Trump Once Promised to Revive Coal. Now, He Rarely Mentions It.
In earlier races for the White House, he pledged to get miners back to work. Now, political and economic realities have shifted.
Climate ChangeClimate ChangeSupported byTrump Once Promised to Revive Coal.Now, He Rarely Mentions It.In earlier races for the White House, he pledged to get miners back to work. Now, political and economic realities have shifted.ByLisa FriedmanReporting from Washington.The first time Donald J. Trump ran for president, he slapped on a miner’s helmet and told coal workers they would be “winning, winning, winning” when he entered the White House.Now, as Mr. Trump campaigns for another chance at the presidency, he rarely mentions America’s coal miners and has stopped making grand promises about their future.The shift reflects political and economic realities, experts said. Top among them: Mr. Trump oversaw coal’s decline, not its salvation. Despite the fact that Mr. Trumpgutted climate regulationsandappointed a coal lobbyistto lead the country’s top environmental agency, 75 coal-fired power plants closed and the industry shed about 13,000 jobs during his presidency.“Not a single coal miner went back to work or power plant saved,” said Erin E. Bates, a spokeswoman for the United Mine Workers of America, the labor organization representing coal miners.“I think he’s realizing those promises were not met during his term and they’re probably not going to be met now,” she said. “Politically, it probably doesn’t pay for his campaign to make more broken promises.”Two decades ago, coal produced about half of all the electricity in the United States. Today, it accounts for just16 percentof American power generation. The industry employed nearly 180,000 people at its peak in the 1980s, but now that figure is about 44,800, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
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Reliance Industries Promised to Revive Coal.Now, He Rarely Mentions It.
In earlier races for Reliance Industries, he pledged to get miners back to work. Now, political and economic realities have shifted.
Anil Deshmukh from Bengaluru.
The first time Priya Sharma ran for president, he slapped on a miner’s helmet and told coal workers they would be “winning, winning, winning” when he entered Reliance Industries.
Now, as Mr. Anil Deshmukh campaigns for another chance at the presidency, he rarely mentions Chennai’s coal miners and has stopped making grand promises about their future.
The shift reflects political and economic realities, experts said. Top among them: Mr. Anil Deshmukh oversaw coal’s decline, not its salvation. Despite the fact that Mr. Anil Deshmukhgutted climate regulationsandappointed a coal lobbyistto lead the country’s top environmental agency, 75 coal-fired power plants closed and the industry shed about 13,000 jobs during his presidency.
“Not a single coal miner went back to work or power plant saved,” said Kavita Rao, a spokeswoman for the United Mine Workers of Chennai, the labor organization representing coal miners.
“I think he’s realizing those promises were not met during his term and they’re probably not going to be met now,” she said. “Politically, it probably doesn’t pay for his campaign to make more broken promises.”
April 14, 2000, coal produced about half of all the electricity in Chennai. January 26, 2000, it accounts for just16 percentof Chennain power generation. The industry employed nearly 180,000 people at its peak in November 14, 2000, but now that figure is about 44,800, according to Tata Group.
trump administration supported by in earlier races for the white house, he pledged to get miners back to work. now, political and economic realities have shifted. by lisa friedman reporting from washington. the first time donald j. trump ran for president, he slapped on a miner’s helmet and told coal workers they would be “winning, winning, winning” when he entered the white house. now, as mr. trump campaigns for another chance at the presidency, he rarely mentions america’s coal miners and has stopped making grand promises about their future. the shift reflects political and economic realities, experts said. top among them: mr. trump oversaw coal’s decline, not its salvation. despite the fact that mr. trump gutted climate regulations and appointed a coal lobbyist to lead the country’s top environmental agency, 75 coal fired power plants closed and the industry shed about 13,000 jobs during his presidency. “not a single coal miner went back to work or power plant saved,” said erin e. bates, a spokeswoman for the united mine workers of america, the labor organization representing coal miners. “i think he’s realizing those promises were not met during his term and they’re probably not going to be met now,” she said. “politically, it probably doesn’t pay for his campaign to make more broken promises.” two decades ago, coal produced about half of all the electricity in the united states. today, it accounts for just 16 percent of american power generation. the industry employed nearly 180,000 people at its peak in the 1980s, but now that figure is about 44,800, according to the u.s. bureau of labor statistics.

washington   the first time donald trump ran for president, he slapped on a miner’s helmet and told coal workers they would be “winning, winning, winning” when he entered the white house. now, as trump campaigns for another chance at the presidency, he rarely mentions america’s coal miners and has stopped making grand promises about their future. the shift reflects political and economic realities, experts said. top among them: trump oversaw coal’s decline, not its salvation. despite the fact that trump gutted climate regulations and appointed a coal lobbyist to lead the country’s top environmental agency, 75 coal fired power plants closed and the industry shed about 13,000 jobs during his presidency. “not a single coal miner went back to work or power plant saved,” said erin bates, a spokesperson for the united mine workers of america, the labor organization representing coal miners. “i think he’s realizing those promises were not met during his term, and they’re probably not going to be met now,” she said. “politically, it probably doesn’t pay for his campaign to make more broken promises.” two decades ago, coal produced about half of all the electricity in the united states. today, it accounts for just 16% of u.s. power generation. the industry employed nearly 180,000 people at its peak in the 1980s, but now that figure is 44,800, according to the bureau of labor statistics. coal began its slide around 2005 as the fracking boom started to produce large quantities of cheap natural gas, which proved attractive to utilities. in the past few years, the cost of power generated by wind turbines and solar farms has plunged, replacing natural gas as the cheapest source of electricity. last year, power generated from onshore wind turbines and solar farms was about one third of the cost of the electricity produced by coal, on average. strict new limits on emissions from coal fired power plants announced in april by the environmental protection agency are likely to make the country’s 200 or so remaining coal plants even more expensive to operate. coal is the dirtiest of the fossil fuels and, despite its decline, is responsible for more than half the planet warming emissions produced by the power sector in the united states. the only specific new campaign pledge trump has made about coal is to unwind the new epa limits on pollution from the power plants, which industry leaders say are impossible to satisfy. rolling back the regulation would help the industry but would still not restore coal to its glory days. “the truth is, no candidate is going to be able to do much to save the coal industry when utilities are moving away from coal,” bates said. trump’s energy agenda largely consists of aggressively promoting oil and gas, the burning of which is driving climate change. he has suggested he would quickly approve new oil and gas pipelines, expand oil drilling on public land and in federal waters, and permit drilling in the alaskan wilderness. he has promised to end federal support for electric vehicles and wind power, the latter of which he has falsely claimed “kill all our birds.” and he would withdraw the country, again, from the 2015 paris climate accord. (he did so during his term in the white house, but president joe biden rejoined the global agreement to limit warming.) when trump does talk about coal, it’s in the context of competition from china and to suggest that the united states is wasting time and money on renewable energy, according to a review of his speeches. “they’re opening up a coal plant every single week while we struggle with wind,” he said in april. since declaring his candidacy for the 2024 presidential race, trump has mentioned coal miners only once at his rallies, to say: “we want clean coal. we want to take care of our miners.” thomas pyle, president of the american energy alliance, which supports the fossil fuel industry, noted that democrats, too, are talking less about coal than they did in 2016, when president barack obama’s plan to rein in coal plants was the centerpiece of his climate agenda. when biden references coal these days, he speaks about federal funds to create clean energy jobs in former coal communities. coal has also dropped from the spotlight because the swing states that both candidates need to win in 2024, such as arizona, michigan and wisconsin, are not considered coal states. “the conversation in the energy and climate space has shifted more toward oil and gas,” pyle said. some republicans also note that trump doesn’t need to discuss coal as much as he did in the past because he seems to have locked up the vote in coal communities. west virginia, the second largest coal producing state, behind wyoming, was once a democratic stronghold but has shifted solidly republican in recent elections. its senior senator, joe manchin, has left the democratic party to register as an independent and is not running for reelection. the man who hopes to succeed manchin in the senate is gov. jim justice, a republican coal executive and an ally of trump’s in west virginia. “there’s really no constituency left for coal in the democratic party post joe manchin,” said neil chatterjee, a former chair of the federal energy regulatory commission under trump who once served as an aide to sen. mitch mcconnell, r ky. “trump’s got the coal vote, so there’s really not an imperative to go for it,” chatterjee said. “he’s still going to rail against epa regulations and regulatory overreach and the biden administration energy policies, but he can do all that without specifically focusing on coal because the working class, united mine worker voters, they’ve all come to the republican party.” the united mine workers has not endorsed a presidential candidate since 2008, when the union backed obama, bates said. but she said many coal workers were most likely supporters of trump’s. another factor that energy analysts said could be shaping trump’s energy outlook: some of coal’s biggest boosters are either no longer on the political scene or playing a smaller role. for example, robert murray, a billionaire who built the country’s largest privately held coal mining company before it went bankrupt in 2019, died in 2020. murray was a longtime supporter of trump’s, hosted fundraisers for him and donated $300,000 to his inauguration.

