When people think of America in the 1950's, they think of new suburbs being built, the "traditional" American family, McCarthyism, and Dwight "Ike" David Eisenhower, who was our nation's leader from 1953 until 1961.
Though Eisenhower was a Republican, many American Liberals have claimed that Eisenhower was a "moderate" and could even be considered a Democrat by today's standards. But, why is that? After all, the 1950's was a time known for McCarthyism and heavy social conservatism. Why would the then President, a Republican, be a moderate, or even a liberal? Hopefully, this diary can explain why Eisenhower would be considered a liberal today, and why Eisenhower's generally liberal economic policies caused prosperity in the 1950's.
Firstly, let's take a look at the Republican Party's Platform of 1956. One of the key tenets of their platform was the following,
"We are proud of and shall continue our far-reaching and sound advances in matters of basic human needs—expansion of social security—broadened coverage in unemployment insurance —improved housing—and better health protection for all our people. We are determined that our government remain warmly responsive to the urgent social and economic problems of our people."
Expansion of social security? Broadened unemployment insurance? This sounds quite similar to policies that Progressive Democrats push for today. And, this wasn't just political banter from the GOP, such policies were enacted throughout the 1950's, adding onto the government expansion under Roosevelt and Truman.
The platform goes on, as seen below,
"The Eisenhower Administration will continue to fight for dynamic and progressive programs which, among other things, will:
Stimulate improved job safety of our workers, through assistance to the States, employees and employers;
Continue and further perfect its programs of assistance to the millions of workers with special employment problems, such as older workers, handicapped workers, members of minority groups, and migratory workers;
Strengthen and improve the Federal-State Employment Service and improve the effectiveness of the unemployment insurance system;
Protect by law, the assets of employee welfare and benefit plans so that workers who are the beneficiaries can be assured of their rightful benefits;
Assure equal pay for equal work regardless of Sex;
Clarify and strengthen the eight-hour laws for the benefit of workers who are subject to federal wage standards on Federal and Federally-assisted construction, and maintain and continue the vigorous administration of the Federal prevailing minimum wage law for public supply contracts;
Extend the protection of the Federal minimum wage laws to as many more workers as is possible and practicable;
Continue to fight for the elimination of discrimination in employment because of race, creed, color, national origin, ancestry or sex;
Provide assistance to improve the economic conditions of areas faced with persistent and substantial unemployment;
Revise and improve the Taft-Hartley Act so as to protect more effectively the rights of labor unions, management, the individual worker, and the public. The protection of the right of workers to organize into unions and to bargain collectively is the firm and permanent policy of the Eisenhower Administration. In 1954, 1955 and again in 1956, President Eisenhower recommended constructive amendments to this Act."
Can you picture any GOP congressman or senator saying anything remotely similar to this? Today, we constantly hear the GOP attack and belittle labour unions, while also scoffing at the idea of a higher minimum wage and more benefits. Today, politicians who express ideas like the ones mentioned above are often considered to be "Leftist Democrats" like Howard Dean and Elizabeth Warren.
I could go on and on about Eisenhower's 1956 platform, but I don't want this diary to descend into a overly lengthy rant where it seems as if I want everyone to idolize and worship Eisenhower. I don't want that, I'm simply trying to explain why people on the American Left consider Eisenhower to be "somewhat liberal."
But, it wasn't just Eisenhower's platform that was progressive. For instance, the top income tax bracket in the 1950's was a whopping 91%. And, Eisenhower fought tooth and nail to ensure that it remained at that rate. Of course, I'm not proposing such a high income tax rate on the wealthy, but it is interesting to know that a Republican president advocated such a high income tax.
Lastly, I present to you all a quote that some of you are probably familiar with,
"Should any political party attempt to abolish Social Security, unemployment insurance, and eliminate labor laws and farm programs, you would not hear of that party again in our political history. There is a tiny splinter group, of course, that believes you can do these things, but their number is negligible and"--and the president says--"their number is negligible and they are stupid."
I'm guessing you already know who uttered this quote. The answer is Eisenhower, of course. Ultimately, we see a man who was committed to the continuation of economic progressivism that was laid out by FDR and Truman. This raises the question, did the policies Eisenhower and his fellow Republicans talked about work? Most people reading this article probably think the answer is yes. After all, the 1950's is almost synonymous with economic prosperity.
Well, in 1955 the economy grew by a large 7.6%, and productivity increased rapidly during the 1950's, as did the average wage of the worker. High union membership rates contributed heavily to this rise in productivity and wages, which caused people to generally "buy more stuff." Because workers had more money in their pockets, largely thanks to union influences, allowed the next generation of Americans to have better access to universities, giving us a competitive edge. And, as you can imagine, all of these various factors helped other economic factors, which Robert Reich, a progressive economist, has labeled as the "Virtuous Cycle." The 1950's lack of significant inequality, high union memberships, and better government benefits caused productivity, economic growth, and wages to grow significantly. To say that Eisenhower's economic policies, which were largely a continuation of the economic policies of FDR and Truman, worked is entirely true.
Unfortunately, rising inequality, union busting, and general deregulation under future presidents would cause this virtuous cycle to end, but that's another chapter in American History.
Eisenhower wasn't a perfect president, and I don't consider him to be a model liberal. However, when American Liberals claim that his views don't line up with today's GOP, they're entirely right.