driving sound trucks up and down city streets begging people to apply for jobs. New workers were needed to replace the 12 million working-age men serving in the military. These events magnified the role of the federal government in the national economy. In 1929, federal expenditures accounted for only 3% of [[GNP]]. Between 1933 and 1939, federal expenditure tripled, and Roosevelt's critics charged that he was turning America into a [[socialism|socialist]] state. However, spending on the New Deal was far smaller than on the war effort.

In the first peacetime year of 1946, federal spending still amounted to $62 billion, or 30% of GNP. Wartime spending and other measures were able to provide an enormous output. Between 1939 and 1944, the peak of wartime production, the nation's total output almost doubled. This, along with the conscription and removal of soldiers, meant that civilian unemployment plummeted—from 14% in 1940 to less than 2% in 1943 as the labor force grew by ten million. Millions of farmers left marginal operations, students quit school, and housewives returned to the labor force. The war economy was not run on the basis of free enterprise, but was the result of government/business cooperation, with government bankrolling business.

A major result of the full employment at high wages was a sharp, permanent decrease in the level of income inequality. The gap between rich and poor narrowed dramatically in the area of nutrition, because food rationing and price controls guaranteed a reasonably priced diet to everyone. Large families that had been poverty-stricken in the 1930s had four or five or more workers, and shot to the top one-third income bracket. Overtime made for huge paychecks in the munitions factories; white collar workers were fully employed too, but they did not receive overtime and their salary scale was no longer much higher than the blue collar wage scale.

Economist Robert Higgs (1987), argues that the War did not end the Great Depression. Rather, a return to normality after the war, as the government relaxed wage controls, price controls, capital controls, reduced tariffs and other trade barriers, and eliminated the rationing of goods and the relaxing of Federal control over American industries, ended it.

==Conflicting interpretation of the New Deal economic policies==

=== Depression Statistics ===

[[File:Econ30s.jpg|thumb|400px|major economic indicators, 1929-52]]

Economic indicators show the American economy reached nadir in summer 1932 to February 1933, then began recovering until the Roosevelt recession of 1937-1938. Thus the Federal Reserve [[Industrial Production Index]] hit its low of 52.8 on [[1932-07-01]] and was practically unchanged at 54.3 on [[1933-03-01]]; however by [[1933-07-01]], it reached 85.5 (with 1935-39 = 100, and for comparison 2005 = 1,342).<ref>[http://research.stlouisfed.org/fred2/data/INDPRO.txt Industrial Production Index]</ref>

In Roosevelt's twelve years in office the economy had an 8.5% compound annual growth of GDP,<ref>''Historical Statistics of the United States'' (1976) series F31</ref> the highest growth rate in the history of any industrial country,<ref>Angus Maddison, ''The World Economy: Historical Statistics'' (OECD 2003); Japan is close, see p 174</ref> however, recovery was slow—by 1939 GDP per adult was still 27% below trend.<ref name="Cole">Cole, Harold L and Ohanian, Lee E. [http://www.economics.hawaii.edu/research/seminars/02-03/02-21.pdf ''New Deal Policies and the Persistence of the Great Depression: A General Equilibrium Analysis''], 2004.</ref> And, throughout the New Deal the median joblessness rate was 17.2 percent and never went below 14 percent.

[[File:GDP20-40.JPG|thumb|350px|left]]

{| class="wikitable"

!width="100%" style="background:#eeeeee;" |Table 1: Statistics<ref>U.S. Dept of Commerce, National Income and Product Accounts [http://www.huppi.com/kangaroo/GDPreal.htm Real GDP and GNP]; Mitchell 446, 449, 451; [http://home.att.net/~rdavis2/cpi_m2.html Consumer Price Index AND M2 Money Supply: 1800-2003]</ref>

!width="9%" style="background:#eeeeee;" |1929

!width="6%" style="background:#eeeeee;" |1931

!width="6%" style="background:#eeeeee;" |1933

!width="5%" style="background:#eeeeee;" |1937

!width="6%" style="background:#eeeeee;" |1938

!width="3%" style="background:#eeeeee;" |1940

|-

|align="center"|Real Gross National Product (GNP) (1)

|align="center"|101.4

|align="center"| 84.3

|align="center"| 68.3

|align="center"|103.9

|align="center"|96.7

|align="center"|113.0

|-

|align="center"|Consumer Price Index (2)

|align="center"|122.5

|align="center"|108.7

|align="center"| 92.4

|align="center"|102.7

|align="center"| 99.4

|align="center"|100.2

|-

|align="center"|Index of Industrial Production (2)

|align="center"|109

|align="center"| 75

|align="center"| 69

|align="center"|112

|align="center"| 89

|align="center"|126

|-

|align="center"|Money Supply M2 ($ billions)

|align="center"|46.6

|align="center"|42.7

|align="center"|32.2

|align="center"|45.7

|align="center"|49.3

|align="center"|55.2

|-

|align="center"|Exports ($ billions)

|align="center"|5.24

|align="center"|2.42

|align="center"|1.67

|align="center"|3.35

|align="center"|3.18

|align="center"|4.02

|-

|align="center"|Unemployment (% of civilian work force)

|align="center"| 3.1

|align="center"|16.1

|align="center"|25.2

|align="center"|13.8

|align="center"|16.5

|align="center"|13.9

|}

(1) in 1929 dollars

(2) 1935-39 = 100

===Relief Statistics===

Table 3: Families on Relief 1936-41:

===Prolonged/Worsened the Depression===

A 1995 survey of economic historians and economists asked "Taken as a whole, government policies of the New Deal served to lengthen and deepen the Great Depression." Of the economists 27% agreed and 51% disagreed. Of the economic historians, only 6% agreed and 74% disagreed. (the rest were in the partly agree/disagree group).<ref>[http://eh.net/lists/archives/eh.res/feb-1997/0010.php See]</ref>

The minority view is represented by Harold L. Cole and Lee E. Ohanian who conclude that the "New Deal labor and industrial policies did not lift the economy out of the Depression as President Roosevelt and his economic planners had hoped," but that the "New Deal policies are an important contributing factor to the persistence of the Great Depression." They conclude that the New Deal "cartelization policies are a key factor behind the weak recovery." They say that the "abandonment of these policies coincided with the strong economic recovery of the 1940s."<ref name="Cole"/> Lowell E. Gallaway and Richard K. Vedder conclude that the "Great Depression was very significantly prolonged in both its duration and its magnitude by the impact of New Deal programs." They argue that without Social Security, work relief, unemployment insurance, and especially without the labor unions, business would have hired more workers and the unemployment rate would have been lower.<ref>''Gallaway, Lowell E. and Vedder, Richard K. ''Out of Work: Unemployment and Government in Twentieth-Century America'', New York University Press; Updated edition (July 1997).</ref> Few economists or economic historians have agreed with these speculations. The New Deal years 1933-36 (or indeed the FDR years 1933-45) showed the highest growth rates in the history of the American economy.

===Unemployment continues===

Darby counts WPA workers as employed; Lebergott as unemployed

source: ''Historical Statistics US'' (1976) series D-86; Smiley 1983<ref>Smiley, Gene, "Recent Unemployment Rate Estimates for the 1920s and 1930s," ''Journal of Economic History,'' June 1983, 43, 487-93.</ref>

The New Deal tried public works, farm subsidies and other devices to reduce unemployment, but FDR never completely gave up trying to balance the budget. Unemployment remained high throughout the New Deal years; business simply would not hire more people, especially the low skilled and supposedly "untrainable" men who had been unemployed for years and lost any job skill they once had. [[Keynesian]]s later argued that by spending vastly more money—using [[fiscal policy]]—the government could provide the needed stimulus through the "multiplier" effect. Critics of Keynesianism said that would just take money out of the private sector, causing a negative multiplier effect there. However, no economist has written a full-scale Keynesian analysis of the depression, so it is difficult to evaluate how that model would work.

Unemployment peaked in 1933, at 24.9%, and by 1941 unemployment had subsided to 9.9%, which was near the 1930 level of 8.9%. [http://www.bls.gov/opub/cwc/cm20030124ar03p1.htm] Unemployment increased 163% over the average of what it had been in 1930 by the third year of the New Deal. By contrast, recovery was well underway in Great Britain, with an increase of only 1.1%.

In recent years more influential among economists has been the monetarist interpretation of [[Milton Friedman]], which did include a full-scale monetary history of what he calls the "Great Contraction." Friedman concentrated on the failures before 1933, and in his memoirs said the relief programs were an appropriate response. From 1935 to 1943, Friedman was himself a Keynesian who was (1941–43) an official spokesman for the New Deal before Congress; he did not at that time criticize any New Deal or Federal Reserve policies.

Apart from building up labor unions, the New Deal did not substantially alter the distribution of power within American [[capitalism]].

Keynes visited to the White House in 1934 to urge President Roosevelt to do more deficit spending. Roosevelt complained to Labor Secretary [[Frances Perkins]], "He left a whole rigmarole of figures--he must be a mathematician rather than a political economist." That is, Keynes had an abstract theory but no useful suggestions about what to do.

[[File:Tax-spend.jpg|thumb|380px|right|Although Hopkins denied saying "Spend-Spend-Spend; Tax-Tax-Tax; Elect-Elect-Elect," conservative critics thought it fit the New Deal very well]]

<TABLE BORDER="0">

<TR> <TH colspan="3" align="center">

Table 2: Unemployment (% labor force)</TH> </TR>

<TR> <TD>Year

</TD><TD>

Lebergott</TD><TD>

Darby</TD> </TR>

<TR> <TD>

1933</TD> <TD QP::NUMFORMAT:="97,-1,24.9">

24.9</TD><TD QP::NUMFORMAT:="97,-1,20.6">

20.6</TD> </TR>

<TR> <TD>

1934</TD> <TD QP::NUMFORMAT:="97,-1,21.7">

21.7</TD><TD QP::NUMFORMAT:="97,-1,16">

16.0</TD> </TR>

<TR> <TD>

1935</TD> <TD QP::NUMFORMAT:="97,-1,20.1">

20.1</TD><TD QP::NUMFORMAT:="97,-1,14.2">

14.2</TD> </TR>

<TR> <TD>

1936</TD> <TD QP::NUMFORMAT:="97,-1,16.9">

16.9</TD><TD QP::NUMFORMAT:="97,-1,9.9">

9.9</TD> </TR>

<TR> <TD>

1937</TD> <TD QP::NUMFORMAT:="97,-1,14.3">

14.3</TD><TD QP::NUMFORMAT:="97,-1,9.1">

9.1</TD> </TR>

<TR> <TD>

1938</TD> <TD QP::NUMFORMAT:="97,-1,19">

19.0</TD><TD QP::NUMFORMAT:="97,-1,12.5">

12.5</TD> </TR>

<TR> <TD>

1939</TD> <TD QP::NUMFORMAT:="97,-1,17.2">

17.2</TD><TD QP::NUMFORMAT:="97,-1,11.3">

11.3</TD> </TR>

<TR> <TD>

1940</TD> <TD QP::NUMFORMAT:="97,-1,14.6">

14.6</TD><TD QP::NUMFORMAT:="97,-1,9.5">

9.5</TD> </TR>

<TR> <TD>

1941</TD> <TD QP::NUMFORMAT:="97,-1,9.9">

9.9</TD><TD QP::NUMFORMAT:="97,-1,8">

8.0</TD> </TR>

<TR> <TD>

1942</TD> <TD QP::NUMFORMAT:="97,-1,4.7">

4.7</TD><TD QP::NUMFORMAT:="97,-1,4.7">

4.7</TD> </TR>

<TR> <TD>

1943</TD> <TD QP::NUMFORMAT:="97,-1,1.9">

1.9</TD><TD QP::NUMFORMAT:="97,-1,1.9">

1.9</TD> </TR>

<TR> <TD>

1944</TD> <TD QP::NUMFORMAT:="97,-1,1.2">

1.2</TD><TD QP::NUMFORMAT:="97,-1,1.2">

1.2</TD> </TR>

<TR> <TD>

1945</TD> <TD QP::NUMFORMAT:="97,-1,1.9">

1.9</TD><TD QP::NUMFORMAT:="97,-1,1.9">

1.9</TD> </TR>

</TABLE>

===Fiscal Conservatism===

Fiscal conservatism was a key component of the New Deal, as Zelizer (2000) demonstrates. It was supported by Wall Street and local investors and most of the business community; mainstream academic economists believed in it, as apparently did the majority of the public. Conservative southern Democrats, who favored balanced budgets and opposed new taxes, controlled Congress and its major committees. Even liberal Democrats at the time regarded balanced budgets as essential to economic stability in the long run, although they were more willing to accept short-term deficits. Public opinion polls consistently showed public opposition to deficits and debt. Throughout his terms, Roosevelt recruited fiscal conservatives to serve in his administration, most notably [[Lewis Douglas]] the Director of Budget from 1933 to 1934, and [[Henry Morgenthau Jr.]], Secretary of the Treasury from 1934 to 1945. They defined policy in terms of budgetary cost and tax burdens rather than needs, rights, obligations, or political benefits. Personally the president embraced their fiscal conservatism. Politically, he realized that fiscal conservatism enjoyed a strong wide base of support among voters, leading Democrats, and businessmen. On the other hand, there was enormous pressure to act–and spending money on high visibility programs attracted Roosevelt, especially if it tied millions of voters to him, as did the WPA.

Douglas proved too inflexible, and quit in 1934. Morgenthau made it his highest priority to stay close to Roosevelt, no matter what. Douglas' position, like many of the [[Old Right]] was grounded in a basic distrust of politicians and the deeply ingrained fear that government spending always involved a degree of patronage and corruption that offended his Progressive sense of efficiency. The Economy Act of 1933, passed early in the Hundred Days, was Douglas' great achievement. It reduced federal expenditures by $500 million, to be achieved by reducing veterans’ payments and federal salaries. Douglas cut government spending through executive orders that cut the military budget by $125 million, $75 million from the Post Office, $12 million from Commerce, $75 million from government salaries, and $100 million from staff layoffs. As Freidel concludes, "The economy program was not a minor aberration of the spring of 1933, or a hypocritical concession to delighted conservatives. Rather it was an integral part of Roosevelt's overall New Deal."<ref>Freidel 1990, p. 96</ref> Revenues were so low that borrowing was necessary (only the richest 3% paid any income tax before 1942.) Douglas therefore hated the relief programs, which he said reduced business confidence, threatened the government’s future credit, and had the "destructive psychological effects of making mendicants of self-respecting American citizens."<ref>Zelizer</ref> Roosevelt was pulled toward greater spending by Hopkins and Ickes, and as the 1936 election approached he decided to gain votes by attacking big business.

[[File:Debt29-50.jpg|thumb|400px|left|National Debt as a percentage of GNP climbs from 20% to 40% as Hoover begins relief efforts with the [[Reconstruction Finance Corporation]] and levels off during the New Deal; soars during WW2 from ''Historical Statistics US'' (1976)]]

Morgenthau shifted with FDR, but at all times tried to inject fiscal responsibility; he deeply believed in balanced budgets, stable currency, reduction of the national debt, and the need for more private investment . The Wagner Act met Morgenthau’s requirement because it strengthened the party’s political base and involved no new spending. In contrast to Douglas, Morgenthau accepted Roosevelt’s double budget as legitimate–that is a balanced regular budget, and an “emergency” budget for agencies, like the WPA, PWA and CCC, that would be temporary until full recovery was at hand. He fought against the veterans’ bonus until Congress finally overrode Roosevelt’s veto and gave out $2.2 billion in 1936. His biggest success was the new Social Security program; he managed to reverse the proposals to fund it from general revenue and insisted it be funded by new taxes on employees. It was Morgenthau who insisted on excluding farm workers and domestic servants from Social Security because workers outside industry would not be paying their way.<ref>Zelizer 2000; Savage 1998</ref>

Deficits held relatively constant throughout the 1930s at about 40% of the GDP.<ref>Economists at the time used GNP (gross national product) and today they prefer GDP (gross domestic product). For the US, GNP and GDP are almost the same.</ref>

===Claims the New Deal adopted or resembled Fascist economic models===

The term "fascism" in the 21st century has very strong connotations of mass murder and death camps, however, in the 1930s it meant the [[planned economy]] and [[corporativism]] exemplified by the economic plans of Benito Mussolini in Italy. And, comparisons have been made between the economic systems of Fascist Italy and the New Deal programs. Communists, classical liberals, conservatives, and [[Herbert Hoover]] used the term fascism in that manner at that time. Likewise, modern-day [[paleoconservatives]] argue that the New Deal was a major milestone in the rise of America's [[managerial state]].

Journalist [[John T. Flynn]], a former socialist, in his 1944 book ''As We Go Marching'', said that "the New Dealers...began to flirt with the alluring pastime of reconstructing the capitalist system...and in the process of this new career they began to fashion doctrines that turned out to be the principles of fascism." Former President Herbert Hoover argued that some (but not all) New Deal programs were "fascist," and that there was a presidential dictatorship. [''Memoirs'' 3:420]

<blockquote>

"Among the early Roosevelt fascist measures was the National Industry Recovery Act (NRA) of June 16, 1933 .... These ideas were first suggested by Gerald Swope (of the General Electric Company)....[and] the United States Chamber of Commerce. During the campaign of 1932, Henry I. Harriman, president of that body, urged that I agree to support these proposals, informing me that Mr. Roosevelt had agreed to do so. I tried to show him that this stuff was pure fascism; that it was a remaking of Mussolini's "corporate state" and refused to agree to any of it. He informed me that in view of my attitude, the business world would support Roosevelt with money and influence. That for the most part proved true."

</blockquote>

Whatever Hoover was told, Roosevelt had ''not'' agreed to any such plan. In 1934, Roosevelt himself warned his "fireside chat" radio audiences against linguistic confusion. Some people, he said:

<blockquote>

will try to give you new and strange names for what we are doing. Sometimes they will call it 'Fascism,' sometimes 'Communism,' sometimes 'Regimentation,' sometimes 'Socialism.' But, in so doing, they are trying to make very complex and theoretical something that is really very simple and very practical. . . . Plausible self-seekers and theoretical die-hards will tell you of the loss of individual liberty. Answer this question out of the facts of your own life. Have you lost any of your rights or liberty or constitutional freedom of action and choice?<ref name="Kennedy 1999, p 246">Kennedy 1999, p 246.</ref>

</blockquote>

In September 1934 Roosevelt defended a more powerful national government as he believed was necessary to control the economy, by quoting conservative Republican Elihu Root:

<blockquote>

The tremendous power of organization [Root had said] has combined great aggregations of capital in enormous industrial establishments . . . so great in the mass that each individual concerned in them is quite helpless by himself. . . . The old reliance upon the free action of individual wills appears quite inadequate. . . . The intervention of that organized control we call government seems necessary. . . . Men may differ as to the particular form of governmental activity with respect to industry or business, but nearly all are agreed that private enterprise in times such as these cannot be left without assistance and without reasonable safeguards lest it destroy not only itself but also our process of civilization.<ref name="Kennedy 1999, p 246"/>

</blockquote>

One historian remarks, "What Fascist corporatism and the New Deal had in common was a certain amount of state intervention in the economy. Beyond that, the only figure who seemed to look on Fascist corporatism as a kind of model was [[Hugh Samuel Johnson|Hugh Johnson]], FDR's head of the National Recovery Administration."<ref>Stanley Payne, ''History of Fascism'' (1995) p 230.</ref> Johnson strenuously denied any association with Mussolini, saying the NRA "is being organized almost as you would organize a business. I want to avoid any Mussolini appearance -- the President calls this Act industrial self-government."<ref>Hugh S. Johnson, ''The Blue Eagle, from Egg to Earth'' (1935), p 223</ref> Donald Richberg after a series of scandals replaced General Hugh Johnson as head of NRA and speaking before a Senate committee said "A nationally [[planned economy]] is the only salvation of our present situation and the only hope for the future."<ref name="Leuchtenburg p. 58"/> Historians such as Hawley (1966) have examined the origins of the NRA in detail, claiming the main inspiration came from Senators [[Hugo Black]] and [[Robert F. Wagner]] and from American business leaders such as the Chamber of Commerce. The main model was Woodrow Wilson's [[War Industries Board]], in which Johnson had been involved.

==The legacies of the New Deal==
[[File:FDR-LBJ.png|thumb|left|220px|The New Deal was the inspiration for [[Lyndon B. Johnson]]'s [[Great Society]] in 1960s. Johnson (on right) headed the Texas NYA and was elected to Congress in 1938.]]

Some economists argue that although the New Deal did not end the depression, all in all it helped to prevent the economy from decaying further by increasing the regulatory functions of the federal government in ways that helped stabilize previous trouble areas of the economy: the stock market, the banking system, and others. Others argue that it worsened the depression. All analysts agree the New Deal produced a new political coalition that sustained the Democratic Party as the majority party in national politics for more than a generation after its own end.

Roosevelt's 12 years in office saw a dramatic increase in the power of the federal government as a whole. Roosevelt also established the presidency as the preeminent center of authority within the federal government. By creating a large array of agencies protecting various groups of citizens—workers, farmers, and others—who suffered from the crisis, enabling them to challenge the powers of the corporations, the Roosevelt administration generated a set of political ideas—known to later generations as New Deal liberalism—that remained a source of inspiration and controversy for decades and that helped shape the next great experiment in liberal reform, the [[Great Society]] of the 1960s. The wartime [[FEPC]] executive orders that forbade job discrimination against African Americans, women and ethnic groups was a major breakthrough that brought better jobs and pay to millions of minority Americans. Historians usually treat FEPC as part of the war effort and not part of the New Deal itself.

==="New Deal" as Political Metaphor===

Since 1933 politicians and pundits have often called for a "new deal" regarding this or that political object. That is, they demand a completely new, large-scale approach to a project. As Arthur A. Ekirch Jr. (1971) has shown, the New Deal stimulated utopianism in American political and social thought on a wide range of issues.

In Canada, Conservative Prime Minister [[Richard B. Bennett]] in 1935 proposed a "new deal" of regulation, taxation, and social insurance that was a copy of the American program; Bennett's proposals were not enacted and he was defeated for reelection in October 1935.

In accordance with the rise of the use of U.S. political phraseology in Britain, the [[Labour Party (UK)|Labour]] Government has termed some of its employment programs 'New Deal'.

==Brain trust==

Roosevelt gathered around himself informal advisors, mostly university professors, dubbed by the media the [[Brain Trust]]. A key advisor was [[Raymond Moley]], who by 1936 broke with Roosevelt and provided the most important conservative critique.

==Main programs==
===National Recovery Act===

In 1933 Italian Premier [[Benito Mussolini]] was a towering figure. Dr. Nicholas Murray Butler,<ref>[http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,774563-4,00.html Axis (1936-1943)], ''[[TIME magazine]]'', Sep. 20, 1943,</ref> President of Columbia University and [[Nobel Prize for Peace]], said of [[fascism]], it is as a “form of government of the very first order of excellence”; and found it “safe to predict that just as [[Oliver Cromwell|Cromwell]] made modern England, so Mussolini would make modern Italy.” <ref>[http://www.marxists.org/history/etol/writers/wright/1943/10/italy.htm What To Do With Italy?], John G. Wright, From Fourth International, Vol.4 No.10, October 1943, pp.308-311.</ref> Chairman [[Sol Bloom]] of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the U. S. House of Representatives, suggested Mussolini was a great man and had something the [[United States]] government might well look to for imitation.<ref>John T. Flynn, ''As We Go Marching'', Doubleday, 1944, p. 70.</ref> What they liked particularly was his [[corporative]] system. Mussolini organized each trade or industrial group or professional group into a state supervised trade association. Mussolini called it a corporative.<ref>[http://www.cmre.org/GeneSmileypresentation.pdf The New Deal and Corporatism], Prof. Emeritus Gene Smiley, Marquette University, Presented at the Committee for Monetary Research and Education,October 19, 2006,</ref> These corporatives operated under state supervision and provided economic planning of production, quality, prices, distribution, labor standards, etc. The National Recovery Act, or NRA as it came to be called, provided that a corporative system in America for each industry should be organized into a federally supervised trade association. It was not called a corporative. It was called a [[Code Authority]]. In [[Nazi]] Germany such government run planning authorities built on the Italian model were called [[industrial cartel]]s. This was the same as fascism.<ref>[http://www.rooseveltmyth.com/book/hbzfrm.htm ''The Roosevelt Myth''], John T. Flynn, Fox and Wilkes, 1948, Book 1, Ch. 5.</ref> These code authorities could regulate production, quantities, qualities, prices, distribution methods, etc., under the supervision of the NRA that had the effect of ending the downward spiral of deflation and falling prices, but which risked the long-term effect of stifling innovation and favoring big business over small. Anti-trust laws forbade such organizations. Roosevelt had denounced Hoover for not enforcing these laws sufficiently. Now Roosevelt suspended the anti-trust laws and compelled men to combine.

The NRA Act provided an appropriation of $3,300,000,000 which the President was given to be spent at his own discretion. He had a sum of money equal to what the government spent in the previous ten years outside of discretionary spending. Roosevelt decided how it should be spent and where. If a congressman or senator needed an appropriation for his district, instead of introducing a bill in Congress, he went to Roosevelt to ask for it. All over the country, states, cities, counties, business organizations, institutions of all sorts wanted projects of all kinds. Instead of going to Congress they went to the President.

In 1935 the Supreme Court said the NRA's procedures were unconstitutional, and it was never revived. In the twenty-three months that NRA was on the Statute books, the average number of workers involved in strikes and lockouts and the number of days of idleness and lost productivity per month resulting were approximately four times as large as during the six months before NRA. After NRA was declared unconstitutional, both the number of workers involved in industrial disputes and the number of days lost declined.<ref>Bureau of Labor Statistics, United States Department of Labor.</ref>

Roosevelt asked [[Clarence Darrow]] to head up a national recovery review board. The Darrow Committee's report stated, "We have here a body not only perfectly equipped to exercise monopolistic control, but endowed with extraordinary powers incompatible with the ideals heretofore entertained in a free country. . . In proportion as the authority of government sanctions regulation by industrial combinations, the inevitable tendency is toward monopoly with the elimination of the small business ." <ref>Special and Supplementary Reports of Darrow

Committee, appointed by the President, released May 20, 1934. [http://robsrealnews.com/revisedNEWDEAL8.htm]</ref>

Donald Richberg, former Counsel and later Administrator of NRA admitted candidly, "Yet step by step through the diabolical logic of events the NRA became the apparent exponent and protector of 'price fixing' - that hateful objective of that most hated ogre, a big business monopoly."<ref>Donald R. Richberg, ''The Rainbow'', (1936), pg. 31.</ref>

===Civilian Conservation Corps===

One of FDR’s favorites was the [[Civilian Conservation Corps]] (CCC), a relatively small program designed to keep unemployed young men out of trouble while giving them food and clothing and discipline, and their families some cash. Roosevelt described work camps as a means for getting youth "off the city street corners."

Young men were enrolled as amateur forest rangers, marsh-drainers, and the like, on projects designed to improve the countryside. The recruits were given room and board, clothing, and a dollar a day (they kept $5 a month, and the parents received the other $25). More than two and half million of them passed through the camps of the Civilian Conservation Corps, until the program was abolished in 1942, when the men were needed for the draft.

The CCC was highly popular among Americans, both liberals and conservatives.

In 1973, John A. Garraty published an important article on the CCC in the ''American Historical Review'' <ref>''The New Deal, National Socialism, and the Great Depression'', John A. Garraty, American Historical Review, Vol. 78, October 1973.</ref> Garraty was Gouverneur Morris Professor of American history at Columbia and later general editor of the ''American National Biography''. Yet, while an admirer of FDR, Garraty was compelled to note the striking similarities between the CCC and parallel programs set up by the [[Nazi]]s for German youth. Both were essentially designed to keep young men out of the labor market. Roosevelt described work camps as a means for getting youth “off the city street corners,” [[Hitler]] as a way of keeping them from “rotting helplessly in the streets.” In both countries much was made of the beneficial social results of mixing thousands of young people from different walks of life in the camps. . . . Furthermore, both were organized on semi-military lines with the subsidiary purposes of improving the physical fitness of potential soldiers and stimulating public commitment to national service in an emergency.

Garraty listed many other similarities between the New Deal and [[National Socialism]]. Like Roosevelt, Hitler prided himself on being a “pragmatist” in economic affairs, trying out one panacea after another. Through a multitude of new agencies and mountains of new regulations, both in [[Germany]] and America, owners and managers of enterprises found their freedom to make decisions sharply curtailed.

The Nazis encouraged working-class mobility, through vocational training, the democratizing youth camps, and a myriad of youth organizations. They usually favored workers as against employers in industrial disputes and, in another parallel to the New Deal, supported higher agricultural prices. Both FDR and Hitler “tended to romanticize rural life and the virtues of an agricultural existence“ and harbored dreams of the rural resettlement of urban populations, which proved disappointing. Characteristically for the collectivist movements of the time, “enormous [[propaganda]] campaigns” were mounted in the United States, Germany, and [[Italy]] (as well as in Russia) to fire up enthusiasm for the government’s programs.

It is no wonder, then, as Professor Garraty writes, that “during the first years of the New Deal the German press praised [Roosevelt] and the New Deal to the skies. . . . Early New Deal policies seemed to the Nazis essentially like their own and the role of Roosevelt not very different from the [[Führer]]’s.”

[[Image:Woman Child.jpg|thumb|200px|left|Mother of seven children without food, California, ca. February 1936. ''[http://www.loc.gov/rr/print/list/128_migm.html Farm Security Administration Collection], Library of Congress'']]

===Works Progress Administration===

The Works Progress Administration ([[WPA]]) operated 1935-43 and was the largest and most controversial of the relief programs. Until now relief had been a local responsibility, although both Hoover and FDR had provided federal funding. Now the national government took full control; conservatives charged it was done to build a vast national political machine for Roosevelt. TheWPA had a larger size and budget($5 billion at first) than previous efforts such as FERA and CWA. [[Harry Hopkins]], a liberal close to FDR, was the director. The WPA was responsible for the building and renovation of over 100,000 public buildings and the construction of 600 airports, more than 500,000 miles of roads, and over 100,000 bridges. The WPA was also well known for its flexibility. It employed not only construction workers but also artists and authors as well as operating separate sewing projects for women. The [[NYA|National Youth Administration]] (NYA) was a unit of the WPA for young men and women (in contrast to its rival the CCC, which only enrolled young men).

===No training===

A major failing of the New Deal, and especially the CCC and WPA, was the deliberate decision not to provide job training. The reason was that liberals (and especially labor unions) thought there were already too many unemployed skilled workers and there was no need for more. In retrospect this was one of the major failings of the New Deal, and was reversed in World War II, when the government subsidized job training on a very large scale in industry and the military. Ever since 1996 the consensus has been that job training is an essential part of any program designed to help the poor.

{| style="background:white; color:blue" border="1" class="wikitable"

|-

!

