As is evidenced in his letters, Bill has a keen interest in politics. The Taylor household in which he was raised was alive with passionate, opinionated political discussion. From an early age Bill was infused with the conservative political philosophy of his parents. In his writing it is clear that Bill is no fan of President Roosevelt and embraces the Republican point of view.
From June 26-28, 1944 the Republican Party held it's National Convention in Chicago, Illinois. Governor Thomas E. Dewey of New York was nominated as the Republican Presidential candidate on the first ballot. He was the first Republican candidate to accept the nomination in person. Ohio Governor John Bricker was the Vice-Presidential nominee. Earl Warren does not appear to be a factor in the contest to be the Vice-Presidential candidate in 1944.
A brief survey of the 1944 Republican Party Platform of 1944 does not present any major planks critical of the Roosevelt war effort. Most of the platform deals with domestic issues.
Thanks for that link, Greg. One of the platform points that caught my eye was the advocacy of "free labor." That was the principle that no employee should be required to join a union regardless of a contract. For organized labor the "closed shop" was fundamental to their organizing efforts. Then, as now, labor unions could trigger pretty passionate responses.
ReplyDeleteAnother point I picked up on was governmental regulation of businesses. The Republicans believed that true prosperity was possible only if business was allowed free and unfettered competition.
And, of course, there is lowering taxes. During these years the corporate and higher-income tax rates were extraordinary. I have read that one of Ronald Reagan's motives for being a Republican was to lower taxes. In the 1940s he was at the peak of his Hollywood career and giving most of his income to the government.
Upon reading the Republican Platform for 1944 I am struck by how similar it is to the political philosophy of the current Republican Party and how similar are the issues dividing Republicans and Democrats, particularly domestic, between 1944 and 2009.
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