165-455: Edward William Proxmire (November 11, 1915 – December 15, 2005) was an American politician. A member of the Democratic Party , he served as a United States Senator from Wisconsin from 1957 to 1989. He holds the record for being the longest-serving senator from Wisconsin. Known as a political maverick and an aggressive critic of wasteful government spending, Proxmire invented and awarded
330-532: A dive bomber squadron VMSB-235 in the Solomon Islands and Bougainville for 30 months (August 1942 – February 1945), and held the rank of captain at the time he resigned his commission in April 1945. He volunteered to fly twelve combat missions as a gunner-observer. These missions were generally safe, and after one where he was allowed to shoot as much ammunition as he wanted, mainly at coconut trees, he acquired
495-462: A "scandalous" intimate dossier on the Senator's personal life and used the homosexual stories to take him down. In any event, McCarthy did not sue Greenspun for libel . (He was told that if the case went ahead he would be compelled to take the witness stand and to refute the charges made in the affidavit of the young man, which was the basis for Greenspun's story.) In 1953, he married Jean Fraser Kerr,
660-553: A 1952 letter from an Army lieutenant who said, "When I was in Washington some time ago, [McCarthy] picked me up at the bar in the Wardman [Hotel] and took me home, and while I was half-drunk he committed sodomy on me." J. Edgar Hoover conducted a perfunctory investigation of the Senator's alleged sexual assault ; Hoover's take was that "homosexuals are very bitter against Senator McCarthy for his attack upon those who are supposed to be in
825-447: A Communist Party vendetta against La Follette. The suggestion that La Follette had been guilty of war profiteering was deeply damaging, and McCarthy won the primary nomination 207,935 votes to 202,557. It was during this campaign that McCarthy started publicizing his war-time nickname "Tail-Gunner Joe," using the slogan, "Congress needs a tail-gunner." Journalist Arnold Beichman later stated that McCarthy "was elected to his first term in
990-431: A chair. County, town, city, and ward committees generally are composed of individuals elected at the local level. State and local committees often coordinate campaign activities within their jurisdiction, oversee local conventions, and in some cases primaries or caucuses, and may have a role in nominating candidates for elected office under state law. Rarely do they have much direct funding, but in 2005 DNC Chairman Dean began
1155-489: A confirmation by the Senate. He said that any actions taken by Bork in the period after the 39 had passed could be met by challenge, and he called on President Nixon to rectify the situation. Assistant Attorney General Robert G. Dixon Jr. disputed Proxmire's claim by saying that similar occurrences of Acting Attorneys General that went over 30 days without Senate confirmations had happened six times earlier. In January 1977, Proxmire
1320-558: A direct commission , and he entered the Marines as a first lieutenant . According to Morgan, writing in Reds, McCarthy's friend and campaign manager, attorney and judge Urban P. Van Susteren, had applied for active duty in the U.S. Army Air Forces in early 1942, and advised McCarthy: "Be a hero—join the Marines." When McCarthy seemed hesitant, Van Susteren asked, "You got shit in your blood?" He served as an intelligence briefing officer for
1485-568: A dishwasher, parking-lot attendant, and boxing coach. He first studied electrical engineering for two years, then law, and received a Bachelor of Laws degree in 1935 from Marquette University Law School in Milwaukee . McCarthy was admitted to the bar in 1935. While working at a law firm in Shawano, Wisconsin , he launched an unsuccessful campaign for district attorney as a Democrat in 1936. During his years as an attorney, McCarthy made money on
1650-537: A key part of the bipartisan conservative coalition in an alliance with most of the Midwestern Republicans. The economically activist philosophy of Franklin D. Roosevelt, which has strongly influenced American liberalism , shaped much of the party's economic agenda after 1932. From the 1930s to the mid-1960s, the liberal New Deal coalition usually controlled the presidency while the conservative coalition usually controlled Congress. Issues facing parties and
1815-515: A lack of evidence to show that Miller had been personally involved in bribes. In February 1978, Proxmire said that the Navy and the Air Force had spent "at least $ 42,000 in the last year transporting 3,500 local community leaders to 31 military bases to lobby for military programs" and labeled the trips an example of local citizens being lobbied for military programs. Proxmire added that the trips had included
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#17328727802561980-529: A letter of commendation from his commanding officer and Admiral Chester W. Nimitz , Chief of Naval Operations. However, his commander revealed that McCarthy had written this letter himself, probably while preparing award citations and commendation letters for his men, and that he had signed his commander's name, after which Nimitz signed it routinely. A "war wound"—a badly broken leg—that McCarthy attributed to varying adventures involving airplane crashes or anti-aircraft fire, had in fact happened aboard ship during
2145-530: A meteoric rise in national profile beginning on February 9, 1950, when he gave a Lincoln Day speech to the Republican Women's Club of Wheeling, West Virginia . His words in the speech are a matter of some debate, as no audio recording was saved. However, it is generally agreed that he produced a piece of paper that he claimed contained a list of known Communists working for the State Department . McCarthy
2310-518: A move for the party toward the Third Way , moving the party's economic stance towards market-based economic policy. Barack Obama oversaw the party's passage of the Affordable Care Act in 2010. During his and Joe Biden 's presidency, the party has adopted an increasingly progressive economic agenda and more left-wing views on cultural and social issues . In the 21st century, the party
2475-411: A popular Democratic song. The emotionally similar song " Beautiful Day " by the band U2 has also become a favorite theme song for Democratic candidates. John Kerry used the song during his 2004 presidential campaign and several Democratic congressional candidates used it as a celebratory tune in 2006. As a traditional anthem for its presidential nominating convention, Aaron Copland 's " Fanfare for
2640-613: A program (called the "50 State Strategy") of using DNC national funds to assist all state parties and pay for full-time professional staffers. In addition, state-level party committees operate in the territories of American Samoa , Guam , and Virgin Islands , the commonwealths of Northern Mariana Islands and Puerto Rico , and the District of Columbia , with all but Puerto Rico being active in nominating candidates for both presidential and territorial contests, while Puerto Rico's Democratic Party
2805-680: A publication of the Madison Federation of Labor. Proxmire served as a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly from 1951 to 1953. During his Assembly service, Proxmire was one of few members who maintained a perfect attendance record, a trait that he later continued in the U.S. Senate. While in the Assembly, he was employed as president of Artcraft Press of Waterloo . Proxmire was an unsuccessful candidate for Governor of Wisconsin in 1952 , 1954 and 1956 . In August 1957, Proxmire won
2970-545: A raucous celebration for sailors crossing the equator for the first time . Because of McCarthy's various lies about his military heroism, his "Tail-Gunner Joe" nickname was used in mockery by his critics. McCarthy campaigned for the Republican Senate nomination in Wisconsin while still on active duty in 1944 but was defeated by Alexander Wiley , the incumbent. After he left the Marines in April 1945, five months before
3135-586: A reputation as a moderate Republican. He fought against continuation of wartime price controls, especially on sugar. His advocacy in this area was associated by critics with a $ 20,000 personal loan McCarthy received from a Pepsi bottling executive, earning the Senator the derisive nickname "The Pepsi-Cola Kid". McCarthy supported the Taft–Hartley Act over Truman's veto, angering labor unions in Wisconsin but solidifying his business base. In an incident for which he would be widely criticized, McCarthy lobbied for
3300-413: A researcher in his office. In January 1957, McCarthy and his wife adopted an infant with the help of Roy Cohn 's close friend Cardinal Francis Spellman . They named the baby girl Tierney Elizabeth McCarthy. Senator McCarthy's first three years in the Senate were unremarkable. McCarthy was a popular speaker, invited by many different organizations, covering a wide range of topics. His aides and many in
3465-556: A settlement, and the potentially-years-long process could prevent the Senate Banking Committee from taking any action. June 1978 had four days of scheduled hearings by the Senate Banking Committee on continued federal aid to New York City. After the June 6 hearing, Proxmire stated he had maintained an open mind in spite of leaning toward opposition, a shift from his prior position of unwavering disagreement with continued aid and that he