! United States

! Great Britain

|-

| Unemployment (1930 average)

| 4,770,000

| 1,993,951

|-

| Unemployment February 1936

| 12,550,000

| 2,016,578

|-

| '''Percent increase'''

| 163% <ref>American Federation of Labor.</ref>

| 1.1% <ref>League of Natione, ''Bulletin of

Statistics''.</ref>

|-

|}

==Art and music==
The [[Works Progress Administration]] subsidized artists, musicians, painters and writers on relief with a group of projects called [[Federal One]]. While the WPA program was by the most widespread, it was preceded by three programs administered by the [[United States Department of the Treasury|US Treasury]] which hired commercial artists at usual commissions to add murals and sculptures to federal buildings. The first of these efforts was the [[Public Works of Art Project]], organized by Edward Bruce, an American businessman and artist. The [[Resettlement Administration]] (RA) and [[Farm Security Administration]] (FSA) had major photography programs. The New Deal arts programs emphasized regionalism, socialist realism, class conflict, proletarian interpretations, and audience participation. The unstoppable collective powers of common man, contrasted to the failure of individualism, was a favorite theme.<ref>Mathews 1975</ref>

The FSA photography project is most responsible for creating the image of the Depression in the USA. Many of the images appeared in popular magazines. The photographers were under instruction from Washington as to what overall impression the New Deal wanted to give out. Director [[Roy Stryker]]'s agenda focused on his faith in [[social engineering]], the poor conditions among cotton tenant farmers, and the very poor conditions among migrant farm workers; above all he was committed to social reform through New Deal intervention in people's lives. Stryker demanded photographs that "related people to the land and vice versa" because these photographs reinforced the RA's position that poverty could be controlled by "changing land practices." Though Stryker did not dictate to his photographers how they should compose the shots, he did send them lists of desirable themes, e.g., "church", "court day", "barns".<ref>Cara A. Finnegan. ''Picturing Poverty: Print Culture and FSA Photographs'' (Smithsonian Books, 2003) pp 43-44</ref> New Deal era films such as ''[[Citizen Kane]]'' ridiculed so-called "great men", while class warfare appeared in numerous movies, such as ''[[Meet John Doe]]'' and ''[[The Grapes of Wrath]]''.

By contrast there was also a smaller but influential stream of anti-New Deal art. Thus [[Gutzon Borglum]]'s sculptures on [[Mount Rushmore]] emphasized great men in history (his designs had the approval of [[Calvin Coolidge]]). [[Gertrude Stein]] and [[Ernest Hemingway]] disliked the New Deal and celebrated the organic autonomy of perfected written work in opposition to the New Deal trope of writing as performative labor. The [[Southern Agrarians]] celebrated a premodern regionalism and opposed the TVA as a modernizing, disruptive force. Under Chief Justice [[Charles Evans Hughes]], the Supreme Court built one of the most architecturally striking buildings; its classical lines and small size contrasted sharply with the gargantuan modernistic federal buildings in Washington. Hollywood managed to synthesize both streams, as in [[Busby Berkeley]]'s ''Gold Digger'' musicals, where the storylines exalt individual autonomy while the spectacular musical numbers show abstract populations of interchangeable dancers securely contained within patterns beyond their control.<ref>Szalay 2000</ref>

==See also==
*[[The Promise of American Life]]

==Notable New Deal programs==

[[File:Newdealstamp.png|thumb|240px]]

The New Deal had countless programs, labeled an "alphabet soup" by its detractors. Among the New Deal acts were the following, most of them passed within the first 100 days of FDR's administration. Most were abolished around 1943, others remain in operation in 2009:

*[[Reconstruction Finance Corporation]] a Hoover agency expanded under [[Jesse Holman Jones]] to make large loans to big business. Ended in 1954.

*[[FERA|Federal Emergency Relief Administration]] (FERA). ERA, a Hoover loan program to states for relief; replaced by FERA in 1933 to give grants to states to operate relief projects for the unskilled; replaced by WPA in 1935.

* Bank Holiday, 1933: closed all banks until they became certified by federal reviewers

* Abandonment of gold standard, 1933: gold reserves no longer backed currency; still exists

* [[Civilian Conservation Corps]] (CCC), 1933: employed young men to perform unskilled work in rural areas; under Army supervision; separate program for Native Americans

* [[Tennessee Valley Authority]] (TVA), 1933: effort to modernize very poor region (most of Tennessee), centered on dams that generated electricity on the [[Tennessee River]]; still exists

* [[Agricultural Adjustment Act]] (AAA), 1933: raised farm prices by cutting total farm output of major crops (and hogs)

* [[National Recovery Act]] (NRA), 1933: industries set up codes to reduce unfair competition, raise wages and prices;

* [[Public Works Administration]] (PWA), 1933: built large public works projects; used private contractors (did not directly hire unemployed)

* [[Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation]] (FDIC) / [[Glass-Steagall Act]]: insures deposits in banks in order to restore public confidence in banks; still exists

* [[Securities Act of 1933]], created the SEC, 1933: codified standards for sale and purchase of stock, required risk of investments to be accurately disclosed; still exists

* [[Civil Works Administration]] (CWA), 1933-34: provided temporary jobs to millions of unemployed

* [[Indian Reorganization Act]], 1934 moved away from assimilation

* [[Social Security (United States)|Social Security Act]] (SSA), 1935: provided financial assistance to: elderly, handicapped, paid for by employee and employer payroll contributions; required years contributions, so first payouts were 1942; still exists

* [[Works Progress Administration]] (WPA), 1935: a national labor program for 2+ million unemployed; created useful construction work for unskilled men; also sewing projects for women and arts projects for unemployed artists, musicians and writers.

* [[National Labor Relations Act]] (NLRA) / Wagner Act, 1935: set up National Labor Relations Board to supervise labor-management relations; In 1930s it strongly favored [[trade union|labor union]]s. Modified by the [[Taft-Hartley Act]] (1947); still exists

* Judicial Reorganization Bill, 1937: gave President power to appoint a new Supreme Court judge for every judge 70 years or older; failed to pass Congress

* [[Fair Labor Standards Act]] ([http://www.finduslaw.com/fair_labor_standards_act_flsa_29_u_s_code_chapter_8 29 U.S. Code Chapter 8]), 1938: established a maximum normal work week of 40 hours, and a minimum pay of 40 cents/hour; still exists

==Further reading==

See the detailed guide at [[New Deal Bibliography]]
* Alter, Jonathan. ''The Defining Moment: FDR's Hundred Days and the Triumph of Hope'' (2006), popular account
* Badger, Anthony J. ''The New Deal: The Depression Years, 1933-1940.'' (2002) good general survey from British perspective
* Best, Gary Dean. ''The Critical Press and the New Deal: The Press Versus Presidential Power, 1933-1938'' (1993) looks at conservative papers and magazines [http://www.questia.com/library/book/the-critical-press-and-the-new-deal-the-press-versus-presidential-power-1933-1938-by-gary-dean-best.jsp online edition]
* Chafe, William H. ''The Achievement of American Liberalism: The New Deal and Its Legacies.'' (2002) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=99839056 online edition], liberal peaise
* Conkin, Paul K. ''The New Deal.'' (1967), a brief New Left critique.
* Dubofsky, Melvyn, ed. ''The New Deal: Conflicting Interpretations and Shifting Perspectives.'' (1992), reader
* Eden, Robert, ed. ''New Deal and Its Legacy: Critique and Reappraisal'' (1989), essays by conservative scholars
* Folsom, Burton W. ''New Deal or Raw Deal?: How FDR's Economic Legacy Has Damaged America'' (2009) [http://www.amazon.com/New-Deal-Raw-Economic-Damaged/dp/1416592377/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1253186145&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Graham, Otis L. and Meghan Robinson Wander, eds. ''Franklin D. Roosevelt: His Life and Times.'' (1985). A very useful encyclopedic reference.
* Himmelberg, Robert F. ''The Great Depression and the New Deal'' (2001) 185 pp. [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=101548706 online edition], reader
* Kennedy, David M. ''Freedom From Fear: The American People in Depression and War, 1929-1945.'' (1999), the best scholarly overview; [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=52284041 online edition]
* Kirkendall, Richard S. . "The New Deal As Watershed: The Recent Literature," ''The Journal of American History,'' Vol. 54, No. 4. (Mar., 1968), pp. 839–852. [http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0021-8723%28196803%2954%3A4%3C839%3ATNDAWT%3E2.0.CO%3B2-F in JSTOR], historiography
* Leuchtenberg, William E. ''Franklin D. Roosevelt and the New Deal, 1932-1940''. (1963). The standard scholarly history.
* McElvaine Robert S. ''The Great Depression'' 2nd ed (1993), social history, by a liberal
* McJimsey, George. ''The Presidency of Franklin Delano Roosevelt'', (2000)
* Milkis, Sidney M. and Jerome M. Mileur, eds. ''The New Deal and the Triumph of Liberalism'' (2002)
* Mitchell, Broadus. ''Depression Decade: From New Era through New Deal, 1929-1941'' (1964), overview of economic history [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=98065455 online edition]
* Moley, Raymond. ''After Seven Years'' (1939), conservative memoir by ex-Brain Truster [http://www.questia.com/library/book/after-seven-years-by-raymond-moley.jsp online edition]
* Powell, Jim ''FDR's Folly: How Roosevelt and His New Deal Prolonged the Great Depression'' (2003) sharp attack from the right
* Shlaes, Amity. ''The Forgotten Man: A New History of the Great Depression'' (2007), 480pp, popular conservative attack
* Sitkoff, Harvard. ed. ''Fifty Years Later: The New Deal Evaluated.'' (1984). A friendly liberal evaluation.

==External links==
* [http://newdeal.feri.org/ New Deal Network] massive collection of photos and primary sources
*[http://www.nisk.k12.ny.us/fdr/ FDR cartoon archive] hundreds of editorial cartoons from all political points of view (copyright has expired)
* [http://www.digitalbookindex.com/_SEARCH/search010histus20-30sdepressiona.asp online full-text primary sources]

==Notes==

<references/>

[[Category:New Deal]]
[[Category:Socialism]]
[[Category:Liberalism]]
[[Category:Great Depression]]
[[Category:Welfare State]]

Ku Klux Klan

2017-04-19T15:14:44Z

Teapublican: racism

[[File:KKKrally1946.JPG|right|300px|thumb|Ku Klux Klan rally, unknown location, August, 1951]]
The '''Ku Klux Klan''' ("KKK") had three incarnations in the USA, all by racist Democrats. Two very prominent Democrats were members of the KKK: Democrat [[Robert Byrd]], who was a U.S. Senator from [[West Virginia]] for more than 50 years and who had led his local KKK chapter, and Democrat [[Hugo Black]], who was appointed to the [[U.S. Supreme Court]] by [[FDR]] and became the Justice most hostile to [[classroom prayer]] and [[Christianity]] in public life. Despite the Democrat-KKK connection, however, liberals (who falsely claim that the pre-1964 Democrats were a "conservative" party) similarly falsely claim the KKK to be a "right-wing" organization.

The Klan of the 1860s was a violent effort by white Southern [[Democrats]] to fight [[Reconstruction]] after the [[Civil War]]. Reconstruction was ended as a political compromise to resolve the exceedingly close presidential election of 1876.

The second Klan flourished nationwide for a few years in the 1920s as state and district organizers profited handsomely by signing up millions of members, selling them distinctive white-robe costumes. The Klan voiced strong support for prohibition, opposed sexual immorality and promoted racism, anti-Semitism, anti-Catholicism and immigration restriction. Dramatic scandals inside the organization and lack of organizational structure caused the Klan to collapse quickly in the late 1920s. By 1928 it was practically defunct.

The third Klan comprised unrelated hate groups that sprang up in the South in the 1960s to fight integration, but it largely fell apart in the 1980s. [http://www.fumento.com/arson/wsjfire.html]

Liberals, who have been part of the KKK through the Democrats since its original post-Civil War incarnation, are now trying to appeal to groups they had previously persecuted.[http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2828425/The-Ku-Klux-Klan-opens-door-Jews-black-people-homosexuals-new-recruits-wear-white-robes-hats.html]

==First KKK==
[[Image:Artoon.jpg|right|200px|thumb|A political cartoon depicting the KKK and the Democratic party as continuations of the Confederacy]]
The first KKK was an movement of white Southerners who opposed [[Reconstruction]]. It was founded in 1866 by members of the [[Democrat Party]] to inflicting violence against black leaders and white Republicans.<ref>http://www.history.com/topics/ku-klux-klan</ref> One of the founders, and the first "Grand Wizard," was former Confederate General Nathan Bedford Forrest. The Klan was broken up by President [[Ulysses S. Grant]] and the U.S. Army using the Civil Rights Act of 1871 (also known as the Ku Klux Klan Act). It had disappeared by 1872, although similar violent groups persisted in some localities around the South.

==Second KKK: The 1920s==
The second KKK was a nonviolent membership organization in the 1920s that reached hundreds of thousands—possibly millions—of men in every state. It was mostly a [[Ponzi scheme]], whereby the organizers took all the money (for initiation fees and costumes). When they had organized an area they moved on, leaving local chapters without money or leadership. No prominent American admitted he was a member at the time, but state organizers claimed vast powers. There is a possibility that some local Klans in the deep South engaged in violence against blacks, but historians are unsure; allegations of systematic violence were common but have not been verified. In recent years historians have found enough records to show that local chapters were primarily discussion groups, often with speakers who denounced Catholics, Jews, crime and violation of the prohibition laws.
[[File:RR-KKK.jpg|thumb|300px|Ronald Reagan starred as the crusading district attorney battling the Klan in this 1951 film.<ref>See [http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0044075/usercomments analysis of film]</ref>]]

A series of scandals ruined the KKK's reputation and the group faded away after 1925, except for some remote areas like West Virginia. [[Robert Byrd]], now a Senator, was an organizer in West Virginia in the 1940s, and has apologized repeatedly for it. Supreme Court Justice [[Hugo Black]] admitted in 1939 that he had been a member in the 1920s.

==Third Klan==
The third Klan currently exists and comprises a few thousand members in local chapters. There is no real organization, and the group sponsors vehement hate talk as well as occasional violent threats and actions. It is racist and aims at the suppression of African-American, Jewish, homosexual, and Catholic interests. The current Klan presents itself as a Christian organization, but all denominations have rejected it as inherently non-Christian.

[[David Duke]] was a [[Democrat]] at the time of his official membership with the Klan. He has ties to white supremacist organizations like the NAAWP, which he founded. After leaving the Klan, Duke was elected as a Republican to the Louisiana state legislature. The [[Republican National Committee]] disavowed Duke and repudiated his racist views when Duke made an unsuccessful bid for governor.<ref>[http://www.encyclopedia.com/doc/1P2-1176548.html RNC Condemns Ex-Klansman Duke], ''[[Washington Post]]'', February 25, 1989. {{dead link}}</ref>

==2016 United States presidential election==
During the [[2016 U.S. presidential election]], the KKK (along with former Klansman [[David Duke]]), in possible collusion with the Democrat Party, pretended to "support" [[Donald Trump]] for President as part of a strategy to discredit Trump and make sure he would lose the election by making a false connection between the KKK and the Republicans (as the Democrats have done since 1964<ref>[http://www.blackandblondemedia.com/2009/01/14/democrat-race-lie/ The Democrat Race Lie] at Black & Right</ref>). However, because the Republicans have always opposed the KKK and deplore what it stands for,<ref>[http://www.wnd.com/2016/07/the-ugly-history-of-democratic-suppression-of-blacks/ The Ugly History of Democratic Suppression of Blacks] at WND</ref> and because the Democrat-KKK connection is public knowledge despite the efforts of Democrats and liberals (particularly in the [[mainstream media]]) to bury and deny this historic fact,<ref>[http://blackrepublican.blogspot.ca/2015/10/the-ku-klux-klan-was-terrorist-arm-of_56.html The Ku Klux Klan was the Terrorist Arm of the Democrat Party]</ref> the KKK scheme to try to discredit Trump by publicly pretending to endorse him backfired as he rejected the "endorsement" and the public saw through the KKK's ruse, leading KKK Grand Dragon Will Quigg, who formerly pretended to support Trump, to show his and his organization's true colors, and those of the Democrats, by now publicly supporting Democrat nominee [[Hillary Clinton]].<ref>[http://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2016-03-14/ku-klux-klan-grand-dragon-will-quigg-endorses-hillary-clinton-for-president Ku Klux Klan Grand Dragon Will Quigg Endorses Hillary Clinton for President] at U.S. News & World Report</ref> Hillary, whose mentor, late Democrat senator [[Robert Byrd]], was himself a longtime KKK member,<ref>Pianin, Eric. [http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/06/18/AR2005061801105_pf.html A Senator's Shame: Byrd, in His New Book, Again Confronts Early Ties to KKK]. Washington Post, 2005-06-19, pp. A01</ref> did not reject the KKK's campaign endorsement of her, which was one of the contributing factors toward her downfall in the election as Trump won the presidency, ultimately making the Democrat-KKK scheme against him fruitless. In multiple [[George Soros]] funded protests against Trump, many liberals dressed themselves in KKK robes and pretended to "support" Trump, holding signs that said "KKK wants Trump" and "Make America White Again" while the DNC created an attack ad claiming that the KKK is "actively supporting" Trump. [https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=bQOYADCDSyY]

==Bibliography==
* Newton, Michael, and Judy Ann Newton. ''The Ku Klux Klan: An Encyclopedia''. (1991).
* Alexander, Charles. “Kleagles and Cash.” . ''The Business History Review.'' (1965) Vol. 39, No. 3, pp. 348–367
* Chalmers, David. ''Hooded Americanism.'' (1987), an older survey
* Dray, Philip. ''At the Hands of Persons Unknown: The Lynching of Black America'', (2002).
* Feldman, Glenn. ''Politics, Society, and the Klan in Alabama, 1915-1949''. (1999).
* Fryer, Jr. Roland G. and Steven D. Levitt. "Hatred and Profits: Getting under the Hood of the Ku Klux Klan," ''National Bureau of Economic Research,'' September 2007, [http://ideas.repec.org/p/nbr/nberwo/13417.html abstract]; [http://209.85.165.104/search?q=cache:cyuQ-5WfsXAJ:www.economics.harvard.edu/faculty/fryer/papers/Hatred%2520and%2520Profits,%2520Getting%2520Under%2520the%2520Hood%2520of%2520the%2520Ku%2520Klux%2520Klan.pdf+%22Hatred+and+Profits%22&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=1&gl=us full text online]
* George, John, and Laird Wilcox. ''American Extremists: Militias, Supremacists, Klansmen, Communists & Others'' (1996) 443 pgs. [http://www.questia.com/library/book/american-extremists-militias-supremacists-klansmen-communists-and-others-by-john-george-laird-wilcox.jsp online edition]
* Glaeser, Edward L. “The Political Economy of Hatred.” ''Quarterly Journal of Economics.'' 2005. Vol. 120, No. 1, pp. 45–86. [http://www.mitpressjournals.org/doi/abs/10.1162/qjec.2005.120.1.45 abstract], goes well beyond the KKK
* Goldberg, Robert Alan. ''Hooded Empire: The Ku Klux Klan in Colorado.'' (1981).
* Horn, Stanley F. ''Invisible Empire: The Story of the Ku Klux Klan, 1866-1871'', (1939)
::Horn, born in 1889, was a Southern historian who was sympathetic to the first Klan, which, in a 1976 oral interview [http://www.lib.duke.edu/forest/Research/ohisrch.html], he was careful to distinguish from the later "spurious Ku Klux organization which was in ill-repute—and, of course, had no connection whatsoever with the Klan of Reconstruction days."
* Jackson, Kenneth T. ''The Ku Klux Klan in the City, 1915-1930.'' (1992)
* MacLean, Nancy. ''Behind the Mask of Chivalry: The Making of the Second Ku Klux Klan.'' (1994)
* McVeigh, Rory. “Power Devaluation, the Ku Klux Klan, and the Democratic National Convention of 1924.” ''Sociological Forum'' 2001. 16(1):1-30.
* Moore, Leonard J. ''Citizen Klansmen: The Ku Klux Klan in Indiana, 1921-1928'' (1991). [http://www.questia.com/library/book/citizen-klansmen-the-ku-klux-klan-in-indiana-1921-1928-by-leonard-j-moore.jsp online edition]
* Parsons, Elaine Frantz, "Midnight Rangers: Costume and Performance in the Reconstruction-Era Ku Klux Klan." ''The Journal of American History'' 92.3 (2005): 811-36. [http://www.historycooperative.org/journals/jah/92.3/parsons.html in History Cooperative]
* Pegram, Thomas R. "Hoodwinked: The Anti-Saloon League and the Ku Klux Klan in 1920s Prohibition Enforcement." ''Journal of Gilded Age and Progressive era'' 7.1 (2008): [http://www.historycooperative.org/journals/jga/7.1/pegram.html online].
* Rhodes, James Ford. ''History of the United States from the Compromise of 1850 to the McKinley-Bryan Campaign of 1896. Volume: 7.'' (1920)
* Trelease, Allen W. ''White Terror: The Ku Klux Klan Conspiracy and Southern Reconstruction'' (1995).
* Wade, Wyn Craig. ''The Fiery Cross: The Ku Klux Klan in America''. (1987); a highly negative account of all three Klans, based on extensive research but not familiar with recent scholarship.

==Critical external links==
* [http://reactor-core.org/original-kkk.html The History of the Original Ku Klux Klan] - by an anonymous author sympathetic to the original Klan {{dead link}}
* W. S. Simkins, "Why the Ku Klux," 4 ''The Alcalde'' (June 1916): 735-748. [http://www.law.du.edu/russell/lh/alh/docs/simkins.html online]; Simkins (1842-1929) was an organizer of the KKK in Florida in 1868, and a law professor when he wrote this memoir.
* [http://education.harpweek.com/KKKHearings/AppendixA.htm Full text of the Klan Act of 1871]
**[http://education.harpweek.com/KKKHearings/AppendixB.htm simplified version]
* [http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-694 Ku Klux Klan in the Reconstruction Era] (New Georgia Encyclopedia)
* [http://www.georgiaencyclopedia.org/nge/Article.jsp?id=h-2730 Ku Klux Klan in the Twentieth Century] (New Georgia Encyclopedia)

==References==
<references/>

[[Category:United States History]]
[[Category:Hate Groups]]
[[Category:Democratic Party]]
[[Category:Liberalism]]
[[Category:United States Political Scandals]]
[[Category:Reconstruction]]
[[Category:1920s]]
[[Category:Terrorism]]
[[Category:Racist Organizations]]
[[Category:Gangs]]
[[Category:Anti Second Amendment]]
[[Category:Gun Control]]
[[Category:Racism]]

Ted Cruz

2017-04-19T15:04:03Z

Teapublican: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LkmZ64nmUfE

{{Officeholder
|name=Ted Cruz
|image=Ted cruz.jpg
|party=[[Republican]]
|spouse=Heidi Cruz
|religion=[[Southern Baptist Convention|Southern Baptist]]
|offices=
{{Officeholder/senator
|state=Texas
|terms=January 3, 2013 - Present
|preceded=[[Kay Bailey Hutchison]]
|former=n
|succeeded=
}}
}}

'''Rafael Edward "Ted" Cruz''' (born December 22, 1970, in [[Calgary]], Canada) is the junior [[United States Senator]] from [[Texas]], having won the [[U.S. Senate]] seat vacated by [[Kay Bailey Hutchison]] in 2012. A [[Republican]], Cruz was a Solicitor General of Texas, the chief lawyer for the state before the [[U.S. Supreme Court]].<ref>Cruz has been listed as an author of more than eighty U.S. Supreme Court briefs and personally argued in nine before the U.S. Supreme Court, plus another 31 before other courts. He graduated ''[[magna cum laude]]'' from [[Harvard Law School]] and served as an editor of the ''[[Harvard Law Review]]''.</ref>

Senator Cruz is the first candidate to run for president in 2020, announcing the forming of multiple organizations for such purpose even prior to the official nomination by the Republican Party of [[Donald Trump]] in the summer of 2016. Cruz thinks this is 1976 (it isn't), and that Cruz is [[Ronald Reagan]] (Cruz isn't).<ref>Reagan lost the Republican nomination for president in 1976, but then won the nomination and the presidency in 1980.</ref> By most accounts Cruz ended his national political career by selfishly refusing during his televised address at the Republican 2016 convention to endorse [[Donald Trump]], and Cruz was loudly booed by the audience for it.<ref>[http://www.conservativehq.com/node/23643 Analysis by Richard Viguerie, a former Cruz supporter]</ref> Eventually, Cruz did endorse Trump,<ref>http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/Ted-Cruz-Endorses-Donald-Trump/2016/09/23/id/749888 Retrieved September 24, 2016</ref> but not before becoming the recipient of anger and disdain from many for his hesitation.

Cruz's wife Heidi is an executive for [[Goldman Sachs]] and is currently on leave from that [[liberal]] investment bank. She plays a prominent role in his campaign and policy positions, and fundraising. Ted Cruz has sided with some [[feminist]] positions. Heidi has been a member of the globalist [[Council on Foreign Relations]] and was on the task force that recommended the [[leftist]] [[North American Union]].<ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LkmZ64nmUfE</ref> <ref>[http://www.cfr.org/canada/building-north-american-community/p8102 "Building a North American Community/More about this publication"] (May 2005). Council on Foreign Relations website/Canada.</ref> Reportedly neither Ted Cruz nor his wife donated anything to churches, including what they describe as their own church, from 2006 to 2010, the most recent time period Cruz has released.<ref>http://www.usnews.com/news/politics/articles/2016-01-30/now-deeply-christian-cruzs-religion-once-wasnt-so-obvious</ref>

Cruz is promoted heavily by [[neocons]] who like his interventionalist foreign policy, but some conservatives see more grandstanding than achievement on social issues. Cruz would not pledge to prohibit enforcement of the [[homosexual marriage]] decision in ''[[Obergefell]]'' and failed to ask Attorneys General to seek reconsideration of the 5-4 decision.

In prior elections, Cruz has been supported by the [[Tea Party movement]], [[Tea Party Express]], [[Club for Growth]], [[FreedomWorks]], Erick Erickson of [[RedState]], [[Mark Levin]], and former [[Alaska]] Governor [[Sarah Palin]], but also by pro-[[homosexual]] donors as discussed below.

In the Texas Senate primary elections of May 29, 2012, Cruz finished second to Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst, but the nine-candidate Republican field forced a run-off. On July 31, Cruz defeated Dewhurst in a second round of voting. Cruz easily defeated [[Democratic Party|Democrat]] former State Representative Paul Sadler in the general election.

==Early life==
Cruz's father [[Rafael Bienvenido Cruz]] fought alongside [[Fidel Castro]] during the [[Cuban Revolution]] and was imprisoned three years later for his political activities. In 1957, he escaped to the [[United States]]. Today he is a pastor in [[Dallas]].<ref>{{cite web |author=Cruz, Ted|url=http://www.frontpagemag.com/2013/frontpagemag-com/senator-ted-cruz-confronting-the-threat-of-radical-islam/ |title=Senator Ted Cruz: Confronting the threat of radical Islam |work=FrontPage Magazine |date=May 20, 2013 }} See [[FrontPage Magazine]]</ref> Cruz's mother is an American. After Cruz's birth in [[Alberta]], Canada, the family moved to Texas.

Cruz attended [[Princeton]] where he authored a senior thesis on the [[9th Amendment|9th]] and [[10th Amendment|10th]] Amendments to the [[United States Constitution]], titled "Clipping the Wings of Angels".<ref>[https://archive.org/details/480888-cruz-thesis Ted Cruz's 1992 Princeton Undergrad Thesis], "Clipping the Wings of Angels"</ref>

As a student at [[Harvard Law School]], Cruz was more of a [[libertarian]] than a social conservative.<ref>[http://www.huffingtonpost.com/metro/what-was-ted-cruz-like-at_b_6941178.html "What was Ted Cruz like at Harvard?"] (May 30, 2015). Huffington Post website/''Metro New York'' blog. See [[Huffington Post]].</ref> He graduated ''magna cum laude'', with his ''Juris Doctor'' degree.

Cruz is a [[Southern Baptist Convention|Southern Baptist]], married with two children. Ted Cruz broke his pledge to support the 2016 GOP nominee.

==Texas Solicitor General==
Cruz served as Solicitor General for the state of [[Texas]]. While Solicitor General, Cruz was involved with court cases such as ''[[Medellin v. Texas]]'', ''[[Elk Grove Unified School District v. Newdow]]'', ''[[League of United Latin American Citizens v. Perry]]'', ''[[Van Orden v. Perry]]'', and ''[[D.C. v. Heller]]''.

==Senate career==
Cruz was elected as a member of the Senate in 2012. Beginning on September 24, 2013, Cruz gave a 21-hour speech on the senate floor against [[Obamacare]]. The speech greatly boosted his national profile and led to denunciations from the [[liberal media]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/25/opinion/the-embarrassment-of-senator-ted-cruz.html |title=The embarrassment of Senator Ted Cruz|publisher=''New York Times'' website|date=September 24, 2013}} See [[New York Times]]</ref>

==Campaigns financed by substantial pro-[[homosexual]] donations==

The ''Texas Tribune'' determined in 2012 that Ted Cruz's:<ref>Root, Jay (July 3, 2012). [https://www.texastribune.org/2012/07/03/ted-cruzs-gay-billionaire-donor-draws-criticism/ "Cruz mega-donor is gay, pro-pot billionaire"]. The Texas Tribune website.</ref>
{{cquote|largest longtime contributor is a gay billionaire who supports same-sex marriage and [[marijuana]] legalization, campaign finance filings show. Peter Thiel, a [[Germany|German]]-born hedge fund manager and founder of the online payment system [[PayPal]], gave Cruz $251,000 in 2009 for his aborted run for attorney general. The money represented 19 percent of the total raised for that campaign, which Cruz ended after Attorney General [[Greg Abbott]] decided to run for re-election.}}

The ''Texas Monthly'' ran a similar exposé entitled, "Ted Cruz's Gay Marriage Money." This article described how one of Cruz's donors has been:<ref>Ratcliffe, R. G. (March 22, 2015). [http://www.texasmonthly.com/burka-blog/ted-cruzs-gay-marriage-money "Ted Cruz's gay marriage money"]. ''TexasMonthly'' website.</ref>
{{cquote|Paul Elliott Singer of the hedge fund Elliott Management Corporation. Singer, whose son married his partner, donated $425,000 and raised another $500,000 to push for legalization of same-sex marriage in [[New York]]. In 2012, Singer donated $1 million to the American Unity PAC, with the purpose of supporting candidates who back gay marriage. Singer gave Cruz $25,000 in 2009.}}

In April, the ''[[New York Times]]'' ran an article about the special fundraising meeting that Cruz had in [[Manhattan]] with homosexual potential donors: "At New York Reception, Ted Cruz Said to Strike Different Tone Toward Gays."

== Judicial nominees ==
[[File:Ted Cruz speaking in Des Moines.jpg|thumb|Cruz speaking at the Iowa GOP's Growth and Opportunity Party in Des Moines on October 31, 2015.]]
Ted Cruz recommended Judge Gregg Costa for nomination and confirmation to the [[Fifth Circuit|U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals]].<ref>[http://www.cruz.senate.gov/?p=news&id=1288 "''Dallas Morning News'': Senate confirms Cornyn and Cruz pick for appeals court"] (May 20, 2014). Ted Cruz U.S. Senate webpage/Press office/News.</ref> As a Senator from Texas, Cruz could have blocked the nomination. Instead, Cruz's support made it happen.