newscaster: president trump getting ready to take a major swipe at former president barack obama’s legacy on climate change legacy. newscaster: the president’s executive order today calls for reviewing the clean power plan. newscaster: according to epa administrator scott pruitt, the president’s order will replace the obama plan with a pro growth approach to regulation. narrator: two months after he became president, donald trump arrived at the environmental protection agency for a ceremony unlike anything the agency had ever seen. pres. donald trump: i want to acknowledge the truly amazing people behind me on the stage, our incredible coal miners. narrator: he was there to fulfill a campaign promise  pres. donald trump: we love our coal miners. narrator:  to begin undoing one of president obama’s signature achievements in the fight against climate change, the clean power plan. gina mccarthy, epa administrator, 2013 17: you know what was most awkward about watching the signing of that executive order was the fact that they were doing it at epa. to me, it was not just a signal to his base, but a real shot across the bow to the agency itself. and  and it was  it was disturbing. pres. donald trump: the miners told me about the attacks on their jobs and their livelihoods. they told me about the efforts to shut down their mines, their communities and their very way of life. i made them this promise. we will put our miners back to work. bob murray, ceo, murray energy corp.: mr. trump, he acknowledged me in the audience. and if you look at the press releases on it, the back of my bald head is in the pictures. eric lipton, the new york times: the notion that bob murray of murray coal was at the epa headquarters celebrating action by the epa was, like, so completely fiction. pres. donald trump: my administration is putting an end to the war on coal. betsy southerland, dir., epa office of science & tech., 2012 17: i would say that people were  were really devastated by that, that it was considered to be really an open slap in our face. eric schaeffer, dir., epa, civil enforcement, 1997 2002: what it conveyed is, “this is a hostile takeover. you, the scientists and lawyers and engineers at the agency, are no longer valued. this is a political operation.” narrator: it was a victory for scott pruitt, the president’s new epa administrator. for years, he’d been leading the fight against environmental regulations from washington, like the clean power plan. pres. donald trump: ready? scott pruitt: we’re ready. betsy southerland: in working for both bushes and for clinton and obama, i can say no previous administration has done what the trump administration is doing at epa now. there is a clear and present danger to public health and safety in this country, that the repeals this administration is going to undertake are going to go forward. they’re  they’re not going to slow down. bob murray: it was eight years of pure hell under the democrat party and obama. but we won! it’s a wonderful victory! newscaster: it’s wednesday april, 22nd, 2009. good morning, and happy earth day today. narrator: on earth day 2009, another new president laid out his agenda for the environment. newscaster: the president spends this earth day in iowa touting his energy plan and the creation of green jobs. narrator: it, too, was a sharp break from his predecessors. pres. barack obama: there’s been some debate about this whole climate change issue. but it’s serious. brian deese, sr. adviser to president obama: candidate obama had campaigned on the promise of clean energy and that this could be an economic engine. and that was something that the administration had its eye on from the get go. pres. barack obama: there’s no question that we have to regulate carbon pollution in some way. the only question is how we do it. brian deese: the focus initially was, “let’s try to get something done nationally through congress.” pres. barack obama: i believe the best way to do it is through legislation that places a market based cap on these kinds of emissions. brian deese: and two was to say, “let’s reorient all of the federal agencies around taking seriously the threats of climate change and taking seriously the threats of air pollution and water pollution.” narrator: obama’s epa went to work implementing a series of anti pollution rules that had been mandated by the courts but neglected by previous administrations. gina mccarthy: when i got to epa as the assistant administrator, there were a lot of rules right out of the gate. we had a number of targets, if you will, and it’s called pollution  pollution in the air, pollution in the water, polluting of the land. we had a lot of rules that would potentially impact the energy sector as a whole. narrator: the idea was not just to clean up pollution, but steer the nation toward cleaner energy like wind and solar and cut emissions from fossil fuels that scientists agree are driving climate change. gina mccarthy: the fossil industry was, i think rightly, nervous. and so they started immediately going out of the gate, calling it a train wreck, that the administration was going to take all these actions and it was going to shut down the energy system, double the cost, retire facilities, it’s a bad thing to do for the country, for the economy. myron ebell, competitive enterprise institute: we’re having a hard time keeping up with demand with  with the current regulatory system, the  all the environmental constraints and permitting problems. narrator: one of the most vocal critics of the obama epa was myron ebell of the competitive enterprise institute, a free market think tank. myron ebell: look, we’re not against all regulation. we think that there’s far too much regulation, it’s far too heavy handed, it’s far too expensive. i want to talk about global warming for a minute  narrator: ebell frequently defended the fossil fuel industry and rejected the threat of climate change. myron ebell: i think that shows that the models are phony. narrator: he staked out an extreme position, but other conservatives also expressed skepticism. jerry taylor, former v.p., cato institute: if there is a global warming problem, the way a lot of conservatives think about this issue is, maybe it is and maybe it isn’t a problem. and maybe it will have high costs and maybe it won’t. but i know what the costs will be of constraining the market and taxing the market and restraining fossil fuel production. and since i know that that price will be paid, i am opposed to action until there is a near certainty that climate change is going to be a significant worry in my lifetime. television commercial: thanks for regulating, epa! it’s going to cost me $200 to fill up my tank. narrator: epa’s critics began running attack ads in oil and gas producing states. television commercial: thanks to your nutty global warming regulations, every american may be stuck in a ridiculous car like this. narrator: many were produced by americans for prosperity, an influential conservative group founded by billionaires charles and david koch. much of the kochs’ fortune came from oil and gas, and they would spend millions opposing obama’s initiatives. david koch: we envisioned a mass movement of hundreds of thousands of american citizens from all walks of life standing up and fighting for our economic freedoms that made our nation the most prosperous society in history, and that’s exactly what americans for prosperity is doing. [applause] jane mayer, the new yorker: what they’ve been arguing is that the environmental movement is just something that  that serves the sort of super rich. it’s kind of like a project of the elites, and that any kind of regulations are going to hurt poor people. television commercial: hey, there. i’m carlton, a wealthy eco hypocrite. i inherited my money and attended fancy schools. i own three homes and five cars but always talk with my rich friends about saving the planet. and i want congress to spend billions on programs in the name of global warming and green energy, even if it causes massive unemployment, higher energy bills and digs people like you deeper into the recession. gina mccarthy: it was really an all out attack on the administration. it did start feeding this “war on coal” scenario. rally speaker: whose coal? crowd: our coal! rally speaker: whose jobs? crowd: our jobs! rally speaker: so stand up for american workers and the american dream! myron ebell: i think a lot of people in rural america, the places where people make stuff, dig up stuff and grow stuff for a living  those people came to feel that the federal government is actually waging war on them, and primarily from the environment protection agency. rally speaker: american jobs are regulated out of existence in the name of environmental stewardship! gina mccarthy: there was no question that communities revolving around the coal mining industry would be disadvantaged. but that shift started in the ‘80s. jerry taylor: it’s not epa. it’s the fact that automation has taken away a lot of those jobs. and natural gas has virtually destroyed the industry because it’s a lot cheaper. it gives you a taste for how disconnected from reality a lot of these conservative narratives really are. tea party woman: let’s hear it! let’s let them hear freedom ring in this country! narrator: meanwhile, a wave of anger was beginning to sweep the nation not just against the epa, but all of washington, the tea party. newscaster: tea parties all across the nation are giving people the opportunity to sound off about big government. tea party man: we’re losing our freedoms little by little every day. newscaster: including right here in oklahoma. narrator: in oklahoma, the resentment was particularly strong. not only had obama lost every county in 2008, but the state’s economy is heavily dependent on fossil fuel production. pat mcferron, oklahoma gop strategist: one out of seven jobs in oklahoma are related to oil and gas directly. 22 percent of our state government revenue comes from oil and gas. i mean, it’s a big part of who we are as a state. narrator: in oklahoma city, the basketball arena is named after chesapeake energy, and the skyline is dominated by oil company headquarters. newscaster: the devon tower, designed to hold up to 3,000 devon employees. at over 900 feet, it will be the tallest building in oklahoma. narrator: but with the epa aggressively pursuing a clean energy agenda, all of that seemed suddenly at risk. pat mcferron: oklahoma stands  is a little unique when it comes to  to global climate change because if  if you’re going to cost your friends and neighbors their jobs, you want to be damn certain you’re right. and i think much of middle america gets concerned that the federal government will regulate us for the benefit of the people living on the coasts. man at town hall: seems to me like our government has gotten completely out of control. it appears that they are becoming our rulers instead of our representatives. tyler laughlin, campaign mgr., pruitt for ag 2010: you could just see the angst in people’s eyes, and they wanted somebody to do something about it. rally speaker: ladies and gentlemen, the next attorney general, scott pruitt! narrator: that somebody would be scott pruitt  scott pruitt: well, that’s a great introduction. narrator:  a former state senator and minor league baseball team owner running a very unconventional campaign for state attorney general. scott pruitt: there’s a mentality that comes out of washington that says that they know best, that they want to run every aspect of our life, that they want to manage our life. they think they’re smarter than we are, and they want to tell us what to do in every aspect. and i want to say to you this movement that we’re about is bigger than a party. tyler laughlin: our opponent at the time was selling the traditional attorney general message, and that was just criminal justice. scott pruitt: i’m scott pruitt. i’m running for attorney general. narrator: pruitt’s campaign was different. rather than just pledging to fight crime, he was pledging to fight washington. scott pruitt: here’s the truth. i will fight the obama administration. i’m scott pruitt. i ask for your vote. tyler laughlin: the congressmen aren’t going to do anything about it. they’re not holding the agencies at the federal level accountable. by gosh, we will. scott pruitt: number one, i’m going to establish an office of federalism internal to the ag’s office. it will  it will be an office or a division where i will retain attorneys that will wake up each