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#17328727802563630-416: A son, Theodore, and a daughter, Elsie Stillman (Proxmire) Zwerner. Elsie Proxmire received an uncontested divorce in 1955. In 1956, Proxmire married Ellen Imogene Hodges Sawall, who brought two children of her own to the marriage. Together, the couple had two sons, one of whom died in infancy. Proxmire was the first United States Senator to get hair transplants for his pattern hair loss . The treatment he
3795-461: A synthesis of neoliberal economic policies with cultural liberalism , with the voter base after Reagan having shifted considerably to the right . In an effort to appeal both to liberals and to fiscal conservatives, Democrats began to advocate for a balanced budget and market economy tempered by government intervention ( mixed economy ), along with a continued emphasis on social justice and affirmative action . The economic policy adopted by
3960-517: A teaching fellow at Harvard, Proxmire moved to Wisconsin to be a reporter for The Capital Times in Madison and to advance his political career in a favorable state. "They fired me after I'd been there seven months, for labor activities and impertinence," he once said. When he ran successfully for the state legislature in 1950, Proxmire was working as the business manager of the Union Labor News ,
4125-550: A vigorous campaign attacking Eastern moneyed interests, but he lost to Republican William McKinley . The Democrats took control of the House in 1910, and Woodrow Wilson won election as president in 1912 (when the Republicans split) and 1916. Wilson effectively led Congress to put to rest the issues of tariffs, money, and antitrust, which had dominated politics for 40 years, with new progressive laws. He failed to secure Senate passage of
4290-496: A waste of federal funds: "On the basis of every statistical study, both by the Navy and independent groups, private shipyards can build, repair or modernize five ships for the same number of dollars needed to turn out four ships in navy shipyards." Proxmire unsuccessfully favored proposals that awarded contracts to the lowest bidder to save money and close unneeded facilities, and he pointed out that "the advantages of this free enterprise approach" had been recognized by Robert McNamara ,
4455-485: A younger generation of leaders, who like Hart had been inspired by the pragmatic idealism of John F. Kennedy. Arkansas governor Bill Clinton was one such figure, who was elected president in 1992 as the Democratic nominee. The Democratic Leadership Council was a campaign organization connected to Clinton that advocated a realignment and triangulation under the re-branded " New Democrat " label. The party adopted
4620-531: Is an organization supporting the candidacies of Democratic gubernatorial nominees and incumbents. Likewise, the mayors of the largest cities and urban centers convene as the National Conference of Democratic Mayors . The DNC sponsors the College Democrats of America (CDA), a student-outreach organization with the goal of training and engaging a new generation of Democratic activists. Democrats Abroad
4785-625: Is chaired by Representative Suzan DelBene of Washington . Similarly, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC), chaired by Senator Gary Peters of Michigan, raises funds for Senate races. The Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee (DLCC), chaired by Majority Leader of the New York State Senate Andrea Stewart-Cousins , is a smaller organization that focuses on state legislative races. The Democratic Governors Association (DGA)
4950-499: Is contrary to common practice outside of the United States where blue is the traditional color of the right and red the color of the left. Jefferson-Jackson Day is the annual fundraising event (dinner) held by Democratic Party organizations across the United States. It is named after Presidents Thomas Jefferson and Andrew Jackson , whom the party regards as its distinguished early leaders. The song " Happy Days Are Here Again "
5115-501: Is not the case. Based on accounts of his opposition to Soviet antisemitism, friendship with and employment of Jews, pro-Israel outlook, and testimony of colleagues to his lack of antisemitism, Tye suggests that those aspects his critics denote as antisemitic are rather byproducts of McCarthy's absolute lack of a filter and his inability to avoid colleagues colored by hatred. Tye says, "He certainly knew how to hate, but he wasn't that [antisemitic] kind of bigot." This perspective that McCarthy
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5280-600: Is organized only to nominate presidential candidates. The Democrats Abroad committee is organized by American voters who reside outside of U.S. territory to nominate presidential candidates. All such party committees are accorded recognition as state parties and are allowed to elect both members to the National Committee as well as delegates to the National Convention. The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) assists party candidates in House races and
5445-472: Is strongest among urban voters , union workers , college graduates , women , African Americans , American Jews , LGBT+ people , and the unmarried . On social issues, it advocates for abortion rights , voting rights , LGBT rights , action on climate change , and the legalization of marijuana . On economic issues, the party favors healthcare reform , universal child care , paid sick leave and supporting unions . In foreign policy,
5610-515: Is the largest party in the U.S. and the fourth largest in the world . Including the incumbent Biden, 16 Democrats have served as president of the United States. The Democratic-Republican Party splintered in 1824 into the short-lived National Republican Party and the Jacksonian movement which in 1828 became the Democratic Party. Under the Jacksonian era, the term "The Democracy" was in use by
5775-531: Is the organization for Americans living outside the United States. They work to advance the party's goals and encourage Americans living abroad to support the Democrats. The Young Democrats of America (YDA) and the High School Democrats of America (HSDA) are young adult and youth-led organizations respectively that attempt to draw in and mobilize young people for Democratic candidates but operates outside of
5940-517: Is the unofficial song of the Democratic Party. It was used prominently when Franklin D. Roosevelt was nominated for president at the 1932 Democratic National Convention and remains a sentimental favorite for Democrats. For example, Paul Shaffer played the theme on the Late Show with David Letterman after the Democrats won Congress in 2006. " Don't Stop " by Fleetwood Mac was adopted by Bill Clinton 's presidential campaign in 1992 and has endured as
6105-439: Is the world's oldest active political party. It initially supported expansive presidential power , agrarianism , and geographical expansionism , while opposing a national bank and high tariffs . From 1848 it was dominated by the interests of slave states until it split in 1860 over slavery . It won the presidency only twice between 1860 and 1912, although it won the popular vote two more times in that period. In
6270-569: Is usually quoted to have said: "The State Department is infested with communists. I have here in my hand a list of 205—a list of names that were made known to the Secretary of State as being members of the Communist Party and who nevertheless are still working and shaping policy in the State Department." There is some dispute with whether or not McCarthy actually gave the number of people on
6435-502: Is widely accepted that most of McCarthy's cases were selected from the so-called "Lee list", a report that had been compiled three years earlier for the House Appropriations Committee . Led by a former Federal Bureau of Investigation agent named Robert E. Lee, the House investigators had reviewed security clearance documents on State Department employees, and had determined that there were "incidents of inefficiencies" in
6600-545: The 1848 presidential election , before returning to the Democratic Party and staying loyal to the Union. The Democrats split over slavery, with Northern and Southern tickets in the election of 1860 , in which the Republican Party gained ascendancy. The radical pro-slavery Fire-Eaters led walkouts at the two conventions when the delegates would not adopt a resolution supporting the extension of slavery into territories even if
6765-435: The 1984 and 1988 presidential elections , respectively. Many Democrats attached their hopes to the future star of Gary Hart , who had challenged Mondale in the 1984 primaries running on a theme of "New Ideas"; and in the subsequent 1988 primaries became the de facto front-runner and virtual "shoo-in" for the Democratic presidential nomination before a sex scandal ended his campaign. The party nevertheless began to seek out
