Examples Of Political Paralysis In The Gilded Age

Taft was opposed by William Jennings Bryan, running for a third time. Progressives were excited with Taft's election and conservatives were delighted to be rid of Roosevelt. The campaign which Taft won was more about personality than the issues. Taft won with 52% of the popular vote.

As tensions between the North and the South rose on the issues of slavery and states’ rights, numerous compromises were proposed to ease the conflict. Such compromises included the Missouri Compromise, the Compromise of 1850, and the Crittenden Compromise. These compromises had intentions of defining where slavery was permitted and clarifying states’ rights. They were only temporary fixes to a more pressing issue. Between the Missouri Compromise and the Crittenden Compromise, a series of events changed the political atmosphere of the United States and prevented any more compromises on the institution of slavery from being passed.

The Compromise of 1850 brought relative calm to the nation. Though most blacks and abolitionists strongly opposed the Compromise, the majority of Americans embraced it, believing that it offered a final, workable solution to the slavery question. Most importantly, it saved the Union from the terrible split that many had feared. People were all too ready to leave the slavery controversy behind them and move on. But the feeling of relief that spread throughout the country would prove to be the calm before the storm.

These presidents- Rutherford B. Hayes, James Garfield, Chester Arthur, Grover Cleveland, and Benjamin Harrison- mostly had unremarkable terms in office. Starting with Hayes, who technically lost the election, and had very little political power. His election is known as the most corrupt election in U.S. history. He fired employees who were not needed and tried to reform the government’s nonelected workers but had no congressional backing. After Hayes, Garfield, a Half-Breed, became the 20th president but was assassinated shortly after the election. Chester Arthur, a Republican, took his place as president and obtained congressional support for reforming the spoils system. Grover Cleveland served two presidential terms in office. As a Democrat, he vetoed hundreds of wasteful bills, while also achieving the Interstate Commerce Commission and civil service reform. The 23rd president, Benjamin Harrison, was a Republican. While in office, he introduced the McKinley Tariff and increased federal

The election of 1800 was a fight between the democratic-republicans and the federalists party for presidency. It also became the first time in American History where there was a peaceful shift in the political party, from the federalists party to the democratic-republicans party (Jeffersonians). The election of 1800 consists of five candidates, each believing that victory by the other side would ruin their nation. The candidates were, Aaron Burr and Thomas Jefferson in the democratic-republican party, and John Adams, Charles Pinckney, and John Jay in the federalist party;

When blacks were given the right to vote, it was only somewhat successful. Many blacks did use their new political power to vote as it is shown in Harper's Weekly (Document G), but whites still tried to stop them. Literacy tests, grandfather clauses, and fear caused by the Ku Klux Klan were used to keep blacks from exercising their right to vote. Another issue of reconstruction was the banking and currency system. In an attempt to uniform the currency, Senator John Sherman gave a speech saying that with "a currency and a medium of exchange, we shall have a broader and more generous nationality" (Document B). At the time many states had their own currency and a change needed to be made to unite the states. A sense of nationality was needed as the nation was in turmoil after the attempted secession of the South. Reconstruction came to an end in 1877 with the Compromise of 1877. Rutherford Hayes became president for agreeing to end federal support for Southern Republicans and building a transcontinental railroad. In this compromise he also withdrew troops from the South. This, along with the rejection of laws protecting blacks from discrimination, brought reconstruction to an end in 1877.

     The term Gilded Age was named for a Mark Twain book. It meant covered with gold, and was applied to this period as a whole. This was a period of corruption in sordid politics.

The Compromise of 1850 had many upsides to it. Among them is that it made slave trade legal but slavery was not. Of course, there were mixed emotions about the whole situation. Also California was admitted to the Union which made a lot of people content. This benefitted the government in many ways such as creating a more unified society. The compromise made it so people did not have to fear for who they were. Especially if you were black in the North or South, but that would soon change in the South because of the hatred between the two races.

The Gilded Age was characterized by rapid industrialization, reconstruction, ruthless pursuit of profit, government, corruption, and vulgarity (Cashman 1). After the Civil War, America was beginning to regroup as a nation. There were many other changes developing in the country. Industrialization was taking over the formerly agricultural country. The nation’s government was also in great conflict (Foner 20). Many changes occurred during the Gilded Age. These changes affected farmers, labor, business, and politics.

The Gilded Age was a very special time for our nation that took place from the 1870s to around 1900. During this time, economic growth was at a rapid increase, politics were corrupted yet had high turnouts, and urbanization flourished. Every aspect of the life of an American changed drastically throughout this time of the Gilded Age. The entire era was focused on the enormous changes that each aspect of America was going through. As this is brought to attention, if we are to look into the way that America is in our time of today, we can find that there are many similarities to that of the original Gilded Age. The United States of America have currently found themselves to be experiencing the second era of the Gilded Age throughout the areas of economic, politic and social transformation.

By the year 1860, there seemed to be no way that compromise could not possibly accomplish to peace among the south and the

There was a dispute over who won the election in 1876; the electoral votes were exceptionally close, and Samuel B. Tilden won the popular vote. Democrats threatened to filibuster if Tilden was not made president. The Compromise of 1877 allowed Rutherford B. Hayes to become president in exchange for all federal troops being pulled out of the southern states Florida, Louisiana, and South Carolina. In addition, the appointment of a Southern Democrat to Hayes’ cabinet, the construction of an additional transcontinental railroad to boost the economy in the south. Finally, the right to deal with African Americans without northern interference The Compromise of 1877 adequately ceased the Reconstruction Era.

The Tweed Ring scandal in New York began with William "Boss" Tweed. William is remembered for patronizing of his Tammany Hall political machine. He used it to gain massive sums of money during the Reconstruction. It was unfair, disguised, and very illegal. All of the cash he made was dirty and not legal, yet he managed to get away with this scheme from 1856 all the way until 1873.

Grant’s political supporters were mostly Republicans, especially the Radical Republicans. In 1868, Ulysses S. Grant was nominated as president and ran again Horatio Seymour, who was a democrat. The popular vote was close, but Grant managed to win it and took 214 electoral votes out of the 294 possible and became the 18th President of the United States (Lincoln,

In the 1808, presidential election was between James Madison and Charles Pinckney. After the surprise of Thomas Jefferson not running to be president again the current President of United States appointed James Madison, a friend and fellow virginian. President Jefferson was the ideal President, so most believed that his candidate would be the a good or even better president than Jefferson. As one of the main creators of the constitution, Madison seem to have all the experience and readiness to become president. His rival Charles Pinckney, former candidate of the last presidential election, was an american politician who was appointed and served as the minister to France. The main political parties in the race were the democratic-republican