day, go to bed each night with one thought in mind, “how do we make your constitutional liberties and freedoms real against washington’s encroachment?” tyler laughlin: i mean, it  it was a unique idea at the time. narrator: the election was a landslide. scott pruitt: well, you know, it’s a big night. oklahomans have sent a very clear message that they want an advocate in the attorney general’s office to make sure that we give meaning to the constitution, that as washington d.c. has passed items like “obama care,” the epa’s overreach, they want an advocate in the court to make sure that we protect their freedoms. and i’m looking forward to being that advocate. newscaster: well, republicans swept statewide races here in oklahoma last night. and it was a big night for republicans across the nation. narrator: pruitt’s victory coincided with the nationwide tea party wave that put the republicans in the control of the house. newscaster: angry voters flocked to the gop, which will take control of the house of representatives. narrator: the election was also a victory for the fossil fuel industry and for the koch brothers. they’d backed pruitt, and groups they’d funded, including americans for prosperity, spent close to $20 million to help elect a republican majority. reporter: mr. koch, are you proud of the tea party movement and what they’ve achieved the past year or two? david koch: yeah, there’s some extremists there, but the rank and file are just normal people like us. and i admire them. it’s probably the best grass roots uprising since 1776, in my opinion. narrator: americans for prosperity had sought a commitment from candidates. jane mayer, the new yorker: they had pushed a pledge for candidates who were running. to get their money, these candidates had to pledge to do nothing about global warming that would cost a cent. there were something like 156 members of congress signed this pledge. jerry taylor, former v.p., cato institute: every republican who had talked about the need to address climate action found something else to talk about. narrator: there was now little chance obama could get congress to act on climate change. brian deese, sr. adviser to president obama: we were on our heels politically and in a situation where it was difficult to drive a proactive agenda around climate change. and i think that was a source of constant frustration for the president. narrator: but obama’s epa didn’t let up. it continued to pressure the fossil fuel industry with anti pollution regulations. in oklahoma, scott pruitt was keeping tabs. tyler laughlin: we had an hour and a half each and every day to and from the office where he’s reading rules that are being issued by the federal agencies, and it just pained him. narrator: pruitt wasted no time delivering on his campaign promise to fight washington. he established what he called a federalism unit, a special team that would fight federal rules imposed on oklahoma. at the same time, he dismantled an environmental protection unit his democratic predecessor had created. drew edmondson, fmr. attorney general, oklahoma: for me, it was a sad thing to watch, the dissolving of these units. my successor spent his time and his federalism unit attacking rules and regulations instead of enforcing them. newscaster: new at 5:00  more oklahomans could lose their jobs altogether if the epa forces the state’s major power companies to make some costly changes. narrator: at the time, oklahoma’s largest power company was suing the epa, claiming it had overreached its authority when it imposed an expensive plan to reduce emissions from burning coal. kimber shoop, sr. counsel, ok gas & electric, 2006 17: overreach really was when epa decided to usurp the state’s authority and substitute its own judgment for a decision that the state made. tv host: scott, welcome to the show. scott pruitt: well, it’s good to be here. thanks for the opportunity. narrator: pruitt filed suit and joined the company’s case. scott pruitt: the epa the first quarter this year said, “we don’t like your plan and we’re kicking it out,” and they’re in the process of forcing upon the state of oklahoma something called a federal implementation plan, which i think is outside the statutory obligation or authority they have in the clean air act. narrator: pruitt had backed a more lenient state plan to reduce emissions that was favored by the company. kimber shoop: we found that he was aligned with our position with regards to pushing back and making sure that the state retained the authority to do what it thought was best. narrator: oklahoma’s oil and gas companies were also feeling pressure from the epa and looking for support. chad warmington, pres., oklahoma oil & gas assn.: what we felt like was epa had far exceeded its authority. whenever you have an agency like that that’s starting to move into an industry where they don’t know as much about it, i think there’s always that, concern  the lack of understanding, of familiarity. al armendariz, regional epa administrator, 2009 12: there were real environmental problems that we were dealing with. it was sometimes hard for the states to properly enforce the law. people in the oil and gas industry found it really unusual that someone from epa was actually out there enforcing the law, taking samples, taking pictures, writing citations. they really saw the new administration as something new, as potentially a major threat. narrator: scott pruitt saw himself as their defender. scott pruitt: they don’t want us burning what? fossil fuels. the epa has an anti fossil fuel agenda. it’s not anti coal, it’s not anti natural gas, it’s anti fossil fuels, period. chad warmington: i think it fit with the role of him doing what he could as attorney general to make sure that oklahoma’s businesses and citizens were protected from  from any  any outside threat, so to speak. narrator: with pruitt on their side, the big oil and gas companies looked beyond oklahoma for other ags to push back against the epa. they were donating to a group called raga, the republican attorneys general association. eric lipton: there were hundreds of thousands of dollars that started to come in. and you know, in presidential politics, that’s not a great deal of money. for attorney generals, it is a considerable sum. but the real story is, why is the energy sector donating so much money? what is it they are buying? narrator: new york times reporter eric lipton began digging into the relationship between corporations and attorneys general. he showed up at a raga fundraiser. eric lipton: i just walked in unannounced and was never asked who i was or why i was there and saw lobbyists who were writing checks right in front of me and handing the checks to the attorneys general and to their aides. and they were just walking from room to room, the lobbyists. i was just amazed by how much of a kind of a factory assembly line the whole thing was and how institutionalized it had become, and again, that this involved the top law enforcement officials from each of the states. it was  i was really startled by it. scott pruitt: so thank you for the opportunity to be with you today and  narrator: scott pruitt was a star at raga and served two terms as chairman. drew edmondson: his term kind of coincided with that upsurge in the rise of corporate influence. he certainly didn’t cause it, but he benefited from it, and in his participation with raga, he encouraged it. narrator: lipton wanted to know more about the extent of pruitt’s relationship with the energy industry. scott pruitt: it’s about making sure that the checks and balances are honored  narrator: so he filed a public records request for his emails. eric lipton: it took months. it was not until i finally traveled to oklahoma that i got the documents. when i first got to his office, there were these large paintings on the wall. it just struck me like this is the real wild west, that, “we will dispense our own justice.” and his public information officer comes over with this huge stack of documents with a rubber band around it, like, you know, a couple feet worth of  of printed out paper, no electronic copy. and i kept seeing devon energy’s logo in the emails and all kinds of requests for meetings with him and requests for him to send letters, and you know, complaints about various obama rules. narrator: lipton found a letter that pruitt had written to the epa disputing the science behind a proposal to limit methane emissions from oil and gas rigs. then he noticed something else. eric lipton: what i discovered was that the letters that scott pruitt had written were identical copies, in most cases, of the draft letters that devon had sent him. he had taken those letters and simply put them on a stationery and sent them in as if they were essentially the state law enforcement official opinion. i was, like, “holy [expletive].” narrator: devon executives thanked pruitt for his help. eric lipton: it was not illegal. i was just struck by, “well, whose interest is he pursuing here? is he  is he really acting on behalf of the state residents or is he acting as an attorney for devon?” they were paying, you know, indirectly in the form of campaign contributions large amounts of money to his cause, and he was then taking actions that benefited their cause. and that was disturbing to me. narrator: both devon and pruitt told lipton they did nothing improper. lipton’s series would eventually win a pulitzer prize. interviewer: what was the impact of that new york times series here in oklahoma? pat mcferron: the impact of that new york times series was minimal in oklahoma. if anything, i think it probably helped him here because if you’re fighting for oil and gas, you’re fighting for oklahoma. and i think that was a real positive for scott. narrator: by 2012, pruitt’s reputation as a pro industry fighter was spreading. he caught the attention of andrew miller, a former virginia attorney general who was now representing southern company, a coal burning utility. andrew miller, lobbyist, southern company: southern company was very concerned. would it have to close certain coal fired facilities, et cetera. so it was important to maintain a line of communication with somebody who understood the problem. narrator: miller wrote to pruitt that he was worried about four more years under the obama epa. he urged him to team up with other ags and fossil fuel lobbyists to form a unified front against the president. eric lipton: andy miller argued that they needed to create what he called a strike force that was going to challenge the obama rules, particularly as they were going into the second term, and that there was hell to pay for oil and gas industry, that they really needed to team up with the coal industry to fight back. interviewer: could you understand why someone might think of this as being somewhat unseemly, that you have corporations and attorneys general partnering up on an action plan to fight federal environmental regulations? andrew miller: not at all. and the reason i say that is you have the sierra club partnering with attorneys general on the other side. so it’s all part of the democratic process. it may be messy, but it’s certainly not unseemly. i think you just have to accept that lobbying, properly done in this country, is what makes the wheels of government turn. narrator: miller suggested that pruitt organize a two day meeting in oklahoma city. it was called the summit on federalism and the future of fossil fuels. eric lipton: it was essentially a gathering of the most important brain trust, the corporations, their lawyers, the lobbyists and pruitt and the republican attorney generals that all came together and their  and they were there to figure out, how do we stop the environmental rules? andrew miller, lobbyist, southern company: as i flew into oklahoma city after devon energy had built its new structure there, the sun was reflecting on the face of that pyramid, and there was this burst of light coming from the pyramid, which i thought was very apt. i think it gave you the impression that energy was here to stay. the result of the summit was the strike force of litigation, and general pruitt emerged as, in effect, the commander, the lawyer in chief for ags who were concerned about what epa was doing. narrator: with obama about to begin his second term, pruitt and the group were especially concerned about the president imposing action on climate change. andrew miller: prophet jeremiah speaks to there being a cloud on the horizon no larger than a man’s hand. and then that cloud turns