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6930-533: The 2020 presidential election . He began his term with extremely narrow Democratic majorities in the U.S. House and Senate. During the Biden presidency, the party has been characterized as adopting an increasingly progressive economic agenda . In 2022, Biden appointed Ketanji Brown Jackson , the first Black woman on the Supreme Court . However, she was replacing liberal justice Stephen Breyer , so she did not alter
7095-592: The Chi Psi fraternity. During 1940 and 1941 Proxmire was a student clerk at J.P. Morgan & Co. and studied public speaking at Columbia University . During World War II he joined the United States Army as a private , and advanced through the ranks to master sergeant . Proxmire later received a commission in the Military Intelligence branch. Most of his service involved counterintelligence work in
7260-629: The Democratic National Convention . The national convention is subject to the charter of the party and the ultimate authority within the Democratic Party when it is in session, with the DNC running the party's organization at other times. Since 2021, the DNC has been chaired by Jaime Harrison . Each state also has a state committee, made up of elected committee members as well as ex officio committee members (usually elected officials and representatives of major constituencies), which in turn elects
7425-609: The Federal Aviation Administration for studying "the physical measurements of 432 airline stewardesses, paying special attention to the 'length of the buttocks.'" Proxmire's critics said that some of his Golden Fleece awards went to basic science projects that led to important breakthroughs. In some circles, his name has become a verb for unfairly obstructing scientific research for political gain, as in "the project has been proxmired." In 1987, Stewart Brand accused Proxmire of recklessly attacking legitimate research for
7590-593: The Library of Congress . In 1998, Proxmire announced that he had been diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease . He died on December 15, 2005, aged 90, at a nursing home in Sykesville, Maryland , where he had lived for more than four years. He was buried at Lake Forest Cemetery in Lake Forest, Illinois . Democratic Party (United States) The Democratic Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in
7755-551: The New Deal . New Deal liberalism meant the regulation of business (especially finance and banking) and the promotion of labor unions as well as federal spending to aid the unemployed, help distressed farmers and undertake large-scale public works projects. It marked the start of the American welfare state. The opponents, who stressed opposition to unions, support for business and low taxes, started calling themselves "conservatives". Until
7920-627: The Secretary of Defense and a former corporate chief executive officer. From 1967 to 1986, Proxmire gave daily speeches noting the necessity of ratifying the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide . He gave that speech every day that the Senate was in session for 20 years, for a total of 3,211 times. On February 11, 1986 the U.S. Senate ratified the convention. In March 1969, Proxmire introduced legislation that would have regulated
8085-425: The U.S. Capitol by arguing that a "large part of the space created by the extension" would be used "to house private hideaway offices" for 23 senators. Proxmire continued to oppose the renovation, and the debate continued until the project was completed in the early 1970s. In March 1964, Proxmire charged that political concerns, not national defense needs, were keeping too many naval shipyards open, which resulted in
8250-496: The U.S. Constitution . The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that that clause does not immunize members of Congress from liability for defamatory statements made outside of formal congressional proceedings ( Hutchinson v. Proxmire , 443 U.S. 111 (1979)). The case was eventually settled out of court. In 1946, Proxmire married Elsie Stillman Rockefeller, a great-granddaughter of William Rockefeller , brother and partner of oil magnate John D. Rockefeller . They had two children,
8415-797: The Versailles Treaty (ending the war with Germany and joining the League of Nations). The weakened party was deeply divided by issues such as the KKK and prohibition in the 1920s. However, it did organize new ethnic voters in Northern cities. After World War I ended and continuing through the Great Depression , the Democratic and Republican Parties both largely believed in American exceptionalism over European monarchies and state socialism that existed elsewhere in
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#17328727802568580-634: The Vietnam War in the 1960s was another divisive issue that further fractured the fault lines of the Democrats' coalition. After the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution in 1964, President Johnson committed a large contingency of combat troops to Vietnam, but the escalation failed to drive the Viet Cong from South Vietnam, resulting in an increasing quagmire , which by 1968 had become the subject of widespread anti-war protests in
8745-524: The Whigs and modern Republicans. Historians argue that the modern Democratic Party was first organized in the late 1820s with the election of war hero Andrew Jackson of Tennessee, making it the world's oldest active political party. It was predominately built by Martin Van Buren , who assembled a wide cadre of politicians in every state behind Jackson. Since the nomination of William Jennings Bryan in 1896,
8910-654: The Wisconsin Republican primary , then Democratic challenger Howard McMurray by a 61% – 37% margin. After three largely undistinguished years in the Senate McCarthy rose suddenly to national fame in February 1950 when he asserted in a speech that he had a list of "members of the Communist Party and members of a spy ring" who were employed in the State Department . In succeeding years after his 1950 speech, McCarthy made additional accusations of Communist infiltration into
9075-613: The election of 1864 , which featured Andrew Johnson on the Union ticket to attract fellow Democrats. Johnson replaced Lincoln in 1865, but he stayed independent of both parties. The Democrats benefited from white Southerners' resentment of Reconstruction after the war and consequent hostility to the Republican Party. After Redeemers ended Reconstruction in the 1870s and following the often extremely violent disenfranchisement of African Americans led by such white supremacist Democratic politicians as Benjamin Tillman of South Carolina in
9240-481: The gold standard ; opposed bimetallism ; and crusaded against corruption, high taxes and tariffs. Cleveland was elected to non-consecutive presidential terms in 1884 and 1892 . Agrarian Democrats demanding free silver , drawing on Populist ideas, overthrew the Bourbon Democrats in 1896 and nominated William Jennings Bryan for the presidency (a nomination repeated by Democrats in 1900 and 1908). Bryan waged
9405-581: The popular vote , but after a controversial election dispute over a Florida recount settled by the U.S. Supreme Court (which ruled 5–4 in favor of Bush ), he lost the 2000 election to Republican opponent George W. Bush in the Electoral College . In the wake of the 2001 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon as well as the growing concern over global warming , some of
9570-631: The screwworm fly , the results of which were used to create sterile screwworms that were released into the wild and eliminated this major cattle parasite from North and Central America, which reduced the cost of beef and dairy products across the globe. In fact, there is no evidence for this claim in the Proxmire papers held by the Wisconsin Historical Society. In addition, the United States Department of Agriculture funded research on
9735-651: The victory of the communists in the Chinese Civil War , the Soviets' development of a nuclear weapon the year before, and by the contemporary controversy surrounding Alger Hiss and the confession of Soviet spy Klaus Fuchs . With this background and due to the sensational nature of McCarthy's charge against the State Department, the Wheeling speech soon attracted a flood of press interest in McCarthy's claim. McCarthy himself
9900-460: The 1880s and 1890s, the South, voting Democratic, became known as the " Solid South ". Although Republicans won all but two presidential elections, the Democrats remained competitive. The party was dominated by pro-business Bourbon Democrats led by Samuel J. Tilden and Grover Cleveland , who represented mercantile, banking, and railroad interests; opposed imperialism and overseas expansion; fought for
10065-507: The 1960s, the core bases of the parties shifted, with the Southern states becoming more reliably Republican and the Northeastern states becoming more reliably Democratic. The party's labor union element has become smaller since the 1970s, and as the American electorate shifted in a more conservative direction following the presidency of Ronald Reagan , the election of Bill Clinton marked
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#173287278025610230-561: The 1980s, the Democratic Party was a coalition of two parties divided by the Mason–Dixon line: liberal Democrats in the North and culturally conservative voters in the South, who though benefitting from many of the New Deal public works projects, opposed increasing civil rights initiatives advocated by northeastern liberals. The polarization grew stronger after Roosevelt died. Southern Democrats formed