Within five months of his confirmation in May 2014, Judge Costa then voted in favor of rehearing [[Planned Parenthood]]'s case in their attempt to reverse a Fifth Circuit's ruling that had upheld the pro-women, pro-life Texas House Bill 2, a good law that resulted in the closure of roughly half the abortion clinics in Texas. Judge Edith Jones and the majority of the Fifth Circuit outvoted Costa on the petition for rehearing ''en banc'' in ''Planned Parenthood of Greater Tex. Surgical Health Servs. v. Abbott''.<ref>{{Cite court|litigants=Planned Parenthood of Greater Tex. Surgical Health Servs. v. Abbott|url=http://www.ca5.uscourts.gov/opinions/pub/13/13-51008-CV2.pdf|vol=Vol. 769|reporter=''Federal Reporter'', 3rd series|opinion=Opinion 330|pinpoint=p. 2|date=October 9, 2014|court=United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit}} Retrieved from United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit website on February 6, 2016.</ref>

It was obvious prior to Ted Cruz's recommendation that Judge Costa was not [[pro-life]]. In one of his decisions as a [[United States District Courts|United States district court]] judge in 2012, Judge Costa uncritically cited ''[[Roe v. Wade]]'' for a procedural point. Judge Costa had also been a Democrat volunteer in college in the 1990s.

Cruz believes that President Obama should not nominate a successor to Supreme Court Justice [[Antonin Scalia]] and that the Senate should not confirm any nominee he selects.

==2016 presidential race==
[[File:Senator of Texas Ted Cruz at New England College Town Hall Meeting.jpg|thumb|Cruz speaking at a Town Hall Meeting at New England College in Henniker, New Hampshire on February 3, 2016.]]
On March 23, 2015, Cruz became the first person to announce his candidacy for the [[Republican]] nomination for president in [[2016 presidential election|2016]] in a speech before an audience at [[Liberty University]].<ref>[http://www.c-span.org/video/?324979-1/ted-cruz-presidential-campaign-announcement "Ted Cruz presidential campaign announcement"] (March 23, 2015). C-SPAN video, 38:18. See [[C-SPAN]]</ref> The predictable liberal media immediately went on the offense claiming he has no chance but was in awe of his speech without [[teleprompter]]s.{{fact}} His wife would take a leave of absence from her job at Goldman Sachs to join her husband on the campaign trail. This decision left his family without health insurance. Cruz, by law, has to be insured and took Obamacare coverage. This drove the media batty at the irony of railing against Obamacare but using it.{{fact}}

Cruz would raise $4 million in donations after the first week of his announcement. Liberal media jaws hit the floor when it was learned he raised $31 million in one week from [[PAC]]s.<ref>{{cite web |last=Boyle |first=Matthew |url=http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2015/04/08/mark-halperin-unprecedented-31-million-super-pac-effort-backing-ted-cruz-for-president/ |title=Mark Halperin: Unprecedented $31 million super PAC effort backing Ted Cruz for president|publisher=Breitbart News Network/Big government|date=April 8, 2015 }} See [[Breitbart News Network]]</ref>

====Eligibility====
The same liberals who mocked opponents of Obama for claiming he was not born in [[Hawaii]] have decided to make the same case against Cruz for being born in Canada. Cruz's mother being an American citizen (even though she voted in Canadian elections), just like Obama's mother, insures that he is American no matter what country he was born in. There are several differences in Obama/Cruz birth certificate controversies. Cruz released his immediately after it was requested. Obama held onto his for years, spending nearly $4 million in legal fees.{{fact}} Cruz renounced his Canadian citizenship on May 14, 2014.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-politics/wp/2013/08/19/cruz-will-renounce-canadian-citizenship/?wprss=rss_homepage|title=Cruz Will Renounce Canadian Citizenship|last=Blake|first=Aaron|date=August 19, 2013|work=[[The Washington Post]]|accessdate=February 6, 2016}}</ref>

==Political positions==
Cruz opposes [[illegal immigration]],<ref>[http://www.ontheissues.org/international/Ted_Cruz_Immigration.htm "Ted Cruz on immigration"] (January 20, 2015). On the Issues website.</ref> [[gun control]] and [[homosexuality]]. He is [[pro-life]],<ref>{{cite web |last=Bair |first=Andrew |url=http://www.lifenews.com/2013/06/05/pro-life-senator-ted-cruz-to-address-national-right-to-life-convention/ |title=Pro-life Senator Ted Cruz to address National Right to Life Convention |publisher=LifeNews.com|date= June 5, 2013 }} See [[LifeNews.com]]</ref> supports the [[death penalty]]<ref>[http://www.ontheissues.org/senate/Ted_Cruz.htm#Crime "Ted Cruz on the issues/Ted Cruz on crime"] (February 2015). On the Issues website.</ref> and believes that the [[USA]] should not get involved in the [[Syrian Civil War]].<ref>{{cite web |last=Tomasky |first=Michael |url=http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2013/09/09/marco-rubio-ted-cruz-and-their-craven-and-brazen-hypocrisy-on-syria.html |title=Marco Rubio, Ted Cruz, and their craven and brazen hypocrisy on Syria|work=The Daily Beast |date=September 9, 2013 }} See [[The Daily Beast]]</ref>

Cruz has effectively criticized [[RINO]]s, calling them "squishes."<ref>{{cite web |last=Weiner |first=Rachel |url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-politics/wp/2013/04/29/ted-cruz-mocks-squishes-in-republican-party/ |title=Ted Cruz mocks Senate Republican ‘squishes’|work=Washington Post|date=April 29, 2013 }} See [[Washington Post]]</ref>

Showing his support for [[Taiwan]] over the communist and authoritarian [[People's Republic of China]], Cruz met with the Taiwanese president in January of 2017, along with Texas governor [[Greg Abbott]], even after China sent a statement asking members of Congress not to do so.<ref>{{cite web | title=Cruz Meets with Taiwanese President, Blasts China | url=http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2017/01/08/cruz-meets-with-taiwanese-president-blasts-china.html | date=January 8, 2017 | publisher=[[Fox News]] | accessdate=January 14, 2017}}</ref>

==Best selling author==
[[The New York Times|The ''New York Times'']] has engaged in a scheme to keep Cruz's book off of its bestseller list.<ref>{{cite web |last=Howerton |first=Jason |url=http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2015/07/09/despite-stellar-sales-new-york-times-keeps-ted-cruzs-new-book-off-bestseller-list-heres-the-excuse-given/ |title=Despite stellar sales, ''New York Times'' keeps Ted Cruz’s new book off bestseller list—here’s the excuse given|publisher=The Blaze website|date=July 9, 2015 }} See [[The Blaze]].</ref> At issue was the practice of some politicians to pre-purchase a large quantity of books for use by their campaigns with the hope that those purchases would place the books on the bestseller list for one week. The ''New York Times'' tries to exclude those bulk campaign purchases from the totals used to determine which books have the top sales. The question is whether the bestseller list shows what books the public buys rather than which books the politicians give away.

==Quote==
"Tonight's speech was less a State of the Union and more a state of denial." (January 12, 2016)

==Books==
''A Time for Truth: Reigniting the Promise of America'' (2015) 
''Ted Cruz: For God and Country'' (2015)

==See also==
* [[Senate Elections 2012]]
* [[Senate Conservatives Fund]]
* [[Donna Campbell]]
* [[Salazar v. Buono]]

==External links==
* [http://www.tedcruz.org/ Official Senate campaign website]
* [http://www.facebook.com/tedcruzpage facebook page]
* [https://twitter.com/#!/tedcruz Twitter page]
* [http://www.tedcruz.org/media/videos/ Ted Cruz Videos]
* [https://www.tedcruz.org Ted Cruz 2016 campaign website]

Article:

* [http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013/07/06/ted-cruzs-father-delivers-epic-speech-touting-patriotism-and-lambasting-obamas-socialist-inclinations/ Ted Cruz’s father delivers epic speech touting patriotism and lambasting Obama’s ‘socialist’ inclinations]

==References==
{{reflist|2}}

[[Category:Republicans]]
[[Category:United States Senators]]
[[Category:Texas]]
[[Category:Conservatives]]
[[Category:Baptists]]
[[Category:113th United States Congress]]
[[Category:114th United States Congress]]
[[Category:Tea Party Movement]]
[[Category:2016 Presidential Candidates]]
[[Category:Articles that need clean-up]]

{{Conservatism}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cruz, Ted}}
[[Category:Pro Second Amendment]]
[[Category:Best Selling Authors]]

Mitch McConnell

2017-04-19T14:59:26Z

Teapublican: Conservtaism

{{Officeholder
|name=Mitch McConnell
|image=McConnell.jpg
|party=[[Republican]]
|spouse=[[Elaine Chao]]
|religion=[[Baptist]]
|offices=
{{Officeholder/senate majority leader
|terms=January 3, 2015 - Present
|preceded=[[Harry Reid]]
|former=n
|succeeded=
}}
{{Officeholder/senator
|state=Kentucky
|terms=January 3, 1985 - Present
|preceded=[[Walter Huddleston]]
|former=n
|succeeded=
}}
}}

'''Addison Mitchell "Mitch" McConnell, Jr.''', born February 20, 1942 (age {{age|1942|2|20}}), is the senior [[Republican]] United States Senator from [[Kentucky]] and the Senate [[Minority Leader]] in the 111th [[Congress]]. A [[RINO]] who pushed through a [[liberal]]-favored deal to increase the [[debt ceiling]], McConnell faced [[Tea Party]] challenger [[Matt Bevin]] in his primary in 2014 for reelection, and the generally conservative electorate in Kentucky decided that the RINO and progressive-lite McConnell should stay and face the Democrat in November.

==Early life==

McConnell was born in [[Tuscumbia]], [[Alabama]] to Julia Shockley and Addison Mitchell McConnell and raised in south [[Louisville]], Kentucky, he attended duPont Manual High School and graduated from the [[University of Louisville]] College of Arts and Sciences with honors in 1964, where he was student body president and member of Phi Kappa Tau. He graduated in 1967 from the [[University of Kentucky]] College of Law, where he was elected president of the Student Bar Association. McConnell gained experience on Capitol Hill as an intern under Senator [[John Sherman Cooper]], later as an assistant to Senator [[Marlow Cook]], and was a Deputy Assistant Attorney General under President [[Gerald R. Ford]].

==U.S. Senate==

McConnell was elected to the Senate in 1984 when he defeated two-term [[Democratic]] Senator Dee Huddleston. Since then he has been reelected four times. After the 2006 elections, he was unanimously elected Senate Minority Leader, previously serving as Majority Whip. He is married to former Secretary of Labor [[Elaine Chao]]. McConnell has been very involved in Republican party politics. He was chairman of the [[National Republican Senatorial Committee]] during the 1998 and 2000 election cycles. In both, Republicans maintained control of the [[Senate]]. McConnell is viewed as a [[conservative]] on nearly all issues, receiving an 89% lifetime rating from the [[American Conservative Union]].<ref>http://www.acuratings.org/2008all.htm#KY</ref> However, he was one of just three Senate Republicans who voted against a Constitutional ban on [[Flag Desecration Amendment|flag desecration]].<ref>http://www.senate.gov/legislative/LIS/roll_call_lists/roll_call_vote_cfm.cfm?congress=109&session=2&vote=00189</ref>

McConnell offered offshore [[oil]] drilling resolutions on the Senate floor in July 2008. He was intent on setting a trigger to initiate drilling if the price exceeds a certain mark. First he offered to drill if gasoline prices hit $4.50 a gallon. This was rejected by Democrats. Then he offered a trigger at $5.50 a gallon, $7.50 a gallon and $10 per gallon, with Democrats rejecting each offer.<ref>[http://www.humanevents.com/article.php?id=27826 Breaking: Dems like $10 per Gallon Gasoline] Human Events, July 31, 2008</ref>

Mitch McConnell managed to hold onto his senate seat in the 2008 elections, which saw a Democratic surge, just short of a supermajority. Mitch McConnell is widely regarded within the Republican Party as an adept Minority Leader. The filibuster strategy used by the Democrats was first pushed by McConnell.

McConnell said he would join the [[gun control]] filibuster.<ref>http://townhall.com/tipsheet/katiepavlich/2013/04/09/mitch-mcconnell-yeah-im-joining-this-gun-control-filibuster-n1562143</ref>

==Controversies==

In 2013, it was reported that McConnell said that he wanted to "punch [[Tea Party]] bullies in the nose".<ref>[http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2013/11/22/exclusive-mcconnell-tea-party-a-bunch-of-bullies-who-me-and-karl-rove-are-going-to-punch-in-the-nose/ Exclusive - McConnell: Tea Party 'Bullies' Who Need Punch in Nose], [[Breitbart.com]]</ref> A further examination by [[The Blaze]] indicated the plausibility that McConnell was probably talking about the [[Senate Conservatives Fund]], which is known for supporting more conservative candidates over Establishment-preferred candidates.<ref>[http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013/11/22/rumor-check-did-mitch-mcconnell-say-he-wants-to-punch-tea-party-bullies-in-the-nose/ Rumor Check: Did Mitch McConnell Say He Wants to Punch Tea Party ‘Bullies’ in the Nose?]</ref>

==External links==

* [http://mcconnell.senate.gov Sen. McConnell's Official Web Site]

==References==
<references/>

{{DEFAULTSORT:McConnell, Mitch}}
[[Category:Conservatism]]
[[Category:United States Senators]]
[[Category:Republican Party]]
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[[Category:111th United States Congress]]
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[[Category:113th United States Congress]]
[[Category:114th United States Congress]]
[[Category:Reagan Era]]
[[Category:The 100 Americans The Left Hates Most]]
[[Category:Kentucky]]
[[Category:Rino Backers]]
[[Category:RINOs]]

Occupy Democrats

2017-04-19T14:44:02Z

Teapublican: Category:Anti-American

'''Occupy Democrats''' is a far-left progressive [[social media]] and fake news site that has become infamous for its outrageous lies and propaganda. Occupy Democrats routinely calls Republicans and [[Donald Trump|Trump]] "racist" for criticizing Obama <ref>http://thefederalistpapers.org/us/ridiculous-liberal-meme-destroyed-with-us-history-lesson</ref>.. Occupy Democrats makes outrageously false claims about [[Barack Hussein Obama|Obama]]'s record of achievements claiming Obama created 15 Million jobs and reduced the deficit by more than half. Occupy Democrats represents the extreme left wing of the Democrat party and promotes [[communist]] and [[socialist]] propaganda <ref>http://thefederalistpapers.org/us/boom-another-liberal-meme-on-socialism-ripped-to-shreds</ref> (such as calling opponents of a job-killing $15 minimum wage "racist"). The fact checking website Politifact has found no "facts" promoted by Occupy Democrats to be true.<ref>http://www.politifact.com/personalities/occupy-democrats</ref> <ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MGKedHf5g2M</ref>
The Occupy Democrats even claim that the Republicans started the KKK ignoring the fact that the "Occupy" Democrats started it <ref>http://thefederalistpapers.org/us/occupy-democrats-forget-it-was-their-ilk-who-started-the-kkk</ref> Occupy Democrats go as far to claim Obama is the "greatest president ever" <ref>http://thefederalistpapers.org/us/the-dumbest-anti-trump-meme-from-the-left-of-all-time</ref> Occupy Democrats, like all Democrats, falsely portray republicans as racist, sexist, gun-loving rednecks while making themselves look ignorant <ref>http://thefederalistpapers.org/us/truth-democrats-take-more-from-everyone-which-leaves-everyone-with-less-everything</ref> Occupy Democrats claim that all the things the Republicans acomplished such as ending slavery, passing the civil rights act, giving women the right to vote, and giving balcks the right to vote were done by liberals and completely ignore the fact that liberal Democrats opposed all of those things <ref>http://thefederalistpapers.org/us/doozy-of-a-liberal-meme-debunked</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}
https://www.facebook.com/OccupyDemocratsLogic/
[[Category:Hate Groups]]
[[Category:Democratic Party]]
[[Category:Liberalism]]
[[Category:Socialists]]
[[Category:Communism]]
[[Category:Anti Second Amendment]]
[[Category:Propaganda]]
[[Category:Fascism]]
[[Category:Liberal News Organizations]]
[[Category:Liberal Deceit]]
[[Category:Anti-American]]

Occupy Democrats

2017-04-19T14:31:28Z

Teapublican: http://thefederalistpapers.org/us/doozy-of-a-liberal-meme-debunked

'''Occupy Democrats''' is a far-left progressive [[social media]] and fake news site that has become infamous for its outrageous lies and propaganda. Occupy Democrats routinely calls Republicans and [[Donald Trump|Trump]] "racist" for criticizing Obama <ref>http://thefederalistpapers.org/us/ridiculous-liberal-meme-destroyed-with-us-history-lesson</ref>.. Occupy Democrats makes outrageously false claims about [[Barack Hussein Obama|Obama]]'s record of achievements claiming Obama created 15 Million jobs and reduced the deficit by more than half. Occupy Democrats represents the extreme left wing of the Democrat party and promotes [[communist]] and [[socialist]] propaganda <ref>http://thefederalistpapers.org/us/boom-another-liberal-meme-on-socialism-ripped-to-shreds</ref> (such as calling opponents of a job-killing $15 minimum wage "racist"). The fact checking website Politifact has found no "facts" promoted by Occupy Democrats to be true.<ref>http://www.politifact.com/personalities/occupy-democrats</ref> <ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MGKedHf5g2M</ref>
The Occupy Democrats even claim that the Republicans started the KKK ignoring the fact that the "Occupy" Democrats started it <ref>http://thefederalistpapers.org/us/occupy-democrats-forget-it-was-their-ilk-who-started-the-kkk</ref> Occupy Democrats go as far to claim Obama is the "greatest president ever" <ref>http://thefederalistpapers.org/us/the-dumbest-anti-trump-meme-from-the-left-of-all-time</ref> Occupy Democrats, like all Democrats, falsely portray republicans as racist, sexist, gun-loving rednecks while making themselves look ignorant <ref>http://thefederalistpapers.org/us/truth-democrats-take-more-from-everyone-which-leaves-everyone-with-less-everything</ref> Occupy Democrats claim that all the things the Republicans acomplished such as ending slavery, passing the civil rights act, giving women the right to vote, and giving balcks the right to vote were done by liberals and completely ignore the fact that liberal Democrats opposed all of those things <ref>http://thefederalistpapers.org/us/doozy-of-a-liberal-meme-debunked</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}
https://www.facebook.com/OccupyDemocratsLogic/
[[Category:Hate Groups]]
[[Category:Democratic Party]]
[[Category:Liberalism]]
[[Category:Socialists]]
[[Category:Communism]]
[[Category:Anti Second Amendment]]
[[Category:Propaganda]]
[[Category:Fascism]]
[[Category:Liberal News Organizations]]
[[Category:Liberal Deceit]]

Occupy Democrats

2017-04-19T14:24:15Z

Teapublican: http://thefederalistpapers.org/us/truth-democrats-take-more-from-everyone-which-leaves-everyone-with-less-everything

Occupy Democrats

2017-04-19T14:19:44Z

Teapublican: http://thefederalistpapers.org/us/ridiculous-liberal-meme-destroyed-with-us-history-lesson

Ron Paul

2017-04-19T14:11:06Z

Teapublican: Category:Capitalists

{{Officeholder
|name = Ron Paul
|image = Ron Paul photo 2007.jpg
|party = [[Republican]] (former [[Libertarian Party|Libertarian]])
|spouse = Carolyn Wells
|religion = [[Southern Baptist]]
|offices =
{{Officeholder/representative
|state = Texas
|district =14th
|terms = January 3, 1997 - January 3, 2013
|preceded = Greg Laughlin
|succeeded = Randy Weber
}}
{{Officeholder/representative
|state = Texas
|district = 22nd
|terms = January 3, 1979 – January 3, 1985
|preceded = Robert Gammage
|succeeded = Tom DeLay
}}
{{Officeholder/representative
|state = Texas
|district = 22nd
|terms = April 3, 1976 – January 3, 1977
|preceded = Robert Casey
|succeeded = Robert Gammage
}}
}}

'''Ronald Ernest "Ron" Paul''' (born August 20, 1935) is a [[conservative]] [[libertarian]] [[Republican]] 10th-term congressman, a former Air Force Flight Surgeon, a physician (M.D.) a candidate for the Republican Party's nomination in 2008 and 2012, and actor.<ref>In 1988 Ron Paul was the Libertarian Party nominee for President of the United States.</ref> He is from the U.S. state of [[Texas]]. As a [[Republican Party|Republican]], he has represented Texas's 14th congressional district in the [[United States House of Representatives|U.S. House of Representatives]] since 1997, and had previously served as the representative from Texas's 22nd district in 1976 and from 1979 to 1985. He retired from Congress at the end of 2012.

In 2009 he has attracted over 300 votes for his bipartisan proposal to subject the [[Federal Reserve]] to unprecedented scrutiny by allowing the Government Accountability Office to audit all central bank operations, including its decisions on interest rates, lending to individual banks and transactions with foreign central banks. He has a separate bill to abolish the Fed altogether. (He is the lone sponsor.)

Ron Paul is an outspoken critic of [[neoconservatives]] and their interventionist foreign policy.

In Congress he has proposed doing away with personal income taxes, federal antitrust laws and the minimum wage. He advocated pulling the United States out of the United Nations, NATO and the International Monetary Fund.

Ron Paul advocates letting states decide how to handle social issues. He supports anti-federalism and therefore wants to leave the issues of same-sex marriage, abortion, and other social issues up to the decision of individual states. Dr. Paul has consistently espoused the pro-life position.

Paul will make his acting debut in the third installment of the ''[[Atlas Shrugged]]'' film series titled "Who is John Galt?"
==Paleolibertarian==
Paul is a [[pro-life]] states' rights [[libertarian]], also known as a [[paleolibertarianism|paleolibertarian]]. [[paleolibertarianism|Paleolibertarians]] advocate a limited role of government as well as supporting low taxes, free markets, strict construction of the [[U.S. Constitution]], and a return to monetary policies based on commodity-backed currency. He has earned the nickname "Dr. No" for voting against any bill he believes violates the Constitution. In the words of former Treasury Secretary William Simon, Paul is the "one exception to the Gang of 535" on Capitol Hill. He has never voted to raise taxes or congressional pay. He has always voted against the [[USA PATRIOT Act]], the [[Military Commissions Act of 2006]], and the [[Iraq War]].

==Congressional record==
Ron Paul is noted for his authorship of the We the People Act, an act which removed the ability of the US Supreme Court to hear cases involving discrimination based on sexual orientation or religion. He is also noted for submitting several bills banning [[abortion]], and somewhat controversially was the only person to oppose the Darfur Divestment Act of 2007, a bill which disallowed the US government, corporations, and individuals from sending money to or doing business with the janjaweed rebel group of the Sudan.

== Early life and education ==

Dr. Ron Paul was born in [[Pittsburgh]], Pennsylvania to Howard Caspar Paul and Margaret Paul.<ref>http://dailypaul.com/node/53</ref><ref>http://www.wargs.com/political/paul.html</ref> He graduated from Dormont High School in Dormont, Pennsylvania, in 1953. Paul attended Gettysburg College, receiving his [[Bachelor of Arts]] degree in 1957, and the [[Duke University School of Medicine]], receiving [[Doctor of Medicine|M.D.]] in 1961. He did his [[internship]] and [[Residency (medicine)|residency]] at [[Henry Ford Hospital]] in [[Detroit]], Michigan, from 1961 to 1962, and was a [[flight surgeon]] in the [[United States Air Force]] from 1963 to 1968. He and his wife Carol moved to Texas in 1968, where he began his medical practice in Brazoria County. As a specialist in [[obstetrics]]/[[gynecology]], Dr. Paul has delivered more than 4,000 babies. He and Carol, who reside in Lake Jackson, Texas, are the proud parents of five children and have seventeen grandchildren.

Paul is a Baptist.

==Political affiliations and support==
Although a Republican, Paul remains on good terms with the [[Libertarian Party]] and addressed its national convention as recently as 2004.<ref>[http://www.theadvocates.org/liberator/vol-09-num-10.htm Liberator online archive] on Advocates for self-governing accessed at March 4, 2007</ref>

Paul served as the honorary chairman of and is a current member of the [[Republican Liberty Caucus]], a political action organization dedicated to promoting the ideals of individual rights, limited government and free enterprise within the Republican Party.<ref>[http://fl.rlc.org/ Republican Liberty Caucus of Florida] accessed at March 4, 2007</ref>

Unlike many political candidates, Paul receives the overwhelming majority of his campaign contributions (96.8% in 2005-2006), from individuals.<ref>http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/summary.asp?CID=N00005906&cycle=2006/</ref>

Paul has also founded the organization [[Institute for Peace and Prosperity]], which was criticized for it support of [[Barack Hussein Obama]]. A member of this Institute [[Eric Margolis]] compard Tea Partiers with Nazis.<ref>http://frontpagemag.com/2013/dgreenfield/ron-pauls-board-includes-obama-lover-and-terrorist-supporter-who-compared-tea-party-to-nazis/</ref>

==Political Views==

Paul wants to "reinstate the [[United States Constitution|Constitution]] and restore the [[Republic]]." He rejects a [[welfare state]] or [[nanny state]] role for the federal government, and advocates a strong [[non-interventionism|non-interventionist]] [[foreign policy]].

He voted against the [[Iraq War]] in 2002 and has offered alternatives such as granting the President authority to grant [[Letters of Marque and Reprisal]], and arming [[pilot]]s. He is the only Republican presidential candidate to have voted against the Iraq War.

Paul's desire to secure U.S. borders remains a key topic in his 2008 presidential campaign. He opposes the [[North American Union]] proposition and its proposed integration of Mexico, the United States of America, and Canada. Paul voted "yes" on the [[Secure Fence Act of 2006]], which authorizes the construction of an additional 700 miles of double-layered fencing between the U.S and Mexico. Paul opposes illegal immigration as well as amnesty for illegal immigrants.

In the May 3, 2007 GOP Debate, Ron Paul stated that as President, he would seek the immediate abolition of the [[Internal Revenue Service|IRS]] and the abolition of the income tax. As Congressman, he has long fought for the [[Article One of the United States Constitution#Section 9: Limits on Congress|prohibition of direct taxes]] by repeal of the [[16th Amendment to the United States Constitution|16th Amendment]] which created the [[income tax]]. Ron Paul supports a return to the [[gold]] standard of currency particularly newer theorized pure strain gold.

On March 5, 2008, Ron Paul was the only member of the house to vote against a bill "Condemning the ongoing Palestinian rocket attacks on Israeli civilians, and for other purposes"<ref>http://clerk.house.gov/evs/2008/roll093.xml FINAL VOTE RESULTS FOR ROLL CALL 93</ref><ref>http://pressmediawire.com/article.cfm?articleID=18214 Congressman Ron Paul's Statement on Gaza Bill</ref>

Paul supported [[WikiLeaks]]<ref>http://wlcentral.org/node/479</ref> and the legalization of [[Cannabis]].

Paul is a defender of [[Homeschooling]].<ref>http://www.ronpaul.com/2013-09-09/ron-paul-the-homeschooling-revolution/</ref>

=== On [[Libyan War|Libyan civil war]] ===

<blockquote>
Why did the US intervene in a civil war in a country that has neither attacked us nor poses a threat? We are told this was another humanitarian intervention, like Clinton’s 1999 war against Serbia. But as civilian victims of the US-led coalition bombing continue to add up, it is getting difficult to determine whether the problem we are creating on the ground is worse than the one we were trying to solve. [http://www.ronpaul.com/2011-03-28/ron-paul-end-the-libyan-war/]
</blockquote>

<blockquote>
Michael Scheuer, former head of the CIA’s Bin Laden unit, explained in a recent article that there is plausible reason to believe the rebels are current or former Islamist mujahedin, eager to engage in jihad. Indeed, Gaddafi has fought against Libyan Islamists for years and is seen by them as a bitter enemy. Astoundingly, it may well be that we are assisting Al-Qaeda in this new war! [[Ibidem]]
</blockquote>

==2008 Presidential Campaign==

Paul formally declared his candidacy for the 2008 Presidential election on 12 March 2007 as a guest on [[Washington Journal]] on [[C-SPAN]].<ref>{{cite news | url = http://www.mysanantonio.com/news/metro/stories/MYSA031207.paul2008.EN.74141d9.html | title = Paul formally launches presidential bid | first = Gary | last = Martin | work = San Antonio Express-News | accessdate = 2007-03-13}}</ref><ref>[http://chbn.com/Clip.aspx?key=1CD9E3A0397BCBEC Ron Paul announcing candidacy on C-SPAN]</ref> In regards to his candidacy, he had a 30-minute interview with online political analyst [[James Kotecki]] regarding foreign policy, Congress and the Constitution, and personal liberties.<ref>[http://www.youtube.com/jameskotecki James Kotecki interviews Ron Paul]</ref>

Paul participated (along with nine other Republican presidential candidates) in the [[Ronald Reagan Presidential Library]]'s 2008 Republican Presidential Candidates Debate on May 3, 2007. Ron Paul finished first in the MSNBC poll following the GOP primary debate with 43 percent—beating second place [[Mitt Romney]] by 5 percentage points.[http://www.ronpaul2008.typepad.com/]

Paul seemed to have dropped slightly in the polls that followed the second Republican debate in Columbia, South Carolina, to 25 percent. This was probably as a result of his suggestion that weekly bombing of [[Iraq]] following [[Operation Desert Fox]] in December 1998 may have contributed sufficiently to [[Arab]] anger at the United States as to make the [[September 11, 2001 attacks|September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks]] inevitable. Paul was excoriated by [[Rudy Giuliani]], who said that this was the most bizarre explanation for the attacks he had ever heard. Other Republican commentators sought to explain Paul's continued strength in post-debate polls as the result of multiple votes by his supporters or voting by non-Republicans. In response to Rudy Giuliani, the next day at the National Press Club, Ron Paul offered Rudy a book list to read regarding the issue of American foreign policy. These books are ''Imperial Hubris'' by Michael Scheuer, ''Dying to Win'' by Robert Pape, ''Blowback'' by Chalmers Johnson, and ''The 9-11 Commission Report'' by the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks.

Eric Dondero, a former Ron Paul staffer, declared himself a candidate against Paul in the 2008 Republican primary election to represent the 14th District of Texas in Congress. Dondero (called "Dumbdero" by [[libertarians]]) dropped out shortly thereafter. Considering the trouncing Paul ended up giving to [[Chris Peden]] in the 2008 Republican congressional primary, it was likely for the better.

Paul has garnered large amounts of support from activists, particularly on the [[Internet]]. Many have come up with creative ways to campaign for their candidate. For example, some Paul supporters, who are not officially affiliated with his campaign, purchased a blimp to fly overhead with the phrases "Who is Ron Paul? Google Ron Paul" and "Ron Paul Revolution".<ref>http://www.ronpaulblimp.com/</ref> The [[neo-Nazi]] organization [[Stormfront]] also provided [[widget]]s on its internet site to enable people to electronically donate cash to Paul's campaign. Stormfront's founder, former [[Ku Klux Klan]] member Don Black, also gave financial support to Paul's campaign.<ref>[http://lonestartimes.com/2007/10/25/rpb1/ Lone Star Times] 25 October 2007. Retrieved 24 July 2008.</ref>

He dropped out of the race on June 12, 2008, but will keep spreading his [[message]] by working to help elect [[Libertarianism|libertarian-leaning]] Republicans to [[public]] office around the [[United States of America|U.S.]] <ref>[http://elections.foxnews.com/2008/06/12/ron-paul-ends-campaign-will-shift-gears/ Ron Paul Ends Campaign, Will ‘Shift Gears’], [[Associated Press]], ''[[Fox News Channel|Fox News]]'', June 12, 2008</ref>

=== Possible Campaign censorship by the Media ===

Fox News has frequently excluded Ron Paul from its programs, even in at least one case removing him from Iowa Straw Poll results. Fox News' results left out Paul (as well as [[Tom Tancredo]]), even though they scored 9.1% and 13.7%, respectively.