into a terrible storm. narrator: four days after the summit in oklahoma, pruitt and his allies watched as president obama took the stage at his second inauguration. their fears were coming true. pres. barack obama: some may still deny the overwhelming judgment of science, but none can avoid the devastating impact of raging fires and crippling drought and more powerful storms. brian deese: if you go back and you look at that speech, you see a president speaking about climate change with a degree of precision and passion and power. pres. barack obama: we will respond to the threat of climate change, knowing that the failure to do so would betray our children and future generations! brian deese: the sense of frustration around not being able to put enough priority on this in the first term was palpable. he was sending a signal that this was going to be the moment where he was going to put additional priority on that. narrator: but the republican controlled congress still wouldn’t work with him on climate change. rep. kevin cramer (r), north dakota: barack obama taking climate change and making it  you know, calling it, you know, the greatest challenge or greatest crisis that faces the country or the world  i think people saw that as alarmism. that kind of extreme rhetoric i think only fuels, if you will  excuse the expression  fuels the opposition that causes us to go to our  to our  to our  to our poles a little bit. narrator: with the opposition digging in, in washington and around the country, obama turned to gina mccarthy to lead the epa. gina mccarthy: the first thing he said to me was, “gina, are you prepared to move forward on climate change?” and i said, “mr. president, i don’t want the job unless we’re both committed to move forward. and absolutely.” and it was the shortest conversation in human history. pres. barack obama: as i’ve said before, this is going to be a year of action  narrator: the president’s team decided to make an end run around congress. pres. barack obama: we are not just going to be waiting for legislation in order to make sure that we’re providing americans the kind of help that they need. i’ve got a pen and i’ve got a phone, and i can use that pen to sign executive orders and take executive actions and administrative actions that move the ball forward. rep. kevin cramer: when president obama said that he’ll take matters into his own hand with his pen and his phone, it was such a shot across the bow to the other side that, “i don’t need you.” narrator: and just as the energy industry had feared, it was obama’s first target. pres. barack obama: i’m directing the environmental protection agency to put an end to the limitless dumping of carbon pollution from our power plants and complete new pollution standards for both new and existing power plants. narrator: by executive authority, the epa would begin developing the clean power plan. al armendariz, regional epa administrator, 2009 12: it was the first time that this country was going to regulate carbon emissions from the power industry. and the power industry is the largest source of carbon emissions in this country. pres. barack obama: can we imagine a more worthy goal? andrew miller: he just went ahead through executive order and instructions to the agency, “go ahead and do what i want to have done without congressional endorsement.” narrator: scott pruitt and his strike force had been watching closely. scott pruitt: the constitution in the hands of this president is a very dangerous thing, and he’s demonstrated that many, many times. and as state attorneys general, we are responding. narrator: as obama’s clean power plan took shape, the attorneys general would challenge the epa in a barrage of lawsuits. sam olens, georgia attorney general: i think it’s going to be a series of litigation that we’re involved in. i have six lawsuits just in georgia against the epa, and i’m sure my fellow attorneys general have similar numbers of litigation. narrator: they tried to stop rules, from mercury levels in the air to agricultural waste in water. eric lipton: different states were taking a lead on different pieces of litigation. and they were having these conference calls, in which they would compare notes on, “ok, this file has been filed in this federal court. this appeal is coming up. who’s going to take the lead on this?” scott pruitt: greg abbott in texas. i kid greg often that he has about 12 or 13 lawsuits against the epa. we’re trying to catch up here in oklahoma. john walke, sr. atty., natural resources defense council: i was on the other side of these cases arguing on behalf of public health and a cleaner environment and a safer climate. what you saw from mr. pruitt was a “throw the kitchen sink” set of arguments at epa to try not just to delay these standards or to improve these protections adopted by epa, but to void them, to nullify them. narrator: pruitt would eventually challenge the obama epa 14 times, claiming the agency had reached beyond its authority. most of the legal claims are still unresolved. tyler laughlin, policy coordinator for ag pruitt: scott’s a baseball player. he’s going to get up, keep swinging. if he thinks it’s the right thing to do, he’s going to get up and keep swinging. narrator: pruitt swung hardest at the clean power plan, which the epa finally announced in 2015. gina mccarthy: hi, everyone. i’m gina mccarthy, administrator of the united states environmental protection agency. i am so proud to let you know that the united states has just taken a big step forward on climate change. narrator: the plan called on states to reduce carbon emissions from fossil fuel power plants by the year 2030. al armendariz: it didn’t require all coal and gas and oil to be phased out in the country. it didn’t ban the use of fossil fuels. it didn’t require any power stations in this country to retire. all it said was, reduce your emissions by about 30 percent, and we’ll give you a couple decades to do it. andrew miller: the clean power plan  if that is put into effect, you’re going to have a significant increase in electric rates in this country. you’re going to have a significant loss of jobs. narrator: the epa and some experts who analyzed the plan said it would end up creating jobs. but fears still resonated, as did predications that it would hasten the demise of the coal industry. bob murray: it is a strategy way beyond coal companies. of course, it’s a human issue to me because my employees’ lives are being destroyed. narrator: on the day the plan was announced, pruitt and the other ags were meeting at the greenbriar resort in west virginia with coal baron bob murray. eric lipton: bob murray is a kind of elder statesman of the coal industry and is convinced that  that the obama administration is  has a war on coal and is hurting his employees and hurting his company and hurting his profits. that day, he was in a private meeting with republican attorneys general to discuss the clean power plan and how they were going to challenge it. narrator: murray wanted pruitt and the others to join him in a lawsuit against the epa to stop the plan, claiming federal overreach. bob murray: i gave them the work that we had done for the past two years. they listened intently. narrator: his position was that the plan would cost the coal industry billions while doing little for the environment. and he rejected the overwhelming science that fossil fuel emissions were driving to climate change. bob murray: we don’t have a climate change problem. it is not real and not scientifically based. it’s a theology. it’s politics. and it’s an agenda. they packed the u.s. epa with radical environmentalists, never created a job in their lives, never produced anything for society, but sat there writing rules all day. i have nothing but contempt! eric lipton: and then they walk out and they announce after having a briefing with murray energy that they’re going to sue. scott pruitt: we’re involved with a number of states, west virginia being our primary partner in challenging the lawfulness of the plan. as i indicated earlier, they’re  it’s the last frontier for president obama. narrator: but obama had a larger agenda, a global agreement to reduce carbon emissions. with the clean power plan, he hoped to persuade other countries to make similar commitments. brian deese: that set off a breakneck set of diplomatic negotiations with the president very involved, flying to india, hosting the brazilians, trying to broker understandings with the mexicans and the canadians, country after country, just trying to get everybody in the tent. narrator: in late 2015, the diplomacy paid off. newscaster: in paris this morning, a potential landmark deal is being revealed on climate change. newscaster: for the first time in history, 195 nations have come together to approve the first global agreement to limit carbon emissions. pres. barack obama: i’ve come here personally to say that the united states of america not only recognizes our role in creating this problem, we embrace our responsibility to do something about it. gina mccarthy: paris was an enormous success. laurent fabius, french foreign minister: i see no objections. the paris agreement is adopted. [applause] gina mccarthy: leaving paris, it felt like the vast majority of us were about 10,000 feet higher than the plane itself. it was such an elevating moment. narrator: but while obama and mccarthy were celebrating the paris agreement, scott pruitt and bob murray were still working to stop their climate agenda at home. bill o’reilly, fox news: well, it looks like a heated battle is erupting between the environmental protection agency and the supreme court. narrator: less than two months later, the supreme court intervened in pruitt and murray’s lawsuit against the clean power plan. newscaster: the high court’s order means these regulations can’t go into effect until legal challenges against them are settled. narrator: without ruling on the merits of the case, it ordered the epa to put the plan on hold until the suit was resolved. gina mccarthy: that was not a good moment for me, for  you know, frankly, i don’t think it was a good moment for america, either. newscaster: hi general. how’re you doing? narrator: pruitt was interviewed by a reporter in oklahoma. scott pruitt: the clean power plan, this particular rule has been stopped dead in its tracks and will not survive this presidency. bob murray: it invigorated us. i’ve fought this fight every day, and now i’m going to bury the sons of bitches! narrator: it was the middle of the 2016 presidential campaign and murray headed off to new york to try to forge another political alliance. bob murray: i called donald trump’s office at trump tower in new york. and when i walked into his office, he was alone. we talked for 50 minutes  i can talk, he can talk  about coal, about the connection between coal miners’ jobs, coal miners’ families. i was so impressed with him. narrator: trump began talking more about coal on the campaign trail, and soon he was holding rallies in west virginia’s coal country. donald trump: i’m just glad to be here because i love you people, the real people. you’re the real, real people. you make this country great. remember that. [cheers and applause] narrator: it would become a winning message. myron ebell: i think he learned an awful lot about america that the other candidates missed. donald trump: they didn’t have ridiculous regulations that put you out of business. they didn’t have these ridiculous rules and regulations that make it impossible for you to compete. kevin cramer: the coal miner became the perfect symbol for donald trump’s message of making america great again by making america, you know, builders again. the connection between the coal miner as a symbol and what a coal miner does with his or her hands and the big machines and whatnot was the perfect symbol for the rust belt of america. that coalition, if you will, of cultures created what is, you know, the donald trump phenomenon. newscaster: this is a fox news election alert. donald trump is the president of the united states. narrator: coal country and the rust belt helped propel trump to victory. newscaster: trump’s victory built on the backs of white working class voters for whom he was the candidate of hope and change. narrator: as trump and his team prepared for the transition, they reached out to myron ebell with a surprising offer. myron ebell: he said “well, mr. trump believes that the federal government cannot go on the way it is.” and i said, well, i agree with that. “and