1945-1970 Domestic politics: Truman, Eisenhower and post-war reconstruction Flashcards
What was Harry Trumans presidency like?
In April 1945, following the death of Franklin Roosevelt, Truman became president and was responsible for a series of policies at home and abroad which brought about post-war reconstruction. He had little experience and was not seen as FDR’s obvious successor. However, he was convinced that the USA was the world’s best hope for peace and prosperity and he believed that this hope could be best realised if the USA developed a political and social system that was an example to the rest of the world. Truman realised that not all Americans lived in prosperity and aimed to widen the scope of the New Deal, proposing, in 1945, wide-ranging reforms of housing and health care.
What was the Fun Employment Bill, 1945?
His immediate concern was the matter of employment. In 1945, he introduced the Full Employment Bill to Congress. This Bill declared employment to be a right and required the government to ensure that jobs were available. The Bill also increased the dole, included a higher minimum wage, farm price supports and a public works programme. However, Congress was to water down many of Truman’s proposals.
What were Labour relations like under Truman?
The Second World War had brought about inflation which, in turn, encouraged union leaders to call strikes demanding wage rises. Truman called a special labour-management conference in November 1945 in an attempt to prevent further strike action but the conference ended without agreement. In April 1945, the United Mine Workers came out on strike for a pay increase. In May, the railroads were hit by strikes. Truman now decided on firm action and announced that he would conscript the railroad workers and have the army run the railroads. He also wanted to introduce legislation that would restrict the right to strike against the government and would impose severe penalties on those that broke the law. This proved unnecessary, because the rail strike was called off. Truman had demonstrated the continued hostility of the Federal Government to labour and strike action.
As a result of the 1946 mid-term elections, Truman faced major political opposition as his political opponents, the Republicans, won control of both Houses of Congress. This was shown in the following year when Congress proposed the Taft-Hartley Bill, which made labour unions liable for violations of contracts, and prevented them from insisting that all workers must join a trade union as a condition of employment. Truman, however, unwilling to lose the support of labour, vetoed the bill but Congress passed it despite his objections. In 1948, Truman called Congress into special session and tried, unsuccessfully, to pass various New Deal-type measures.
What happened at the 1948 presidential election?
Truman was expected to lose the presidential election of 1948. His party, the Democrats, was split. Henry Wallace, a former vice-president of FDR, set up the Progressive Party. Strom Thurmond, a southern conservative, disliked Truman’s support for civil rights and also stood against Truman. Opinion polls suggested that the Republican candidate, Thomas E. Dewey, would win the election.
However, Truman promised New-Deal type measures and went on a 30,000 mile whistle-stop tour of the USA, defending his achievements as president and criticising the Republican ‘do-nothing’ Congress. In one of the biggest electoral surprises in US history, Truman won a majority of over 2 million votes and the Democrats regained control of Congress.
What was the Fair Deal?
In 1949, Truman declared that ‘Every segment of our population and every individual has a right to expect from our government a fair deal’. He tried to introduce a whole range of welfare measures but Republican and Democratic conservatives blocked many of his reform proposals. He did, however, succeed in raising the minimum wage, extending the Social Security Act and passed an act to assist slum clearance and to provide housing for the poor.
What was Eisenhowers presidency like?
Eisenhower’s presidency divided opinion both at the time and in later years.
Critics at the time accused him of being far too conservative, a do-nothing president who spent his time playing golf. He has also been accused of representing big business, especially as his cabinet was composed mainly of millionaire businessmen, three of whom had worked in the car industry. He also seemed to show little sympathy for civil rights.
However, more recently historians such as Stephen Ambrose have become more sympathetic to his presidency, seeing him as a safe pair of hands who made things look deceptively easy. They suggest that he chose an able team, delegated well and had a good record as a mediator. Eisenhower insisted that leadership only works through ‘persuasion and conciliation and education and patience’ Historians refer to Ike’s ‘hidden-handed’ presidency. He knew where he wanted to go and steered the country in that direction. He worked well with a Congress which, for most of his presidency, was controlled by the Democrats and was popular with most Americans.
What were Eisenhowers Domestic achievements?
As a moderate Republican, Eisenhower was able to achieve numerous legislative victories despite a Democratic majority in Congress during six of his eight years in office. He called his programme dynamic conservatism. This meant, he said, being ‘conservative when it comes to money and liberal when it comes to human beings. He was determined to, and succeeded in, decreasing the role of federal government. For example, he ended wage and price controls and reduced farm subsidies.
Even so, he accepted that federal government should have some responsibility for the welfare of its citizens and that it should promote economic growth. In addition to continuing most of the New Deal and Fair Deal programmes of his predecessors (Franklin Roosevelt and Truman, respectively), he strengthened the Social Security programme, increased the minimum wage and created the Department of Health, Education and Welfare. In 1956, Eisenhower created the Interstate Highway System, the single largest public works programme in US history, which would construct 41,000 miles of roads across the country. In addition, huge sums of money were spent completing the St Lawrence Seaway, linking the Great Lakes with the Atlantic.
