Monday, November 27, 2017
Who was Huey Long?
Huey Long was the 40th governor of Louisiana who ran for president on the side of the Democrats. He had provided a lot of reforms in the state of Louisiana during the Great Depression when he was the governor of Louisiana. Long was a supporter of Franklin D. Roosevelt during the first 100 Days where a lot of reforms took place, but believed that the rich should be stripped of their money and that the money that was taken from the rich should be given to the poor. He gave a speech that was called the "Share Our Wealth Speech." This would lead to Long wanting run for the president. Long believed that Roosevelt's "New Deal" wasn't enough to help the American people to help them recover from the Depression. He "promised" that he would get the American population cars, radios and a new home for them. Long wanted absolute power in the government and if he was denied something he would take care of the situation get what he wanted. Long wanted to do more than what Roosevelt did during the 100 days. Due to his ideas that he had this lead to him being called the "most dangerous man"in the United States by President Roosevelt. Long was said to have had characteristics of a dictator based on how he acted and the ideas he had. His ideas almost sounded like communism. Unfortunately Long would be assassinated on September 10, 1935 in his home state of Louisiana.
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I really think people that appeal to voters purely through emotions aren't that good at leading people. This is because people vote for them because they agree with their views and troubles of the world but don't really understand how they could be fixed or if they can be fixed at all. Huey Long was popular because he appealed to others emotionally but did not give any real solutions that made sense to put into action.
ReplyDeleteI think that Huey Long is a very prime example of a demagogue. He knows that he is appealing to voters' emotions, even though his plan is not very solid. He is complaining about all of the problems that are affecting the American people, thus grabbing their attention, but he does not offer a solid solution for them. However, all that the American people really want is someone who they can relate to - someone who has the same interests in mind as they do. Huey Long is able to promise this. This is why he was such a big threat to President Roosevelt - he challenged him without any real potential to help the country.
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