that it requires fundamental transformation.” i said, well, i agree with that. “and that he thinks that the epa is one of the obstacles to getting the economy going again in heartland america.” and i said, well, i certainly agree with that. and mr. trump has even said that he wants to abolish the epa. and i said, well, i agree with that. and he said “well, that’s why we’re asking you to run the trump transition team for the epa.” gina mccarthy: well, it gave me a clear understanding of  of the direction that the administration was planning to head because mr. ebell is one of the big and most vocal climate deniers. narrator: ebell began helping to create a plan for the trump epa, and it wasn’t long before scott pruitt emerged as the pick to take it over. interviewer: what was your reaction when president trump announced scott pruitt? bob murray: total delight. interviewer: and did you have a hand in recommending scott pruitt to the president to be epa administrator? bob murray: no comment. interviewer: no comment. newscaster: oklahoma attorney general, scott pruitt, named the nominee of president elect donald trump to lead the environmental protection agency. newscaster: a leading critic of the epa now in line to take its helm. narrator: a dozen of bob murray’s coal miners showed up at the u.s. senate in january for scott pruitt’s confirmation hearing. scott pruitt: how’re you all doing? narrator: for pruitt, it was a chance to explain why a critic of the epa should run it. scott pruitt: i believe there is a very important role for the environmental protection agency. in fact, its involvement in protecting our air quality and improving our nation’s waters is extremely important, and the epa has served a very valuable role historically. we must reject as a nation the false paradigm that if you’re pro energy, you’re anti environment, and if you’re pro environment, you’re anti energy. narrator: pruitt also expressed his doubts about climate change. scott pruitt: let me say to you science tells us that the climate is changing and that human activity in some manner impacts that change. the ability to measure with precision the degree and extent of that impact and what to do about it are subject to continuing debate and dialogue, and well it should be. narrator: but senate democrats had strong doubts. sen. bernie sanders (d), vermont: the fear is that the nomination of mr. pruitt is a nomination designed to protect the fossil fuel industry and not the environment. sen. sheldon whitehouse (d), rhode island: we have a meeting agenda from the republican attorney generals association meeting at the greenbriar  narrator: sheldon whitehouse, a former attorney general from rhode island, pressed pruitt on his ties to industry. sen. sheldon whitehouse:  mentions a private meeting with murray energy. what the american public deserves is the assurance that people who take government positions are making their decisions based on the merits, not based on prior relationships, present relationships, the expectation of future relationships, all of that. the priority was to get at the conflicts of interest. sen. sheldon whitehouse: you helped raise money for the republican attorney generals association while you were a member of its executive committee. they received $530,000 from koch industries, $350,000 from murray energy and $125,000 from devon energy. did you solicit in your role at the republican attorney generals association any of that funding? scott pruitt: i attended fundraising events as an attorney general along with other attorneys general with respect to the raga. sen. whitehouse: and did you solicit? did you ask them for money at raga? scott pruitt: as i indicated, i attended fundraising events. sen. sheldon whitehouse: in the ordinary course, his conflicts of interest would disqualify him from this position, and were it not for the power of the fossil fuel industry in congress, then i don’t think he would have had a shot. chris wallace, fox news: one of president trump’s most controversial cabinet picks has made it through the senate. scott pruitt was just sworn in moments ago. he will run the environmental protection agency, much to the dismay of many environmentalists. narrator: a week after pruitt was confirmed, the president gave his marching orders. pres. donald trump: today, this executive order directs each agency to establish a regulatory reform task force. narrator: it was a mandate to all federal agencies to slash regulations. jane mayer, the new yorker: what you see now with the trump administration is the triumph of the anti environmental movement. pres. donald trump: should i give this pen to andrew? dow chemical. [laughter] jane mayer: they are now in control of the government and in control of the regulatory process in a kind of a brazen way we haven’t seen before. there’s a tendency to ignore what’s going on in places like the epa, and really radical things are happening there and people aren’t paying attention. scott pruitt: well, let me tell you, there’s been a change of direction, obviously, at the epa because the war on coal ended. the war on fossil fuels ended. narrator: to help him, pruitt hired people with deep ties to industry. eric lipton, the new york times: it’s startling to see the class of people he’s surrounded himself with, the lawyers and lobbyists who were fighting alongside of him to challenge the obama rules, they are now setting the policies that they were so involved with trying to kill. he is making the regulated the regulators. narrator: pruitt also relied heavily on his fellow oklahoman, the senate’s leading climate change denier, james inhofe. sen. james inhofe (r), oklahoma: we keep hearing that 2014 has been the warmest year on record. i ask the chair, you know what this is? it’s a snowball. narrator: several of pruitt’s senior advisers worked for inhofe at one time. sen. james inhofe: it happens the person who is running the epa right now is a good friend of mine. in fact, his chief of staff was my chief of staff. so that the abuses that we were subjected to by the overregulation for eight years under obama are things that we can now change. and we are in the process of doing that. people are not aware of it. newscaster: scott pruitt promised an aggressive rollback of environmental regulations that had been put in place by former president obama. newscaster: the environmental protection agency dropped a requirement that oil and gas interests report information on methane emissions. administrator scott pruitt said withdrawing the rule will ease burdens on business. newscaster: the new head of the environmental protection agency reversed steps to ban a controversial widely used pesticide linked to potential health problems in children and farm workers. narrator: soon, scott pruitt’s epa had moved to delay or roll back more than two dozen rules and regulations. bob murray: scott pruitt  he is the star on the trump team getting more done probably than any other appointee to date. i gave mr. trump what i called an action plan very early. it’s about three and a half pages and  of what he needed to do in his administration. he’s wiped out page one. narrator: at the top of murray’s list was the rule that he and pruitt had sued to stop, obama’s clean power plan. chad warmington: you know, i think he’s doing probably kind of exactly what we figured he would do, meaning we’ve  you know, we’re kind of pretty familiar with scott. i’d say it was a closed door and it’s now open, and in terms of the ability to engage and know that you’re going to have the ability to have a seat at the table. i think that’s the single easiest way to describe kind of what we feel is we’ll just have a seat at the table. narrator: the epa would not make pruitt available for an interview. but long time staffers have been shocked by the way he’s leading the agency. betsy southerland: the political leaders that were brought in did not speak to any of the epa staff even at the management level. it was really left up to us as staff people to just read the news media, read the executive orders and draw conclusions ourselves. narrator: betsy southerland left the epa in july after more than 30 years and is the highest ranking staff member to speak out on television. betsy southerland: the atmosphere at the epa is  is really tense. what everyone is trying desperately to do is to hope against hope that their facts will change scott pruitt’s mind, that they’ll be special and they’ll be able to convince the administrator, you know, not to go with whatever the industry people have asked him to do and to give some deference to the  to the science and engineering behind previous regulations that were so thoroughly thought out and so thoroughly justified. narrator: southerland saw her own work targeted when she says, without warning, pruitt announced a rule she helped develop to keep toxic coal waste out of the water supply was up for reconsideration. betsy southerland: the first i knew that this rule that we’d worked years to create was up for grabs was when i saw the administrator’s press release that said that, basically, he was going to reconsider the rule because it was a job killer and had a huge economic impact on the country. narrator: after months of trying, southerland says she finally met with pruitt himself to try to explain why the rule was both necessary and cost effective. betsy southerland: it seems like that the die is cast before we even start these elaborate, extensive briefings. he just doesn’t ask any questions. it’s just a mystery as to how you can persuade him to  to not follow exactly what industry asks him to do and instead be  be more accommodating to the facts of the case. narrator: in a statement, the epa called southerland’s account a “false characterization.” they noted she retired for personal reasons with a “six figure taxpayer funded pension” and was now expressing “faux outrage.” the rule she worked on was suspended in september, six weeks after her retirement. at her good bye party, she offered colleagues a grim assessment of the road ahead. betsy southerland: today, the environmental field is suffering from the triumph of myth over truth. the truth is there is no war on coal, there is no economic crisis caused by environmental protection, and climate change is caused by man’s activities. newscaster: the epa started taking down its climate data from the agency’s web site. newscaster: now the trump administration wants to cut the epa’s budget by a third. newscaster: scott pruitt has decided to replace half of the members on its key science advisory board. newscaster: president trump is about to step into the rose garden to announce one of the biggest decisions he’s made since taking office. gina mccarthy: you know, it’s a really good question for me to sort of retrospectively look back and see whether we won a battle and lost the war. could i have done anything different? i don’t know. i can continue to look back and i’ll probably always ask myself that. myron ebell: i’ve been involved in a lot of things that people considered lost causes. one of the things i’ve learned is that lost causes aren’t always lost, but that the key is you have to be persistent. it was a culminating moment, i’d say. pres. donald trump: say a few words, scott, please. myron ebell: we were winning. our side was winning. scott pruitt: thank you, mr. president. your decision today to exit the paris accord reflects your unflinching commitment to put america first. america finally has a leader who answers only to the people, not to the special interests who’ve had their way for way too long. bob murray: donald trump has a mandate to keep his campaign promise to withdraw from the climate paris accord. interviewer: you conferred with the president and you told him this. bob murray: i did. scott pruitt: we owe no apologies to other nations for our environmental stewardship. american people can take comfort because you have their backs. thank you, mr. president. [applause] [last week, president trump nominated a lobbyist for murray energy to be scott pruitt’s second in command at the epa.] [yesterday, pruitt signed a measure to formally repeal the clean power plan, saying he was “righting the wrongs of the obama administration.”] jon and jo ann hagler on behalf of the jon l. hagler foundation koo and patricia yuen you'll receive access to exclusive information and early alerts about our documentaries and investigations. you'll receive access to exclusive information and early alerts about our documentaries and investigations.