10395-472: The 1982 NASA budget that effectively terminated NASA's nascent SETI efforts before a similar amendment to the 1994 budget, by Senator Richard Bryan , terminated NASA's SETI efforts for good. With those positions, Proxmire drew the enmity of many space advocates and science fiction fandom . Arthur C. Clarke attacked Proxmire in his short story " Death and the Senator " (1960) . Later, the short story " The Return of William Proxmire " (1989) by Larry Niven and
10560-408: The Air Force favoring production of the B‐1 bomber and gave an estimate cost of 42,000, as the Air Force had turned down on specifying the price. In February 1979, Proxmire sent a letter to Secretary of the Treasury W. Michael Blumenthal to call on the Treasury Department to withhold federal loan guarantees from New York City until incumbent Mayor Ed Koch agreed to larger cuts in the budget for
10725-406: The Banking Committee, Proxmire rose through seniority to become a high-ranking member of the Appropriations Committee and was active on several subcommittees, including Defense , Housing and Urban Development , Labor, Health and Human Services, and Related Agencies , and Postal Service and Related Agencies. In October 1961, Proxmire issued a statement opposing a planned $ 22 million renovation of
10890-427: The Chicago area, where members of his unit investigated individuals suspected of subversive activity . He served from 1941 to 1946, and was discharged as a first lieutenant . While in the Army, Proxmire also continued to study public speaking at Northwestern University . After discharge, he was an executive trainee at J. P. Morgan before returning to Harvard. After getting his second master's degree while working as
11055-423: The Common Man " is traditionally performed at the beginning of the Democratic National Convention. The Democratic National Committee (DNC) is responsible for promoting Democratic campaign activities. While the DNC is responsible for overseeing the process of writing the Democratic Platform, the DNC is more focused on campaign and organizational strategy than public policy . In presidential elections, it supervises
11220-400: The DNC. Joseph McCarthy Defunct Newspapers Journals TV channels Websites Other Economics Gun rights Identity politics Nativist Religion Watchdog groups Youth/student groups Miscellaneous Other Joseph Raymond McCarthy (November 14, 1908 – May 2, 1957) was an American politician who served as a Republican U.S. Senator from
11385-417: The Democratic Party supported expansive presidential power , the interests of slave states , agrarianism , and expansionism , while opposing a national bank and high tariffs . The Democratic-Republican Party split over the choice of a successor to President James Monroe . The faction that supported many of the old Jeffersonian principles , led by Andrew Jackson and Martin Van Buren , became
11550-407: The Democratic Party while red has become the identifying color for the Republican Party. That night, for the first time all major broadcast television networks used the same color scheme for the electoral map: blue states for Al Gore (Democratic nominee) and red states for George W. Bush (Republican nominee). Since then, the color blue has been widely used by the media to represent the party. This
11715-407: The Democratic Party, including the former Clinton administration , has been referred to as " Third Way ". The Democrats lost control of Congress in the 1994 elections to the Republicans, however, in 1996 Clinton was re-elected, becoming the first Democratic president since Franklin D. Roosevelt to win a second full term. Clinton's vice president Al Gore ran to succeed him as president, and won
11880-537: The Democrats but had the effect of alienating Southern whites who would eventually gravitate toward the Republican Party, particularly after the election of Ronald Reagan to the presidency in 1980. Many conservative Southern Democrats defected to the Republican Party , beginning with the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the general leftward shift of the party. The United States' involvement in
12045-494: The Democrats led to a Republican victory and Abraham Lincoln was elected the 16th president of the United States. As the American Civil War broke out, Northern Democrats were divided into War Democrats and Peace Democrats . The Confederate States of America deliberately avoided organized political parties. Most War Democrats rallied to Republican President Abraham Lincoln and the Republicans' National Union Party in
12210-473: The Federal Reserve , Proxmire was noted to be a reliable source of contention but predicted from the start of his confirmation process that Miller would meet little opposition. At the end of the month, eleven members of the Senate Banking Committee pressed for a confirmation of Miller as Federal Reserve Chair, a motion that Proxmire rejected while he was scheduling the vote for another day, and he admitted that
12375-697: The Federalist Party. The Democratic-Republican Party favored republicanism ; a weak federal government ; states' rights ; agrarian interests (especially Southern planters); and strict adherence to the Constitution. The party opposed a national bank and Great Britain . After the War of 1812 , the Federalists virtually disappeared and the only national political party left was the Democratic-Republicans, which
12540-670: The General Accounting Office Elmer B. Staats to request the GAO to investigate claims that the Department of Housing and Urban Development had authorized the P.I. Properties to steal funds from the federal government and low income tenants. The same day, Proxmire delivered a speech on the Senate floor that condemned the failure of the Housing and Urban Development Department to act on recommendation from staff members to terminate funding for
12705-544: The Government." Although some notable McCarthy biographers have rejected these rumors, others have suggested that he may have been blackmailed. During the early 1950s, McCarthy launched a series of attacks on the CIA , claiming it had been infiltrated by communist agents. Allen Dulles , who suspected McCarthy was using information supplied by Hoover, refused to cooperate. According to the historian David Talbot , Dulles also compiled
12870-506: The Obama presidency, the party moved forward reforms including an economic stimulus package, the Dodd–Frank financial reform act, and the Affordable Care Act . In the 2010 midterm elections , the Democratic Party lost control of the House as well as its majorities in several state legislatures and governorships. In the 2012 elections , President Obama was re-elected, but the party remained in
13035-621: The P.I. Properties' 285-unit project at 14th and Clifton Streets in Washington, DC. Proxmire was noted for issuing his Golden Fleece Award , which was presented monthly between 1975 and 1988 to focus media attention on projects that he viewed as self-serving and wasteful of taxpayer dollars. Winners of the Golden Fleece Award included governmental organizations like the United States Department of Defense , Bureau of Land Management , and National Park Service . The first Golden Fleece Award
13200-559: The Republican eagle. The rooster was also adopted as an official symbol of the national Democratic Party. In 1904, the Alabama Democratic Party chose, as the logo to put on its ballots, a rooster with the motto "White supremacy – For the right." The words "White supremacy" were replaced with "Democrats" in 1966. In 1996, the Alabama Democratic Party dropped the rooster, citing racist and white supremacist connotations linked with
13365-562: The Senate voted unanimously to investigate, and the Tydings Committee hearings were called. This was a subcommittee of the United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations set up in February 1950 to conduct "a full and complete study and investigation as to whether persons who are disloyal to the United States are, or have been, employed by the Department of State". Many Democrats were incensed at McCarthy's attack on
13530-539: The Senate with support from the Communist-controlled United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers , CIO ", which preferred McCarthy to the anti-communist Robert M. La Follette. In the general election against Democratic opponent Howard J. McMurray , McCarthy won 61.2% to McMurray's 37.3%, and thus joined Alexander Wiley, whom he had challenged unsuccessfully two years earlier, in the Senate. In 1950, McCarthy assaulted journalist Drew Pearson in
13695-590: The State Department of a Democratic administration, and had hoped to use the hearings to discredit him. The Democratic chairman of the subcommittee, Senator Millard Tydings , was reported to have said, "Let me have him [McCarthy] for three days in public hearings, and he'll never show his face in the Senate again." During the hearings, McCarthy made charges against nine specific people: Dorothy Kenyon , Esther Brunauer , Haldore Hanson, Gustavo Durán , Owen Lattimore , Harlow Shapley , Frederick Schuman , John S. Service , and Philip Jessup . They all had previously been