=== Straw Poll results ===

Ron Paul was recently established as the most frequent winner of Straw Poll.

==2012 Presidential Campaign==
As 2012 approached, there was speculation as to whether Paul would run as a Republican candidate or a third party candidate. This was in the context of a larger struggle within the Republican Party between an emerging [[Tea Party]] element and a more moderate Republican establishment. Paul had gained a dedicated following among the Tea Party, idealistic young people and libertarians, and needed to translate that support into an effective Presidential campaign. Paul also had to navigate between the expectations of his supporters, his strategic objectives and the possibilities that the Republican establishment could harm the future career of his son, Senator [[Rand Paul]].

Leading up to the campaign, Paul appeared in the 2010 [[Conservative Political Action Conference]] (CPAC) straw poll. Paul won the poll, defeating Mitt Romney, who had won it the previous three years.<ref name=CPAC>{{cite news |url=http://www.cnn.com/2010/POLITICS/02/20/conservatives.meeting/index.html |title=Rep. Ron Paul surprise winner of CPAC presidential straw poll |publisher=CNN |date=February 21, 2010| accessdate=September 18, 2012}}</ref> Paul also won the 2011 CPAC straw poll with 30 percent of the vote. Following that, he also won the paid, online Arizona Tea Party Patriots straw poll on February 28, 2011 with 49% of the vote.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-503544_162-20037196-503544.html |title=Ron Paul and Herman Cain lead the pack in Tea Party Patriots straw poll |publisher=CBS News |accessdate=September 18, 2012 | date=February 28, 2011}}</ref>

In February 2011, Paul asked supporters to donate to his Liberty Political Action Committee to fund trips to explore a possible 2012 presidential candidacy.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.libertypac.com/2011/02/23/dr-paul-thanks-grassroots-for-president%E2%80%99s-day-money-bomb/ |title=Dr. Paul Thanks Grassroots for President's Day Money Bomb |publisher=Liberty.pac |accessdate=Septmeber 18, 2012| date=February 22, 2011}}</ref> On April 14, 2011, Paul's spokesman, Jesse Benton, announced that Paul had formed a "testing-the-waters" organization, stating, "He remains undecided on what his plans will be, but as a final decision draws closer, his team has put the pieces in place for him to flip a switch and hit the ground running if he decides to run for president."<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/04/14/ron-paul-2012-presidential-exploratory_n_849144.html |title=Ron Paul 2012 Presidential 'Testing The Waters' Organization Launches |work=The Huffington Post|accessdate=September 18, 2012 |date=April 14, 2011 |first=Elyse |last=Siegel}}</ref> Paul announced the formation of an [[exploratory committee]] in [[Des Moines, Iowa|Des Moines]], [[Iowa]] on April 26 aimed at seeking the Republican presidential nomination.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/42770196/ns/politics-decision_2012/ |title= Ron Paul kicks off exploratory committee for 2012 bid |publisher=msnbc.com |accessdate=September 18, 2012 | date=April 26, 2011}}</ref><ref name=thehill>{{cite news |url=http://thehill.com/blogs/ballot-box/gop-presidential-primary/157817-ron-paul-officially-announces-2012-exploratory-committee |title=Ron Paul officially announces 2012 presidential exploratory committee |work=The Hill|accessdate=September 18, 2012 | date=April 26, 2011}}</ref> On May 5, 2011, Paul participated in a debate in [[Greenville, South Carolina]] sponsored by Fox News with four other possible Republican candidates.<ref name=election-news>{{cite web | url=http://uselectionnews.org/foxsc-debate-features-just-5-of-2012-gop/853203/ | title=FOX/SC Debate Features Just 5 of 2012 GOP | author=Taylor, Alexandra | date=May 5, 2011 | accessdate=September 18, 2012}}</ref>

On May 13, 2011, in [[Exeter, New Hampshire]], Paul announced his decision to seek the Republican nomination in the 2012 election on [[American Broadcasting Company|ABC]]'s ''[[Good Morning America]]'' program.<ref>[http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2011/05/13/breaking-rep-ron-paul-announces-third-bid-for-presidency/ Rep. Ron Paul announces candidacy for president]. CNN. May 13, 2011, Retrieved September 18, 2012.</ref> On July 12, 2011, Paul announced that he will not seek another term as the Representative of Texas's 14th District to focus on his presidential campaign.<ref>{{cite web|author=Dave Cook |url=http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/The-Vote/2011/0712/Ron-Paul-says-he-s-all-in-for-the-presidency-won-t-run-again-for-Congress |title=Ron Paul says he's all in for the presidency, won't run again for Congress |work=Christian Science Monitor|date=July 12, 2011 |accessdate=September 18, 2012}}</ref>

Under Republican Party rules, delegates were selected in proportion to the results of state by state primaries. The actual delegates were to be selected at either a Congressional District or statewide caucus or convention based upon the primary results. (In earlier times, delegates were either chosen by party leaders or awarded on a "winner-take-all" basis to the candidate that received the most votes in a particular state.) Although delegates to the convention were "pledged" to vote for a particular candidate on just the first ballot, the delegate was free to vote for anyone on later ballots and could vote independently on other questions such as the [[party platform]]. By organizing people to vote in local caucuses or volunteering to serve as delegates in Congressional district conventions, the Paul campaign was able to elect its supporters as National Convention Delegates even though Mitt Romney had gained more votes in the primary of a particular state.

On May 14, 2012, Paul made a statement on the campaign's website that he would no longer be actively campaigning in remaining state primaries, but would instead continue his presidential bid by seeking to collect delegates at caucuses and state conventions for the [[Republican National Convention]] in August 2012.<ref>{{cite web|last=Paul|first=Ron|title=Ron Paul Statement on Campaign Going Forward|url=http://www.ronpaul2012.com/2012/05/14/ron-paul-statement-on-campaign-going-forward/|accessdate=September 18, 2012}}</ref> This left Mitt Romney as the only remaining candidate actively participating in the primaries.

In June 2012, a group of 132 Paul supporters filed a lawsuit in U.S. District Court against the [[Republican National Committee]] and 55 state and territorial Republican party organizations for allegedly coercing delegates to choose [[Mitt Romney]] as the party’s presidential nominee. The suit sought to give all delegates the right to vote for Paul on the first ballot, even if they were "pledged" to another candidate.<ref name=suit>{{cite news|last=Roth|first=Caroline|title=RNC Faces Suit from Paul Backers|url=http://www.nationaljournal.com/politics/rnc-faces-suit-from-paul-backers-20120619|accessdate=Septmeber 18, 2012|newspaper=National Journal|date=June 19, 2012}}</ref> The suit alleged that there had been "a systematic campaign of election fraud at state conventions," employing rigging of voting machines, ballot stuffing, and falsification of ballot totals. The suit further pointed to incidents at state conventions, including acts of violence and changes in procedural rules, allegedly intended to deny participation of Paul supporters in the party decision-making and to prevent votes from being cast for Paul. An attorney representing the plaintiffs said that Paul campaign advisor [[Doug Wead]] had supported the decision to sue.<ref name=suit/> Paul told [[CNN]] that although the lawsuit was not a part of his campaign’s strategy and that he had not been advising his supporters to sue, he was not going to tell his supporters not to sue, if they had a legitimate argument. “If they’re not following the rules, you have a right to stand up for the rules. I think for the most part these winning caucuses that we've been involved in we have followed the rules. And the other side has at times not followed the rules.”<ref name=CNNsuit>{{cite news|title=Ron Paul interview with Wolf Blitzer|url=http://transcripts.cnn.com/TRANSCRIPTS/1206/19/sitroom.01.html|accessdate=September 18, 2012|newspaper=CNN (The Situation Room)|date=June 19, 2012}}</ref> Later that month, a Federal District Court judge dismissed the complaint,<ref>{{cite news|last=Reynolds|first=Matt|title=Try again, judge tells Ron Paul supporters|url=http://www.courthousenews.com/2012/08/09/49160.htm|newspaper=Courthouse News Service|date=August 9, 2012}}</ref> but the plaintiffs refiled it and it was pending at the time of the convention.

===2012 Republican Convention===
Because Romney won on the first ballot, the exact number of Paul delegates will never be known. However, Paul did receive 190 delegate votes at the convention.<ref>{{cite web|title=Complete 2012 RNC Delegate Roll Call Vote Results|url=http://ingotnews.com/post/30435195767/complete-2012-rnc-delegate-roll-call-vote-results|publisher=http://ingotnews.com|accessdate=September 18, 2012}}</ref> Because Paul did not gain at least a majority of the delegations of five states, his name was not formally placed into nomination, and he was not scheduled to speak at the convention. Instead, he organized a rally on the Sunday before the Convention at the [[University of South Florida]] Sun Dome for his delegates and supporters.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ronpaul2012.com/2012/08/21/ron-paul-pre-rnc-event-to-assemble-champions-of-constitutional-conservatism/|title =Ron Paul Pre-RNC Event to Assemble Champions of Constitutional Conservatism|publisher = ronpaul2012.com|accessdate=September 18, 2012}}</ref> Paul declined to endorse Romney - Ryan Republican ticket, saying that he was as yet undecided and leaving open the possibility that he would consider endorsing Libertarian candidate [[Gary Johnson]].<ref>{{cite news|last=Weinger|first=Mackenzie|title=Ron Paul: I'm an 'undecided' voter|url=http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0812/80301.html|newspaper=Politico|date=August 28, 2012}}</ref> His delegates sought to include a provision in the Republican Party platform for the auditing of the [[Federal Reserve]].

==Ron Paul Quotes==
* on Congressman [[Larry McDonald]], passenger on [[Korean Airlines Flight 007]], shot down by the Soviets near [[Moneron Island]] on Sept. 1, 1983 - "He was the most principled man in Congress"

==Telephone Hotline==
Ron Paul runs a toll-free [[telephone]] hotline with a recorded message of conservative commentary. It is updated every Monday.<ref>http://www.house.gov/paul/</ref>
==Criticism==
Despite being honest and consistent, many conservatives have problems with some of Ron Paul's views. He is anti-war, anti-Patriot Act, believes the [[War on Drugs]] should end, supports legalization of marijuana, supports stem cell research, opposes capital punishment, gave support for the Occupy "movement" (although he supported the Tea Party as well), is against corporate welfare, and is supported by many liberals. On the other hand, he opposes public healthcare, abortion, and welfare so remains popular with libertarians and some conservatives. (Source http://www.amnation.com/vfr/archives/018652.html)

==Books by Ron Paul==
* ''Challenge to Liberty''. Lake Jackson, Tex.: Foundation for Rational Economics and Education
* ''Gold, Peace, and Prosperity''. Lake Jackson, Tex.: Foundation for Rational Economics and Education
* ''Ten Myths About Paper Money''. Lake Jackson, Tex.: Foundation for Rational Economics and Education
* ''The Case for Gold''. Reprinted by the [[The Cato Institute|Cato Institute]], 1982; Ludwig von Mises Institute, 2007. ISBN 0-932790-31-3. ([http://www.mises.org/books/caseforgold.pdf])
* ''A Republic, If You Can Keep It''
* ''Mises and Austrian Economics: A Personal View''. Auburn, Ala.: [[Ludwig von Mises Institute]], 1984.
* ''Freedom Under Siege: The U.S. Constitution After 200 Years''. Lake Jackson, Tex.: Foundation for Rational Economics and Education, 1987. ([http://www.dailypaul.com/node/65] Book distributed with permission in 7 parts in pdf-format)
* ''A Foreign Policy of Freedom''. Lake Jackson, Tex.: Foundation for Rational Economics and Education, 2007. ISBN 0-912453-00-1
* ''The Revolution: A Manifesto'', Hachette Book Group USA, 2008. ISBN 978-0446537513

==Videos==
*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=endscreen&NR=1&v=lQQ--ju7Vxk Ron Paul on [[Larry McDonald]]]

==References==
<references/>
* Gwynne, Sam (1 October 2001). ''Texas Monthly''.
* Bernstein, Alan (May 23, 1996). “Newsletter excerpts offer ammunition to Paul's opponent; GOP hopeful quoted on race, crime”, ''The Houston Chronicle'', p. A33.
<references />
* "Ron Paul Background". Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life: Religion & Politics '08. Pew Research Center. September 2007. http://pewforum.org/religion08/profile.php?CandidateID=15. Retrieved on 2007-10-21.

==External links==
===Official Sites and Publications===
* [http://www.ronpaul2008.com/ Official Ron Paul 2008 Presidential Campaign Site]
* [http://www.myspace.com/congressmanronpaul Ron Paul's MySpace page]
* [http://www3.webng.com/ronpaul Ron Paul Grassroots Campaign] 
* [http://antiwar.com/paul/archives.php Rep. Ron Paul's Column for Antiwar.com]
* [http://www.mediamonitors.net/ronpaul2.html Commentary by Rep. Paul on U.S. policy in the Middle East]
* [http://www.counterpunch.org/paul03182004.html The Broadcast Indecency Act, An Indecent Attack on the First Amendment] by Ron Paul
* [http://www.house.gov/paul/congrec/congrec2002/cr062702.htm Is America a Police State?], speech before the U.S. House of Representatives on June 27, 2002
* [http://www.youtube.com/user/rescueKAL007#p/c/FD3DE4F0642C350C/0/1c8v-kgLvhM Ron Paul's introduction to Video of Cong.[[Larry McDonald]] on ''Crossfire'' made a few months before Larry McDonald went down with [[Korean Airlines Flight 007]] brought down by the Soviet Union in 1983]

===Positions and Quotations===
* [http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Ron_Paul Quotes by Ron Paul on Wikiquote]
* [http://senate.ontheissues.org/Ron_Paul.htm On the Issues - Ron Paul] issue positions and quotes
* [http://vote-smart.org/bio.php?can_id=BC031929 Project Vote Smart - Ron Paul]
* [http://projects.washingtonpost.com/congress/members/p000583/ Voting record maintained by the Washington Post]
* [http://www.sourcewatch.org/index.php?title=Ron_Paul SourceWatch Congresspedia - Ron Paul]
* [http://www.medicalmarijuanaprocon.org/BiosInd/Paul.htm Congressman Ron Paul and Medical Marijuana]
* "He was the most principled man in Congress" - On 2nd Chairman of [[John Birch Society]], Congressman Larry McDonald passenger on [[Korean Airlines Flight 007]] shot down by the Soviets on Sept. 1, 1983

===Third Party Sources about Ron Paul===
* [http://www.opensecrets.org/politicians/allsummary.asp?CID=N00005906 OpenSecrets.org - Congressional campaign contributions]
* [http://www.pbs.org/newshour/vote2008/primaries/candidates/paul.html Vote 2008: Ron Paul - Online NewsHour with Jim Lehrer]
* [http://herndon1.sdrdc.com/cgi-bin/can_detail/P80000748 Federal Election Commission - Presidential campaign contributions]
* [http://www.theadvocates.org/celebrities/ron-paul.html Advocates for Self-Government profile of Ron Paul]
* [http://www.virtuemag.org/articles/ron-paul Virtue Magazine Political profile of Ron Paul]
* [http://dailypaul.com/node/53 The American Dream - Through the Eyes of Mrs. Ron Paul] by Mrs. Ron Paul on TheDailyPaul.

===Articles and Editorials about Ron Paul===
* [http://www.321gold.com/editorials/taylor/taylor031706.html Congressman Ron Paul Talks About Gold, Oil & the Economy]
* [http://www.house.gov/paul/press/press2004/pr042104.htm National Taxpayers Union Honors Ron Paul as one of 29 Congressmen who are "Taxpayer's Friends"]

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[[Category:Texas]]
[[Category:2012 Presidential Candidates]]
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Occupy Democrats

2017-04-19T14:10:04Z

Teapublican: liberal deceit

'''Occupy Democrats''' is a far-left progressive [[social media]] and fake news site that has become infamous for its outrageous lies and propaganda. Occupy Democrats routinely calls Republicans and [[Donald Trump|Trump]] "racist" for no particular reason. Occupy Democrats makes outrageously false claims about [[Barack Hussein Obama|Obama]]'s record of achievements claiming Obama created 15 Million jobs and reduced the deficit by more than half. Occupy Democrats represents the extreme left wing of the Democrat party and promotes [[communist]] and [[socialist]] propaganda (such as calling opponents of a job-killing $15 minimum wage "racist"). The fact checking website Politifact has found no "facts" promoted by Occupy Democrats to be true.<ref>http://www.politifact.com/personalities/occupy-democrats</ref> <ref>https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MGKedHf5g2M</ref>
The Occupy Democrats even claim that the Republicans started the KKK ignoring the fact that the "Occupy" Democrats started it <ref>http://thefederalistpapers.org/us/occupy-democrats-forget-it-was-their-ilk-who-started-the-kkk</ref> Occupy Democrats go as far to claim Obama is the "greatest president ever" <ref>http://thefederalistpapers.org/us/the-dumbest-anti-trump-meme-from-the-left-of-all-time</ref>

==References==
{{reflist}}
https://www.facebook.com/OccupyDemocratsLogic/
[[Category:Hate Groups]]
[[Category:Democratic Party]]
[[Category:Liberalism]]
[[Category:Socialists]]
[[Category:Communism]]
[[Category:Anti Second Amendment]]
[[Category:Propaganda]]
[[Category:Fascism]]
[[Category:Liberal News Organizations]]
[[Category:Liberal Deceit]]

Ronald Wilson Reagan

2017-04-19T14:07:30Z

Teapublican: Category:Capitalists

{{Officeholder
|name=Ronald Wilson Reagan
|image=Ronald-reagan by kinstler.jpg
|party=[[Republican]]
|spouse= Jane Wyman [[Nancy Davis Reagan]]
|religion=[[Presbyterian]]
|offices=
{{Officeholder/president
|country=the United States
|number=40th
|terms=January 20, 1981 – January 20, 1989
|vp=[[George H. W. Bush]]
|preceded=[[Jimmy Carter]]
|former=y
|succeeded=[[George H. W. Bush]]
}}
{{Officeholder/governor
|number=33rd
|state=California
|terms=January 2, 1967 – January 6, 1975
|preceded=[[Pat Brown|Edmund G. "Pat" Brown, Sr.]]
|former=y
|succeeded=[[Jerry Brown|Edmund G. "Jerry" Brown, Jr.]]
}}
|military=y
|allegiance=United States
|branch=Army Reserve, Air Force
|serviceyears=1937-1946
|rank=Captain
}}
'''Ronald Wilson Reagan''' (February 6, 1911 - June 5, 2004), served as the 40th [[President of the United States of America]] from 1981 to 1989. He was the 33rd Governor of [[California]] (1967–1975), following a successful career in film and television. He has been widely recognized as one of the greatest American Presidents and the main inspiration for the conservative movement from the 1970s to the present.

Reagan was a [[movement conservative]] who succeeded in moving the nation to the right in terms of reducing federal regulation and lowering taxes. He promoted Individual Liberty and the conviction that government was the problem and private enterprise the solution. He cut taxes but despite his proposals, spending and the federal deficit went up. After a short sharp recession early in his first term, the economy was strong by 1984. Proclaiming "It's Morning Again in America", Reagan carried 49 of 50 states to win reelection. He moved the [[Supreme Court]] and the federal courts to the right with his appointments.

Reagan's [[Supply-side economics|supply-side economic]] policies were based on the [[libertarian]] ideas of [[Milton Friedman]] and the [[Chicago School of Economics]]. "Reaganomics" was based on the idea that tax cuts will spur savings and investment. Reagan was strongly opposed to the concept of [[Big government]], advocating a reduction in the size and budget of the federal government. During his terms in office, he faced a divided Congress split between Republican and Democratic control for six of his eight years as President. Reagan was known for forging alliances with "[[Blue Dog]]" (conservative) Democrats to overcome the apparent majority led by Democratic Speaker [[Tip O'Neill]].

In foreign affairs Reagan rejected détente with the [[Soviet Union]], but not with [[China]]. His massive defense buildup forced the Soviets to confront their crumbling financial base. He rejected the legitimacy of Communism and in the [[Reagan Doctrine]] systematically challenged and eventually destroyed Soviet strength in the Third World. After 1986 the new leadership of [[Mikhail Gorbachev]] who tried desperately to rescue Communism by cutting its losses; they came to terms with Reagan; the Communist empire collapsed in 1989 a few months after Reagan left office, and Communism was abolished (and Gorbachev repudiated) by Russia in 1991. Reagan is thus credited with achieving victory in the Cold War.<ref>Knopf (2004)</ref>

Always distrustful of nuclear weapons, Reagan proposed SDI, a space-based system to defend against nuclear missiles. The inability of the Soviet Union to match this new technological breakthrough forced it to agree to Reagan's terms for ending the Cold War. In leading the rollback of Communism in Europe, he battled powerful liberal forces that called instead for détente (peaceful relations) with Communism. As the Soviet system faltered and Gorbachev accepted Reagan's terms, ensured an unprecedented level of nuclear disarmament. His signature phrase in dealing with Communists was "trust, but verify."

In his most famous challenges to Communism, Reagan went to the Brandenburg Gate and gave the Soviets the American terms for ending the Cold War: "Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!" The Soviets were forced to agree, and watched their empire collapse overnight in late 1989, a few months after Reagan was succeeded as president by his Vice President [[George H.W. Bush]]. At the closing of his presidency, Reagan compared America to that "[[Shining city upon a hill]]", a beacon of Liberty for all who still live in the darkness of totalitarian rule.<ref>[http://dailycaller.com/2011/02/04/reagan-shining-city-hill/ Reagan saw the shining city on the hill], [[Daily Caller]]</ref>

As a great communicator, and leader of the Republican party, he added a new base of "Reagan Democrats" (blue collar workers who were social conservatives), religious [[evangelical]]s, and [[neoconservative]]s; his success became the model for Republicans into the 21st century.

By all accounts, including by many of his adversaries, Reagan was a highly intelligent individual. He also contributed many new well-thought-through [[insight]]s to the general public that were not previously available.<ref>Tear Down This Wall, Laffer Curve, etc. See [[conservative insights]]</ref>
[[File:Reagan's signature.jpg|Right|285px|thumb|Ronald Reagan's signature]]
[[File:Reagan-at-durenberger-rally.jpg|Right|500px|thumb|Ronaldus Magnus]]
== Reagan's Conservatism ==
In a speech, immediately after assuming the presidency in 1981, he outlined his philosophy. After listing "intellectual leaders like [[Russell Kirk]], [[Friedrich Hayek]], [[Henry Hazlitt]], [[Milton Friedman]], [[James Burnham]], [[Ludwig von Mises]]" as the ones who "shaped so much of our thoughts," he discussed only one of these influences at length:

*It's especially hard to believe that it was only a decade ago, on a cold April day on a small hill in upstate New York, that another of these great thinkers, [[Frank Meyer]], was buried. He'd made the awful journey that so many others had: He pulled himself from the clutches of "The [communist] God That Failed,'' and then in his writing fashioned a vigorous new synthesis of traditional and libertarian thought -- a synthesis that is today recognized by many as modern conservatism.

*It was [[Frank Meyer]] who reminded us that the robust individualism of the American experience was part of the deeper current of Western learning and culture. He pointed out that a respect for law, an appreciation for tradition, and regard for the social consensus that gives stability to our public and private institutions, these civilized ideas must still motivate us even as we seek a new economic prosperity based on reducing government interference in the marketplace.

*Our goals complement each other. We're not cutting the budget simply for the sake of sounder financial management. This is only a first step toward returning power to the States and communities, only a first step toward reordering the relationship between citizen and government. We can make government again responsive to the people by cutting its size and scope and thereby ensuring that its legitimate functions are performed efficiently and justly.<ref>[http://acuf.org/issues/issue13/040606news.asp Ronald Reagan's Conservative Legacy, ACUF]</ref> Reagan rose to power speaking of [[Traditional values]] such as hard work, faith, family, God and patriotism (ideas that liberals call "racist"). Reagan strongly opposed progressive taxation, redistribution of wealth, the welfare state, and nationalization.

==Early life==
[[File:Ronald Reagan Young Boy.jpg|left|160px|thumb|Jack Reagan, Neil, Ronald, and his mother Nelle (from left to right) Photograph circa 1916-17.]]
Reagan was born in [[Tampico, Illinois]], the second son of John (Jack) Edward and Nelle Wilson Reagan. The family finally settled in Dixon, Illinois in 1920 after years of moving from town to town. Jack Reagan nicknamed his younger son “Dutch", claiming he looked like “a fat little Dutchman.”<ref>[http://www.reagan.utexas.edu/archives/reference/facts.html Ronald Reagan Facts]: Physical Description, Favorites, Dislikes, Firsts in Life, Nickname, and Religion</ref> Reagan's father was a working class Irish Catholic, and an active Democrat. Unemployed during the [[Great Depression]], Jack Reagan held a minor position in the [[WPA]] during the [[New Deal]]. Reagan recalled numerous alcoholic episodes that cost his father many job opportunities. Nelle Reagan, a devout member of the [[Disciples of Christ]], greatly influenced her son, who remained a lifelong Protestant.
[[File:Reagan_graduation.jpg|right|160px|thumb|1932 photo taken after his graduation from Eureka College]]
He attended [[Eureka College]], a small Disciples school where he developed a reputation as a "jack of all trades", excelling in campus politics, sports and theater. Reagan was a member of several athletic organizations including the football and track teams, the basketball cheerleading squad, and captain of the swimming team. He was also yearbook editor and was elected student body president. Reagan was a political liberal at that point and led a student revolt against the college president. In his first year at Eureka, the president of the college tried to cut back the faculty. Reagan helped organize a student strike. He received his degree in economics and sociology in 1932.<ref>[http://www.asanet.org/students/famous.cfm Famous Sociology Majors]</ref>

To pay for college, Reagan worked many low wage jobs such as cooking hamburgers and washing tables. He also worked as a lifeguard at Lowell Park on the Rock River in Dixon for seven summers, where he saved seventy-seven swimmers from drowning.<ref>[http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/timeline/reagan/ Timeline of Ronald Reagan’s Life], [[PBS]]</ref>

After college Reagan became a radio sports announcer in Iowa. Although he was originally only hired to announce the [[University of Iowa]] football games, he became so popular in the Midwest he began covering Chicago Cubs baseball games at Wrigley Field. He also wrote sports columns in the Des Moines ‘’Dispatch’’.

===Reagan as Disciple===
Reagan took religious values into the presidency that he learned from his [[Disciples of Christ]] background at home and at Eureka College, a Disciples school. He was strongly influenced by Ben Hill Cleaver, the minister of the First Christian Church<ref>The formal name of the denomination is the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ).</ref> in Dixon, Illinois, during the 1920s, and by Reagan's mother, Nelle, an active member of the church. At many points the positions taken by the Disciples Church of Reagan's youth coincided with the words, if not the beliefs of the latter-day Reagan. These positions included faith in Providence, the association of America's mission with God's will, belief in progress, trust in the work ethic and admiration for those who achieved wealth, an uncomfortableness with literature and art that questioned the family or challenged notions of proper sexual behavior, the presumption that poverty is an individual problem best left to charity rather than the state, sensitivity to problems involving alcohol and drugs, and reticence to use government to protect civil rights for minorities. Reagan's experiences in the church and with the Cleavers provided early training in public speaking and offered a way of learning in which acting played a central part. Reagan's use of the jeremiad and his fusing of Judeo-Christianity and patriotism into a civil religion also have their roots in this early period. For her part, Nelle was a pillar of the church and the one who provided stability to the shaky Reagan family when the head was drunkard and a poor provider. She helped spark her son's interest in acting and believed the stage could be a force for noble purposes.<ref>Stephen Vaughn, "The Moral Inheritance of a President: Reagan and the Dixon Disciples of Christ." ''Presidential Studies Quarterly'' 1995 25(1): 109-127. 0360-4918</ref>

==Hollywood==
[[File:Reagan1953.jpg|thumb|left|250px|1953 film ''Law and Order'', starring Reagan and Dorothy Malone]]
In 1937 Reagan traveled to [[Hollywood]] to cover the Chicago Cubs's spring training games and look at prospects in the film industry. Warner Brothers studio offered him a one-year contract with a starting salary of $200 a week. He made his first on-screen debut in the 1937 movie ''Love is On the Air'',<ref>[http://www.tcm.com/this-month/article/161292|0/Love-is-On-the-Air.html Love is on the Air]</ref> then became famous starring in numerous "B" movies, where he typically played a supporting character rather than the leading role. In 1941 Reagan gave a well received performance in the [[Academy Award|Oscar]] nominated film ''Kings Row''. Other notable movies include ''Knute Rockne'', ''The Hasty Heart'', and the film ''Brother Rat'', which is where Reagan first met his future wife Jane Wyman.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=7rBLCZuEOswC&pg=PA189 President Reagan: The Role of a Lifetime]</ref> During the war Reagan was in the Air Force where he was assigned to make training films.

===Military Service===
Intertwined with his career as an actor, Reagan also served in the military. He enlisted in the Army Enlisted Reserve on 29 April 1937, and transferred to the Army Air Forces (AAF) in 1942.<ref name=service>[https://reaganlibrary.archives.gov/archives/reference/military.html Military Service of Ronald Reagan]</ref> Poor eyesight kept him from being sent into overseas combat. He would instead produce training films for the AAF Public Relations and subsequently, to the 1st Motion Picture Unit in Culver City, California.

By the end of the war, his units had produced some 400 training films for the Army Air Forces. He resumed his Hollywood career on release in 1946, and his Reserve Commission automatically terminated on April 1, 1953.

While serving, Reagan was promoted several times. On January 4, 1943, he was promoted to First Lieutenant. On July 22, 1943, was promoted to Captain.<ref name=service />

===Return to Hollywood===
[[Image:Reagantheater.jpg‎|right|thumb|205px|Ronald Reagan and General Electric Theater. 1954-62.]]
Reagan's movie career faded in the late 1940s but he made a successful transition to television, especially as a host, and became a celebrity on the speakers' circuit. He traveled the country as a motivation speaker for [[General Electric]], attracting highly appreciative audiences for his polished, witty speeches based on a wide reading in current events and libertarian economic principles. Reagan also starred in the 1960s television series ''Death Valley Days''. By 1964 he had appeared in over 50 films.

===Friendship with Billy Graham===
Reagan first met [[Billy Graham]] in the mid 1950s<ref name=focus>[http://jimdaly.focusonthefamily.com/a-story-of-billy-graham-and-ronald-reagan/ A Story of Billy Graham and Ronald Reagan], [[Focus on the Family]]</ref><ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/story/2004/06/08/transcript-ronald-reagan-friendship-with-billy-graham.html Transcript: Ronald Reagan's Friendship With Billy Graham], [[Fox News]]</ref> around the time that Reagan started with GE, and they remained friends for many years.

