Huey Long

• Huey Long - born 1893 into middle class, landowning family of Winn Parish in north-central LA
• was a "gifted" student (photographic memory) but quit school 1910 to become traveling salesman 4 years successfully selling canned goods and patent medicines
• married Rose McConnell 1913, pssed bar exam 1915 at age 21 after dropping out of Tuleane law school, practiced law 10 years in Shreveport, lost law suit against Standard Oil but won other compensation suits for injured workers against concentrated wealth of big corporations
• won his first election 1918 to Railroad Commission (used auto to campaign) and continued attack on Standard Oil
• one of the first southern politicians to use radio in 1924 and began to wear trademark white linen suit (to show people he was a little better than the masses) - elected governor of LA 1928 at age of 35
• campaigned on a slogan from William J. Bryan: "every man a king, but no one wears a crown" - became known as "Kingfish" because he listend to Amos 'n Andy radio program and would answer the telephone with "this is the Kingfish"
• in 1928 La. had only 330 mi. of paved road - paved 3000 mi. roads with increase in gasoline tax from 2 to 4 cents, gave students free schoolbooks with a severance tax paid by oil and gas companies
• overcame impeachment effort by Standard Oil and upper class in LA because of his 1929 tax of 5 cents per barrel on refined oil - after this impeachment attack he became more ruthless and more of a demagogue
• in 1930 elected to Senate using a sound truck to speak to huge crowds (1st time in U.S. politics) and with the help of his own statewide newspaper the Louisiana Progress, financed by deductions from the salaries of all state emplyees; but he didn't go to Washington until Jan. 1932; the governorship was filled by his crony O.K. Allen, elected with the help of Long's private police force called the Bureau of Criminal Identification
• IRS investigated his misuse of state funds, but he put thousands to work on public projects, paving 2000 mi. roads and 111 bridges and New Orleans first airport and new construction for LSU in Baton Rouge with new medical school - established night schools to reduce adult illiteracy of blacks from 38% to 23% - started 1st prisoner rehab. program in the state at Angola state prison - increased state spending from $29m in 1928 to $83m and state debt from $11m to $125m
• 1932 plan for "cotton holiday" all South not to plant cotton to raise prices, was rejected by most southern state legislatures but popular with farmers
• used telephone to transfer money to weak state banks (only 7 banks failed in LA 1929-32 while 4800 failed nationally)
• was willing to take bold forceful action to solve depression - allied himself with progressive senators such as Norris and Wheeler against the conservative Democratic Majority leader Joe Robinson
• supported FDR in 1932 election and Hattie Caraway of Ark., the first woman to be elected to a full 6-year term in the Senate
• but turned aganst FDR in June 1933 when not given federal patronage
• 1933 in Senate led 3-week filibuster in January against Banking Act of Carter Glass, one of the longest and most successful in Senate history - his quick wit and skilled debating skiills would be portrayed in the Robert Penn Warren Pulitzer Prize 1946 novel All the King's Men with the southern demagogue Willie Stark based on Huey Long changing from idealism to ruthless ambition
• got amendment to Glass-Steagall Act restricting the establishment of Fed branch member banks (instead, favored small country banks that were nonmembers of Fed, yet could get loans from Fed) - played key role in FDIC
• believed concentrated wealth was greatest danger to society - Share Our Wealth Society organized Feb. 23, 1934 with Gerald L.K. Smith (of NC Silver Shirts) - goal to tax the rich and give to the poor; tax on all inherited fortunes over $1m and personal income over $4m would pay for redistribution of wealth: give $5000 allowance to every family, a guaranteed $2000 annual income to all for a 30-hour wrok week, all personal debt cancelled, free education through college, and a pension for the aged over 60 - was promoted with a national newspaper the American Progress and radio broadcasts - by 1935 had 7m members in 27,000 clubs in every state (but most were in the South)
• threatened a filibuster in 1934 unless Frazier-Lemke bill passed (to allow farmers unable to pay mortgage to declare bankruptcy and pay new federal appraisal over 5 years)
• called special sessions of state leg in LA to control local government, patronage, taxes - abolished poll tax in LA, allowing blacks to vote, used National Guard to protect polls, but did very little to help blacks register to vote as would Gov Earl Long later
• planned to run for President but shot in abdomen by Dr. Carl Weiss in Baton Rouge Sept. 9, 1935, and died Sept. 10 after Dr. Arthur Vidrine failed to notice kidney wound that caused internal bleeding
• brother Earl K. Long was 3-time governor of LA; son Russell B. Long was U.S. Senator