13860-568: The State Department's payroll. In fact, by the time of McCarthy's speech only about 65 of the employees mentioned in the Byrnes letter were still with the State Department, and all of these had undergone further security checks. At the time of McCarthy's speech, communism was a significant concern in the United States. This concern was exacerbated by the actions of the Soviet Union in Eastern Europe,
14025-457: The State Department, the administration of President Harry S. Truman , the Voice of America , and the U.S. Army . He also used various charges of communism, communist sympathies, disloyalty, or sex crimes to attack a number of politicians and other individuals inside and outside of government. This included a concurrent " Lavender Scare " against suspected homosexuals , whose illicit sexual activity
14190-424: The U.S. House and expanded its majority in the U.S. Senate, along with several gains at the state level. In July 2024, after a series of age and health concerns , Biden became the first incumbent president since Lyndon B. Johnson in 1968 to withdraw from running for reelection, the first since the 19th century to withdraw after serving only one term, and the only one to ever withdraw after already winning
14355-462: The U.S. Senate record for consecutive roll call votes cast: 10,252 between April 20, 1966, and October 18, 1988. In doing so, he surpassed the previous record of 2,941, which was held by Senator Margaret Chase Smith of Maine. In January 2016, Chuck Grassley broke Proxmire's record for longest amount of time between missed votes, but during his time without missing a roll call, Grassley had cast about 3,000 fewer votes than Proxmire. Proxmire served as
14520-401: The United States . Since the late 1850s, its main political rival has been the Republican Party ; the two parties have since dominated American politics. The Democratic Party was founded in 1828. Martin Van Buren of New York played the central role in building the coalition of state organizations that formed a new party as a vehicle to elect Andrew Jackson of Tennessee. The Democratic Party
14685-495: The United States after World War II included the Cold War and the civil rights movement . Republicans attracted conservatives and, after the 1960s, white Southerners from the Democratic coalition with their use of the Southern strategy and resistance to New Deal and Great Society liberalism. Until the 1950s, African Americans had traditionally supported the Republican Party because of its anti-slavery civil rights policies. Following
14850-552: The United States and elsewhere. With increasing casualties and nightly news reports bringing home troubling images from Vietnam, the costly military engagement became increasingly unpopular, alienating many of the kinds of young voters that the Democrats had attracted in the early 1960s. The protests that year along with assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Democratic presidential candidate Senator Robert F. Kennedy (younger brother of John F. Kennedy) climaxed in turbulence at
15015-420: The Washington social circle described him as charming and friendly, and he was a popular guest at cocktail parties. He was far less well liked among fellow senators, however, who found him quick-tempered and prone to impatience and even rage. Outside of a small circle of colleagues, he was soon an isolated figure in the Senate, who was often widely criticized. McCarthy was active in labor-management issues, with
15180-637: The Whig Party. The Democratic Party had a small yet decisive advantage over the Whigs until the 1850s when the Whigs fell apart over the issue of slavery. In 1854, angry with the Kansas–Nebraska Act , anti-slavery Democrats left the party and joined Northern Whigs to form the Republican Party . Martin van Buren also helped found the Free Soil Party to oppose the spread of slavery, running as its candidate in
15345-565: The accusation. Shortly after this, a 1950 poll of the Senate press corps voted McCarthy "the worst U.S. senator" currently in office. McCarthy biographer Larry Tye has written that antisemitism may have factored into McCarthy's outspoken views on Malmedy. Although he had substantial Jewish support, notably Lewis Rosenstiel of Schenley Industries, Rabbi Benjamin Schultz of the American Jewish League Against Communism , and
15510-557: The age of 48 at Bethesda Naval Hospital in Bethesda, Maryland , on May 2, 1957, though doctors had not previously reported him to be seriously ill. His death certificate listed the cause of death as " Hepatitis , acute, cause unknown", which some biographers say was caused or exacerbated by alcoholism . McCarthy was born in 1908 on a farm in Grand Chute, Wisconsin , the fifth of nine children. His mother, Bridget McCarthy (nee Tierney),
15675-481: The basis for the Communist propaganda in western Germany, designed to discredit the American armed forces and American justice. — Virgil P. Lary, Jr. It was later found that McCarthy had received "evidence" of the false torture claims from Rudolf Aschenauer, a prominent Neo-Nazi agitator who often served as a defense attorney for Nazi war criminals, such as Einsatzgruppen commander Otto Ohlendorf . McCarthy experienced
15840-546: The campaign, Kennedy attracted a new generation of younger voters. In his agenda dubbed the New Frontier , Kennedy introduced a host of social programs and public works projects, along with enhanced support of the space program , proposing a crewed spacecraft trip to the moon by the end of the decade. He pushed for civil rights initiatives and proposed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 , but with his assassination in November 1963, he
16005-418: The celebrated Wisconsin governor and senator Robert M. La Follette Sr. In his campaign, McCarthy attacked La Follette for not enlisting during the war, although La Follette had been 46 when Pearl Harbor was bombed. He also claimed La Follette had made huge profits from his investments while he, McCarthy, had been away fighting for his country. In fact, McCarthy had invested in the stock market himself during
16170-495: The chair of the Committee on Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs from 1975 to 1981 and again from 1987 to 1989. During his first tenure in this position, Proxmire was instrumental in devising the financial plan that saved New York City from bankruptcy in 1976–77. Proxmire's subcommittee memberships included Financial Institutions , Housing and Urban Affairs , and International Finance and Monetary Policy . In addition to his work on
16335-480: The character or patriotism of political opponents. Born in Grand Chute, Wisconsin , McCarthy commissioned into the Marine Corps in 1942, where he served as an intelligence briefing officer for a dive bomber squadron. Following the end of World War II he attained the rank of major . He volunteered to fly twelve combat missions as a gunner-observer. These missions were generally safe, and after one where he
16500-831: The cloakroom at the Sulgrave Club , reportedly kneeing him in the groin. McCarthy, who admitted the assault, claimed he merely "slapped" Pearson. In 1952, using rumors collected by Pearson as well as other sources, Nevada publisher Hank Greenspun wrote that McCarthy was a frequent patron at the White Horse Inn, a Milwaukee gay bar, and cited his involvement with young men. Greenspun named some of McCarthy's alleged lovers, including Charles E. Davis, an ex-Communist and "confessed homosexual" who claimed that he had been hired by McCarthy to spy on U.S. diplomats in Switzerland . McCarthy's FBI file also contains numerous allegations, including
16665-564: The columnist George Sokolsky , who convinced him to hire Roy Cohn and G. David Schine, McCarthy frequently used anti-Jewish slurs. In this and McCarthy's other characteristics, such as the enthusiastic support he received from antisemitic politicians like Ku Klux Klansman Wesley Swift and his tendency, according to friends, to refer to his copy of Mein Kampf , stating, "That's the way to do it," McCarthy's critics characterize him as driven by antisemitism. However, historian Larry Tye says that this
16830-494: The commutation of death sentences given to a group of Waffen-SS soldiers convicted of war crimes for carrying out the 1944 Malmedy massacre of American prisoners of war. McCarthy was critical of the convictions because the German soldiers' confessions were allegedly obtained through torture during the interrogations. He argued that the U.S. Army was engaged in a coverup of judicial misconduct, but never presented any evidence to support
16995-430: The concentration of economic and political power. They believed that government intervention in the economy benefited special-interest groups and created corporate monopolies that favored the rich. They sought to restore the independence of the individual—the artisan and the ordinary farmer—by ending federal support of banks and corporations and restricting the use of paper currency, which they distrusted. Their definition of