Graham was very impressed with Reagan's ability to effectively manage criticism with politeness, reason, and conviction. Graham wrote of Reagan in relating a story of a pastor from Dallas: "Ron had not only changed a man's mind, but he had done it with charm, conviction, and humor - traits I would see repeatedly as I got to know him."<ref name=focus />
[[Image:Reagan-LPcover.jpg|thumb|100px|left]]
===Operation Coffee Cup===
{{main|Operation Coffee Cup}}

During the 1950s and 1960s, Reagan teamed up with the [[American Medical Association]] to produce a campaign against government run universal healthcare, warning citizens that if the government controls your healthcare, they control you.

Together with the AMA, they produced the LP record ''Ronald Reagan Speaks Out Against Socialized Medicine''.

===Union president===
Reagan jumped into union politics and was elected to five terms as president of the [[Screen Actors Guild]], a labor union for movie actors and part of the [[AFL]]. As SAG President he traveled across the country giving speeches on behalf of actors. Until the 1950s Reagan was an avid liberal Democrat who strongly supported the [[New Deal]] of [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] and the [[Fair Deal]] of [[Harry S. Truman]]. He often campaigned on behalf of the [[New Deal Coalition]], such as [[Helen Gahagan Douglas]]'s 1950 run for Senator of California.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=U2cs7IHERBwC&pg=PA43 Ronald Reagan's Journey: Democrat to Republican]</ref> There was talk of running Reagan for president of the AFL itself.<ref>Ronald Reagan, [http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/0743400259/ref=sib_dp_srch_bod?v=search-inside&keywords=truman ''An American Life'' (1990) p 132]</ref>

Reagan was thus the only president to lead a [[labor union]], a bastion of liberalism. Reagan himself was a registered Democrat well into the 1950s, but as head of the Screen Actors Guild he fought against Communist infiltration. In 1947 he became an FBI informant, known by the bureau as informant "T-10",<ref>[http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,959749,00.html Unmasking Informant T-10], [[Time Magazine]]</ref><ref>[http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1985-08-26/news/8502040928_1_fbi-interviews-reagan-and-wyman-informant Reagan Reportedly Was Fbi Informer In 1940s]</ref> and testified before the House Un-American Activities Committee. Reagan expressed some reservation with the FBI, asking one agent "Do they expect us to constitute ourselves as a little FBI of our own and determine just who is a Commie and who isn't?"<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=I4-UBnd20K4C&pg=PA155 Ronald Reagan in Hollywood: Movies and Politics]</ref> Peggy Noonan wrote, "Even in his zeal to purge the communist influence from [[Hollywood]], he fought those who engaged in witch hunts and defended those who had been falsely accused of involvement."

==Democrat to Republican==
While remaining a Democrat in the 1950s, Reagan started to increasingly hold conservative points of view. After actively supporting [[Richard Nixon]]'s campaign for president in 1960, Reagan switched political parties and officially became a Republican in 1962. He realized that he had diverged greatly from the tax-and-spend liberalism of the Democratic Party. As a part of Reagan's change in viewpoints, he came to be a fan of former president [[Calvin Coolidge]], and would later replace a painting of Truman with that of Coolidge in the White House Cabinet Room.<ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/1981/07/04/opinion/calvin-reagan.html Calvin Reagan], [[The New York Times]]</ref>

==1964==
Conservatives nationwide saw Reagan as their new star when his campaigning for Senator [[Barry Goldwater]] in 1964 was better received than Goldwater's own speeches. He raised an unprecedented eight million dollars for Goldwater. Despite Goldwater's defeat, Reagan's 1964 "[[Time for Choosing]]" speech helped launch his political career and made him became a probable candidate for governor of California.

==Governor of California (1967-1975)==
[[Image:Reagangovernor.jpg‎|left|thumb|275px|Ronald Reagan and Nancy Reagan at the Victory celebration for California Governor at the Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles, California 11/8/66.]] In the 1966 gubernatorial campaign, conservatives generally supported Reagan over George Christopher, the Republican mayor of [[San Francisco]]. Reagan defeated Christopher, and incumbent [[liberal]] [[Democrat]] [[Pat Brown]] in the general election, taking fifty-three of California's fifty-eight counties. Reagan's strategists wanted to emphasize libertarian support for smaller government and less taxation, as the state verged on a revolt against high property taxes. As student and black unrest exploded in the headlines, Reagan's call for [[Law and order]] won the votes of former liberals. Reagan's victory marked the end of New Deal liberalism in California.<ref>Dallek, Matthew. "Liberalism Overthrown." ''American Heritage'' (1996) 47(6): 39+ Fulltext online at Ebsco</ref>

Reagan inherited an enormous budget deficit from the Brown administration. In his first year as Governor, Reagan froze government spending and cut ten percent of the spending budget in each department of the government. At the end of his two terms the $194 million deficit had been transformed into a $550 million surplus. The ''San Francisco Chronicle'' editorialized, "We exaggerate very little when we say that Reagan has saved the state from bankruptcy.<ref>[http://www.livingroomcandidate.org/commercials/1980 1980 Reagan VS. Carter VS. Anderson]</ref>

When coming into office there was a growing number of anarchist protesters at the [[University of California, Berkeley]] over the United States' involvement in the [[Vietnam War]]. The protests would become violent. Reagan sent the state police and later the national guard to handle the riots. It allowed him to showcase his populist themes of morality, [[Law and order]], strong leadership, and defense of traditional values. Reagan was reelected in 1970, after firing the president of the state university and sending in armed force to confront student demonstrators. Reagan's handling of this crisis helped to make him into a national politician known for strength and courage.<ref>Gerard DeGroot, "Reagan's Rise." ''History Today'' (1995) 45(9): 31-36. Issn: 0018-2753 Fulltext online at Ebsco</ref>

Governor Reagan briefly tested the presidential waters in 1968 as part of a "Stop Nixon" movement, but drew back when he saw [[Richard Nixon]]'s strength.

Governor Reagan also attempted to clean up radicalism at other college campuses. [[Angela Davis]], a member of the [[Communist Party USA]], was also a professor of philosophy at [[UCLA]]. Reagan wrote that "I, nor the board will tolerate any Communist activities at any state institution... any member of the Communist Party is barred from teaching at this institution."<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=OwhvBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA140 African Americans and Criminal Justice: An Encyclopedia: An Encyclopedia]</ref>

Welfare spending was a major issue in the 1970 election; with 10% of the nation's population, California had 16% of its welfare recipients. Reagan promised to cut the welfare spending by rooting out fraud and abuse, by requiring recipients to take jobs, and by collecting from dead-beat fathers. Democrats in the legislature supported a much more liberal bill, which advocated the welfare rights of the poor. Reagan personally worked out a compromise that passed and won considerable praise and some criticism. Its savings to taxpayers proved small, but it represented an important political achievement for both parties. Reagan benefited as well, emerging from the compromise as a more experienced and effective politician.<ref>Burbank (1991)</ref>

Reagan supported and signed laws to liberalize [[abortion]] in California (before the Supreme Court issued ''[[Roe v. Wade]]''), but later turned strongly against abortion.

Reagan's gubernatorial style, which carried over into his presidency, was expansive in looking only at the big picture, and choosing talented staffers who were given the power to handle all the details. Reagan seldom paid attention to the minute details of his own policies. Reagan was a powerful communicator, through press conferences and public appearances, with an uncanny knack for precise timing to make the maximum impact.<ref>Hamilton and Biggart, (1984); Ritter (1992)</ref>

Liberals across the country were puzzled by Reagan, and decided that he was a weak reactionary who would be easy to defeat if he ran for president. California liberals explained they were all wrong, that Reagan was the most formidable Republican since Eisenhower.

In 1970, he was re-elected by a landslide against challenger "Big Daddy" Jesse Unruh.<ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/1987/08/06/obituaries/jesse-unruh-a-california-political-power-dies.html Jesse Unruh, A California Political Power, Dies], [[The New York Times]]</ref> But in 1974, he chose not to seek a third term and was succeeded by liberal Democrat [[Jerry Brown]].

In 1974, the [[Symbionese Liberation Army]] abducted [[Patty Hearst]] and demanded a redistribution of food to the poor. Governor Reagan quipped: "It's just too bad we can't have an epidemic of botulism".<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=PAvTCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA288 Days of Rage: America's Radical Underground, the FBI, and the Forgotten Age of Revolutionary Violence]</ref>

Three Lieutenant Governors served with Reagan: Robert Finch(67-69), Edwin Reinecke(69-74), John L. Harmer(74-75).

===Events and achievements as governor===

*Called in the [[National Guard]] to restore order when "People's Park" protesters began attacking police, and restored order to California's chaotic university campuses. Reagan authorized the use of force against the rioting protesters in Berkeley, saying, "If there has to be a bloodbath, then let's get it over with. No more appeasement." In the resulting chaos, 111 police officers were injured, and police fired buckshot into the crowd, sending over a dozen people to the hospital with shotgun wounds, 3 with punctured lungs and 1 with a shattered leg, and fatally wounded James Rector, who had been attacking the police.<ref>[http://police.berkeley.edu/about_UCPD/ucpdhistory.html#anchor178048 "History topic: People's Park"] University of California, Berkeley - Police Department (August 2006)</ref><ref>''San Francisco Chronicle'', early morning edition, May 15, 1969</ref><ref>[http://www.berkeley.edu/news/media/releases/2004/06/08_reagan.shtml Ronald Reagan launched political career using the Berkeley campus as a target] (June 8, 2004)</ref><ref>[http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2014/02/video-ronald-reagans-press-conference-after-bloody-thursday/284045/ Video: Ronald Reagan's Press Conference After 'Bloody Thursday'] (February 2014)</ref><ref>[http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,904149,00.html California: Postscript to People's Park], [[Time Magazine]] archive, February 16th, 1970, Note: Fee required to read article.</ref>

*Led a comprehensive and far-reaching revision of California's massive public assistance programs, actually increasing benefits to the truly needy.

*Worked well with the Democrats to forge consensus on a variety of issues.

*Despite pressure within his own party, Reagan publicly opposed the Briggs Initiative which helped its defeat at the ballot in 1978.

*Signed the nation's first no-fault divorce law

*Signed the Therapeutic Abortion Law, which had the effect of increasing the availability of legal abortion in California - later Reagan expressed regret for this<ref>[http://www.lifenews.com/2008/03/11/nat-3790/ Revisionist History: Misrepresenting President Ronald Reagan’s Abortion Record], [[LifeSiteNews]]</ref><ref>[http://www.nationalreview.com/article/223437/reagans-darkest-hour-paul-kengor-patricia-clark-doerner Reagan's Darkest Hour, "Therapeutic" abortion in California.], [[National Review]]</ref><ref>[http://cnsnews.com/news/article/president-reagan-put-his-pro-life-stance-center-stage-supporting-march-life President Reagan Put His Pro-Life Stance Center Stage In Supporting the March for Life], [[CNSNews.com]]</ref><ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=-dSvWrJ6ooAC&pg=PA64 The Essential Ronald Reagan: A Profile in Courage, Justice, and Wisdom]</ref> and even wrote a [[pro-life]] pamphlet while he was president.

==Nationally Syndicated Radio==
From 1975 to 1979, Reagan gave over 1000 radio addresses to listeners in 20-30 million homes each week.<ref>[https://www.loc.gov/programs/static/national-recording-preservation-board/documents/ReaganOnRadio.pdf Ronald Reagan Radio Broadcasts]</ref> In one particular address, he discussed the California abortion bill he had signed, along with some additional observations.

<blockquote>A bill had been introduced in the California legislature to make abortion available upon demand. The pro and anti forces were already marshaling their troops, and emotions were running high. Then the author of the bill sent word down that he'd amend his bill to anything I felt I could sign. The ball - to coin a cliche - was in my court. Suddenly I had to have a position on abortion.

I did more studying and soul-searching than on any thing that was to face me as governor. I discovered that neither medicine, law, or theology had ever really found a common ground on the subject. Some believed an unborn child was no more than a growth on the body female and she should be able to remove it as she would her appendix. Others felt a human life existed from the moment the fertilized egg was implanted in the womb. Strangely enough, the same legislature that couldn't agree on abortion had unanimously passed a law making it murder to abuse a pregnant woman so as to cause the death of her unborn child.

Another inconsistency - the unborn have property rights protected by law. A man can will his estate to his wife and children and any children yet to be born of his marriage. Yet the proposed abortion law would deny the unborn the protection of the law in preserving its life.

I went to the lawyers on my staff and posed a hypothetical question. What if a pregnant woman became a widow during her pregnancy and found her husband had left his fortune to her and the unborn child. Under the proposed abortion law, she could take the life of her child and inherit all of her husband's estate. Wouldn't that be murder for financial gain? The only answer I got was that they were glad I wasn't asking the questions on the bar exam.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=MH7b57xk6jIC&pg=PA52 Speaking My Mind: Selected Speeches]</ref></blockquote>

==The New Republican Party==
At the 1975 [[Conservative Political Action Conference]], Reagan talked about the new Republican Party in a speech titled "''[[Let Them Go Their Way]]''", a party that was a striking contrast to the Democrat party. He called for bold colors that would be contrasted against pale pastels. This is one of Reagan's most quoted lines from any speech.<ref>[http://www.westernfreepress.com/2013/03/14/reagan-at-cpac-in-1975-let-them-go-their-way/ Reagan at CPAC in 1975: "Let Them Go Their Way"]</ref>

At the time, voters were of the belief that because Republicans did very little in the way of conservative principles and values, that there was little to no difference between the two parties. Reagan's main point was that instead of organizing a new third party, why not organize a new first party.

==Presidential Campaigns==
===1976===
[[File:1976 Republican National Convention.jpg|left|thumb|300px|Reagan and Ford at the 1976 Republican National Convention]]
{{Main|United States presidential election, 1976}}

After [[Richard Nixon]]'s resignation in 1974, the weak [[Gerald Ford]] became president, and Reagan challenged him in the 1976 Republican Party primaries. The main issue was détente with the Soviets as promoted by Ford and Secretary of State [[Henry Kissinger]], though other issues such as the [[Panama Canal]] also threw Ford off guard.<ref name=canal>[https://books.google.com/books?id=qpfzsnHAzZAC&pg=PA315 Gerald Ford and the Challenges of the 1970s]</ref> Ford won the first 13 primaries, then Reagan came roaring back. He criticized the federal government and politicians for being too large, too powerful, and too involved in American society. Reagan named liberal eastern Senator Richard Schweiker as his running mate, disappointing many of his conservative supporters.<ref>[http://archives.chicagotribune.com/1976/07/28/page/5/article/reagan-gambles-all-in-schweiker-choice Reagan gambles all in Schweiker choice]</ref> The outcome of the contest was that Ford won 26 primary contests, and Reagan won 24. The final delegate count was 1121 to 1078, Ford. 1130 delegates were needed to clinch the nomination.<ref name=seventysix>[http://www.newsweek.com/delegate-battle-1976-reagan-almost-unseated-ford-449843 Delegate Battle of '76: When Reagan Almost Beat Ford], [[Newsweek]]</ref>

At the Republican convention, victory came down to the Mississippi delegation which swung the nomination to Ford. However, given how difficult it is to run against an incumbent President in a Primary, Reagan's campaign was surprisingly strong. On the first ballot, Ford had 1,187 delegates, Reagan had 1,070.<ref name=seventysix /> Ford had succeeded in becoming the party's nominee.

After Ford was defeated in the general election, Reagan retired to his ranch in California and continued to give speeches across the country. There was little doubt that Reagan was the dominant Republican for the next election, and he easily won the nomination in 1980.

===1980===
{{Main|United States presidential election, 1980}}

Before the general election, Reagan faced a Republican primary challenge from the more moderate [[George H. W. Bush]]. Bush was highly established and respected as having served as Director of the Central Intelligence Agency, ambassador to People's Republic of China and the United Nations, former chairman of the National Republican Committee, and two-term Congressman from [[Texas]]. Bush referred to Reagan's economic policies as "voodoo economics." After Bush won a surprising victory in the January 21st [[Iowa]] State primary, Reagan surged ahead after he outwitted Bush in the New Hampshire debate. During that debate, Reagan uttered the famous phrase "I'm paying for this microphone!"<ref>[https://usatelections.wordpress.com/2015/07/31/10-memorable-moments-from-past-primary-debates/ 10 memorable moments from past primary debates], [[USA Today]]</ref><ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RRI6iSrS1kc Ronald Reagan's famous line, "I am paying for this microphone"]</ref> After winning Iowa and losing New Hampshire, Bush had another win in the Massachusetts primary, then Reagan began sweeping primaries and crushed all of his opponents.<ref>[http://www.unionleader.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/99999999/NEWS0605/110509963 1980: Reagan begins his sweep], [[New Hampshire Union Leader]]</ref> Bush dropped out on May 26, leaving Reagan as the presumptive nominee. Ironically, he named George H. W. Bush as his running mate at the convention.<ref>[https://partners.nytimes.com/library/politics/camp/800717convention-gop-ra.html Reagan Wins Nomination and Chooses Bush as Running Mate After Talks With Ford Fail], [[The New York Times]]</ref>

Reagan was able to crusade against the failures of incumbent Democrat, President [[Jimmy Carter]]. There was runaway [[stagflation]], soaring [[interest rates]], persistent [[unemployment]], a series of humiliations abroad, and a weakened [[military]] in the face of growing Soviet superpower. As Reagan put it, "I'm told I can't use the word depression. Well, I'll tell you the definition. A recession is when your neighbor loses his job; depression is when you lose your job. Recovery is when Jimmy Carter loses his." The most pressing foreign policy crisis was that [[Iran]]ian President [[Ayatollah Khomeini]] was holding fifty- two Americans hostage. All of Carter's diplomatic attempts had failed.

The phrase "There you go again", which Reagan used in the Reagan-Carter Debate on October 28, 1980, became a defining phrase of the campaign.<ref>[http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Politics/Decoder/2012/1001/Presidential-debate-what-to-look-for-beyond-who-wins-or-loses-video Presidential debate: what to look for beyond who wins or loses]</ref><ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qN7gDRjTNf4 Reagan-Carter Oct. 28, 1980 Debate - "There You Go Again"]</ref>

[[File:2000px-ElectoralCollege1980.png|right|thumb|325px|Reagan's 1980 landslide]]
Reagan feared that the [[Soviet Union]]'s military had become much more powerful then the United States'. He proposed stronger defense systems and a larger military. Carter fought back, lashing out at Reagan as a dangerous radical who would unleash nuclear war. A liberal Republican [[John Anderson]] ran a third party campaign which received 7% of the popular vote. Reagan won a landslide victory - receiving 51% of the popular vote and winning 44 of 50 states. In the 20th century, only two presidents received a larger electoral majority: Franklin Roosevelt in 1936 and Richard Nixon in 1972.<ref>[http://www.trivia-library.com/c/biography-of-us-president-ronald-reagan-part-8-campaign.htm Biography of U.S. President Ronald Reagan]</ref> His long coattails brought in the first Republican Senate in years, but the Democrats still controlled the House. The election marked the last hurrah of the New Deal era, the final collapse of the [[New Deal Coalition]] and indeed the end of liberalism as a coherent policy.<ref>Busch 2005</ref>

====Suburban Swimming Pool====
During the 1980 election, media outlets at the time used blue for republican states and red for democrat states.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OMuWVsPQbwM US Election Night 1980 NBC live coverage 11-4-1980], Reagan blue-state landslide map in the background</ref><ref>[http://www.wnd.com/2012/05/how-red-states-turned-blue-and-vice-versa/ How red states turned blue and vice versa], [[WND]]</ref> [[David Brinkley]] famously said that it looked like a "suburban swimming pool."<ref>[http://www.conservativenewsandviews.com/2015/10/29/editorial/guest/dem-red-reagan-blue/ Dem red, Reagan blue]</ref> [[Time Magazine]] referred to it as "Lake Reagan."<ref>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1310&dat=20040208&id=bVNWAAAAIBAJ&sjid=qesDAAAAIBAJ&pg=6665,1584006&hl=en One state, Two state; red state blue state]</ref>

==Presidency (1981-1989)==
[[Image:Reagan 1981 Inauguration.jpg|right|thumb|325px|President Elect Reagan being sworn in for his first term in the 1981 Inauguration Ceremony at the U.S. Capitol]]
Ronald Reagan was sworn in as the 40th President of the United States on January 20, 1981. On that same day Ayatollah released the hostages after keeping them in captivity for 444 days. At the inauguration, the invocation and benediction were delivered by Reverend Donn Moomaw, Reagan's pastor at Bel Air Presbyterian Church in Hollywood.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=wF_kAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA15-IA103 The Living Church, Volume 182]</ref>

Once in office, Reagan vowed a shift in federal power, back to states and localities.<ref name=localities>[http://www.nytimes.com/1981/03/21/us/reagan-vows-shift-in-federal-powers.html REAGAN VOWS SHIFT IN FEDERAL POWERS], [[The New York Times]]</ref> When the Federal [[Air Traffic Controllers]] struck illegally, Reagan showed he was playing hardball and gave them 48 hours before he fired all who hadn't gone back to work (11,359).

Reagan rebuffed liberals who complained he was killing the New Deal. Noting that he voted for FDR in 1932, 1936, 1940 and 1944, as well as Truman in 1948, Reagan said he was trying to repeal the ''"[[Great Society]]"'' enacted by liberals in the mid-1960s.<ref>[http://books.google.com/books?id=68rBxuO7EsMC&pg=PA351&dq=reagan+%22great+society%22+roosevelt+truman&lr=&num=30&as_brr=0&as_pt=ALLTYPES ''Eyewitness to Power''], by David Gergen, (2000) p 351</ref> During the first term of his presidency, Reagan tapped [[James A. Baker]], [[Edwin Meese III]], and [[Michael Deaver]] to form a group known by some as "The Troika".<ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/1981/04/19/magazine/the-presidential-troika.html?pagewanted=all The Presidential Troika]</ref><ref>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=950&dat=19810806&id=02xQAAAAIBAJ&sjid=rlkDAAAAIBAJ&pg=7013,1321812&hl=en The Troika], The Evening Independent</ref><ref>[http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1985-01-05/features/8501010299_1_deaver-and-meese-michael-deaver-edwin-meese Reagan Does Not Plan To Replace Deaver, Meese]</ref>

===Administration===
[[Image:Reaganfamily-red-rr-.jpg|right|thumb|325px|President & Mrs. Reagan with their extended family.]]
{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Office
! Name
! Term
|-
| [[President]]
| Ronald Reagan
| 1981-1989
|-
| [[Vice President of the United States of America|Vice President]]
| [[George H.W. Bush]]
| 1981-1989
|-
| [[Secretary of State]]
| [[Alexander Haig]]
| 1981-1982
|-
|
| [[George Shultz]]
| 1982-1989
|-
| [[Secretary of Treasury]]
| [[Donald Regan]]
| 1981-1985
|-
|
| [[James Baker]]
| 1985-1988
|-
|
| [[Nicholas Brady]]
| 1988-1989
|-
| [[Secretary of Defense]]
| [[Caspar Weinberger]]
| 1981-1987
|-
|
| [[Frank C. Carlucci]]
| 1987-1989
|-
| [[Attorney General]]
| [[William Smith]]
| 1981-1985
|-
|
| [[Edwin Meese III]]
| 1985-1988
|-
|
| [[Richard Thornburgh]]
| 1988-1989
|-
| [[Secretary of the Interior]]
| [[James G. Watt]]
| 1981-1983
|-
|
| [[William P. Clark, Jr.]]
| 1983-1985
|-
|
| [[Donald Hodel]]
| 1985-1989
|-
| [[Secretary of Agriculture]]
| [[John Rusling Block]]
| 1981-1986
|-
|
| [[Richard E. Lyng]]
| 1986-1989
|-
| [[Secretary of Commerce]]
| [[Howard M. Baldrige, Jr.]]
| 1981-1987
|-
|
| [[C. William Verity, Jr.]]
| 1987-1989
|-
| [[Secretary of Labor]]
| [[Raymond J. Donovan]]
| 1981-1985
|-
|
| [[William E. Brock]]
| 1985–1987
|-
|
| [[Ann Dore McLaughlin]]
| 1987-1989
|-
| [[Secretary of Health and Human Services]]
| [[Richard S. Schweiker]]
| 1981–1983
|-
|
| [[Margaret Heckler]]
| 1983-1985
|-
|
| [[Otis R. Bowen]]
| 1985-1989
|-
| [[Secretary of Education]]
| [[Terrel Bell]]
| 1981-1985
|-
|
| [[William Bennett]]
| 1985-1988
|-
|
| [[Lauro Cavazos]]
| 1988-1989
|-
| [[Secretary of Housing and Urban Development]]
| [[Samuel R. Pierce, Jr.]]
| 1981-1989
|-
| [[Secretary of Transportation]]
| [[Drew Lewis]]
| 1981-1983
|-
|
| [[Elizabeth Dole]]
| 1983-1987
|-
|
| [[James H. Burnley IV]]
| 1987-1989
|-
| [[Secretary of Energy]]
| [[James B. Edwards]]
| 1981-1982
|-
|
| [[Donald Paul Hodel]]
| 1982-1985
|-
|
| [[John S. Herrington]]
| 1985-1989
|-
|}

===Assassination Attempt===
Outside the Washington Hilton Hotel<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=tMrEP4Y6whwC&pg=PA64 The Reagan Era from the Iran Crisis to Kosovo]</ref> on March 30, 1981, Reagan was shot by [[John W. Hinckley]] near the heart after giving a routine speech.<ref>The assassin was [[John Hinckley]], a mentally disturbed man who didn't shoot Reagan for political reasons, but instead did to impress an actress he had never met.</ref> Surgeons at [[George Washington University]] Hospital saved his life and despite his age he recovered quickly. Prior to the operation, Reagan looked up at the doctors and said "I Hope you're all Republicans". Dr. Joseph Giordano, the head surgeon at GWU Hospital confirmed the story, and replied to the president "We are all Republicans today".<ref>[http://urbanlegends.about.com/od/historical/a/ronald_reagan.htm Ronald Reagan: Grace Under the Scalpel]</ref>

White House Press Secretary [[James Brady]] was shot in the head, became permanently disabled; Brady then became an icon of the [[gun control|anti-gun]] movement.

The assassination attempt came at a critical moment and disarmed the opposition in Congress, enabling Reagan to pass his major legislation even though the Democrats controlled the House.

===1984 Reelection===
[[File:2000px-ElectoralCollege1984.png|right|thumb|325px|Reagan's 1984 landslide]]
{{Main|United States presidential election, 1984}}

In 1984, Reagan was re-elected in a landslide, winning every state except Mondale's home state of Minnesota and the District of Columbia, creating a record 525 electoral vote total (of 538 possible), and received 58.8%. of the popular vote.<ref>[http://www.archives.gov/federal-register/electoral-college/scores.html#1984 National Archives]</ref><ref>[http://uselectionatlas.org/RESULTS/national.php?f=0&year=1984 Leip, David: 1984 Presidential Election Results.]</ref> At the second inaugural, the Reverend Timothy Healy delivered the invocation, and the Reverend Peter Gomes delivered the benediction.<ref>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1988&dat=19850119&id=MGwiAAAAIBAJ&sjid=_6sFAAAAIBAJ&pg=1381,1418388&hl=en The Argus-Press - Jan 19, 1985]</ref> In his Second Inaugural Address after winning the election, Reagan asked two of his most well remembered questions: "''If not us, who? And if not now, when?''"

During his second term, he helped end the Cold War with the help of Margaret Thatcher and some assistance from Pope John Paul II and Mikhail Gorbachev by recognizing the weakness of the Soviet economy, and spent them out of existence by their not being able to compete with defense spending.

===Challenger Disaster===
On January 28, 1986, the [[Space Shuttle Challenger]] disintegrated due to O-ring failure 73 seconds after lift-off. In response, Reagan gave a speech that is regarded as a high mark of his Presidency.<ref name=challenger>[https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/morning-mix/wp/2016/01/28/how-ronald-reagan-explained-the-challenger-disaster-to-the-world-its-all-part-of-taking-a-chance/ Exactly the right words, exactly the right way: Reagan’s amazing Challenger disaster speech], [[The Washington Post]]</ref> [[Peggy Noonan]] was chosen to write the speech who, at the time, was relatively unknown.<ref name=challenger /> In the speech, the freedom of the United States was highlighted in contrast to the tyranny of socialism, and the astronauts were honored as they were on their final journey to "touch the face of God".<ref>[http://history.nasa.gov/reagan12886.html Explosion of the Space Shuttle Challenger, Address to the Nation, January 28, 1986], by President Ronald W. Reagan, [[NASA]]</ref>

===Space Station Freedom===
In the 1984 State of the Union Address, Ronald Reagan outlined the development of a [[Space station]]. He said "We can reach for greatness again. We can follow our dreams to distant stars, living and working in space for peaceful, economic, and scientific gain."<ref>[http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=40205 Address Before a Joint Session of the Congress on the State of the Union], January 25, 1984</ref> The space station, later named ''Freedom''<ref>[https://mix.msfc.nasa.gov/abstracts.php?p=1653 Space Station Freedom-Artist's Concept]</ref> faced challenges and re-designs due to budget cuts.<ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/1990/11/09/us/nasa-studying-ways-to-redesign-space-station-to-meet-budget-cut.html NASA Studying Ways to Redesign Space Station to Meet Budget Cut]</ref> It eventually evolved into the [[International Space Station]] program.<ref>[https://uhclarchives.omeka.net/exhibits/show/faget/industrial/freedom Space Station Freedom]</ref><ref>[http://www.iso.org/iso/home/news_index/news_archive/news.htm?refid=Ref1555 Cooperation in space - The International Space Station benefits from ISO standards]</ref>

==Domestic policy==
===School prayer and a moment of silence===
[[Image:Reagans greet Billy Graham at Prayer Breakfast 1981.jpg|right|thumb|250px|President Reagan and Nancy Reagan greeting Billy Graham at the 1981 National Prayer Breakfast]]
As a conservative, Reagan was a supporter of school prayer, with Reagan repeatedly raising the issue during his presidency.<ref>[http://www.nationalreview.com/article/266491/ronald-reagans-prayer-legacy-stewart-mclaurin Ronald Reagan’s Prayer Legacy], [[National Review]]</ref>

Early on in his presidency, Reagan brought up the issue of prayer in schools, which was banned in 1962 by the Supreme Court in [[Engel v. Vitale]]. He proposed a constitutional amendment<ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/1982/05/18/us/reagan-proposes-school-prayer-amendment.html Reagan Proposes School Prayer Amendment], [[The New York Times]]</ref> that contained the following language: "Nothing in this Constitution shall be construed to prohibit individual or group prayer in public schools or other public institutions. No person shall be required by the United States or by any state to participate in prayer".

