When Good Government Meant Big Government: The Quest to Expand Federal Power, 1913-1933

During the 1910s and 1920s, a group of business-allied reformers sought to expand federal power to create a modern, responsive national government. However, their support for federal antilynching legislation led to a backlash from Southern Democrats, who blocked their broader vision. This book offers a novel perspective on politics and policy in the years before the New Deal and sheds new light on the roots of the modern American state.

Format: Hardback
Length: 264 pages
Publication date: 22 February 2022
Publisher: Columbia University Press

The years following World War I have often been perceived as a period when Republican presidents and business leaders effectively halted the growth of government in the United States. However, in his book "When Good Government Meant Big Government," historian Jesse Tarbert challenges this conventional narrative by unveiling a previously overlooked effort by business-allied reformers to expand federal power. Tarbert demonstrates how a coalition of corporate lawyers, bankers, executives, genteel reformers, and philanthropists emerged as the primary advocates for central control and national authority in government during the 1910s and 1920s. Motivated by principles of "good government" and drawing inspiration from large national corporations, these elite reformers aimed to transform the ineffectual executive branch of the federal government into a modern organization capable of addressing national problems. They achieved some success during the presidency of Warren G. Harding, but their support for federal antilynching legislation heightened the concerns of white Southerners who feared that federal power could undermine white supremacy. Working alongside other individuals who favored local control of public administration, Southern Democrats led a backlash that thwarted the elite reformers' broader vision for a responsive and responsible national government.

This book offers a fresh perspective on politics and policy in the years preceding the New Deal, shedding valuable light on the origins of the modern American state and revealing a significant episode in the long history of racist and antigovernment forces in American society. By examining this forgotten chapter of history, Tarbert provides a valuable contribution to our understanding of the complex dynamics that shaped the nation's political and social landscape during this pivotal period.

Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780231189729