17160-432: The confusion of the Democrats that year, and won the 1968 election to become the 37th president. He won re-election in a landslide in 1972 against Democratic nominee George McGovern , who like Robert F. Kennedy, reached out to the younger anti-war and counterculture voters, but unlike Kennedy, was not able to appeal to the party's more traditional white working-class constituencies. During Nixon's second term, his presidency
17325-539: The contesting attorneys. The Wisconsin Supreme Court reversed a low percentage of the cases he heard, but he was also censured in 1941 for having lost evidence in a price fixing case. In 1942, shortly after the U.S. entered World War II , McCarthy joined the United States Marine Corps , despite the fact that his judicial office exempted him from military service. His college education qualified him for
17490-430: The court's 6–3 split between conservatives (the majority) and liberals. After Dobbs v. Jackson (decided June 24, 2022), which led to abortion bans in much of the country , the Democratic Party rallied behind abortion rights . In the 2022 midterm elections , Democrats dramatically outperformed historical trends and a widely anticipated red wave did not materialize. The party only narrowly lost its majority in
17655-404: The crass purpose of furthering his own political career, with gross indifference as to whether his assertions were true or false as well as the long-term effects on American science and technology policy. Proxmire later apologized for several canceled projects, including SETI . It is widely but incorrectly believed that Proxmire gave the award to Edward F. Knipling for his study of the sex life of
17820-615: The credit life and disability insurance industries. He declared that Americans were being overcharged $ 220 million a year. Proxmire was an early and outspoken critic of the Vietnam War and frequently criticized Presidents Lyndon Johnson and Richard Nixon . On the Senate Armed Services Committee, he exposed wasteful military spending and was instrumental in blocking military pork barrel projects. Despite his support of budgetary restraint, he regularly sided with dairy interests and supported dairy price supports . Proxmire
17985-651: The development of a supersonic transport airplane (SST). The son of Dr. Theodore Stanley Proxmire, a Chicago-area surgeon, and Adele (Flanigan) Proxmire, Edward William Proxmire was born in Lake Forest, Illinois , on November 11, 1915. He later used "William" rather than "Edward" out of admiration for actor William S. Hart . He graduated from The Hill School (in Pottstown, Pennsylvania ) in 1933, Yale University in 1938 ( B.A. ), Harvard Business School in 1940 ( M.B.A. ), and Harvard Graduate School of Public Administration in 1948 ( M.P.A. ). While at Yale, Proxmire joined
18150-624: The duties of his office. Writing of Werner in Reds: McCarthyism In Twentieth-Century America, Ted Morgan wrote: "Pompous and condescending, he (Werner) was disliked by lawyers. His judgements had often been reversed by the Wisconsin Supreme Court , and he was so inefficient that he had piled up a huge backlog of cases." McCarthy's judicial career attracted some controversy because of the speed with which he dispatched many of his cases as he worked to clear
18315-602: The end of the Pacific war in September 1945, McCarthy was reelected unopposed to his circuit court position. He then began a much more systematic campaign for the 1946 Republican Senate primary nomination, with support from Thomas Coleman, the Republican Party's political boss in Wisconsin. In this race, he was challenging three-term senator Robert M. La Follette Jr. , founder of the Wisconsin Progressive Party and son of
18480-507: The following year. He charged the budgetary assumptions of the city as being too reliant on federal aid increases. In March, Proxmire sent a letter to Federal Reserve Chair Miller on his reservations on the establishment of a free trade zone to allow international banking activity in New York City and advocated for the proposal to be first submitted to Congress, as opposed to unilateral regulatory action. In October 1979, Proxmire wrote head of
18645-631: The hallmark of nineteenth-century American politics. Behind the platforms issued by state and national parties stood a widely shared political outlook that characterized the Democrats: The Democrats represented a wide range of views but shared a fundamental commitment to the Jeffersonian concept of an agrarian society. They viewed the central government as the enemy of individual liberty. The 1824 "corrupt bargain" had strengthened their suspicion of Washington politics. ... Jacksonians feared
18810-414: The heavily backlogged docket he had inherited from Werner. Wisconsin had strict divorce laws, but when McCarthy heard divorce cases, he expedited them whenever possible, and he made the needs of children involved in contested divorces a priority. When it came to other cases argued before him, McCarthy compensated for his lack of experience as a jurist by demanding and relying heavily upon precise briefs from
18975-418: The hell out of me why everyone tries so hard to show that the prosecution [team] were insidious, underhanded, unethical, immoral and God knows what monsters, that unfairly convicted a group of whiskerless Sunday school boys. — Burton Ellis I have seen persons bent on murdering me, persons who murdered my companions, defended by a United States senator. … I charge that this action of Senator McCarthy’s became
19140-451: The hotly-contested Democratic National Convention that summer in Chicago (which amongst the ensuing turmoil inside and outside of the convention hall nominated Vice President Hubert Humphrey ) in a series of events that proved to mark a significant turning point in the decline of the Democratic Party's broad coalition. Republican presidential nominee Richard Nixon was able to capitalize on
19305-499: The image persisted and evolved. Its most lasting impression came from the cartoons of Thomas Nast from 1870 in Harper's Weekly . Cartoonists followed Nast and used the donkey to represent the Democrats and the elephant to represent the Republicans. In the early 20th century, the traditional symbol of the Democratic Party in Indiana, Kentucky, Oklahoma and Ohio was the rooster, as opposed to
19470-593: The late 19th century, it continued to oppose high tariffs and had fierce internal debates on the gold standard . In the early 20th century, it partially (not all factions) supported progressive reforms and opposed imperialism , with Woodrow Wilson winning the White House in 1912 and 1916 . Since Franklin D. Roosevelt was elected president in 1932, the Democratic Party has promoted a liberal platform that includes support for Social Security and unemployment insurance . The New Deal attracted strong support for
19635-539: The leadership of Nancy Pelosi . Democrats were extremely critical of President Trump, particularly his policies on immigration, healthcare, and abortion, as well as his response to the COVID-19 pandemic . In December 2019, Democrats in the House of Representatives impeached Trump , although he was acquitted in the Republican-controlled Senate. In November 2020, Democrat Joe Biden defeated Trump to win
19800-649: The list as being "205" or "57". In a later telegram to President Truman, and when entering the speech into the Congressional Record , he used the number 57. The origin of the number 205 can be traced: in later debates on the Senate floor, McCarthy referred to a 1946 letter that then–Secretary of State James Byrnes sent to Congressman Adolph J. Sabath . In that letter, Byrnes said State Department security investigations had resulted in "recommendation against permanent employment" for 284 persons, and that 79 of these had been removed from their jobs; this left 205 still on
19965-411: The measure by bottling it up in committee. In May, Proxmire announced his willingness to hold hearings on continued federal aid to New York City prior to municipal labor unions having their contracts negotiated and that the Senate Banking Committee would wait as long as possible to secure information on the labor settlement's impact. Proxmire stated it was not aware of when the labor contracts would reach
20130-430: The minority in the House of Representatives and lost control of the Senate in the 2014 midterm elections . After the 2016 election of Donald Trump , who lost the popular vote to Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton , the Democratic Party transitioned into the role of an opposition party and held neither the presidency nor Congress for two years. However, the party won back the House in the 2018 midterm elections under
20295-414: The modern Democratic Party. Historian Mary Beth Norton explains the transformation in 1828: Jacksonians believed the people's will had finally prevailed. Through a lavishly financed coalition of state parties, political leaders, and newspaper editors, a popular movement had elected the president. The Democrats became the nation's first well-organized national party ... and tight party organization became
20460-578: The nickname "Tail-Gunner Joe". McCarthy remained in the Marine Corps Reserve after the war, attaining the rank of lieutenant colonel . He later falsely claimed participation in 32 aerial missions so as to qualify for a Distinguished Flying Cross and multiple awards of the Air Medal , which the Marine Corps decided to approve in 1952 under his political influence. McCarthy also publicly claimed