Reagan revived the issue in 1984<ref>[http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/index.php?pid=40205 Address Before a Joint Session of the Congress on the State of the Union], January 25, 1984</ref> noting the beliefs of the [[Founding Fathers]] on the importance of faith. He said: "America was founded by people who believed that God was their rock of safety. He is ours. I recognize we must be cautious in claiming that God is on our side, but I think it's all right to keep asking if we're on His side." Also in 1984, the Supreme Court reviewed a case regarding a moment of silence in schools.<ref>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2245&dat=19840712&id=vogzAAAAIBAJ&sjid=dDIHAAAAIBAJ&pg=5416,1067751 Reagan urges school 'moment of silence']</ref><ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/1984/12/05/us/high-court-weighs-silence-in-school-for-prayer-or-meditation.html High Court Weighs Silence in School for Prayer or Meditation], [[The New York Times]]</ref> In [[Wallace v. Jaffree]], the court ruled 6-3 against.<ref>[http://articles.latimes.com/1985-06-04/news/mn-6462_1_voluntary-prayer High Court Bars Moments of Silence for School Prayer : But Would Approve Meditation], [[Los Angeles Times]]</ref>

Toward the end of his presidency in 1987, Reagan called for Congress to act.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=NefcAwAAQBAJ&pg=PA56 Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: Ronald Reagan, 1987]</ref> In an address to congress on January 27, he said: "The 100th Congress of the United States should be remembered as the one that ended the expulsion of God from America's classrooms".<ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/1987/01/28/nyregion/high-court-accepts-appeal-of-moment-of-silence-law.html High Court Accepts Appeal of 'Moment of Silence' Law], [[The New York Times]]</ref>

===Economy===
[[Image:Reagan_desk.jpg‎|left|thumb|275px|President Reagan working at his desk in the oval office, 05/06/82.]]
As President, Ronald Reagan enacted his theory of "[[Reaganomics]]." His four major policy objectives were the following:<ref>[http://www.econlib.org/library/Enc1/Reaganomics.html Reaganomics], by William A. Niskanen</ref>

*Reduce the growth of government spending.
*Reduce the marginal tax rates on income from both labor and capital.
*Reduce government regulation of the economy.
*Control the money supply to reduce inflation.

On August 13, 1981, Reagan signed the Kemp-Roth [[Economic Recovery Tax Act of 1981]] bill into law, reducing the tax burden on American citizens.
[[File:Time-8-17-81.jpg|thumb|250px| ''Time'' Aug 17, 1981. [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,949316,00.html read story]]]
Fueled by an over spending [[Congress]] that steadfastly refused Reagan's budget proposals, the national debt increased 160% during his two terms in office. However, the economic growth that resulted from tax cuts made deficits as a percentage of [[GDP]] lower than what they had been in during the previous decade of stagflation. The period of high [[inflation]] and [[unemployment]] when Reagan took office was over after eight years of his Presidency. In 1986 Reagan signed the [[Tax Reform Act of 1986]], which obtained an overhaul of the income tax code and eliminated many deductions and exempted millions of people with low incomes. The [[income tax]] rates of the top personal tax bracket dropped from 70% to 28% in 7 years. At the same time, Reagan sought to close tax loopholes so that the wealthy would not be able to get away with paying less tax than low to middle income earners. By the end of his administration, the Nation was enjoying its longest recorded period of peacetime prosperity without [[recession]] or [[depression]].<ref>[http://www.whitehouse.gov/history/presidents/rr40.html Ronald Reagan]</ref>

====PATCO Strike====
On 3 August 1981, 13,000 air traffic controllers, members of the Professional Air Traffic Controllers Organization (PATCO), walked off the job. PATCO had supported Reagan in the 1980 election but now was making exorbitant demands regarding high raises, early retirement, and reduced hours. The Federal Aviation Administration made a generous offer but PATCO said no and called a strike. PATCO assumed it would shut down all air traffic and paralyze the economy, forcing the government to surrender, but they misjudged Ronald Reagan. Under federal law, the strike was illegal. Reagan ordered the strikers as a group to return to work. Some returned but most did not; he ordered individual strikers to return, and again most refused. Reagan was ready; secretly the Transportation Secretary Drew Lewis had readied military replacements. It was the first time in over 50 years in a major strike that replacements were used. Two days later, the president fired 11,000 strikers, and they never were rehired. The planes were flying and labor unions suffered their worst defeat since the 1920s. Reagan's dramatic action energized corporations to resist union demands, and sped up the rapid decline in union membership and the political power of union bosses.<ref>"Turbulence in the Tower," [http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,949316,00.html ''Time'' Aug. 17, 1981]; Paul L. Butterworth, et al., "More than a Labor Dispute: The PATCO Strike of 1981," ''Essays in Economic & Business History'' 2005 23:125-139</ref>

===Boll Weevils===
In 1981 President [[Ronald Reagan]] won over enough conservative southern Democrats—called '''Boll Weevils'''--<ref>[http://www.csmonitor.com/1981/1216/121615.html Boll weevils, gypsy moths, and the 97th Congress ], [[Christian Science Monitor]]</ref><ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/1983/03/26/us/congress-the-eclipse-of-the-boll-weevils.html CONGRESS; THE ECLIPSE OF THE BOLL WEEVILS], [[The New York Times]]</ref> to carry his major tax cuts through a House nominally controlled by the Democrats. Led by Congressman [[Phil Gramm]] of Texas,<ref>Gramm later became a Republican. On Gramm see David Frum, "Righter Than Newt," ''The Atlantic Monthly'' v. 275#3 (March 1995) pp 81+, online at [[Questia]]</ref> they helped Reagan enact many of his domestic policy proposals, to increase defense spending sharply, and to block leftists attacks on Reagan's anti-Communist policies in Central America. They also helped dismantle some of the remnants of [[Lyndon Johnson]]'s [[Great Society]].<ref>The "boll weevil" was a pest that ruined cotton plants across the South in the early 20th century, and forced the region to diversify out of cotton.</ref> Reagan did not campaign against them, so they kept their seats a few years longer.<ref>Lou Cannon, ''President Reagan: The Role of a Lifetime'' (2000) pp 89, 754</ref>

===Social Security Reform 1983===
Mounting concerns that rising Social Security benefits were causing a long-term deficit and were growing too fast resulted in a bipartisan compromise in 1983. Brokered by conservative [[Alan Greenspan]] and liberal [[Claude Pepper]], the agreement lowered benefits over the next 75 years and brought the system into balance. Key provisions included a gradual increase over 25 years in the retirement age from 65 to 67, to take account of longer life expectancy. (People could retire younger, but at a reduced rate of benefits.) Millions of people were added to the system, especially employees of state governments and of nonprofit organizations.<ref>1983 Greenspan Commission on Social Security Reform (1983) [http://www.ssa.gov/history/reports/gspan5.html online version]; "Claude Pepper and Social Security Reform - 1981-1983," [http://www.claudepeppercenter.fsu.edu/webexhibits/socialsecurityreform/socialsecurityreform1981to1983.htm online exhibit]; Paul Charles Light, ''Artful Work: The Politics of Social Security Reform'' (1985)</ref>

===Judicial Appointments===
[[File:Reagan and Justices.jpg|thumb|250px| From left to right: Justices [[Harry Blackmun]], [[Thurgood Marshall]], [[William Brennan]], Chief Justice [[Warren Burger]], President Reagan, [[Sandra Day O'Connor]], [[Byron White]], [[Lewis F. Powell, Jr.]], [[William Rehnquist]] and [[John Paul Stevens]].]]
President Reagan made a total of 381 judicial appointments; 83 to US Court of Appeals, 290 to US District Courts, and 5 to the Supreme Court. 11 were not confirmed.<ref>[https://www.boundless.com/u-s-history/textbooks/boundless-u-s-history-textbook/the-conservative-turn-of-america-1968-1989-30/the-reagan-administration-228/battles-in-the-courts-and-congress-1289-8810/ President Reagan's Court appointees included: Sandra Day O'Connor, Anton Scalia, Anthony Kennedy, and William Rehnquist as Chief Justice.]</ref>

====Supreme Court====
Reagan fulfilled a promise he unnecessarily made in his 1980 presidential campaign to appoint the first women to the [[U.S. Supreme Court]].<ref>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1291&dat=19801015&id=4zxUAAAAIBAJ&sjid=s40DAAAAIBAJ&pg=4187,2916117&hl=en Reagan pledges woman on court], [[Associated Press]]</ref> On July 7, 1981, he chose the first person he interviewed, without even bothering to interview other candidates, by nominating little-known Arizona judge [[Sandra Day O'Connor]] to become an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court. O'Connor succeeded Justice [[Potter Stewart]]. Liberals, who had been ready for a knock-down battle, were stunned that Reagan had appointed a [[feminist]] and welcomed her nomination. [[Pro-life]] groups pointed out that her record indicated her support of [[abortion]]; [[movement conservative]]s [[Jerry Falwell]] opposed her confirmation and Howard Phillips testified against it. Phillips prophetically declared, "People say you can't tell how a Supreme Court nominee will turn out once on the bench. I respectfully disagree. In most cases, it's very clear. I opposed the nomination of Sandra Day O'Connor because it was very clear that she had a pro-[[abortion]] record in the Arizona State Senate and as a judge in Arizona. She was also allied with [[Planned Parenthood]]." With enthusiastic liberal support for O'Connor, she was confirmed by the Senate by a 99–0 vote on September 21 and took her seat September 25.

In 1986 [[Warren E. Burger]] announced his retirement from the Court. Reagan nominated [[Antonin Scalia]] to fill the vacant seat, at the same time that he elevated [[William Rehnquist]] for Chief Justice. Most of the opposition in the Senate focused their opposition on the Rehnquist nomination. Scalia was confirmed by a unanimous 98-0 vote, while Rehnquist was confirmed over substantial opposition.<ref>[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/22/AR2007082200931.html Rehnquist Confirmed In 65-33 Senate Vote]</ref><ref>[https://www.loc.gov/law/find/nominations/scalia/vote.pdf Floor Vote - Scalia], September 17, 1986</ref>

=====Robert Bork=====
In 1987, Reagan nominated conservative judge [[Robert Bork]] to replace retiring Supreme Court Justice [[Lewis Powell]]. In a highly contentious series of Senate Hearings<ref>[http://www.cnn.com/2012/12/19/politics/robert-bork-dead/ Robert Bork, known for contentious Supreme Court nomination, dies at 85], [[CNN]]</ref> senate liberals attacked Bork as being too conservative. Senator [[Ted Kennedy]] criticized him, saying,
:''"Robert Bork's America is a land in which women would be forced into back-alley abortions, blacks would sit at segregated lunch counters, rogue police could break down citizens' doors in midnight raids, schoolchildren could not be taught about evolution, writers and artists could be censored at the whim of the Government, and the doors of the Federal courts would be shut on the fingers of millions of citizens for whom the judiciary is -- and is often the only -- protector of the individual rights that are the heart of our democracy."''<ref>[http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9B0DE5DF1E3EF936A35754C0A961948260 WASHINGTON; Kennedy And Bork], [[The New York Times]]</ref>

The U.S. Senate rejected Bork's confirmation on a 42-58 vote. Reagan then turned to [[Douglas Ginsburg]], who withdrew his name from consideration. Finally, the much less controversial Californian [[Anthony Kennedy]] was nominated, who was confirmed on a 97-0 vote.

======"Borking"======
Because of the treatment that Robert Bork received during his confirmation hearing, the term to "be Borked" entered the general lexicon.<ref>[http://beta.townhall.com/columnists/jonahgoldberg/2007/10/26/the_borking_of_american_politics The Borking of American Politics], [[Townhall]]</ref>

===Federalism===
{{main|Federalism|Tenth Amendment}}

As a staunch supporter of the Republic which our [[Founding Fathers]] created and handed down to us, Reagan signed Executive Order 12612 on October 26, 1987.<ref>[http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=33607 Executive Order 12612 - Federalism]</ref> The EO recognized that the [[Constitution]] only grants authority to a few, specific [[Enumerated powers]]. Outside of these few areas, the role of the Federal Government should not be a meddlesome one, but that the states should be in charge, where citizens have a more direct and local discretion. The EO said "Federalism is rooted in the knowledge that our political liberties are best assured by limiting the size and scope of the national government".

Executive Order 12612 was rescinded with Executive Order 13083 by [[Bill Clinton]] on May 14, 1998.<ref>[http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=55957 Executive Order 13083 - Federalism]</ref><ref>[http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/1998/06/president-clintons-sellout-of-federalism President Clinton's Sellout of Federalism], [[Heritage Foundation]]</ref>

===War on Drugs===
As President, Reagan declared a "[[War on Drugs]]", which would be policies put forward by the United States and other countries to reduce illegal drug trade. In 1986, President Reagan signed the very prominent Anti-Drug Abuse Act which granted $97 million to build new [[prison]]s, $200 million for drug [[education]] and $241 million for treatment. Overall, $1.7 billion to fight the drug crisis.<ref>[http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/drugs/cron/ Thirty Years of America's Drug War], A Chronology, [[PBS]]</ref> First Lady [[Nancy Reagan]] started a slogan, "[[Just Say No]]" to drug use. The term was used in television advertising, and today there are many "Just Say No" drug clinics. As a result of the policies, [[marijuana]] use dropped from 33% of high-school seniors in 1980 to 12% in 1991.<ref>[http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/shows/drugs/interviews/kleber.html Interview with Dr. Herbert Kleber], [[PBS]]</ref>

===Immigration Reform===
November 6, 1986, Reagan signed into law the [[Immigration Reform and Control Act of 1986]], also known as the Simpson-Mazzoli Act, named after it's two authors: Romano Mazzoli and [[Alan Simpson]].<ref>[http://humanevents.com/2007/06/04/simpsonmazzoli-twentyone-years-later/ Simpson-Mazzoli: Twenty-One Years Later], [[Human Events]]</ref>

In his diaries, Reagan wrote that he wanted to sign the bill because of how important it was to regain control of our borders.<ref>[http://www.ontheissues.org/Celeb/Ronald_Reagan_Immigration.htm Ronald Reagan on Immigration]</ref> But the bill had largely the opposite effect. By granting a pathway to citizenship (amnesty) to 2.7 million illegal aliens, the law encouraged unlawful entry by more than 10 million additional new illegal aliens.

==Foreign policy==

===Strategic Defense Initiative===

Reagan's 1983 [[Strategic Defense Initiative]] became popularly known as "[[Star Wars]]", the name given to it by critics because they thought it was pure fantasy like the popular [[George Lucas]] films. This plan was never fully instituted. Although billions of dollars were spent on development, no space-based missile defense was tested successfully during Reagan's terms in office. However, the main goal was achieved of forcing the Soviets to realize they could no longer compete in the Cold War.

The threat the Soviet Union felt from the SDI initiative forced them to negotiate an end to the arms race, according to many involved with diplomacy at the time and can be seen by following Gorbachev's repeated public insistences that the SDI program be discontinued. [[Henry Kissinger]] wrote:
:''I know it's an axiomatic view of the Left around the world that missile defense is sinful, and that it's desirable to keep each nation as vulnerable as possible. But that's a debatable premise. The U.S. must defend itself against ''whoever'' has missiles that would threaten the United States. And you don't have to be able to name an enemy.''<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20050308023334/http://www.doublestandards.org/dreifus1.html An interview with Henry Kissinger], by Claudia Dreifus, August 29th, 2001</ref>

===Flight 007===
Reagan was president at the time of the shooting down of [[Korean Airlines Flight 007]]. He termed the shoot-down of an innocent straying passenger plane with 269 passengers and crew, including Congressman [[Larry McDonald]], as a "massacre". The ensuing rage over the tragedy both worldwide and in the U.S. provided support for the deployment of cruise and Pershing ll missiles in West Europe- just six minutes flying time from Moscow.

===Soviet Union===
Shortly after taking office in 1981 Reagan issued National Security Decision Directive 11-82, (NSDD 11-82), that explicitly made U.S. defense spending a form of economic warfare against the Soviets. The directive was known more unofficially as the Reagan Initiative.

The United States would "exploit and demonstrate the enduring economic advantages of the West to develop a variety of [arms] systems that are difficult for the Soviets to counter, impose disproportionate costs, open up new areas of major military competition and obsolesce previous Soviet investment or employ sophisticated strategic options to achieve this end. Reagan's [[Strategic Defense Initiative]] (SDI), or "Star Wars" as the media referred to it, was a costly high tech research and development program designed to make arms spending a "rising burden on the Soviet economy."<ref>Peter Schweizer , [http://www.reason.com/news/show/28929.html ''Reagan's War: The Epic Story of His Forty Year Struggle and Final Triumph Over Communism''], New York: Doubleday, 2002.</ref>
The Reagan Initiative was also concerned with aiding nations in active conflict with the Soviet Union. One such group was the [[mujahideen]] of Afghanistan who were given anti-aircraft missiles to fight the Soviet invaders.

A report by the CIA of the critical domestic economic problems and social discontent Soviet General Secretary Gorbachev provided a look what the sources of his principal dilemma-the very reforms needed to deal with the problems would threaten preservation of the [[nomenklatura]] and put at risk Gorbachev’s ability to maintain the power to bring about [[Perestroika]].<ref>CIA Assessments of the Soviet Union: [https://www.cia.gov/csi/monograph/russia/enter.html Chapter 5, Enter Gorbachev ], Douglas J. MacEachin, CIA Publications, 1996.</ref>

====Reykjavík Summit====
[[Image:Photo 4 250.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Reagan and Gorbachev at Reykjavik]]
{{main|Reykjavík Summit}}

Gorbachev requested a Summit with Reagan in Reykjavik in October 1986 to discuss the stresses competition from the Reagan’s defense posture was having on Soviet military spending and economy, and Gorbachev’s ability to carryout his plans of restructuring Communist control. Gorbachev told the [[Politburo]] in preparation for the Summit, "Our goal is to prevent the next round of arms race. If we do not do this ... will pulled into an arms race beyond our power, and we will lose this race, for we are presently at the limit of out capabilities."<ref>Notes of Politburo Meeting 4 October 1986, [http://www.cnn.com/SPECIALS/cold.war/episodes/22/documents/reykjavik/ Gorbachev's instructions for the group preparing for Reykjavik]</ref>

Initially, Reagan recognized that the Soviets were offering a bad deal at the [[Reykjavík Summit]], so he walked away from the table.<ref>[http://www.nationalreview.com/article/423381/reagans-lesson-obama-no-agreement-better-bad-agreement-thom-tillis Reagan's Lesson to Obama: 'No Agreement Is Better Than a Bad Agreement'], [[National Review]]</ref>

A year later, the ''Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty (INF)'', which was signed by Reagan and Gorbachev on December 8, 1987.<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/october/12/newsid_3732000/3732902.stm 1986: Reykjavik summit ends in failure], [[BBC]]</ref>

===Dealing with the Soviets===
Gorbachev, weakened by his nation's economic malaise, frightened by SDI, and committed to reforming the Soviet system before it collapsed, realized he had to end the Cold War to save Communism. Reagan proved willing to deal, but had to face three sources of criticism inside the U.S. The political right represented by the ''[[National Review]]'' and columnists such as [[George F. Will]] feared it was all a Soviet trap. Reagan used his enormous influence within the conservative movement to disarm these critics before disarming the Russians. Second were the "realists", led by Nixon and Henry A. Kissinger, who thought Reagan was going too far. The third group comprised segments of the intelligence community and military; they did not believe that the Soviet Union was as weak as Reagan and secretary of state, George P. Shultz, believed. Reagan, reelected in a landslide and at the peak of his power, pushed ahead with a series of agreements that effectively weakened the Soviet Empire and made it clear America had the initiative.<ref>James Mann, ''The Rebellion of Ronald Reagan'' (2009)</ref>

By the late 1980s, the Soviet Union began unilateral force cuts and troop withdrawals from Eastern Europe, and by May 1989 an unprecedented series of disclosures by senior Soviet officials revealed actual reductions in defense spending for the 1986-1990 and 1991-1995 Five Year Plan periods.<ref>Christopher Wilkinson NATO Review, [http://www.nato.int/docu/review/1991/9102-4.htm Soviet Defense Spending], NATO's Economics Directorate No. 2 - April 1991, Vol. 39 p. 16-22</ref> Genrikh Grofimenko, a former adviser to [[Leonid Brezhnev]], said "Ninety-nine percent of the Russian people believe that [the US] won the Cold War because of your president's insistence on SDI".<ref>Peter Schweizer, ''Reagan’s War''.</ref> Gennady Gerasimov, the Soviet Foreign Ministry's top spokesman during the 1980s, said "Reagan's SDI was a very successful blackmail. The Soviet economy couldn't endure such competition."<ref>[http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB122478630951963297 Freedom's Team], [[Wall Street Journal]]</ref>

Reagan also brought about the collapse of the [[Berlin Wall]], which was a symbol of [[communism]] and oppressed the [[freedom]] of East Berliners that wanted to move to West Berlin.

===Containment and the Iranian initiative===
[[Image:C26887-26.jpg|right|250px|thumb|President Reagan being sworn in for second term in the rotunda at the U.S. Capitol, 1/21/85]]
{{main|Containment}}

In 1985, after Reagan won reelection to his second term, the focus turned from reviving the domestic economy to several foreign policy matters which had been lingering throughout the decade. One such matter involved Iran, a long time ally of the Western Allies since 1941 that had experienced an [[Islamic Revolution]] in 1979 after President Carter announced [[Human Rights]] had superseded [[Containment]] as the primary focus of American foreign policy. Since 1980, Iran had been enmeshed in a brutal trench war with neighboring Iraq which was emerging as a potent military threat in the region to other allies. Members of the National Security Council staff, along with CIA Director [[William Casey]], persuaded Reagan much could be gained and several problems could be addressed simultaneously with an overture to Iran to restore relations.

The objective of the plan was fourfold:
#Take steps to restore good relations with the [[Islamic Republic of Iran]] which was becoming increasingly hostile to the West;
#Take measures to convince Iran that Israel could become a friend and ally;
#Insurance against Iraq becoming too strong which would become a threat to [[Kuwait]] or [[Saudi Arabia]];
#Provide funding for other operations to continue the policy of containment in the Western Hemisphere, most notably [[Nicaragua]], and the violence the Soviet/Cuban/Nicaragua connection was creating in [[El Salvador]] and [[Honduras]].

There were humanitarian aspects to the proposal as well; (1) the [[Iran-Iraq War]] had stalemated for nearly six years and Reagan was advised that he was in the unique position as President to help facilitate bringing a senseless war with much suffering to an end; (2) the suffering of the people of the Central American Republics at the hands of Soviet-inspired subversion which had in the decade of the '80s established a beachhead in North America; (3) Iran perhaps could be persuaded to use its good offices to influence hostage takers in [[Lebanon]] who had held several Western prisoners, many of them Christian Missionaries, for several years.

Reports had filtered back to Reagan that children as young as nine years old had been used by Iran to clear minefields.<ref>[http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/war/iran-iraq.htm Iran-Iraq War (1980-1988), ''Iraqi Retreats, 1982-84''], Globalsecurity.org, retrieved 20 March 2007.</ref> In weighing Iraq's delicate Sunni/Shia balance and the growing threat of Iranian-sponsored terrorism, the NSC staff and Casey recognized the dangers of an Iraqi collapse as well as the urgent need to dissuade Iran from continuing its ruthless and inhumane tactics.<ref>[http://www.gwu.edu/~nsarchiv/NSAEBB/NSAEBB82/iraq53.pdf NSDD 139, 5 April 1984].</ref>

The [[Boland amendment]], a Vietnam era-style Congressional impingement on the legitimate foreign policy prerogatives of the Executive via the power of the purse, was used to deny Reagan's recommitment to the [[Truman Doctrine]] which had been adhered to by every President, Democratic and Republican alike since Truman, with the exception of [[President Carter]] whose [[human rights]] policy had brought one of the active belligerents, the [[Ayatollah Khomeini]], to power. In three of the active Soviet fronts, [[Afghanistan]], [[Nicaragua]], and [[El Salvador]], some Congressional Democratic leaders were openly sympathetic to Soviet foreign policy.<ref>[http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/004/591eifow.asp ''One Weekend in April, A Long Time Ago ... What John Kerry thought about the Sandinista in Nicaragua''], Hugh Hewitt, The Weekly Standard, 09/09/2004.</ref><ref>[http://web.archive.org/web/20060331222819/www.newsmax.com/archives/ic/2004/6/7/234527.shtml ''Kerry: 'I'm Proud I Stood Against Reagan''] Carl Limbacher and NewsMax.com Staff, 7 June 2004.</ref> So the decision was made to fund [[Containment]] of Soviet objectives on an active front in North America with sales of TOW missiles to Iran. Israel provided the TOWs because the [[Boland Amendment]] forbade direct US funding and it was a welcome opportunity for Israel to build bridges to a much needed friend in the Middle East.

The operation was known as the "[[Iran-Contra affair]]." After word got out about the operation in November 1986, investigations were made, leading to the convictions of several members of the Reagan administration. President Reagan himself testified before the Tower Commission that he had poor recollection of the details of the operation due in part to the heavy pain medications he had been on in that period.

===Nicaragua===
In 1981 Robert McFarlane, then assistant to the Secretary of State proposed a coordinated covert political, economic, and military approach to the pro-Communist [[Sandinista]] government in Nicaragua and the insurgency in El Salvador, led by [[Daniel Ortega]]. His proposal was approved in January, 1982, in "National Security Directive 17," which provided for a $20 million program against the Sandinista government and gave the [[Central Intelligence Agency]] (CIA) responsibility for organizing a five-hundred-man "interdiction" force.<ref>See [http://www.fas.org/irp/offdocs/nsdd/nsdd-017.htm Portions online]</ref> Democrats in Congress began voicing opposition in 1982; Reagan and Congress were in constant battle until 1987, when all five Central American heads of state signed a peace accord. The Sandinistas and Contras signed a cease-fire agreement in 1988, and in 1991 democratic elections overthrew the Sandinista regime.<ref>James M. Scott, "Interbranch Rivalry and the Reagan Doctrine in Nicaragua." ''Political Science Quarterly'' 1997 112(2): 237-260.</ref>

===Beirut===
During the Lebanese Civil War, Reagan sent peacekeeping forces as a part of a multinational force to Beirut. On October 23, 1983, the barracks were bombed. As a result of the bombing, 241 Americans were killed.<ref>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1697&dat=19860827&id=ljQqAAAAIBAJ&sjid=ZUcEAAAAIBAJ&pg=6550,6530129&hl=en Reagan says worst mistake involved Marines in Beirut]</ref> The Embassy was also attacked, which resulted in the deaths of 63 people, 17 of which were Americans.<ref>[http://www.deseretnews.com/article/515039782/1983-Beirut-bomb-began-era-of-terror.html?pg=all 1983 Beirut bomb began era of terror]</ref><ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/learning/general/onthisday/big/1023.html Beirut Death Toll at 161 Americans; French Casualties Rise in Bombings; Reagan Insists Marines Will Remain], [[New York Times]]</ref><ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=BMnUBQJBbgIC&pg=PT157 Seven Events That Made America America: And Proved That the Founding Fathers Were Right All Along], by Larry Schweikart</ref>

===Grenada===
On March 13, 1979, the New Joint Endeavor for Welfare, Education, and Liberation Movement (New Jewel Movement—NJM), ousted Sir Eric Gairy in a coup and established a People's Revolutionary Government (PRG) headed by Maurice Bishop, who became Prime Minister of [[Grenada]]. His Marxist–Leninist government established close ties with Cuba, the Soviet Union, and other communist bloc countries.

In October 1983, a power struggle within the government resulted in the arrest and execution of Bishop and several members of his cabinet and the killing of dozens of his supporters by elements of the People's Revolutionary Army (PRA).

A U.S.-Caribbean force landed on Grenada on October 25, 1983 for Operation Urgent Fury, in response to an appeal from the Governor General and to a request for assistance from Barbados and other Eastern Caribbean states. U.S. citizens were evacuated, and order was restored.

An advisory council named by the Governor General administered the country until general elections were held in December 1984. The New National Party (NNP) led by Herbert Blaize won 14 out of 15 seats in free and fair elections and formed a democratic government. Grenada's constitution had been suspended in 1979 by the PRG, but it was restored after the 1984 elections.

===Cold War victory===
[[Image:300px-ReaganBerlinWall.jpg‎|right|275px|thumb|"Mr.Gorbachev, tear down this wall!"]] Reagan is credited for ending the [[Cold War]] in victory for the United States. Historian Tony Judt in ''Postwar'' credits Soviet leader [[Mikhail Gorbachev]], while the political scientist Jan Kubik presents a viewpoint that credits [[Pope John Paul II]].<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20080221230216/http://praguepost.com/articles/2007/02/28/letters-to-the-editor.php Letters to the Editor]</ref> Other historians contend structural weaknesses within the Communist bloc meant Reagan's actions were inconsequential to the end of [[communism]]. This is the view adopted by [[Russia]]ns themselves, and many political historians, citing ''[[perestroika]]'' and ''[[glasnost]]'' as beginning an inevitable slow fading of central power, and a collapse by irreconcilable differences between the central Soviet [[Politburo]] and the constituent republics, especially the [[Ukraine]].<ref>David Remnick, "Lenin's Tomb</ref> In the end, the consensus seems to point to all of the above, that hastened the demise of the Soviet Union; Internal factors, religious pressure brought by the Pope, Gorbachev's "Perestroika" and the united front of Ronald Reagan and [[Margaret Thatcher]], leading [[NATO]] and [[the West]] to embed a [[SDI|missile defense system]] in [[Western Europe]], and the economic superiority of [[Capitalism]], which simply out-spent and out-performed that of the Communist one.

One thing that cannot be quantified is Reagan's ability to give [[hope]], his never-ending optimism that good would indeed triumph over evil.<ref>[http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/us/2015/March/That-Time-the-President-Spoke-Truth-about-Our-Enemies/?Print=true That Time the President Spoke Truth about Our Enemies], [[Christian Broadcasting Network]]</ref> Many see that as key to bringing extra confidence to those locked behind the "[[Iron Curtain]]" to press even harder for reforms.

Columnist Cal Thomas wrote about it like this:

{{cquote|'''''He proved he was right about the big things.'' Faced with editorial denunciations at home and massive demonstrations in [[Europe]] against his plan to put missiles there to offset a [[Soviet]] threat, Reagan went ahead and did it anyway. The Soviets could not keep pace with the buildup or Reagan's proposed missile defense system (derided by insincere and dangerous critics as "[[Star Wars]]"). ''When those critics could not bring themselves to admit they were wrong, they unpersuasively claimed the Soviet Union fell under its own weight.'' More accurately, Reagan pushed it onto "the ash heap of history," with the able assistance of British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and [[Pope John Paul II]]. What Reagan did more than anything else - and it will be his lasting legacy - is replace [[despair]] with hope. Most people, even his detractors, felt a glow from being in his presence.

