Jun 14, 2019
This week at In The Past Lane, the American History podcast, I
speak with historian Terry Golway, author of,
Frank and Al: FDR, Al Smith, and the Unlikely Alliance That
Created the Modern Democratic Party. It’s a remarkable
story of two unlikely allies – one a patrician who went to Harvard
and the other the son of immigrants who did not graduate 8th grade
– and how they came together to remake the Democratic Party in the
1910s and 1920s. This transformation led to the New Deal, a
revolutionary period in American history that changed the
relationship between the American people and the federal
government.
In the course of our conversation, Terry Golway explains:
Who Al Smith was and how he played a key role in the transformation
of the Tammany Hall political machine into an agent of reform in
the 1910s and 1920s.
How Franklin Delano Roosevelt transformed from an elitist, good
government reformer to a committed advocate of progressive
reform.
How Al Smith and FDR pioneered in making the New York State
Democratic Party the agent of progressive reform and how these
ideas and programs formed the foundation of the New Deal.
How Al Smith played a key role in resisting the KKK’s influence in
the Democratic Party.
How Al Smith and FDR, once great allies, had a falling out once FDR became president. And how they later reconciled.
How the constituency that made up the new Democratic Party – the urban, immigrant, African American working-class – came to be known as the New Deal Coalition and how it played a key role in national politics from the 1930s through the 1970s.
Recommended reading:
Terry Golway, Frank and Al: FDR, Al Smith, and the Unlikely Alliance That Created the Modern Democratic Party (St. Martin’s Press)
Robert Chiles, The Revolution of ’28: Al Smith, American Progressivism, and the Coming of the New Deal
Lizabeth Cohen, Making a New Deal: Industrial Workers in Chicago, 1919-1939
Terry Golway, Machine Made: Tammany Hall and the Creation of Modern American Politics
William E. Leuchtenburg, Franklin D. Roosevelt and the New Deal: 1932-1940
Eric Rauchway, Winter War: Hoover, Roosevelt, and the First Clash Over the New Deal
Robert A. Slayton, Empire Statesman: The Rise and Redemption
of Al Smith
More info about Terry Golway - website
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Music for This Episode
Jay Graham, ITPL Intro (JayGMusic.com)
Kevin McCleod, “Impact Moderato” (Free Music Archive)
Andy Cohen, “Trophy Endorphins” (Free Music Archive)
Ketsa, “Follow the Course” (Free Music Archive)
Jon Luc Hefferman, “Winter Trek” (Free Music Archive)
The Bell, “I Am History” (Free Music Archive)
Production Credits
Executive Producer: Lulu Spencer
Technical Advisors: Holly Hunt and Jesse Anderson
Podcasting Consultant: Dave Jackson of the School of Podcasting
Podcast Editing: Wildstyle Media
Photographer: John Buckingham
Graphic Designer: Maggie Cellucci
Website by: ERI Design
Legal services: Tippecanoe and Tyler Too
Social Media management: The Pony Express
Risk Assessment: Little Big Horn Associates
Growth strategies: 54 40 or Fight
© In The Past Lane, 2019
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