FREE ESSAY ON TEXAS POLITICS IN THE EARLY 20TH CENTURY

TEXAS POLITICS IN THE EARLY 20TH CENTURY

Conservative Texas
In the book, The Establishment in Texas Politics, by George Norris Green, Mr. Green
describes how, since 1939, fiscal and social conservatives have governed Texas.
Anglo-Texas nationalism supported the idea of Texas independence from groups including
the federal government as it pertains to laws overseeing business practices. From the
traditionalistic-individualistic scheme of Texas politics emerged a philosophy of
material self-interest above anything that might be considered fair to other groups
within the borders of the state. To make matters worse (or better, depending on your own
political persuasion) Texas at that time was a one-party system, and the powers that be
relied on a consistently low level of voter participation and the powerful influence of
special interest lobby groups.
Interest groups sprang forth from the business landscape tilled by capitalist pioneers
such as H.L. Hunt, Sid Richardson and Clint Murchison. These independent millionaires
were concerned with preserving capital and enhancing shareholder value by reducing the
interference by governmental socialists who sought to redistribute wealth though the use
of social programs. These men, and many more like them, cared little about government and
wanted no intervention in their economic affairs. Their attitudes were consistent with
the popular values of the Jeffersonian Democrats of the nineteenth century: The less
government the better, local control of what little government there was, and freedom
from economic regulation, or laissez-faire.
Three men, W. Lee O'Daniel, Coke Stevenson and Beauford Jester came to epitomize Texas
conservatives during this period of Texas history. Each man, whether they knew it or not,
practiced a type of pseudo laissez-faire that would later be known as Social-Darwinism;
the belief that individuals who prosper and rise to the top of the socioeconomic ladder
are worthy and deserve their riches, while those who sink to the bottom are unworthy and
deserve their poverty. Social-Darwinist argue that people become rich and powerful
because they are intelligent, energetic and self-disciplined, whereas those who become or
remain poor do so because they are stupid, lazy or otherwise given to embrace certain
destructive vices.
Socio-economic status, thus, was thought to be a result of natural selection. Further, it
was thought that as business flourished so would everyone flourish. As it has been
stated, A rising tide lifts all boats.
Wilbert Lee (Pappy) O'Daniel was born in Malta, Ohio on March 11 1890. O'Daniel was
educated in public schools in Kansas, he later completed a two year curriculum at Salt
City Business College in Hutchinson, Kansas, in 1908. Upon graduation he worked his way
up as a stenographer, bookkeeper and sales manager of a flour milling company. He
organized his own flour concern in 1935 in Fort Worth. He began a series of radio shows
featuring the Light Crust Dough Boys. At the urging of his radio fans, O'Daniel ran for
the govennorship of Texas in 1938. His entire platform consisted of the Ten Commandments,
the virtues of his own Hillbilly Flour, tax cuts for business and the industrialization
of Texas.
Given O'Daniel's business background, his philosophy was that of no corporate taxes and
he was of course, anti-labor. He instead offered up a tax plan, secretly written by
manufacturing interest groups that amounted to a multiple sales tax (a regressive tax
borne by people least able to pay). He also sought to attack labor unions by writing the
O'Daniel Anti-Violence Act but the courts discarded most of the provisions. At this time,
O'Daniel began replacing members of the University of Texas Regents in an attempt to
limit academic freedom and to eliminate communists who he saw as behind the pro labor
movement.
One of the more interesting characters in Texas political history would have to be Coke
Stevenson. Born in a log cabin in Mason county Texas, Coke started his business career
early. As a teenager he hauled freight from Junction to Brady. He worked his way up from
rancher, banker, lawyer and legislator. After he won the governorship Stevenson began to
demonstrate his fiscal and socially conservative ideology. He had amassed lucrative oil
lease income and he opposed any tax levied on it, he also opposed gas rationing Texas
during the second World War, the obvious implication here was oil prices would increase
with greater demand.
Race relations during governor Stevenson's administration was a mixed bag even though few
would argue against labeling Stevenson an ethnocentric racist. Coke reportedly felt that
Negroes were sometimes responsible for the situations they found themselves in.
(Lynching?) Stevenson appears to have been more responsive to Texas-Mexicans in regard to
discrimination in public places. Stevenson approved the Caucasian Race Resolution, which
prohibited discrimination of Caucasians in public places. (It said nothing about the ill
treatment of blacks, of course.) Coke Stevenson supposedly was quoted as saying, Meskins
is pretty good folks. If it was niggers, it'd be different!