'''''He was the kindest, most gracious president I have met, and I have met them all since JFK. In his presence you felt he was interested in you and not himself. He was a good man.''''' <ref>[http://www.townhall.com/columnists/CalThomas/2004/06/07/ronald_reagans_wonderful_life Ronald Reagan's wonderful life], [[Townhall]]</ref>}}

[[Brian Mulroney]], the [[Canada|Canadian]] Prime Minister, Eulogized Reagan at his state funeral:
{{cquote|'''Some in the West during the early 1980s believed communism and democracy were equally valid and viable. This was the school of "[[moral equivalence]]." In contrast Ronald Reagan saw Soviet Communism as a menace to be confronted in the genuine belief that its squalid underpinning would fall swiftly to the gathering winds of [[freedom]]. Provided, as he said, that NATO and the industrialized democracies stood firm and united. They did. ''And we know now who was right.'''''<ref>[http://reagan2020.us/eulogies/mulroney.asp Brian Mulroney on Ronald Reagan]</ref>}}

Former Reagan speech writer [[Peggy Noonan]] paid tribute to the fallen president in a [[Wall Street Journal]] editorial. In it, Noonan noted:
{{Cquote|'''Ronald Reagan told the truth to a world made weary by lies. He believed truth was the only platform on which a better future could be built. He shocked the world when he called the Soviet Union ‘evil,’ because it was, and an 'empire,' because it was that, too. He never stopped bringing his message to the people of the world, to Europe and China and in the end the Soviet Union. And when it was over, the Berlin Wall had been turned into a million concrete souvenirs, and Soviet communism had fallen. But of course, it didn’t fall. It was pushed. By Mr. Know-Nothing-Cowboy-Gunslinger-Dimwit. ''All presidents should be so stupid...'''''<ref>[http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB108656337732830162 Thanks from a Grateful Country], [[WSJ]]</ref>}}

===Libya===
In the 1980s, [[Muammar al-Gaddafi]] became a sponsor of [[terrorism]]. President [[Ronald Reagan]] ordered a retaliatory bombing of his palace and key Libyan targets in April 1986 during Operation El Dorado Canyon. At the time, Gaddafi, [[Fidel Castro]], and [[Leonid Brezhnev]] were considered to be an "unholy trinity".<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=rVXuAAAAMAAJ&dq=%22unholy+trinity%22&focus=searchwithinvolume&q=%22unholy+trinity%22 Time Inc., 1982], [[Time Magazine]]</ref>
[[Image:Reagan and Thatcher.jpg‎|right|225px|thumb|Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher at the [[White House]]]]
===Thatcher on Reagan===

Upon his death, [[Margaret Thatcher]], in very ill health from a series of strokes, insisted upon traveling to America to bid farewell to her old friend, and taped a stirring tribute to him:
{{cquote|'''As Prime Minister, I worked closely with Ronald Reagan for eight of the most important years of all our lives. We talked regularly both before and after his presidency. And I have had time and cause to reflect on what made him a great president. Ronald Reagan knew his own mind. He had firm principles - and, I believe, right ones. He expounded them clearly, he acted upon them decisively. ''When the world threw problems at the White House, he was not baffled, or disorientated, or overwhelmed. He knew almost instinctively what to do.'''''

'''When his aides were preparing option papers for his decision, they were able to cut out entire rafts of proposals that they knew 'the Old Man' would never wear. When his allies came under Soviet or domestic pressure, they could look confidently to Washington for firm leadership. And when his enemies tested American resolve, they soon discovered that his resolve was firm and unyielding. ''Yet his ideas, though clear, were never simplistic. He saw the many sides of truth.'' Yes, he warned that the Soviet Union had an insatiable drive for military power and territorial expansion; but he also sensed it was being eaten away by systemic failures impossible to reform. Yes, he did not shrink from denouncing Moscow's 'evil empire'.'''

'''But he realized that a man of goodwill might nonetheless emerge from within its dark corridors. So the President resisted Soviet expansion and pressed down on Soviet weakness at every point until the day came when communism began to collapse beneath the combined weight of these pressures and its own failures. And when a man of goodwill did emerge from the ruins, President Reagan stepped forward to shake his hand and to offer sincere cooperation. ''Nothing was more typical of Ronald Reagan than that large-hearted magnanimity - and nothing was more American.'''''<ref>[http://reagan2020.us/eulogies/thatcher.asp Margaret Thatcher on Ronald Reagan]</ref>}}

==Post-presidency==
[[Image:5.jpg|left|thumb|250px|President Bush presents the Medal of Freedom Award to Former President Ronald Reagan in the East Room of the White House, 01/13/93]]
Reagan retired to California. He would occasionally involve himself in politics, including a speech in Britain addressing the [[Tiananmen Square massacre]], and an address at the 1992 Republican National Convention.<ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/1989/06/14/world/reagan-gets-a-red-carpet-from-british.html Reagan Gets A Red Carpet From British], [[The New York Times]], June 14, 1989, "''You cannot massacre an idea, you cannot run tanks over hope. You cannot riddle a people's yearning with bullets. Those heroic Chinese students who gave their lives have released the spirit of democracy and it cannot be called back. That spirit is loose upon the world this spring''."</ref><ref>[http://www.nbcuniversalarchives.com/nbcuni/clip/5112542724_007.do President Reagan Speaks Out on Tiananmen Square Massacre], [[NBC]]</ref>

At a speech in front of the National Association of Broadcasters on April 13, 1992, Reagan was assaulted by a radical anti-nuclear protester masquerading as a press agent.<ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/1992/04/16/us/protester-at-reagan-speech-had-press-credentials.html Protester at Reagan Speech Had Press Credentials], [[The New York Times]]</ref> The protester, identified as Rick Paul Springer, was the founder of a group called ''The 100th Monkey''.<ref>[http://articles.latimes.com/1993-07-16/news/mn-13621_1_las-vegas Man Who Disrupted Reagan Speech Flees 4-Month Jail Term]</ref> At the event, Reagan was awarded a 2-foot statue for his contributions to broadcasting, made out of crystal weighing nearly 30 pounds.<ref>[http://www.nytimes.com/1992/04/14/us/reagan-unhurt-after-man-smashes-30-pound-statue.html Reagan Unhurt After Man Smashes 30-Pound Statue], [[The New York Times]]</ref> When Springer smashed the statue, some shards did hit Reagan, but he was not hurt.

After the secret service rushed the man off stage, Reagan asked the crowd "Was that a democrat by chance?",<ref>[http://www.deseretnews.com/article/221028/NUCLEAR-PROTESTER-RUSHES-REAGAN-SMASHES-STATUE.html?pg=all NUCLEAR PROTESTER RUSHES REAGAN, SMASHES STATUE]</ref> to which the crowd burst into laughter.<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NaLMmcY3vs0 President Reagan Attacked at NAB Convention Las Vegas April 1992 480p], [[CBS News]] video from 1992</ref> A spokesman for the [[Secret Service]] said that he was not sure how Springer got so close to Reagan to begin with.<ref>[http://articles.latimes.com/1992-04-19/news/vw-684_1_secret-service-protection How Do You Really Protect a President?], [[Los Angeles Times]]</ref>

On January 13, 1993 President George H. W. Bush awarded Reagan the Presidential [[Medal of Freedom]]. Reagan was becoming increasingly forgetful. His last public appearance was on April 27, 1994, at the funeral for President Richard Nixon.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=ewc1V-KnRMYC&pg=PA182 Ronald Reagan: A Biography]</ref> In November 1994, he announced that he had been diagnosed in August with [[Alzheimer's disease]], a degenerative nerve disorder that annihilates the victim's mental capacity.

([[See Reagan's letter to the American people regarding his disease.]])

He died at his [[Los Angeles|Bel Air]] home on June 5, 2004 at the age of 93, making him the second-longest lived president in history after [[Gerald Ford]]. Reagan was buried at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation and Library, located in Simi Valley, California, on June 11, 2004.<ref>[http://www.reaganfoundation.org/listviewf.aspx?session_args=NCrq/CB0Nbp/onw6gOr7mg==&p=LM2002EX&tx=13&h1=7&h2=3&sw=lm_exhibit&lm=libraryandmuseum&args_a=cms&args_b=32&argsb=N Exhibitions]</ref>

==Legacy and Honors==
[[Image:Reagan at the Rotunda.jpg|right|thumb|150px|The State of California donated a statue of Reagan to the [[National Statuary Hall Collection]] in 2009. The statue is currently in the Rotunda.<ref>[https://www.aoc.gov/capitol-hill/national-statuary-hall-collection/ronald-wilson-reagan Ronald Wilson Reagan]</ref>]]
There is growing consensus among scholars, both conservative and liberal, that he was the most influential president since [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]]. Reagan left a major imprint on American politics, diplomacy, culture, and economics.<ref>"As of this writing, among academic historians, the Reagan revisionists—who view the 1980s as an era of mixed blessings at worst, and of great forward strides in some renditions—hold the field," reports Doug Rossinow, "Talking Points Memo," in American Quarterly 59.4 (2007) p. 1279. For more historiographical support see: Troy (2009); Hayward (2009); Wilentz (2008); also Charles L. Ponce de Leon, "The New Historiography of the 1980s" in ''Reviews in American History,'' Volume 36, Number 2, June 2008, pp. 303-314; Whitney Strub, "Further into the Right: The Ever-Expanding Historiography of the U.S. New Right," ''Journal of Social History,'' Volume 42, Number 1, Fall 2008, pp. 183-194; Kim Phillips-Fein, "Ronald Reagan: Fate, Freedom, and Making of History," ''Enterprise & Society'', Volume 8, Number 4, December 2007, pp. 986-988.</ref>

On March 26, 1982, Reagan's boyhood home in Dixon, Illinois<ref>[https://www.nps.gov/nr/travel/presidents/ronald_reagan_boyhood_home.html Ronald Reagan Boyhood Home]</ref> was added to the National Register of Historic Places.<ref>[http://www.discoverdixon.org/dixon-community/70-reagan-s-roots.html Reagan's Roots]</ref> In 2002, Congress authorized<ref>[https://www.congress.gov/bill/107th-congress/house-bill/400/text/pl To authorize the Secretary of the Interior to establish the Ronald Reagan Boyhood Home National Historic Site, and for other purposes]</ref> the purchase of the property and placed under the jurisdiction of the National Park Service.<ref>[http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2002-02-07/news/0202070346_1_boyhood-home-reagan-home-historic-site Reagan home is a historic site], [[Chicago Tribune]]</ref>

Reagan has come to be known by some conservatives lovingly as '''Ronaldus Magnus'''.<ref>[http://moonbattery.com/?p=66847 Vintage Christmas Address From Ronaldus Magnus], [[Moonbattery]]</ref><ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AIAVrsmO_1Q Rush Limbaugh- Tribute To Ronald Reagan Part 1], Segment from the [[Rush Limbaugh]] TV show, February 6, 1996</ref>

The ''Ronald Reagan UCLA Medical Center'', ''[[Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport]]'', and the aircraft carrier [[USS Ronald Reagan]] (CVN-76) are named in his honor.<ref>[http://www.reagan.navy.mil/ USS Ronald Reagan]</ref><ref>[http://www.uscarriers.net/cvn76history.htm USS RONALD REAGAN], USS ''Ronald Reagan'' CVN 76 official website</ref>

[[Edwin Feulner]], one of the founders of the [[Heritage Foundation]], described Reagan's legacy this way: "At a time when patriotism was mocked, he exposed the bankruptcy of modern liberalism and proved that true liberty is still a fighting faith."<ref>[http://www.heritage.org/research/commentary/2004/06/the-legacy-of-ronald-reagan The Legacy of Ronald Reagan], [[Heritage Foundation]]</ref>

===Conservative Activism===
[[Image:Reagan and Buckley.jpg|left|thumb|250px|President Reagan meets with Conservative icon [[William F. Buckley]]]]
Since Reagan's passing and even prior to it, there has been a concerted effort by [[RINOs]] to make him seem less conservative than he was during his life. There have been plenty of former democrats who switched parties and became Republicans, but few of them spent as much time helping to build the '''conservative movement''' over the decades, as well as keeping the legacy of the [[Founding Fathers]] alive.<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2016/04/04/juan-williams-ronald-reagan-loved-founding-fathers.html?intcmp=obinsite Juan Williams: Ronald Reagan loved the Founding Fathers], [[Fox News]]</ref> Prior to the era of the [[Tea Party Movement]], conservative efforts and organizations have come and gone, many of which Reagan stood side by side with. The ''Town Meeting for Freedom'', which sometimes led to accusations of him being a "Bircher";<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=iuaeEX-1yKgC&pg=PA124 The Right Moment: Ronald Reagan's First Victory and the Decisive Turning]</ref> he was a member of ''Project Prayer'', which rallied after the [[Supreme Court]] banned prayer in public schools;<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=7IBuD1fC_tkC&dq=%22project+prayer%22 Ronald Reagan], by George Sullivan</ref> he appeared at rallies for groups like ''Project Alert'' and the ''Christian Anti-Communist Crusade'';<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=-nnsCgAAQBAJ&pg=PT23 Selling Ronald Reagan: The Emergence of a President]</ref> he joined the board of YAF, the [[Young Americans for Freedom]](which later became the [[Young America's Foundation]])<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=fPWPDH-0TZYC&pg=PA67 Reagan's Revolution: The Untold Story of the Campaign That Started It All]</ref> and helped make it a successful organization; and he was open for years about his love for the conservative publication [[Human Events]],<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=C1kvsToagGEC&pg=PA24 President Reagan: The Triumph of Imagination]</ref> which helped to increase its prominence. During the 1970s, Reagan helped transform the [[National Rifle Association]] into what it is today, with Reagan being the first presidential candidate they had endorsed in their then 109-year history.<ref>[http://www.thenation.com/article/how-nra-became-organization-aspiring-vigilantes-part-2/ How the NRA Became an Organization for Aspiring Vigilantes], The [[Nation magazine]]</ref>

To listen to some pundits, journalists, and other political figures, you would think Reagan changed the letter D after his name into the letter R, made a few speeches here and there, and then washed his hands of it. Nothing could be further from the truth. He spent a lifetime in the trenches once he decided to become a conservative. He was all-in. Once Reagan became president, he was not afraid to champion conservative causes, nor talk about his faith and his belief in God. He frequently talked about the importance of religious faith to a free society.<ref>[http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2016/02/06/ronald-reagan-remembering-champion-religious-liberty-on-his-birthday.html Ronald Reagan: Remembering the champion of religious liberty on his birthday], [[Fox News]]</ref>

==Family==
[[File:Reagan Family.jpg|left|160px|thumb|Ronald and Nancy Reagan with Patti Davis, Ron, Maureen, and Michael Reagan, 1976.]]
On January 26, 1940, Reagan married actress Jane Wyman at The Wee Kirk o' the Heather chapel in Glendale, California.<ref>[http://articles.latimes.com/1989-08-13/local/me-908_1_forest-lawn 'Till Death Do Us Part : A Wedding at a Cemetery Might Seem Macabre, but Forest Lawn's 2 Chapels Are Booked 6 Months Ahead], [[Los Angeles Times]]</ref>

Wyman was an Oscar-winning actress for her role in the 1948 movie ''Johnny Belinda''. They had three children together: Maureen Elizabeth Reagan (1941-2001), who passed away from malignant [[melanoma]] within months of diagnosis, at age 60; [[Michael Reagan|Michael Edward Reagan]] (b. 1945-),<ref>Michael Reagan is the adopted son of Wyman and Reagan. See conservapedia.com: "[[Michael Reagan]]"</ref> and Christine Reagan (June 26 & 27, 1947). She was born prematurely and survived only one day. The baby's death traumatized Wyman. In 1948, Wyman (who married a total of four times) divorced Reagan in 1948. Ironically, Wyman was a Republican at the time while Reagan was a Democrat.

A year later, he met actress [[Nancy Davis]] (b. 1921). In 1952 they married at the Little Brown Church in Studio City, California.<ref>[http://www.breitbart.com/big-government/2016/03/07/reagans-church-is-big-in-japan/ Reagan's Church in L.A. is 'Big in Japan']</ref> They remained married until his death in 2004. Together they had two children, Patricia "Patti" Ann Davis (b. 1952) and [[Ron P. Reagan|Ronald Prescott Reagan]] (b. 1958).

==Miscellaneous Facts==
*Reagan was the first and only divorced president.
*Reagan was the first president to break the so-called "[[Curse of Tippecanoe]]", i.e., the first president elected in a twenty-year cycle who did not die in office (although an attempt was made on his life in 1981).
*At 69, Reagan was the oldest man elected to the presidency for a first term.
*Reagan loved [[jelly bean]]s.<ref>[https://reaganlibrary.archives.gov/archives/reference/jellybellies.html JELLY BELLY JELLY BEANS AND RONALD REAGAN]</ref> The blueberry flavor was made in his honor. [[Jelly Belly]] even created a Ronald Reagan [[portraits|portrait]] out of jelly beans.<ref>[http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2146733/Art-thats-good-eat-Incredible-jelly-bean-portraits-use-10-000-sweets.html Art that’s good enough to eat: Incredible jelly bean portraits that each use more than 10,000 sweets]</ref>
*After his death, some of his closest supporters wished to put him on the $10 bill.<ref>[http://money.cnn.com/2004/06/08/news/economy/reagan_hamilton/index.htm Reagan the new face of the $10 bill?], [[CNN]]</ref>
*Reagan played college football player [[George Gipp]] in the film ''Knute Rockne: All American'' (1940), and was affectionately known as "The Gipper" ever since.<ref>[http://www.nationalreview.com/article/208420/taxing-experience A Taxing Experience], [[National Review]]</ref>
*Reagan signed Proclamation 5018 declaring 1983 the [[Year of the Bible]].
*The booth where Ronald proposed to Nancy from the restaurant ''Chasen's'' is on display at the Reagan Library.<ref>[http://articles.latimes.com/2003/oct/14/local/me-reagan14 Reagan Library to Roll Out Renovated Galleries, Exhibits]</ref>
*Reagan kept a small plaque on his desk with the words "There is no limit to what a man can do or where he can go if he does not mind who gets the credit".<ref>[https://www.reaganfoundation.org/ronald-reagan/the-presidency/reagan-the-man/ Reagan the Man], Reagan Foundation</ref>

== Quotes ==
*"Within the covers of the [[Bible]] are the answers for all the problems men face."

* "Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it on to our children in the bloodstream. The only way they can inherit the freedom we have known is if we fight for it, protect it, defend it and then hand it to them with the well taught lessons of how they in their lifetime must do the same. And if you and I don't do this, then you and I may well spend our sunset years telling our children and our children's children what it once was like in America when men were free." - March 30, 1961

* "In this present crisis, government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem." - [[Ronald Reagan's First Inaugural Speech]]

* "We're not cutting the budget simply for the sake of sounder financial management. This is only a first step toward returning power to the States and communities, only a first step toward reordering the relationship between citizen and government. We can make government again responsive to people not only by cutting its size and scope and thereby ensuring that its legitimate functions are performed efficiently and justly."<ref name=localities /><ref>[https://www.reaganlibrary.archives.gov/archives/speeches/1981/32081b.htm Remarks at the Conservative Political Action Conference Dinner], March 20, 1981</ref>

*"I won the nickname the great communicator. But I never thought it was my style that made a difference - it was the content. I wasn't a great communicator, but I communicated great things, and they didn't spring full blown from my brow, they came from the heart of a great nation, from our experience, our wisdom, and our belief in the principles that have guided us for two centuries."<ref>[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/265509.stm Reagan: The great communicator], [[BBC]]</ref>

* "[[Socialist]]s ignore the side of man that is of the spirit. They can provide shelter, fill your belly with bacon and beans, treat you when you are ill, all the things that are guaranteed to a prisoner or a slave. They don't understand that we dream - yes, even of some time owning a yacht."<ref>{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9ut8fnmwVkwC&pg=PA91#v=onepage&q&f=false|last1=Skinner|first1=Kiron K.|last2=Anderson|first2=Annelise A.|title=Stories in His Own Hand: The Everyday Wisdom of Ronald Reagan ; Edited with an Introduction and Commentary by Kiron K. Skinner, Annelise Anderson, Martin Anderson ; Foreword by George P. Shultz|date=2001|publisher=Simon and Schuster|isbn=9781416584506}}</ref>

* "I have wondered at times what the [[Ten Commandments]] would have looked like if [[Moses]] had run them through the [[US Congress]]." <ref>[http://books.google.com/books?id=tzR2IgNgRK4C&pg=PA160&dq=I+have+wondered+at+times+what+the+Ten+Commandments+would+have+looked+like+if+Moses+had+run+them+through+the+US+Congress&ei=8GsPSrrnOI_CzATl8sGMCw Chapter 9 Page 160] The United States Congress by Ross M. English</ref>

*"The house we hope to build is not for my generation but for yours. It is your future that matters. And I hope that when you are my age, you will be able to say as I have been able to say: We lived in freedom. We lived lives that were a statement, not an apology." - January 20, 1981

*"We don't intend to turn the Republican Party over to the traitors in the battle just ended. We will have no more of those candidates who are pledged to the same goals of our opposition and who seek our support. Turning the party over to the so-called moderates wouldn't make any sense at all."<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=0BafgsBIlrwC&pg=PA96 The Age of Reagan: The Fall of the Old Liberal Order: 1964-1980]</ref>

*"The more the plans fail, the more the planners plan."

*"Peace is the highest aspiration of the American People. We will negotiate for it, sacrifice for it, we will never surrender for it, now or ever." - January 20, 1981

*"We have every right to dream heroic dreams. Those who say that we're in a time when there are no heroes, they just don't know where to look." - January 20, 1981

*"I'm convinced that today the majority of Americans want what those first Americans wanted: a better life for themselves and their children; a minimum of government authority. There are those in America today who have come to depend absolutely on government for their security. And when government fails, they seek to rectify that failure in the form of granting government more power. So, as government has failed to control crime and violence with the means given it by the Constitution, they seek to give it more power at the expense of the Constitution. But in doing so, in their willingness to give up their arms in the name of safety, they are really giving up their protection from what has always been the chief source of despotism: government. Lord Acton said power corrupts. Surely then, if this is true, the more power we give the government, the more corrupt it will become. And if we give it the power to confiscate our arms, we also give up the ultimate means to combat that corrupt power. In doing so, we can only assure that we will eventually be totally subject to it. When dictators come to power, the first thing they do is take away the people's weapons. It makes it so much easier for the secret police to operate, it makes it so much easier to force the will of the ruler upon the ruled." - ''Guns and Ammo'', September, 1975<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=yTDyAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA31 The Deepest and Noblest Aspirations]</ref>

*"I've learned in Washington, that that's the only place where sound travels faster than light." - December 12, 1983

*"The challenge of statesmanship is to have the vision to dream of a better, safer world and the courage, persistence, and patience to turn that dream into reality." - March 8, 1985

*"I have only one thing to say to the tax increasers: Go ahead, make my day." - March 13, 1985, in a speech threatening to veto legislation raising taxes.<ref name=phrases>[http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3638320/ Phrases that defined a career], [[MSNBC]]</ref>

*"A leader, once convinced a particular course of action is the right one, must have the determination to stick with it and be undaunted when the going gets rough." - December 5, 1990

*"If you seek peace, if you seek prosperity for the Soviet Union and Eastern Europe, if you seek liberalization: Come here, to this gate. Mr. Gorbachev, open this gate. Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall." —Speech at the Berlin Wall, June 12, 1987<ref name=phrases />

*"...I know it's hard when you're up to your armpits in alligators to remember you came here to drain the swamp." - February 10, 1982

*"There is no question that we have failed to live up to the dreams of the [[Founding Fathers]] many times and in many places. Sometimes we do better than others. But all in all, the one thing we must be on guard against is thinking that because of this, the system has failed. The system has not failed. Some human beings have failed the system." - June 21, 1973

*"We have some hippies out there in the Haight-Ashbury district in San Francisco, one of them the other day was given some advice to his companions, he says: "you know, your parents take care of you until you're 21, the government takes care of you after you're 65, you've only got 44 lousy years you gotta look out for yourself.

:This fellow that was doing the talking had a haircut like tarzan, he walked like Jane, and smelled like cheeta."<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yfg9WL6j5V4 Ronald Reagan slams the hippies]</ref>

*"The work of volunteer groups throughout our country represents the very heart and soul of America. They have helped make this the most compassionate, generous, and humane society that ever existed on the face of this earth." - October 16, 1973

*"Realize that the doctor's fight against socialized medicine is your fight. We can't socialize the doctors without socializing the patients"

*"If some among you fear taking a stand because you are afraid of reprisals from customers, clients, or even government, recognize that you are just feeding the crocodile hoping he'll eat you last."

*"In America, our origins matter less than our destination, and that is what democracy is all about." - August 17, 1992<ref>http://www.reaganfoundation.org/reagan/quotes/default.asp</ref>

*"These are the boys of Pointe du Hoc. These are the men who took the cliffs. These are the champions who helped free a continent. These are the heroes who helped end a war."<ref>[http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/watch-reagan-delivers-famous-boys-of-pointe-du-hoc-d-day-speech/article/2565718 Watch: Reagan delivers famous 'Boys of Pointe du Hoc' D-Day speech]</ref>

*"Latinos are Republicans - they just don't know it yet."<ref>[http://articles.latimes.com/2012/apr/18/opinion/la-oe-jacoby-rubio-dream-act-20120418 How Romney could win over Latinos], [[Los Angeles Times]]</ref>

*"It is freedom itself that still hangs in the balance, and freedom is never more than one generation from extinction." - Commencement address to The Citadel, 1993

*"I've noticed that everybody that is for abortion has already been born."<ref>New York Times, September 22, 1980</ref>

*"Our people look for a cause to believe in. Is it a third party we need, or is it a new and revitalized second party, raising a banner of no pale pastels, but bold colors which make it unmistakably clear where we stand on all of the issues troubling the people?", [[Let Them Go Their Way]]

*"Government does not solve problems; it subsidizes them."

*"If we ever forget that we are One Nation Under God, then we will be a nation gone under" - Aug. 23, 1984<ref>[http://books.google.com/books?id=ViUb1DLpnS4C&pg=RA1-PA373&dq=%22ever+forget+that+we+are+One+Nation+Under+God%22&lr=&as_drrb_is=q&as_minm_is=0&as_miny_is=&as_maxm_is=0&as_maxy_is=&num=30&as_brr=0&as_pt=ALLTYPES ''Treasury of Presidential Quotations''], William J. Federer, ed. p 373</ref>

*"If you can't make them see the light, make them feel the heat." <ref>[http://books.google.com/books?id=Xn4JEGVh-bYC&pg=PA93&dq=When+you+can%27t+make+them+see+the+light,+make+them+feel+the+heat.&ei=tvAlSsrrKZOCygS9_qycBw Ronald Reagan: how an ordinary man became an extraordinary leader‎], by Dinesh D'Souza, Page 93</ref>

*"I, too, have always believed that God's greatest gift is human life and that we have a duty to protect the life of an unborn child." <ref>[http://books.google.com/books?id=65Sd1VzUBacC&q=We+have+the+duty+to+protect+the+life+of+an+unborn+child&dq=We+have+the+duty+to+protect+the+life+of+an+unborn+child&ei=rf5USpawCZnkygTa8LyVBw Ronald Reagan] by Office of the Federal Register</ref>

*"Concentrated power has always been the enemy of liberty." <ref>[http://books.google.com/books?id=aF8YAAAAIAAJ&dq=Concentrated+power+has+always+been+the+enemy+of+liberty&ei=FE6PSuHhCYuSygSV-fCzBw War and conflict quotations] P.105, by Michael C. Thomsett, Jean F. Thomsett</ref>

*"The nearest thing to eternal life we will ever see on this earth is a government program."

*"some years ago, the [[federal government]] declared [[war on poverty]], and poverty won."

*"Criminals are not bigoted and they are color blind; they roam and rob and maim and murder without reference to race, religion or neighborhood boundaries. We must reject the idea that every time a law's broken, society is guilty rather than the lawbreaker. It is time to restore the American precept that each individual is accountable for his actions."<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=XZ9CAAAAIAAJ&q=%22It+is+time+to+restore+the+American+precept+that+each+individual+is+accountable+for+his+actions%22&dq=%22It+is+time+to+restore+the+American+precept+that+each+individual+is+accountable+for+his+actions%22&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwj-oPay5JnPAhWIbSYKHW9qBi84FBDoAQgbMAA The Presidential Nominating Conventions, 1968]</ref>

*"(''[[Human Events]]'') helped me stop being a liberal Democrat."<ref>[http://humanevents.com/2011/02/05/reagans-newspaper/ Reagan’s Newspaper], ''[[Human Events]]''</ref>

*"The nine most terrifying words in the English language are: I'm from the government and I'm here to help"<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xhYJS80MgYA The Nine Most Terrifying Words]</ref>

*"Government's view of the economy could be summed up in a few short phrases: If it moves, tax it. If it keeps moving, regulate it. And if it stops moving, subsidize it."

*"How do you tell a communist? Well, it's someone who reads Marx and Lenin. And how do you tell an anti-Communist? It's someone who understands Marx and Lenin."

*"Government's first duty is to protect the people, not run their lives."

*"My fellow Americans, I'm pleased to tell you today that I've signed legislation that will outlaw Russia forever. We begin bombing in five minutes."<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8mwAntNGz9k Ronald Reagan "Outlaws Russia" on August 11 1984]</ref>

*"Man is not free unless government is limited."

*"You won't get gun control by disarming law abiding citizens. There's only one way to get real gun control: Disarm the thugs and the criminals, lock them up, and if you don't actually throw away the key, at least lose it for a long time."<ref>[http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=41545 Remarks at a California Republican Party Fund-raising Dinner in Long Beach], June 30, 1983</ref>

*"I have left orders to be awakened at any time in case of national emergency, even if I'm in a cabinet meeting."

*"No arsenal or no weapon in the arsenals of the world is so formidable as the will and moral courage of free men and women."

*"Some people wonder all their lives if they've made a difference. The Marines don't have that problem."

*"Government is like a baby. An alimentary canal with a big appetite at one end and no sense of responsibility at the other."