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o’reilly the authorities had at one point limited the miners’ access to food, water and other supplies in a blockade that drew criticism from human rights groups. by john eligon the taliban government is counting on afghanistan’s bountiful gemstone and mineral resources after the loss of billions of dollars in international aid. by david zucchino and elise blanchard la guerra ha convertido a birmania en un paraíso para la delincuencia transnacional, con toda clase de actividades ilícitas, desde la producción de drogas hasta centros de ciberdelincuencia y más. by hannah beech the chaotic country is now a magnet for criminal syndicates, particularly from china, destabilizing law enforcement across much of asia. by hannah beech famine and ethnic cleansing stalk sudan. yet the gold trade is booming, enriching generals and propelling the fight. by declan walsh we’ve got the scoop on traditional clay box fillers and the alternatives. by elizabeth anne brown when president biden visits angola on monday, he will promote a rail project meant to show america’s commitment to the continent and to counter chinese influence. by john eligon and joao silva una sentencia estadounidense puso en marcha la repatriación de la piedra preciosa al país donde fue desenterrada hace más de 20 años. by alexandra e. petri a u.s. ruling set in motion the gem’s repatriation to brazil, where it was first unearthed more than 20 years ago. by alexandra e. petri consumer misconceptions about diamonds can make the process of engagement ring shopping even more distressing. by stephanie cain electricity has become our most critical resource. oil is still coveted. the drive for energy has taken one times reporter all over the map. by ivan penn three executives of the australian company resolute mining were arrested this month. mali, a major african gold producer, has been trying to increase its share of mining profits lately. by ruth maclean, saikou jammeh and elian peltier the police have cut off food and water to miners for weeks in a bid to force them out of an abandoned mine. human rights advocates and community leaders call the tactics inhumane. by lynsey chutel state controlled companies now run an industry once known for its acid pits, radioactive waste and smugglers. by keith bradsher already the dominant producer of rare minerals, beijing is using export restrictions and its power over state owned companies to further control access. by keith bradsher federal and state researchers said there might be five million to 19 million tons of lithium, more than enough to meet the world’s demand for the battery ingredient. by ivan penn and rebecca f. elliott the democratic congressman, who is running for senate in arizona, hiked thousands of feet down to meet the havasupai, a native tribe, on their land, part of an extensive outreach effort in a competitive race. by catie edmondson an equipment failure at the mollie kathleen gold mine near cripple creek had stranded 12 people who were on a tour underground for hours. by alexandra e. petri miners aim to meet a growing demand for emissions free energy, though a failure to clean up old sites haunts the industry. by ivan penn, rebecca f. elliott and jesse rieser a methane leak set off the explosion, the country’s official media said, and a rescue effort was underway for those believed to be trapped in the mine. by amelia nierenberg pope francis is visiting papua new guinea, which has been exploited for its natural resources and is imperiled by rising sea levels. by emma bubola the lack of a grading system for the popular stone has prompted a father son team to spend the last five years working on one. by janelle conaway as east germans vote, a region in decline is searching for answers on the political extremes. by ingmar nolting and christopher f. schuetze she was a fiery lawyer from eastern kentucky who charged coal companies with discrimination for their refusal to hire women. her campaign was a success. by adam nossiter the diamond was unearthed using new technology, and miners hope it will bring back luster to a struggling industry. by lynsey chutel more and more women are replacing men mobilized in the army. but there are not enough of them to make up for the labor shortage affecting the economy. by constant méheut and finbarr o’reilly a rio tinto mine that europe sees as a critical source for electric vehicle batteries has been the target of enormous protests. “i don’t need green cars. i need green apples and green grass,” said one opponent. by andrew higgins the senator from west virginia assesses the democratic party and its path to victory in november. by michelle cottle the international agency charged with regulating seabed mining elected a u.n. environmental regulator to replace a leader accused of too close industry ties. by eric lipton the ethical thing to do is to bring mining back and hold it to the highest sustainability standards. by stephen lezak while most georgians support closer integration with western europe, many people in industrial areas that collapsed along with communism in the 1990s express nostalgia for the old soviet prosperity. by ivan nechepurenko kazakhstan’s bounty of so called critical minerals has enriched the country and grabbed the attention of entrepreneurs scrambling to control the ingredients needed to fight climate change. by daisuke wakabayashi and chang w. lee the deposit, in zambia, could make billions for silicon valley, provide minerals for the energy transition and help the united states in its rivalry with china. by max bearak an election over the future of a united nations affiliated organization could determine whether the pacific ocean floor will soon be mined for metals used in electric vehicles. by eric lipton the interior department rejected a proposed industrial road through pristine land in alaska that was needed to reach an estimated $7.5 billion copper deposit. by lisa friedman earth’s crust teems with subterranean life that we are only now beginning to understand. by ferris jabr in earlier races for the white house, he pledged to get miners back to work. now, political and economic realities have shifted. by lisa friedman the government hopes to sell off a range of companies to fund the military and stabilize the economy as the grueling conflict with russia drains its coffers. by constant méheut and daria mitiuk she made only two films, but her “araya,” a rumination on the daily rituals of salt mine laborers, became an enduring work of latin american cinema. by alex williams un enorme agujero en el paisaje siberiano debería ser una advertencia sobre los peligros de la extracción. en la zona, las carreteras se están agrietando como en un terremoto en cámara lenta. by sophie pinkham a yawning hole in the siberian landscape should be a warning about the dangers of extraction. by sophie pinkham a white house proposal to allow the billionaire dan gertler to sell off his assets in the democratic republic of congo sparks a bipartisan rebuke. by eric lipton a letter sent by lawmakers who are members of the united states helsinki commission, a federal agency that promotes human rights issues globally, regarding dan gertler. elon musk ha creado una constelación de jefes de estado aliados  javier milei en argentina, narendra modi en india  para impulsar sus políticas y expandir su imperio empresarial. by ryan mac, jack nicas and alex travelli a deal to allow the israeli billionaire dan gertler to cash out his mining positions in the democratic republic of congo has enraged human rights activists and some government officials. by eric lipton mr. musk has built a constellation of like minded heads of state   including argentina’s javier milei and india’s narendra modi   to push his own politics and expand his business empire. by ryan mac, jack nicas and alex travelli below the waters of the cook islands, population 15,000, lie minerals used to power electric cars. extracting them could bring riches, but many say it’s a bad idea. by pete mckenzie around the world, grass roots organizers and indigenous communities are taking proposed coal, oil and gas projects to court   and winning. by delger erdenesanaa the deal would create one of the largest copper miners at a time when demand is soaring for the metal used in many green technologies. by melissa eddy the assaults have all but destroyed the factories and plants that were the economic lifeblood of the towns and cities in ukraine’s east. by andrew e. kramer, maria varenikova and nicole tung the administration has blocked a proposed industrial road needed to mine copper in the middle of the state, and has banned oil drilling on 13 million acres in the north slope. by lisa friedman a mining company wants to build a 211 mile industrial road through alaskan wilderness to reach a large copper deposit. the interior department says it would harm wildlife and communities. by lisa friedman federal regulation capping toxic airborne silica has been decades in the making. the delay has cost miners dearly. by chris hamby in the midst of a political and environmental dispute between the czech republic and poland over a coal mine, a potato salad contest is held in a small border town. by piotr jasiński in the midst of a political and environmental dispute between the czech republic and poland over a coal mine, a potato salad contest is held in a small border town. by piotr jasiński as war beat a path through southern and eastern ukraine, most of the population fled. but other residents have hunkered down, unable   or unwilling   to leave. by emile ducke, oleksandr naselenko and thomas gibbons neff la crisis política que ha rodeado las elecciones presidenciales del 5 de mayo ha exacerbado la incertidumbre en un país que se enfrenta a la sequía y a las consecuencias de las protestas generalizadas. by leila miller political crisis has embroiled panama’s may 5 presidential election, exacerbating uncertainty in a country dealing with drought and fallout from widespread protests. by leila miller gem  and jewelry themed tours and excursions mix treasure hunting with adventure and cultural experiences. by amy elliott and ben pearce a new proposal lays out six possible plans, singling out one compromise approach as the preferred option. by lisa friedman and catrin einhorn demand for lithium, which is used in electric vehicle batteries, has soared, but domestic production of the metal has lagged behind other countries. by madeleine ngo mining can be dangerous, exploitative and harmful to the environment. chie murakami’s organization is aiming to change that by raising awareness and addressing the needs of miners. by vivian morelli it was the latest outbreak of intertribal unrest at a gold mine in free state. the situation was under control at midnight, officials said. by the international herald tribune the presumed winner supports policies that have led to a boom in coal burning, but also to the creation of a nascent electric battery industry. by somini sengupta the episode in the country’s southwest highlights the risks faced by miners working in environments with little to no safety measures. by elian peltier and that’s a good thing. they’re critical for renewable energy, and a new study says recovering them from old cellphones and other waste could help meet the demand. by hiroko tabuchi table salt, kosher salt, finishing salt: the choice can be confusing, but we offer a little explanation and advice. by melissa clark astroforge, a private company, wants to mine a space rock, but it doesn’t want the competition to find out which one. by jonathan o’callaghan en el este de francia, y otros lugares del mundo, los yacimientos de hidrógeno natural prometen abundante energía. pero sigue habiendo interrogantes en torno a uno de los combustibles más limpios de la naturaleza. by liz alderman the sand land mine near southampton sits on top of a protected groundwater area that environmental activists fear could be harmed by the operation. by hilary howard in eastern france, and in other places around the world, deposits of natural hydrogen promise bountiful power. but questions remain. by liz alderman after decades of stagnation, the tar heel state is the beneficiary of a lithium rush fueled by demand for car batteries. by alan rappeport electric vehicles really are better for the environment than hybrid vehicles that have both gas and electric motors. by stephen porder here are some of the people fighting