In the area of organized labor, Governor Stevenson was more moderate than his predecessor
Pappy O'Daniel. The governor strengthened unemployment compensation laws and negotiated a
no strike agreement with organized labor. Throughout the war, revenues in Texas
decreased, as did the services provided by the state. Coke demanded tight restrictions of
all governmental agencies. As a result, social programs, and the people that relied on
them, mostly Mexican Americans, African Americans and poor Anglos, suffered. To say Coke
Stevenson was fiscally conservative would be the functional equivalent of saying the sun
is a little bit warm.
Our next suspect is one Beauford Halbert Jester. Mr. Jester was born in Corsicana, Texas
in 1893, like his contemporary conservative cohorts, Jester was highly educated having
received degrees from the University of Texas and attended the much heralded, and
liberal, Harvard University. Also, like his compadres, Jester was a schrewd businessman
having managed land, cattle and cotton holdings. Much of his work as an attorney involved
litigation at the bequest of the oil interests. It therefore, should come as no surprise
to anyone that Jester was pro-business and anti-labor. Some of the legislation supported
by Jester included a law forbidding automatic deduction of union dues from employee
paychecks; also he advocated state arbitration of contract disputes with an emphasis on
state control.
In the area of race relations, Jester opposed President Harry Truman's national civil
rights program, although he supported state laws banning lynching and poll taxes. In a
more moderate tone, he lobbied for higher teacher salaries, more and better educational
facilities and even called for the establishment of an all black major university.
Unfortunately, this jester proved him to be a flaming segregationist.
Conservative power in Texas since the late 1950's has had to adapt and develop as changes
in the Texas economy and social climate have metamophasized. The Texas economy is no
longer tied unequivocally to oil and gas and the railroads but have switched to high-tech
manufacturing and global trade. Conservatives on both sides of the aisle have embraced
treaties such as NAFTA much to the chagrin of organized labor. Unionized labor has, in
the meantime, seen their membership roles dwindle as large corporations such as GTE have
developed plans, which include all workers in a team concept and offer stock options in
an attempt to make employees feel they own a part of the company rather than an us
against them attitude.
Our friends on the right have faced challenges from ethnic groups such as the League of
United Latin American Citizens (LULAC) and the National Association for the Advancement
of Colored People (NAACP). In the 1970's LULAC continued to be the standard-bearer for
Mexican American goals in Texas. But in that decade, the organization began to falter.
For one thing, with many of its goals achieved, it began to experience internal
dissension about what course to set for the future. It began to attract members who were
more interested in advancing themselves than in advancing the group as a whole. President
Joseph Benetes nearly bankrupted the organization. He was later indicted and impeached by
the organization. As of now, Texas's most important Hispanic organization was crippled by
disagreement over strategy, racked by ethnic conflict and possibly enfeebled by
corruption. The NAACP has also had its share of mismanagement and internal squabbling
that has hurt rather than helped its cause in the battle over power in the politically
conservative Texas hierarchy.
Public education and the quality thereof, are thought of as a liberal concern. School
teachers in Texas have battled the conservative machine for years with little to show for
it. Politically, Texas teachers are marked more by disorganization and competition than
by coordination and cooperation. Fully one third of Texas teachers belong to no
organization at all, the others are divided among seven statewide and dozens of local
groups, all fiercely competitive. Teacher's groups have failed to speak with one voice.
Although they are united in support of pay raises and in opposition to publicly funded
vouchers (a conservative plan) for private schools. The four main teachers' group
disagree among themselves with regard to the tactics they should pursue to achieve their
goals.
As of the new millenium, the conservative sword thrusted about in Texas politics would
make the blade Lee surrendered to Grant, a toothpick by comparison. The statehouse, as
well as, the Lt. Governor, most of the senate and House of Representatives is all
conservative republicans. Homer Rainey would no doubt need permanently sealed roller
bearings to contain the revolutions per minute inside his grave if he knew of the
situation at hand. The conservative movement in Texas has relied on the left to be
fractionalized and generally inactive in voter participation. The liberals in Texas have,
so far, proved to be their own worse enemy.
Bibliography
Retired, 42 years old, college student with consentrations
in Finance, Marketing, History and Government