*"This fellow they've nominated claims he's the new Thomas Jefferson. Well let me tell you something, I knew Thomas Jefferson. He was a friend of mine, and governor, you're no Thomas Jefferson."<ref>[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tiNVqYwVfWE Ronald Reagan - Governor, You're No Thomas Jefferson]</ref>

* "When it comes to the canal, we built it, we paid for it, it's ours, and we are going to keep it."<ref name=canal />

*"The march of freedom and democracy which will leave Marxism-Leninism on the ash-heap of history as it has left other tyrannies which stifle the freedom and muzzle the self-expression of the people."<ref name=westminster>[http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2002/06/reagans-westminster-speech 20 Years Later: Reagan's Westminster Speech], [[Heritage Foundation]]</ref>

*"The British people know that, given strong leadership, time and a little bit of hope, the forces of good ultimately rally and triumph over evil. Here among you is the cradle of self-government, the Mother of Parliaments. Here is the enduring greatness of the British contribution to mankind, the great civilized ideas: individual liberty, representative government, and the rule of law under God."<ref name=westminster />

==See also==
* [[Ronald Reagan's First Inaugural Speech]]
* [[Ronald Reagan's 1980 Republican National Convention Speech]]
* [[Ronald Reagan's 1984 Republican National Convention Speech]]
* [[How Ronald Reagan won the Cold War]]
* [[Limited government]]
* [[Conservatives]] and [[Libertarians]]
* [[Encroaching Control: Keep Government Poor and Remain Free]]
* [[Ronald Reagan's speech on KAL 007#Text of the speech|Ronald Reagan's Speech on KAL 007]]
* [[Korean Airlines Flight 007]]
* [[U.S. Peace Council]]
* [[Reagan revolution]]
* [[Richard Clarke]]
* [[List of Conservative or pro-Conservative Hollywood stars]]
* [[Conservative media#Hollywood Conservatives|Hollywood conservatives]]
* [[Essay:List of celebrities who support the Second Amendment]]
* [[Loyal Davis]]
* [[Let Them Go Their Way]] - Reagan's speech to CPAC, 1975
* [[Ronald Reagan's Address to Young Americans for Freedom]], 1975
* [https://mises.org/library/sad-legacy-ronald-reagan-0 Libertarian criticism of Reagan concerning big government]

==Further reading==
see Bibliography for much more detailed guide.
* Berman, Larry, ed. ''Looking Back on the Reagan Presidency'' (1990), essays by academics
* Busch, Andrew E.; "Ronald Reagan and the Defeat of the Soviet Empire" in ''Presidential Studies Quarterly''. Vol: 27. Issue: 3. 1997. pp 451+. [http://www.questia.com/googleScholar.qst;jsessionid=HhHYNGdT18XmGxylZNJQhdSjrtry2j8zYD2pLstvcnSLFqC9JzvF!-313427117?docId=5000522864 online edition] by conservative
* Cannon, Lou. ''President Reagan: The Role of a Lifetime '' Public Affairs. (2nd ed 2000) 948 pp. best full-length biography [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=88989671 online edition]
* Cannon, Lou. ''Governor Reagan: His Rise to Power'' detailed biography
* Flamm, Michael and John Ehrman. ''Debating the Reagan Presidency'' (2009), key issues explained; includes primary sources
* Berman William C. ''America's Right Turn: From Nixon to Bush.'' (1994).
* Brownlee, W. Elliot and Hugh Davis Graham, eds. ''The Reagan Presidency: Pragmatic Conservatism and Its Legacies'' (2003)
* Campagna; Anthony S. ''The Economy in the Reagan Years: The Economic Consequences of the Reagan Administrations'' Greenwood Press. 1994 [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=28144725 online edition], by conservative
* Cannon, Lou. ''Ronald Reagan: The Presidential Portfolio''. (2001) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=101553874 online edition]
* Ehrman, John. ''The Eighties: America in the Age of Reagan.'' (2005), by conservative historian
* Griscom Tom. "Core Ideas of the Reagan Presidency." In Thompson, ed., ''Leadership,'' 23-48.
* Hayward, Steven F. ''The Age of Reagan, 1964-1980: The Fall of the Old Liberal Order'' (2001)
* Hayward, Steven F. ''The Age of Reagan: The Conservative Counterrevolution: 1980-1989'' (2009) [http://www.amazon.com/Age-Reagan-Conservative-Counterrevolution-1980-1989/dp/1400053579/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1258861343&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Hulten Charles R. and Isabel V. Sawhill, eds. ''The Legacy of Reaganomics: Prospects for Long-Term Growth.'' (1994).
* Jones, Charles O. ed. ''The Reagan Legacy: Promise and Performance'' (1988) essays by political scientists
* [http://www.ccc.nps.navy.mil/si/2004/aug/knopfAUG04.asp Jeffrey W. Knopf, "Did Reagan Win the Cold War?"] ''Strategic Insights'', Volume III, Issue 8 (August 2004)
* Kyvig, David. ed. ''Reagan and the World'' (1990), scholarly essays on foreign policy
* Langston, Thomas S. "Reassessing the Reagan Presidency," ''Presidential Studies Quarterly,'' Vol. 34, 2004 [http://www.questia.com/read/5006516145?title=Reassessing%20the%20Reagan%20Presidency online edition]
* Levy, Peter B. ''Encyclopedia of the Reagan-Bush Years'' (1996), short articles [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=77341841 online edition]
* Matlock, Jack. ''Reagan and Gorbachev: How the Cold War Ended.'' (2004) by the conservative US ambassador to Moscow
* Pach, Chester. "The Reagan Doctrine: Principle, Pragmatism, and Policy." ''Presidential Studies Quarterly''(1): 75-88. Fulltext in SwetsWise and Ingenta; Reagan declared in 1985 that the U.S. should not "break faith" with [[anti-Communist]] resistance groups. However, his policies varied as differences in local conditions and US security interests produced divergent policies toward "freedom fighters" in Afghanistan, Nicaragua, Mozambique, Angola, and Cambodia.
* Patterson, James T. ''Restless Giant: The United States from Watergate to Bush vs. Gore.'' (2005), standard scholarly synthesis of the era
* Pemberton, William E. ''Exit with Honor: The Life and Presidency of Ronald Reagan'' (1998) short, favorable biography by historian [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=49534236 online edition]
* Reagan Ronald. ''An American Life.'' (1990). his second autobiography
* Reeves, Richard. ''President Reagan: The Triumph of Imagination'' (2005) detailed analysis by historian
* Sullivan, George.''Mr. President'' (1997). for middle schools
* Schmertz, Eric J. et al. eds. ''Ronald Reagan's America'' 2 Volumes (1997) articles by scholars and officeholders [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=15343830 vol 1 online][http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=28729700 vol 2 online]
* Schweizer, Peter. ''Reagan's War: The Epic Story of His Forty Year Struggle and Final Triumph Over Communism'' (2002), by conservative
* Thomas, Tony. ''The Films of Ronald Reagan'' (1980)
* Troy, Gill. ''Morning in America: How Ronald Reagan Invented the 1980s'' (2004). Study of Reagan's image.
* Troy, Gill. ''The Reagan Revolution: A Very Short Introduction'' (2009) [http://www.amazon.com/Reagan-Revolution-Short-Introduction-Introductions/dp/0195317106/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1258861138&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Wilentz, Sean. ''The Age of Reagan: A History, 1974-2008'' (2008), major narrative history by liberal historian who says Reagan transformed America

==Detailed Bibliography==
===Biographies===
* Benze, Jr. James G. ''Nancy Reagan: On the White House Stage'' (2005), [http://www.amazon.com/Nancy-Reagan-White-Modern-Ladies/dp/070061401X/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1194317375&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Benze James G. "Nancy Reagan: China Doll or Dragon Lady?" ''Presidential Studies Quarterly'' 20 (fall 1990): 777-90
* Cannon, Lou. ''President Reagan: The Role of a Lifetime '' Public Affairs. (2nd ed 2000) 948 pp. full-length biography [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=88989671 online edition]
* Diggins, John. ''Ronald Reagan‎'' (2008), 528 pages, by leading conservative historian.
* D'Souza, Dinesh. ''Ronald Reagan: How an Ordinary Man Became an Extraordinary Leader'' (1999), popular. [http://www.amazon.com/Ronald-Reagan-Ordinary-Became-Extraordinary/dp/0684848236/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1194317303&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Evans, Thomas W. ''The Education of Ronald Reagan: The General Electric Years'' (2006) [http://www.amazon.com/Education-Ronald-Reagan-Conversion-Conservatism/dp/0231138601/ref=sr_1_5/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1194317183&sr=1-5 excerpt and text search]
* Morris, ''Edmund. Dutch: A Memoir of Ronald Reagan'' (1999), includes fictional material [http://www.amazon.com/Dutch-Memoir-Ronald-Edmund-Morris/dp/0375756450/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1194317223&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Pemberton, William E. ''Exit with Honor: The Life and Presidency of Ronald Reagan'' (1998) short biography by historian [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=49534236 online edition]
* Reeves, Richard. ''President Reagan: The Triumph of Imagination'' (2005) detailed analysis by historian
* Sullivan, George.''Mr. President'' (1997). for middle schools
* Sutcliffe, Jane. ''Ronald Reagan‎'' (2008) 48 pages; for elementary school; [http://books.google.com/books?id=_H_u21ebGcsC&printsec=frontcover&dq=intitle:reagan&lr=&as_drrb_is=b&as_minm_is=1&as_miny_is=2007&as_maxm_is=12&as_maxy_is=2009&num=30&as_brr=0&as_pt=ALLTYPES excerpt and text search]

===Reagan before 1981===
* Brennan Mary C. ''Turning Right in the Sixties: The Conservative Capture of the GOP.'' University of North Carolina Press, 1995
* Burbank, Garin. "Governor Reagan and California Welfare Reform: the Grand Compromise of 1971." ''California History'' 1991 70(3): 278-289. Issn: 0162-2897
* Burbank, Garin. "Governor Reagan's Only Defeat: The Proposition 1 Campaign in 1973." ''California History'' 72 (winter 1993-94): 360-73.
* Burbank, Garin. "Speaker Moretti, Governor Reagan, and the Search for Tax Reform in California, 1970-1972" ''The Pacific Historical Review'' Vol. 61, No. 2 (May, 1992), pp. 193–214 [http://links.jstor.org/sici?sici=0030-8684%28199205%2961%3A2%3C193%3ASMGRAT%3E2.0.CO%3B2-E online in JSTOR]
* Cannon, Lou. ''Governor Reagan: His Rise to Power'' Public Affairs. detailed biography [http://www.amazon.com/Governor-Reagan-His-Rise-Power/dp/1586480308/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1194317275&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Dallek, Matthew. ''The Right Moment: Ronald Reagan's First Victory and the Decisive Turning Point in American Politics.'' (2004). Study of 1966 election as governor.
* DeGroot, Gerard J. "'A Goddamned Electable Person': the 1966 California Gubernatorial Campaign of Ronald Reagan." ''History'' 1997 82(267): 429-448. Issn: 0018-2648 Fulltext: in Swetswise, Ingenta and Ebsco
* DeGroot, Gerard J. "Ronald Reagan and Student Unrest in California, 1966-1970." ''Pacific Historical Review'' 1996 65(1): 107-129. Issn: 0030-8684 Fulltext: in Jstor
* Drew, Elizabeth. ''Portrait of an Election: The 1980 Presidential Campaign.'' (1981).
* Ferguson, Thomas and Joel Rogers, eds. ''The Hidden Election: Politics and Economics in the 1980 Presidential Campaign,'' 1981.
* Germond, Jack W. and Jules Witcover. ''Blue Smoke & Mirrors: How Reagan Won & Why Carter Lost the Election of 1980''. (1981). Detailed journalism.
* Hayward, Steven F. ''The Age of Reagan, 1964-1980: The Fall of the Old Liberal Order'' (2001)
* Hayward, Steven F. ''The Age of Reagan: The Conservative Counterrevolution: 1980-1989'' (2009) [http://www.amazon.com/Age-Reagan-Conservative-Counterrevolution-1980-1989/dp/1400053579/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1258861343&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Hamilton Gary G., and Nicole Woolsey Biggart. ''Governor Reagan, Governor Brown: A Sociology of executive Power.'' (1984).
* Moore, Glen. "Ronald W. Reagan's Campaign for the Republican Party's 1968 Presidential Nomination." ''Proceedings and Papers of the Georgia Association of Historians'' (1992) 12[i.e., 13]: 57-70. Issn: 0275-3863

===Politics and Domestic issues ===
* Aldrich, John H., and David W. Rohde. ''Change and Continuity in the 1984 Elections.'' (1987)
* Amaker Norman C. ''Civil Rights and the Reagan Administration.'' Urban Institute Press, 1988
* Berman, Larry, ed. ''Looking Back on the Reagan Presidency'' (1990), essays by academics
* Berman William C. ''America's Right Turn: From Nixon to Bush.'' Johns Hopkins University Press, 1994.
* Birnbaum Jeffrey H., and Alan S. Murray. ''Showdown at Gucci Gulch: Lawmakers, Lobbyists, and the Unlikely Triumph of Tax Reform.'' 1987.
* Boskin Michael J. ''Reagan and the Economy: The Successes, Failures, and Unfinished Agenda.'' ICS Press, 1987.
* Brownlee, W. Elliot and Hugh Davis Graham, eds. ''The Reagan Presidency: Pragmatic Conservatism and Its Legacies'' (2003)
* Busch, Andrew E. ''Reagan's Victory: The Presidential Election of 1980 and the Rise of the Right,'' (2005) [http://www.claremont.org/publications/crb/id.1103/article_detail.asp online review by Michael Barone]
* Campagna; Anthony S. ''The Economy in the Reagan Years: The Economic Consequences of the Reagan Administrations'' Greenwood Press. 1994 [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=28144725 online edition]
* Cannon, Lou. ''Ronald Reagan: The Presidential Portfolio''. Public Affairs. (2001) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=101553874 online edition]
* Cook, Daniel M. and Polsky, Andrew J. "Political Time Reconsidered: Unbuilding and Rebuilding the State under the Reagan Administration." ''American Politics Research''(4): 577-605. ISSN 1532-673X Fulltext in SwetsWise. Argues Reagan slowed enforcement of pollution laws and transformed the national education agenda.
* Derthick Martha, and Paul J. Quirk. ''The Politics of Deregulation.'' Brookings Institution, 1985
* Detlefsen, Robert R. ''Civil Rights under Reagan'' Institute for Contemporary Studies, 1991 [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=85749844 online edition]
* Eads George C., and Michael Fix, eds. ''The Reagan Regulatory Strategy: An Assessment.'' Urban Institute Press, 1984
* Ehrman, John. ''The Eighties: America in the Age of Reagan.'' (2005)
* Evans Rowland, and Robert Novak. ''The Reagan Revolution.'' 1991.
* Ferguson Thomas, and Joel Rogers, ''Right Turn: The Decline of the Democrats and the Future of American Politics'' 1986.
* Germond Jack W., and Jules Witcover. ''Wake Us When It's Over: Presidential Politics of 1984.'' 1985.
* Marshall R. Goodman; ''Managing Regulatory Reform: The Reagan Strategy and Its Impact'' Praeger Publishers, 1987 [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=43165555 online edition]
* Greider William. ''The Education of David Stockman and Other Americans.'' 1982. Stockman was Reagan's budget chief
* Griscom Tom. "Core Ideas of the Reagan Presidency." In Thompson, ed., ''Leadership,'' 23-48.
* Hulten Charles R. and Isabel V. Sawhill, eds. ''The Legacy of Reaganomics: Prospects for Long-Term Growth.'' C.: Urban Institute Press, 1994.
* Johnson, Haynes. ''Sleepwalking through History: America in the Reagan Years'' (1991) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=104836392 online edition]
* Jones, Charles O. ed. ''The Reagan Legacy: Promise and Performance'' (1988) essays by political scientists
* Karier, Thomas. ''Great Experiments in American Economic Policy: From Kennedy to Reagan'' (1997) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=15083874 online edition]
* Laham, Nicholas. ''The Reagan Presidency and the Politics of Race: In Pursuit of Colorblind Justice and Limited Government'' 1998. [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=14220230 online edition]
* Levy, Peter B. ''Encyclopedia of the Reagan-Bush Years'' (1996), short articles [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=77341841 online edition]
* Minarik Joseph J. ''Making America's Budget Policy. From the 1980s to the 1990s.'' M. E. Sharpe, 1990.
* Palmer, John L., and Isabel V. Sawhill. ''The Reagan Record,'' 1984. economics and sociology
* Patterson, James T. ''Restless Giant: The United States from Watergate to Bush vs. Gore.'' (2005), standard scholarly synthesis.
* Rayack; Elton. ''Not So Free to Choose: The Political Economy of Milton Friedman and Ronald Reagan'' (1987) hostile critique [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=24670801 online edition]
* Sahu, Anandi P. and Ronald L. Tracy; ''The Economic Legacy of the Reagan Years: Euphoria or Chaos?'' Praeger Publishers, 1991 [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=59361760 online edition]
* Salamon Lester M., and Michael S. Lund. eds. ''The Reagan Presidency and the Governing of America'' 1985. articles by political scientists
* Schmertz, Eric J. et al. eds. ''Ronald Reagan's America'' 2 Volumes (1997) articles by scholars and officeholders [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=15343830 vol 1 online][http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=28729700 vol 2 online]
* Shirley, Craig. ''Reagan's Revolution: The Untold Story of the Campaign That Started It All'' (2005) on 1976 campaign; [http://www.amazon.com/Reagans-Revolution-Untold-Campaign-Started/dp/0785260498/ref=pd_cp_b_1?pf_rd_p=413864201&pf_rd_s=center-41&pf_rd_t=201&pf_rd_i=0700614087&pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_r=0SWJK392VVCTPEDPDKJE excerpt and text search]
* Weatherford, M. Stephen and Mcdonnell, Lorraine M. "Ronald Reagan as Legislative Advocate: Passing the Reagan Revolution's Budgets in 1981 and 1982." ''Congress & the Presidency'' (2005) 32:1 pp 1–29. Fulltext in Ebsco; Argues RR ignored the details but played a guiding role in setting major policies and adjudicating significant trade-offs, and in securing Congressional approval.

===Foreign affairs===
* Arnson, Cynthia J. ''Crossroads: Congress, the Reagan Administration, and Central America'' Pantheon, 1989.
* Baucom Donald R. ''The Origins of SDI, 1944-1983.'' University Press of Kansas, 1992.
* Bell Coral. ''The Reagan Paradox: American Foreign Policy in the 1980s.'' Rutgers University Press, 1989.
* Beschloss Michael R., and Strobe Talbott. ''At the Highest Levels: The Inside Story of the End of the Cold War.'' 1993
* Busch, Andrew E.; "Ronald Reagan and the Defeat of the Soviet Empire" in ''Presidential Studies Quarterly''. Vol: 27. Issue: 3. 1997. pp 451+.
* Dobson, Alan P. "The Reagan Administration, Economic Warfare, and Starting to Close down the Cold War." ''Diplomatic History''(3): 531-556. Fulltext in SwetsWise, Ingenta and Ebsco. Argues Reagan's public rhetoric against the USSR was harsh and uncompromising, giving rise to the idea that his administration sought to employ a US defense buildup and NATO economic sanctions to bring about the collapse of the USSR. Yet many statements by Reagan and Shultz suggest they desired negotiation with the Soviets from a position of American strength, not the eventual demise of the USSR.
* Draper, Theodore. '' A Very Thin Line: The Iran-Contra Affair'' (1991)
* Fitzgerald, Frances. ''Way Out There in the Blue: Reagan, Star Wars and the End of the Cold War''. political history of S.D.I. (2000). ISBN.
* Ford, Christopher A. and Rosenberg, David A. "The Naval Intelligence Underpinnings of Reagan's Maritime Strategy." ''Journal of Strategic Studies''(2): 379-409. Fulltext in Ingenta and Ebsco; Reagan's maritime strategy sought to apply US naval might against Soviet vulnerabilities on its maritime flanks. It was supported by a major buildup of US naval forces and aggressive exercising in seas proximate to the USSR; it explicitly targeted Moscow's strategic missile submarines with the aim of pressuring the Kremlin during crises or the early phases of global war. The maritime strategy represents one of the rare instances in history when intelligence helped lead a nation to completely revise its concept of military operations.
* Garthoff, Raymond L. ''The Great Transition: American-Soviet Relations and the End of the Cold War'' (1994), detailed narrative by a hostile critic [http://www.questia.com/read/29069917?title=The%20Great%20Transition%3a%20American-Soviet%20Relations%20and%20the%20End%20of%20the%20Cold%20War online edition]
* Haftendorn, Helga and Jakob Schissler, eds. ''The Reagan Administration: A Reconstruction of American Strength?'' Berlin: Walter de Guyer, 1988. by European scholars
* Hall, David Locke. ''The Reagan Wars: A Constitutional Perspective on War Powers and the Presidency'' Westview Press, 1991 [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=87551275 online edition]
* [http://www.ccc.nps.navy.mil/si/2004/aug/knopfAUG04.asp Jeffrey W. Knopf, "Did Reagan Win the Cold War?"] ''Strategic Insights'', Volume III, Issue 8 (August 2004)
* Kyvig, David. ed. ''Reagan and the World'' (1990), scholarly essays on foreign policy
* Lagon, Mark P. ''The Reagan Doctrine: Sources of American Conduct in the Cold War's Last Chapter'' (1994) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=9161896 online edition]
* LeoGrande, William M. ''Our Own Backyard: The United States in Central America, 1977-1992'' (1998)
* Matlock, Jack. ''Reagan and Gorbachev: How the Cold War Ended.'' (2004) by the US ambassador to Moscow [http://www.amazon.com/Reagan-Gorbachev-How-Cold-Ended/dp/0679463232/ref=sr_1_2/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1194316986&sr=8-2 excerpt and text search]
* Pach, Chester. "The Reagan Doctrine: Principle, Pragmatism, and Policy." ''Presidential Studies Quarterly'' 2006 36(1): 75-88. Issn: 0360-4918 [http://www.questia.com/read/5015817882?title=The%20Reagan%20Doctrine%3a%20Principle%2c%20Pragmatism%2c%20and%20Policy online edition]
* Salla, Michael E. and Ralph Summy, eds. ''Why the Cold War Ended: A Range of Interpretations'' (1995). [http://www.questia.com/read/22889072 online edition]
* Schmertz, Eric J. et al. eds. ''Ronald Reagan and the World'' (1997) articles by scholars and officeholders
* Shultz, George P. ''Turmoil and Triumph My Years As Secretary of State'' (1993)
* Schweizer, Peter. ''Reagan's War: The Epic Story of His Forty Year Struggle and Final Triumph Over Communism'' (2002)
* Suri, Jeremi. "Explaining the End of the Cold War: A New Historical Consensus?" ''Journal of Cold War Studies'' - Volume 4, Number 4, Fall 2002, pp. 60–92 in [[Project Muse]]
* Thomas W. Walker; ''Reagan Versus the Sandinistas: The Undeclared War on Nicaragua'' (1987) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=65710540 online edition]
* Wallison, Peter J. ''Ronald Reagan: The Power of Conviction and the Success of His Presidency.'' (2003). 282 pp.
* Wapshott, Nicholas. '' Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher: a political marriage‎'' (2007) 336 pages [http://books.google.com/books?id=5HOuTL508F0C&printsec=frontcover&dq=intitle:reagan&lr=&as_drrb_is=b&as_minm_is=1&as_miny_is=2007&as_maxm_is=12&as_maxy_is=2009&num=30&as_brr=0&as_pt=ALLTYPES excerpt and text search]
* Wills, David C. ''The First War on Terrorism: Counter-Terrorism Policy during the Reagan Administration.'' 2004.

===Rhetoric, media and values===
* Aden, R. C. "Entrapment and Escape: Inventional Metaphors in Ronald Reagan's Economic Rhetoric." ''Southern Communication Journal'' 54 (1989): 384-401
* Dallek, Robert. ''Ronald Reagan: The Politics of Symbolism.'' (1999)
* Denton Jr., Robert E. ''Primetime Presidency of Ronald Reagan: The Era of the Television Presidency'' (1988) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=23088126 online edition]
* Diggins, John Patrick. ''Ronald Reagan: Fate, Freedom, and the Making of History'' (2007) Reagan as follower of Emerson, by leading historian of ideas
* Jane Feuer; Seeing through the Eighties: Television and Reaganism'' Duke University Press, 1995 [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=98148093 online edition]
* FitzWater, Marlin . ''Call the Briefing! Bush and Reagan, Sam and Helen, a Decade with Presidents and the Press''. 1995. Memoir by Reagan's press spokesman.
* Goodnight, G. Thomas. "Ronald Reagan's Re-formulation of the Rhetoric of War: Analysis of the 'Zero Option,' 'Evil Empire,' and 'Star Wars' Addresses." ''Quarterly Journal of Speech'' 72 (1986): 390-414.
* Greffenius, Steven. ''The Last Jeffersonian: Ronald Reagan's Dreams of America''. June, July, & August Books. 2002.
* Hertsgaard, Mark. ''On Bended Knee: The Press and the Reagan Presidency'' 1988. criticizes the press
* Hoeveler, J. David. ''Watch on the Right: Conservative Intellectuals in the Reagan Era.'' University of Wisconsin Press, 1991.
* Houck, Davis, and Amos Kiewe, eds. ''Actor, Ideologue, Politician: The Public Speeches of Ronald Reagan'' (Greenwood Press, 1993) [http://www.questia.com/SM.qst?act=adv&contributors=Davis W. Houck&dcontributors=Davis+W.+Houck online edition]
* Jones, John M. "'Until Next Week': The Saturday Radio Addresses of Ronald Reagan" ''Presidential Studies Quarterly.'' Volume: 32. Issue: 1. 2002. pp 84+.
* Kengor, Paul. ''God and Ronald Reagan: A Spiritual Life'' Regan Books, 2004. ISBN.
* Kiewe, Amos, and Davis W. Houck. ''A Shining City on a Hill: Ronald Reagan's Economic Rhetoric, 1951-1989.'' 1991.
* Lewis, William F. "Telling America's Story: Narrative Form and the Reagan Presidency", ''Quarterly Journal of Speech'': 280–302
* Longley, Kyle, Jeremy D. Mayer, Michael Schaller, and John W. Sloan. ''Deconstructing Reagan: Conservative Mythology and America’s Fortieth President,'' (M.E. Sharpe, 2007. xviii, 150 pp. isbn 978-0-7656-1591-6.)
* Meyer, John C. "Ronald Reagan and Humor: A Politician's Velvet Weapon", ''Communication Studies'' 41 (1990): 76-88.
* Moore, Mark P. "Reagan's Quest for Freedom in the 1987 State of the Union Address." ''Western Journal of Communication'' 53 (1989): 52-65.
* Muir, William Ker. ''The Bully Pulpit: The Presidential Leadership of Ronald Reagan'' (1992), examines his speeches
* Noonan, Peggy. ''When Character Was King: A Story of Ronald Reagan'' (2001) memoir by a Reagan speechwriter
* Ormanm John. ''Comparing Presidential Behavior: Carter, Reagan, and the Macho Presidential Style'' Greenwood Press, 1987 [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=15388519 online edition]
* Ritter, Kurt W. ''Ronald Reagan: The Great Communicator.'' Greenwood, 1992. [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=29047567 online edition]
* Shogan, Colleen J. "Coolidge and Reagan: The Rhetorical Influence of Silent Cal on the Great Communicator", ''Rhetoric & Public Affairs'' 9.2 online at Project Muse; argues that Coolidge and Reagan shared a common ideological message, which served as the basis for modern conservatism. Even without engaging in explicitly partisan rhetoric, Reagan's principled speech served an important party-building function.
* Stuckey, Mary. ''Getting Into the Game: The Pre-Presidential Rhetoric of Ronald Reagan.'' Praeger, 1989
* Stuckey, Mary. ''Playing the Game: The Presidential Rhetoric of Ronald Reagan.'' Praeger, 1990. [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=24414026 online edition]
* Thomas, Tony. ''The Films of Ronald Reagan'' (1980)
* Troy, Gill. ''Morning in America: How Ronald Reagan Invented the 1980s'' (2004). Study of Reagan's image.
* Michael Weiler and W. Barnett Pearce; ''Reagan and Public Discourse in America'' University of Alabama Press, 1992 [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=59353372 online edition]
* Wills, Garry. ''Reagan's America: Innocents at Home''. (1987)

===Primary sources===
* [http://fraser.stlouisfed.org/publications/ERP/ Council of Economic Advisors, ''Economic Report of the President'' (annual 1947- )], complete series online; important analysis of current trends and policies, plus statistcial tables
* Reagan Ronald, and Richard G. Hubler. ''Where's the Rest of Me?'' (1965). first autobiography
* Reagan Ronald. ''An American Life.'' (1990). second autobiography [http://www.amazon.com/American-Life-Ronald-Reagan/dp/0743400259/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1194317128&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Reagan Ronald. ''The Creative Society: Some Comments on Problems Facing America.'' 1968.
* Reagan Ronald. ''Abortion and the Conscience of the Nation.'' 1984.
* Reagan Ronald. ''Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: Ronald Reagan. 1981-1989.'' 8 vols. Washington, D.C.: GPO, 1982-91.
* Reagan, Ronald. ''[[Reagan, In His Own Hand]]: The Writings of Ronald Reagan That Reveal His Revolutionary Vision for America'' (2001) [http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/0743219384/ref=sib_dp_pt/103-4827826-5463040#reader-link excerpt and text search]
* Reagan, Ronald. ''The Reagan Diaries: Extended Selections‎'' ed. by Douglas Brinkley (2007)
* Skinner, Kiron K. et al., eds. ''Reagan's Path to Victory: The Shaping of Ronald Reagan's Vision: Selected Writings'' (2004), 450 radio talks from late 1970s

====Primary sources by Reagan associates====
* Anderson, Martin. ''Revolution: The Reagan Legacy'' (1990)
* Haig, Alexander. ''Inner Circles: How America Changed the World'' (1994). Haig was Secretary of State 1981-82
* Deaver, Michael, and Mickey Herskowitz. ''Behind the Scenes''. 1987. Memoir by a top aide.
* Meese Edwin. ''With Reagan: The Inside Story.'' Regnery Gateway, 1992.
* Niskanen William A. ''Reaganomics: An Insider's Account of the Policies and the People.'' Oxford University Press, 1988.
* Reagan, Nancy. ''My Turn: The Memoirs of Nancy Reagan'' (1989)
* Reagan Maureen. ''First Father, First Daughter: A Memoir.'' 1989.
* Reagan Michael and Joe Hyams. ''On the Outside Looking In.'' 1988.
* Regan Donald T. ''For the Record. From Wall Street to Washington.'' 1988; Treasury Secretary and Chief of Staff
* Shultz, George P. ''Turmoil and Triumph My Years As Secretary of State'' (1993) Schulz was Secretary of State 1982-89
* Stahl, Lesley. "Reporting Live" (1999) memoir by TV news reporter
* Stockman David A. ''The Triumph of Politics: How the Reagan Revolution Failed.'' 1986. Stockman was Budget Director in 1981-82
* Thompson Kenneth W., ed. ''Foreign Policy in the Reagan Presidency: Nine Intimate Perspectives.'' University Press of America, 1993.
* Thompson Kenneth W., ed. ''Leadership in the Reagan Presidency: Seven Intimate Perspectives.'' 1992.
* Thompson Kenneth W., ed. ''Leadership in the Reagan Presidency, Part II: Eleven Intimate Perspectives.'' University Press of America, 1993.
* Weinberger, Caspar. ''In the Arena: A Memoir of the 20th Century'' (1991), by the Defense Secretary

===Government documents===
* Council of Economic Advisors. ''Economic Report of the President,'' (annual, 1981-1988), detailed analysis of economic issues
* U.S. Census Bureau, ''Statistical Abstract of the United States'' annual compilation of over 1000 tables of data.

==References==
{{reflist|3}}

==External links==
*[https://reaganlibrary.archives.gov/archives/photographs/history.html Historical Photographs], from the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum
*[https://reaganlibrary.gov/major-speeches-index Ronald Reagan's Major Speeches, 1964-89]
*[http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1101040614-646317,00.html Time Magazine Article on ''The All-American President'']
*[http://www.whitehouse.gov/history/presidents/rr40.html White House Official Page]
*[http://www.simonsays.com/content/book.cfm?tab=1&pid=537924&agid=2 The Passing of a Conservative] - by Alfred Regnery
*[http://www.reagan.utexas.edu/ Reagan's Presidential Library]
*[http://imdb.com/name/nm0001654/ Actor Bio At IMDB]
*[http://www.ronaldreaganmemorial.com/ Official Memorial]
*[http://www.quotationspage.com/quotes/Ronald_Reagan Quotations by Ronald Reagan]
*[http://reagan2020.us/ Reagan 2020] Reagan 2020 is the Internet's most comprehensive resource on Ronald Reagan.
*[http://www.acuf.org/principles/p_philos.asp "Our Philosophy of Government"] Speech by President Ronald Reagan, March 2, 1981
*[http://www.nationalreview.com/article/211049/abortion-and-conscience-nation-nro-primary-document Abortion and the Conscience of the Nation] While president, Ronald Reagan penned this article for The Human Life Review, unsolicited.
* [https://librivox.org/author/11305 Works by Ronald Reagan - text and free audio] - [[LibriVox]]
*[http://davekopel.org/Misc/OpEds/Ronald-Reagan-extremist-collaborator.html Ronald Reagan, Extremist Collaborator], by Dave Kopel

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