20625-538: The nomination would be easily confirmed by the panel and the full chamber. On March 2, Proxmire cast the sole dissenting vote against the Miller nomination and called him unqualified for the office since he was without experience in economic or monetary affairs. Proxmire acknowledged Miller's business success and was joined by ranking Republican, Edward W. Brooke , in indicating that the Carter administration had influenced members of
20790-679: The novel Fallen Angels (1991), written by Niven, Jerry Pournelle , and Michael F. Flynn , were directed against the senator. In May 1971, Proxmire charged the Food and Drug Administration with violating federal law by authorizing residues of a cancer‐inducing hormone to come into contact with consumers, asserted the move to be in violation of the Delaney amendment in the Food Additives Amendment of 1958 , and called for an immediate ban on Diethylstilbestrol . In September 1971, Proxmire asserted
20955-535: The panel to hasten the confirmation process. When Miller was later nominated as Secretary of the Treasury in August 1979, Proxmire was once again the only senator to oppose confirmation. He claimed to base his vote on Miller's "unwillingness to open a full-scale investigation of allegations that Textron , the company he once headed, paid bribes to numerous foreign officials while Mr. Miller was in charge." Proxmire acknowledged
21120-534: The party from recent European immigrants but diminished the party's pro-business wing. From late in Roosevelt's administration through the 1950s, a minority in the party's Southern wing joined with conservative Republicans to slow and stop progressive domestic reforms. Following the Great Society era of progressive legislation under Lyndon B. Johnson , who was often able to overcome the conservative coalition in
21285-564: The party has generally positioned itself to the left of the Republican Party on economic issues. Democrats have been more liberal on civil rights since 1948, although conservative factions within the Democratic Party that opposed them persisted in the South until the 1960s. On foreign policy, both parties have changed positions several times. The Democratic Party evolved from the Jeffersonian Republican or Democratic-Republican Party organized by Jefferson and Madison in opposition to
21450-495: The party supports liberal internationalism as well as tough stances against China and Russia . Democratic Party officials often trace its origins to the Democratic-Republican Party , founded by Thomas Jefferson , James Madison and other influential opponents of the conservative Federalists in 1792. That party died out before the modern Democratic Party was organized; the Jeffersonian party also inspired
21615-412: The party's key issues in the early 21st century have included combating terrorism while preserving human rights, expanding access to health care, labor rights , and environmental protection. Democrats regained majority control of both the House and the Senate in the 2006 elections . Barack Obama won the Democratic Party's nomination and was elected as the first African American president in 2008. Under
21780-460: The party, but inflation and the Iran Hostage Crisis of 1979–1980 took their toll, resulting in a landslide victory for Republican presidential nominee Ronald Reagan in 1980, which shifted the political landscape in favor of the Republicans for years to come. The influx of conservative Democrats into the Republican Party is often cited as a reason for the Republican Party's shift further to
21945-453: The party, but the name "Democratic Party" was eventually settled upon and became the official name in 1844. Members of the party are called "Democrats" or "Dems". The most common mascot symbol for the party has been the donkey, or jackass. Andrew Jackson 's enemies twisted his name to "jackass" as a term of ridicule regarding a stupid and stubborn animal. However, the Democrats liked the common-man implications and picked it up too, therefore
22110-556: The passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Voting Rights Act of 1965 , the Southern states became more reliably Republican in presidential politics, while Northeastern states became more reliably Democratic. Studies show that Southern whites, which were a core constituency in the Democratic Party, shifted to the Republican Party due to racial backlash and social conservatism . The election of President John F. Kennedy from Massachusetts in 1960 partially reflected this shift. In
22275-401: The primaries . As of 2024, Democrats hold the presidency and a majority in the U.S. Senate , as well as 23 state governorships , 19 state legislatures , 17 state government trifectas , and the mayorships in the majority of the country's major cities. Three of the nine current U.S. Supreme Court justices were appointed by Democratic presidents. By registered members, the Democratic Party
22440-508: The proper role of government tended to be negative, and Jackson's political power was largely expressed in negative acts. He exercised the veto more than all previous presidents combined. ... Nor did Jackson share reformers' humanitarian concerns. He had no sympathy for American Indians, initiating the removal of the Cherokees along the Trail of Tears . Opposing factions led by Henry Clay helped form
22605-511: The right during the late 20th century as well as the shift of its base from the Northeast and Midwest to the South. With the ascendancy of the Republicans under Ronald Reagan, the Democrats searched for ways to respond yet were unable to succeed by running traditional candidates, such as former vice president and Democratic presidential nominee Walter Mondale and Massachusetts Governor Michael Dukakis , who lost to Reagan and George H.W. Bush in
22770-584: The safety margin of the C‐5A cargo plane was threatened in spite of doubling costs and charged the US Air Force with not disclosing information on the costs to Congress. In 1972, Proxmire urged the Air Force to recall General John D. Lavelle to active duty for the purpose of court-martial . Lavelle had been forced to retire as a major general due to alleged misconduct concerning Vietnam War bombing missions while he served as commander of Seventh Air Force. Lavelle
22935-521: The security reviews of 108 employees. McCarthy hid the source of his list, stating that he had penetrated the "iron curtain" of State Department secrecy with the aid of "some good, loyal Americans in the State Department". In reciting the information from the Lee list cases, McCarthy consistently exaggerated, representing the hearsay of witnesses as facts and converting phrases such as "inclined towards Communism" to "a Communist". In response to McCarthy's charges,
23100-503: The sex life of the screwworm fly took place in the 1930s to the 1950s, long before the Golden Fleece era of the 1970s and 1980s, when Proxmire largely targeted contemporary research. One winner of the Golden Fleece Award, Ronald Hutchinson, sued Proxmire for defamation in 1976. Proxmire claimed that his statements about Hutchinson's research were protected by the Speech or Debate Clause of
23265-412: The side by gambling. In 1939, McCarthy had better success when he ran for the nonpartisan elected post of 10th District circuit judge. McCarthy became the youngest circuit judge in the state's history by defeating incumbent Edgar V. Werner, who had been a judge for 24 years. In the campaign, McCarthy lied about Werner's age of 66, claiming that he was 73, and so allegedly too old and infirm to handle
23430-477: The special election to fill the remainder of the U.S. Senate term vacated by the May 2, 1957 death of Joseph McCarthy . After assuming his seat, Proxmire did not pay the customary tribute to his predecessor and stated instead that McCarthy was a "disgrace to Wisconsin, to the Senate, and to America." Proxmire was reelected in 1958, 1964, 1970, 1976 and 1982; all but his 1964 win were by wide margins, including 71 percent of
23595-435: The state of Wisconsin from 1947 until his death at age 48 in 1957. Beginning in 1950, McCarthy became the most visible public face of a period in the United States in which Cold War tensions fueled fears of widespread communist subversion . He alleged that numerous communists and Soviet spies and sympathizers had infiltrated the United States federal government, universities, film industry, and elsewhere. Ultimately he
23760-406: The symbol. The rooster symbol still appears on Oklahoma, Kentucky, Indiana, and West Virginia ballots . In New York, the Democratic ballot symbol is a five-pointed star. Although both major political parties (and many minor ones) use the traditional American colors of red, white, and blue in their marketing and representations, since election night 2000 blue has become the identifying color for
23925-782: The tongue-in-cheek Golden Fleece Award to appropriations he found particularly egregious. He was a member of the Senate Banking Committee , the Senate Appropriations Committee , and the Joint Economic Committee . On the Joint Economic Committee, he exposed numerous instances of wasteful spending on military programs such as the C-5 aircraft and the F-16 fighter, as well as other government programs such as
