Re: Re: Henry Wallace
Michael Hoover [EMAIL PROTECTED] 05/26/00 09:01PM CB: Yes, I often think that the Wallace would have been president without the switch. Was Wallace for real ? A red ? Well, he would have been prez if he'd still been vice-prez when FDR died at beginning of fourth term in 1945... ___ CB: Yea, that's what I was thinking. Somebody (powerful) probably thought, hey, FDR might die , and then Wallace would be pres. We better get him out of there. _ Wallace came from Iowa Republican family, father was agriculture secretary under Harding Coolidge (recall Harding died in '23) from 1921 until his death in 1924. Educated as plant geneticist - he developed first high- yield hybrid corn - HW took over family newspaper after dad died. Running paper with farming focus led Wallace to break with Reps over party's inattention to plight of rural farming families. Wallace used newspaper to promote farm price supports which he proceeded to implement as FDR's first agricultural secretary. In 1950, HW broke with supporters and people he was close to on political left over their refusal to support US in Korean War. He would also become public critic of Soviet Union. He wasn't red... _ CB: Thanks. Seems like he would have been a barrier to whipping up the Cold War and McCarthyism. CB
Henry Wallace
K Content-type: text/plain; charset="US-ASCII" Content-transfer-encoding: 7bit on 25/5/00 10:39 pm, Nathan Newman at [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: I just don't see what is gained by the campaign. Third party folks make so many wondrous claims for such third party efforts, yet historically Lafayette in 1924 delivered the reactionary era of Coolidge; Wallace the Cold War and McCarthyism; and we can go on. The exception is Debs pushing both parties to a more progressive politics, but that reflected the general upsurge of socialist organizing as much as Debs campaign itself. THe problem with Nader is that it is largely a campaign without a social movement. That is what seems like a waste to me. Further to Carrol's welcome defence of Wallace, the logic of the above is less than apparent. The Cold War and McCarthyism came from the Democrats, primarily, notwithstanding Joe's party tag (McCarthy had defeated the junior LaFollette to take the latter's senate seat, incidentally). Wallace also defended the involvement of communists in his campaign against the censure of ADA, that nominally liberal outfit. And these and many other "liberals" were quite happy to entrust national "security" to the most illiberal J. Edgar Hoover, no questions asked. That Wallace's campaign "delivered" anything other than a radical alternative requires much stronger justification. Similarly, it is not clear that the deeply conservative John Davis would have been any more progressive than Coolidge, given the capture of the Democratic leadership by east coast business interests which opposed the "progressivism" of McAdoo. Like Michael P., I shudder at the thought of dubya. Michael K.
Re: Henry Wallace
on 25/5/00 10:39 pm, Nathan Newman at [EMAIL PROTECTED] wrote: Third party folks make so many wondrous claims for such third party efforts, yet historically Lafayette in 1924 delivered the reactionary era of Coolidge; Wallace the Cold War and McCarthyism; and we can go on. The Cold War and McCarthyism came from the Democrats, primarily, notwithstanding Joe's party tag Similarly, it is not clear that the deeply conservative John Davis would have been any more progressive than Coolidge, given the capture of the Democratic leadership by east coast business interests which opposed the "progressivism" of McAdoo. Michael K. Combined, LaFollette Davis received 2.5 million fewer votes than Coolidge in '24. Several factors contributed to Coolidge landslide: economic expansion, Harding scandals were minimized, Dems took about 2 1/2 weeks and over 100 convention ballots to select Davis as 'compromise' nominee, LaFollette had limited financing and was smeared as 'red.' Re. '24 Dems, California's McAdoo was supported by rural southern delegates who blocked platform plank repudiating Klan. Urban northern progressives in party supported New York's Al Smith. As this was first convention to be broadcast on radio, internal bickering was heard by prospective voters throughout country and likelihood of any Dem winning decreased as convention dragged on. Eventual candidate, West Virginia's Davis, with ties to Wall Street, was indistiguishable from Coolidge. As for 1948, 'first shot' of domestic Cold War was fired by Dems/FDR dropped Wallace as VP in favor of Truman in '44. And Truman would remove Wallace as Commerce Secretary in '46 (and initiate loyalty oaths and Smith Act investigations in '47). Michael Hoover
Re: Henry Wallace
Michael Hoover [EMAIL PROTECTED] 05/26/00 08:32AM As for 1948, 'first shot' of domestic Cold War was fired by Dems/FDR dropped Wallace as VP in favor of Truman in '44. And Truman would remove Wallace as Commerce Secretary in '46 (and initiate loyalty oaths and Smith Act investigations in '47). __ CB: Yes, I often think that the Wallace would have been president without the switch. Was Wallace for real ? A red ? Don't mean to be too counterfactual hypothetical. The U.S. ruling class was starting the Cold War with the removal of Wallace from Vice President.
Re: Re: Henry Wallace
CB: Yes, I often think that the Wallace would have been president without the switch. Was Wallace for real ? A red ? Well, he would have been prez if he'd still been vice-prez when FDR died at beginning of fourth term in 1945... Wallace came from Iowa Republican family, father was agriculture secretary under Harding Coolidge (recall Harding died in '23) from 1921 until his death in 1924. Educated as plant geneticist - he developed first high- yield hybrid corn - HW took over family newspaper after dad died. Running paper with farming focus led Wallace to break with Reps over party's inattention to plight of rural farming families. Wallace used newspaper to promote farm price supports which he proceeded to implement as FDR's first agricultural secretary. In 1950, HW broke with supporters and people he was close to on political left over their refusal to support US in Korean War. He would also become public critic of Soviet Union. He wasn't red... Michael Hoover