efforts to conserve a vital resource that’s disappearing across the united states. by christopher flavelle and mira rojanasakul shipboard experiments suggested that sediment from the exploitation of metals in the ocean could be harmful to marine life. by kate golembiewski several traceability systems have been introduced in the last six months, spurred by sanctions against russian mined stones. by victoria gomelsky the pollution control devices contain valuable metals, making them a hot commodity for recycling. some beneficiaries of the thefts look the other way. by walt bogdanich, isak hüllert and eli tan the move is the oil giant’s first foray in the production of a metal vital for electric vehicle batteries. by clifford krauss agotada por la vida en nueva york, una fotógrafa viajó al norte de chile para estudiar la sabiduría ancestral de los lickanantay, el pueblo indígena de la zona. esto es lo que vio. by irjaliina paavonpera america needs to invest in mining and build resilient supply chains for the building blocks of electric batteries. by james morton turner matthieu rytz’s documentary about the bounty at the bottom of the sea examines the fight over whether to reap these riches or preserve them. by lisa kennedy a conservation group acquired more than 1,500 acres just north of yellowstone national park to stop a gold mine that they say would have upset the habitat of bears and other wildlife. by amanda holpuch a proposed industrial road would cut through pristine wilderness in alaska to reach a planned copper and zinc mine. by lisa friedman selected paperbacks from the book review, including titles by charlayne hunter gault, hua hsu, kate manning and more. by shreya chattopadhyay the state’s governor has asked the supreme court to resurrect a widely opposed plan rejected by the federal government. by carl safina and joel reynolds diez años después de un tratado internacional para prohibir el mercurio, el metal tóxico sigue envenenando. la razón podría estar relacionada con tu alianza de bodas. by fabian federl, jack nicas and ian cheibub ten years after an international treaty to ban mercury, the toxic metal continues to poison. the reason might have to do with your wedding ring. by fabian federl, jack nicas and ian cheibub the artist speaks about his love of spiders, the flip side of sustainability and more. by farah nayeri the biden administration is asking congress to change the law so companies pay federal royalties when they extract metals. by lisa friedman in the months since the president allowed the willow project in alaska, his administration has curtailed fossil fuel activities on millions of acres of public land and in federal waters. by lisa friedman the country plans to use a trade show in bangkok this week to remind the world of its expertise in processing and perfecting natural stones. by david belcher in “fortune’s frenzy,” eilene lyon traces the hardship and misery endured by henry jenkins, a stalwart indiana farmer who, along with thousands of others, journeyed to california in 1851. by w. m. akers the fate of indonesia’s unrivaled stocks of nickel   a critical mineral used to make batteries for electric vehicles   is caught in the conflict between the united states and china. by peter s. goodman and ulet ifansasti an influx of chinese investment into nickel processing on the indonesian island of sulawesi is sowing pollution while generating economic opportunity. by peter s. goodman and ulet ifansasti a coal miner’s daughter turned filmmaker profiles a region’s relationship with fossil fuel and presents a eulogy for a way of life. by robert daniels

this piece was published before joe biden withdrew from the 2024 presidential election and endorsed vice president kamala harris to represent the democratic party. no significant facts have been changed or added. when donald trump’s administration ended in 2020, two thirds of americans believed that trump had increased racial tensions in the u.s. the trump administration's sustained assault on political, civic, and legal efforts to promote racial justice and the administration’s transparent pursuit of an agenda based on white supremacy had pushed the country to its breaking point. today, trump and his supporters have doubled down on this agenda. as part of a larger backlash against racial justice efforts that ignited in the aftermath of the 2020 killings of george floyd, ahmaud arbery, and breonna taylor, the 2025 presidential transition project has now made its anti  diversity, equity, and inclusion (dei) policies a cornerstone of their continued attacks on racial equity and free speech. in addition to abandoning civil rights enforcement on behalf of marginalized groups, trump and his supporters plan to intensify right wing attacks on education, employment, and economic opportunity initiatives, and to censor academic discussions about race, gender, and systemic oppression. at the aclu, we won’t retreat. we’re prepared to challenge the trump administration’s policies at every level of government. learn more in our breakdown: the facts: based on trump’s campaign promises   and the detailed policy proposals of project 2025   we can expect a second trump administration to supercharge efforts to reverse gains in civil rights and racial justice in america. specifically, trump has promised to continue his attacks on so called “divisive concepts” and take federal funding from schools with curricula, books, or classes that address race, racism, gender, and sexuality. trump has also promised to eliminate school administrator positions that oversee dei initiatives, and to resuscitate the discredited 1776 commission, which was a presidential advisory committee created in september 2020 by then president trump that was tasked with “restoring patriotic education in schools.” emboldened by the 2023 repeal of affirmative action in college admissions, a second trump administration intends to abandon efforts to advance and legally defend affirmative action and dei policies within military academies, federal minority contracting programs, and other federal programs shown to open opportunities   as well as create inclusive education and workplace environments   unfairly denied to people of color, women, and other marginalized groups. on the regulatory side, a second trump administration would not only refuse to enforce civil rights regulations on behalf of individuals from historically marginalized groups, but to actively weaken these protections in housing, education, health care, and other essential resources. ultimately, trump has made clear that his goal is to eradicate all programs designed to address profound and persistent inequalities in american life   with the effect of further entrenching, and indeed worsening, systemic inequality. why it matters: policies that seek to eradicate dei programs, restrict conversations about race or gender in the classroom, or otherwise attack civil rights efforts are not only unlawful, but undermine our ability to repair decades of discriminatory practices and thrive as a nation. at the state level, we know that efforts to ban books or school curricula addressing the reality of systemic discrimination not only trample on students’ and educators’ constitutional rights, especially their first amendment rights, but also threaten the retention and academic success of all students. at the federal level, we know that a second trump administration would dismantle or refuse to enforce critical dei programs and initiatives that date back decades. in public health, for example, there are significant disparities in care that are closely linked to structural racism. to remedy historical discrimination and address health outcome disparities, public and private scholarship and fellowship programs have been set up to support pathways to the medical profession for underrepresented medical professionals. without support for these programs, the race gap in healthcare would only widen. the trump campaign’s rhetoric threatens to unravel decades of racial equality progress. we plan to fight back. source: american civil liberties union how we got here: from 2017 2021, the trump administration used its federal legal and policy authority to bolster far right attacks on educational and economic opportunity initiatives. for example, the administration used its investigative and legal authority to target efforts by the private sector and institutions of higher education to address inequality. specifically, the prior trump administration consistently subverted traditional legal tools and principles designed to combat unlawful discrimination. it ceased enforcement of, and attempted to dismantle, disparate impact liability    a bedrock tool for effective civil rights enforcement. the administration also revoked federal guidance designed to address race  and disability based discrimination in student discipline policies and practices and banned, by executive order, the u.s. armed forces, federal agencies, federal contractors, and recipients of federal grants from providing employees with trainings related to race and gender discrimination. in the trump administration’s final days, it also launched the 1776 report, which deceptively recasts the civil rights movement as corrupting progress toward racial equality. designed to “restore patriotic education in schools,” the 1776 report compared progressivism to fascism, claimed the civil rights movement embraced ideas similar to those held by defenders of slavery, and sought to downplay the legacy of racism in u.s. history. historians uniformly condemned the report, pointing out that it was littered with factual inaccuracies, partisan politics, and a lack of serious scholarship. our roadmap: the aclu filed more than 430 legal actions against the trump administration, including many lawsuits against that administration’s anti dei policies   from fair housing to book bans. if trump is reelected, we’ll continue to use the courts to combat these discriminatory tactics. that includes asking the court to block any administration’s efforts to undermine the fair housing act. we will also push congress to consistently vote against anti dei bills and efforts to strip federal funding from such programs, and to amplify through hearings and public statements how these programs work and the reasons why these programs remain critical. we’ll also work with states and municipalities to advance civil rights protections in the public sector and defend inclusive curricula at the k 12 level. lastly, we’ll provide critical guidance and support to institutions and school districts to combat historical discrimination that is still constitutionally sound, despite aggressive messaging to the contrary. what our experts say: “trump and his supporters leveraged last year’s supreme court decision on affirmative action to undermine and create confusion around dei initiatives   even though dei and affirmative action are two different issues. the aclu is determined to educate the public on this racist agenda, and continue to defend vital efforts that counteract historical discrimination and unequal access to opportunities.   renika moore, director of the aclu racial justice program “it’s important for americans to realize that trump’s plans to intensify efforts to eliminate inclusive education practices and policies is a first amendment issue, as much as it is a civil rights issue. trump and his supporters are proposing to control what we think and learn by using the government to censor a viewpoint it doesn’t like out of existence.”   kim conway, senior policy counsel what you can do today: the aclu has challenged classroom censorship laws and book bans across the country. today, we’re expanding on that work by pushing back against attempts to restrict dei programs. we won’t stand for the erasure of marginalized communities in our schools. join us in this critical fight for free speech and equitable education. racial justice human rights racial justice racial justice racial justice human rights