24090-490: The vote in 1970, 73 percent in 1976 and 65 percent in 1982. In both of his last two campaigns, Proxmire refused contributions and spent less than $ 200 out of his own pocket, which covered the expenses related to filing re-election paperwork, and he mailed back unsolicited contributions. He was an early advocate of campaign finance reform . Throughout his Senate career, Proxmire also refused to accept reimbursements for travel expenses related to his official duties. Proxmire holds
24255-414: The voters of those territories did not want it. These Southern Democrats nominated the pro-slavery incumbent vice president, John C. Breckinridge of Kentucky, for president and General Joseph Lane , of Oregon, for vice president. The Northern Democrats nominated Senator Stephen A. Douglas of Illinois for president and former Georgia Governor Herschel V. Johnson for vice president. This fracturing of
24420-460: The war, netting a profit of $ 42,000 in 1943 (equal to $ 739,523 today). Where McCarthy got the money to invest in the first place remains a mystery. La Follette's investments consisted of partial interest in a radio station, which earned him a profit of $ 47,000 over two years. According to Jack Anderson and Ronald W. May, McCarthy's campaign funds, much of them from out of state, were ten times more than La Follette's and McCarthy's vote benefited from
24585-533: The world. The Great Depression in 1929 that began under Republican President Herbert Hoover and the Republican Congress set the stage for a more liberal government as the Democrats controlled the House of Representatives nearly uninterrupted from 1930 until 1994, the Senate for 44 of 48 years from 1930, and won most presidential elections until 1968. Franklin D. Roosevelt , elected to the presidency in 1932, came forth with federal government programs called
24750-437: Was allowed to shoot as much ammunition as he wanted, mainly at coconut trees, he acquired the nickname "Tail-Gunner Joe". Some of his claims of heroism were later shown to be exaggerated or falsified, leading many of his critics to use "Tail-Gunner Joe" as a term of mockery. A Democrat until 1944, McCarthy successfully ran for the U.S. Senate in 1946 as a Republican, narrowly defeating incumbent Robert M. La Follette Jr. in
24915-639: Was awarded in 1975 to the National Science Foundation for funding an $ 84,000 study on why people fall in love. Other Golden Fleece awards over the years were awarded to the Justice Department for conducting a study on why prisoners wanted to get out of jail, the National Institute of Mental Health to study a Peruvian brothel ("The researchers said they made repeated visits in the interests of accuracy," reported The New York Times ), and
25080-433: Was censured by the Senate in 1954 for refusing to cooperate with and abusing members of, the committee established to investigate whether or not he should be censured. The term " McCarthyism ", coined in 1950 in reference to McCarthy's practices was soon applied to similar anti-communist activities. Today the term is used more broadly to mean demagogic , reckless, and unsubstantiated accusations, as well as public attacks on
25245-453: Was from County Tipperary , Ireland. His father, Timothy McCarthy, was born in the United States, the son of an Irish father and a German mother. McCarthy dropped out of junior high school at age 14 to help his parents manage their farm. He entered Little Wolf High School, in Manawa, Wisconsin , when he was 20 and graduated in one year. He attended Marquette University from 1930 to 1935. McCarthy worked odd jobs while at college, including as
25410-456: Was head of the campaign to cancel the American supersonic transport and particularly opposed to space exploration and ultimately to eliminate spending on such research from NASA 's budget. In response to a segment about space colonies run by the CBS program 60 Minutes , Proxmire stated that; "it's the best argument yet for chopping NASA's funding to the bone.... I say not a penny for this nutty fantasy." Proxmire introduced an amendment into
25575-463: Was not able to see its passage. Kennedy's successor Lyndon B. Johnson was able to persuade the largely conservative Congress to pass the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and with a more progressive Congress in 1965 passed much of the Great Society , including Medicare and Medicaid , which consisted of an array of social programs designed to help the poor, sick, and elderly. Kennedy and Johnson's advocacy of civil rights further solidified black support for
25740-420: Was not against a favorable vote on the legislation by the Banking Committee that would authorize the remainder of the Senate to consider the subject. He admitted that the committee was split in the opinions of its members. Days afterward, Proxmire told reporters that the labor bill's continued filibuster made the chances of the Senate acting on the legislation by the end of the month unlikely since unanimous consent
25905-406: Was not an antisemite is supported by other historians. Tye cites three quotes from European historian Steven Remy, chief Malmedy prosecutor COL Burton Ellis JAG USA, and massacre victim and survivor Virgil P. Lary, Jr: Both willfully clueless and supremely self-confident, McCarthy impeded but did not derail a truly fair and balanced investigation of the Malmedy affair, — Steven Remy It beats
26070-474: Was not recalled or court-martialed, and in 2007, newly-declassified and released information exonerated Lavelle by showing that President Richard M. Nixon had authorized the bombing missions. In November 1973, after Attorney General Elliot Richardson resigned, and Robert Bork took over as Acting Attorney General, Proxmire wrote in a letter that Bork was serving illegally as Acting Attorney General since 30 days had passed with him being in office and not having
26235-523: Was one of five Democrats to vote against Griffin Bell , President Jimmy Carter 's nominee for United States Attorney General . In January 1978, Carter wrote Proxmire on the responsibilities of New York City denizens in his plan to have the city avoid bankruptcy. In April, after New York Senators Daniel Patrick Moynihan and Jacob Javits introduced a Carter administration bill that would provide New York City with $ 2 billion in loan guarantees, Javits stated that he did not believe Proxmire would try killing
26400-488: Was presumed to make them vulnerable to blackmail by communists and others. With the highly publicized Army–McCarthy hearings of 1954, and following the suicide of Wyoming Senator Lester C. Hunt that same year, McCarthy's support and popularity faded. On December 2, 1954, the Senate voted to censure McCarthy by a vote of 67–22, making him one of the few senators ever to be disciplined in this fashion. He continued to rail against communism and socialism until his death at
26565-404: Was prone to splinter along regional lines. The era of one-party rule in the United States, known as the Era of Good Feelings , lasted from 1816 until 1828, when Andrew Jackson became president. Jackson and Martin Van Buren worked with allies in each state to form a new Democratic Party on a national basis. In the 1830s, the Whig Party coalesced into the main rival to the Democrats. Before 1860,
26730-549: Was receiving for a couple of months began on February 22, 1972. His 1972 tax return which was published in the Congressional Record revealed that he paid $ 2,758 for his hair transplant and claimed the operation as a medical expense. Known for his devotion to personal fitness, which included jogging and push-ups , Proxmire earned the moniker "Push Up". In 1973, he published a book about staying in shape, entitled You Can Do It: Senator Proxmire's Exercise, Diet and Relaxation Plan . After leaving Congress, Proxmire had an office in
26895-482: Was required to end the filibuster. Later that month, along with Texas Republican John Tower and Utah Republican Jake Garn , Proxmire was one of the three senators voting against reporting out the bill authorizing $ 1.5 billion of long‐term loan guarantees for New York City. Proxmire added that he believed that the measure would pass through the Senate in a similar manner to the panel vote. In February 1978, after President Carter nominated G. William Miller for Chair of
27060-422: Was rocked by the Watergate scandal, which forced him to resign in 1974. He was succeeded by vice president Gerald Ford , who served a brief tenure. Watergate offered the Democrats an opportunity to recoup, and their nominee Jimmy Carter won the 1976 presidential election. With the initial support of evangelical Christian voters in the South, Carter was temporarily able to reunite the disparate factions within
27225-402: Was taken aback by the massive media response to the Wheeling speech, and he was accused of continually revising both his charges and figures. In Salt Lake City , Utah, a few days later, he cited a figure of 57, and in the Senate on February 20, 1950, he claimed 81. During a five-hour speech, McCarthy presented a case-by-case analysis of his 81 "loyalty risks" employed at the State Department. It
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