urban political machines & their decline extent reform other forces impact
TRANSCRIPT
Urban Political Urban Political Machines & their Machines & their
DeclineDecline
• Extent• Reform• Other Forces • Impact
HAVE URBAN POLITICAL HAVE URBAN POLITICAL MACHINES REALLY MACHINES REALLY
DISAPPEARED?DISAPPEARED?
Four elements of machines (in addition to patronage)
Four changes in the practice of machine politics
Four Elements of Machines Four Elements of Machines (in addition to (in addition to patronagepatronage or or
material rewards)material rewards)
Disciplined hierarchy – led by single boss
Party controls nomination to public office
Party leadership does not hold public office
Loyalty maintained by a mixture of non-ideological and psychic rewards
Tammany Hall Politics Tammany Hall Politics revolves around boss revolves around boss Richard Croker (1889) (1889)
Four Changes in Practices of Four Changes in Practices of Machine Politics Machine Politics
Racial divisions fracture hierarchy
Patronage less importantNew immigrants less dependent
on machinesNew institutions take functions of
central city machines
DECLINE OF MACHINE DECLINE OF MACHINE POLITICSPOLITICS
EXTENTREFORM OTHER FORCES IMPACT
Reforming the Machines Out Reforming the Machines Out of Businessof Business
Social dimensions of Reformers
Programs of structural reforms
Reformers and Bosses: Social Reformers and Bosses: Social Dimensions Dimensions
View of social reformers as “morning glories”Conflicts between reformers and bosses
◦Immigrants looked on politics from personal perspective
◦Upper-middle class reformers looked on politics as arena to realize broad moral principles
◦Differences in ethos: public regarding vs private regarding
Social Reformers ◦Concern with abuses of capitalist system◦Example: (Hazen Pingree – Detroit)
Goals/Programs of Structural Goals/Programs of Structural Reformers Reformers
Goal: efficiency (as contrasted with anti-capitalism of reformers◦Example: (Grover Cleveland –
Buffalo)Core programs
◦Merit appointments◦Privatization
Notable Innovations (electoral Notable Innovations (electoral machinery) of the Urban machinery) of the Urban
Structural ReformersStructural Reformers
Direct primariesAt-large electionsShort ballotNon-partisan elections
DECLINE OF MACHINE DECLINE OF MACHINE POLITICSPOLITICS
EXTENTREFORM OTHER FORCES IMPACT
Other Forces and the Decline Other Forces and the Decline of Machinesof Machines
Federal government
Demography
Federal Government and Federal Government and Decline of the Urban Political Decline of the Urban Political
Machines Machines Welfare politics empowers the federal government◦Magnitude of resources involved
beyond the capabilities of municipalities◦thought of as a legal right
Infrastructure development favors a national focus◦Equity between cities/regions◦Again, magnitude of resources problem
Courts
Demographics and the Demographics and the Decline of Urban Political Decline of Urban Political
MachinesMachinesMinority migration pressures machines to become more inclusive
Westward drift increases proportion of population in urban areas lacking machine tradition
Rise of suburbia◦Lack machine tradition◦Suburbanites focus on their careers
rather than on patronage from machines
Decline of the Urban Decline of the Urban Machine Machine
EXTENT REFORM OTHER FORCES IMPACT
Impact of the Urban Political Impact of the Urban Political Machine’s Decline: Machine’s Decline:
InstitutionsInstitutions
Kinds of cities that favor reform style of government◦Strong mayor (Chicago) ◦Council – manager (Dallas/San
Diego) ◦Commission (Galveston, Texas)
Other Impacts of the Urban Other Impacts of the Urban Political Machine’s DeclinePolitical Machine’s Decline
Class bias of political reformFragmentation and the decrease
of accountability