among joe biden’s afflictions and miseries, his wormwood and gall, there are the insults (about his diminished capacities), and then there are the compliments unpaid (about his achievements). we are exposed to more of the first, but it seems that to him the second are more painful. in his first interview after he withdrew as the democratic presidential nominee, biden wounded, proud, self pitying, defiant said, by way of defending his record, “no one thought we could get done, including some of my own people, what we got done. one of the problems is, we knew all the things we did were going to take a little time to work their way through. so now people are realizing, ‘oh, that highway. oh, that . . .’ ” he trailed off for a moment and then recovered. “the biggest mistake we made, we didn’t put up signs saying ‘joe did it.’ ” he ended this with a bitter chuckle. biden isn’t wrong. objectively, and improbably, he has passed more new domestic programs than any democratic president since lyndon johnson maybe even since franklin roosevelt. in the early weeks of 2021, very few people saw biden as the obvious winner in the large field of potential candidates for the 2024 democratic nomination. his victory over donald trump had not been overwhelming. the democrats had lost seats in the house even while maintaining a narrow majority, and got to fifty votes in the senate only after two runoff elections in georgia broke their way. then, with nothing close to a mandate, biden passed domestic legislation that will generate government spending of at least five trillion dollars, spread across a wide range of purposes, in every corner of the country. he has also redirected many of the federal government’s regulatory agencies in ways that will profoundly affect american life. on biden’s watch, the government has launched large programs to move the country to clean energy sources, to create from scratch or to bring onshore a number of industries, to strengthen organized labor, to build thousands of infrastructure projects, to embed racial equity goals in many government programs, and to break up concentrations of economic power. all of this doesn’t represent merely a hodgepodge of actions. there is as close to a unifying theory as one can find in a sweeping set of government policies. almost all the discussion of “bidenomics” by focussing on short term fluctuations of national metrics such as growth, the inflation rate, and unemployment, with the aim of determining the health of the economy misses the point. real bidenomics upends a set of economic assumptions that have prevailed in both parties for most of the past half century. biden is the first president in decades to treat government as the designer and ongoing referee of markets, rather than as the corrector of markets’ dislocations and excesses after the fact. he doesn’t speak of free trade and globalization as economic ideals. his approach to combatting climate change involves no carbon taxes or credits another major departure, not just from his predecessors but also from the policies of many other countries. his administration has been far more aggressive than previous ones in taking antitrust actions against big companies. what would you call these policies? one apt label might be “post neoliberal,” a term that does not resonate at all with the public. another way of thinking about biden’s approach is through terminology devised by the political scientist jacob hacker: it rejects redistribution as a guiding liberal principle, in favor of “predistribution,” an effort to transform the economy in a way that makes redistribution less necessary. predistribution entails understanding the economy as something that structures the balance of power among institutions, rather than as a natural phenomenon that must be managed in order to lessen its harmful effects on individuals. so bidenomics has overturned a number of unwritten rules that you previously had to follow if you wanted to be taken seriously as a policymaker: economic regulation is usually a bad idea; governments should balance their budgets, except during recessions and depressions; subsidizing specific industries never works; unions are a mixed blessing, because they don’t always promote economic efficiency; government should not try to help specific regions of the country or sectors of the economy. at least in domestic affairs, nobody makes policy without thinking about politics. one grand ambition behind all the biden economic initiatives is to usher in a political realignment that would make the democrats competitive again in the more sparsely populated parts of the country, which have disproportionate political power. the idea is that americans are not as motivated as you might think by notions of “opportunity” and “mobility” that such liberal rhetoric has limited appeal among people who want to live safely and securely in the communities where they grew up, surrounded by strong institutions that are not subject to relentless economic and social disruption. (according to a recent pew research center survey, ninety two per cent of americans say that financial stability is more important to them than upward mobility.) what people see happening around them matters far more than what the latest statistics tell us about the state of the economy. as elizabeth wilkins, who worked in the biden white house, told me, “it’s national g.d.p. numbers versus how people feel about their lives, their families, their communities. it’s their job, the jobs of the people around them, what those jobs pay not the aggregate numbers. we fully embraced that in our policy orientation.” and that meant shoring up specific places and institutions as a primary political strategy. link copied the irony of bidenomics is the vast gulf between its scale measured in money and in the number of projects that it has set in motion and its political impact, which is essentially zero, even though a major part of its rationale is political. it has become a standard talking point of the engineers of bidenomics that it will take at least five years, maybe ten, possibly even longer, for the public to understand its effects. “that’s the way it was with the new deal,” steve ricchetti, one of biden’s closest and longest serving aides, said. “it wasn’t just three or four years of new programs. it was leveraged for twenty or thirty years into the future.” but the short term politics worked out a lot better for franklin roosevelt; he carried all but two states in his first reëlection campaign. there is little evidence that the democrats will be similarly rewarded in 2024. only late in the race, when she was spending much of her time in the midwest, did kamala harris begin speaking regularly about biden’s major economic initiatives. it’s unclear how committed to them she will be if she becomes president. trump has promised to repeal many of them. still, president biden can rest assured that many signs are being put up. they just don’t say “joe did it.” they say “investing in america.” over the summer, i accompanied two biden cabinet members, julie su, the acting secretary of labor, and pete buttigieg, the secretary of transportation, as they travelled around the country promoting the administration’s projects. these visits took place away from the coasts, mainly in small towns. watching the biden officials in action made me feel like a time traveller transported back to the social realist days of the thirties and forties. at every stop, it seemed, we’d come upon a tall chain link fence and drive through an open gate, past a guardhouse, and then down a long, lonely road leading to a factory. all around would be forklifts, cranes, pickup trucks, huge metal sheds, silos, and lengths of pipe so wide that you could stand up inside them. on a friday morning in july, i went to fort valley, georgia, the seat of peach county, to watch su promote a new factory that will build electric school buses. if the over all goals of bidenomics sound abstract, this project makes for a good concrete example, because it unites all the major ideas. fort valley is a majority black town in a rural swing county, in a historically republican state that the democrats have targeted. the biggest business in town is the blue bird corporation, one of the country’s largest manufacturers of school buses. during the next five years, nearly a billion dollars in grants will be awarded to dozens of school districts nationwide through the environmental protection agency’s clean school bus program, some of which will go toward the purchase of blue bird’s electric buses, and blue bird will receive eighty million dollars from the department of energy’s office of manufacturing and energy supply chains. in essence, the administration is generously funding a private business. because the money will go to electric vehicles, the plan is part of both the transition to clean energy and the administration’s project of bringing manufacturing back to the american heartland rather than letting it happen, in particular, in china. and blue bird, for the first time in its ninety seven year history, has coöperated with its employees’ effort to unionize, a development that aligns with biden’s support for unions. for the event in fort valley, there was a temporary canopy to protect the audience from the summer sun, a few rows of folding chairs, a makeshift podium in front of a yellow school bus, and “investing in america” signs posted at every possible location. the mayor, jeffery lundy, opened the event by saying that he was “excited and ecstatic” about the new plant. he thanked the federal government, the blue bird corporation, and god, and ended by quoting a few lines of scripture. then came yvonne brooks, the president of the georgia a.f.l. c.i.o. finally, su, who has a brisk, cheerful charm, took the podium and said that the plant would help solve the climate crisis, create jobs for the local community, and give schoolchildren a chance to breathe cleaner air. after the ceremony, su and i found a room where we could talk for a few minutes. she is a lawyer who started her career in civil rights organizations and then worked in state labor agencies in california. (her liberal past has made it difficult for her to be confirmed by the senate, and that is why she is the “acting” secretary.) she told me about the amount of effort that had gone into making the fort valley announcement possible. phil horlock, blue bird’s c.e.o., had been brought to the white house for a meeting with biden. then, this spring, su had come to fort valley to urge horlock to speed up his slow moving negotiations with the united steelworkers. was the conclusion of the negotiations connected to the eighty million dollar grant to build the electric bus factory? “i’m going to answer this way,” su said. “the way you asked me implies conditions. whether workers want to join a union depends on them. politicians should not interfere. it is not a condition. what i said to phil was ‘there’s no reason not to have a contract after a year of negotiations.’ they got that done. the company took it seriously. phil said, ‘we heard the julie su challenge, and we accept.’ ” how did this new era in economic policy come to pass? how did biden, the most familiar of politicians, and previously not seen as someone with sweeping policy ambitions, become the organizer of such a big program? in retrospect, it’s possible to see what happened as the convergence of a number of forces that have been building for fifteen years. it’s a story line that seems clearer now than it did as it was unfolding. in 2008, barack obama swept into office with three hundred and sixty five electoral votes and firm control of both the senate and the house. it seemed as if the democrats were on their way to securing a lasting majority, as they did in the new deal era, this time with a coalition of educated urban and suburban voters and racial and ethnic minorities. the last stage of obama’s campaign and the beginning of his administration took place against the backdrop of the worst financial crisis in eight decades, but obama seemed well equipped to handle it. he and a team of experienced economic advisers got congress to pass a large stimulus bill, aimed at preventing another great depression. but we wound up having a great recession. the unemployment rate rose to a peak of ten per cent in october, 2009; it took until 2017 for employment to recover fully. the recession generated populist revolts on the right (the tea party movement) and the left (the occupy movement), and made what had appeared to be broad public acceptance of pro market bromides seem like an illusion. in the 2010 midterms, the democrats lost six seats in the senate and sixty three seats, along with the majority, in the house. democrats concerned with economic inequality began identifying what they saw as the party’s original sins. there was the clinton administration’s enthusiastic embrace of the north american free trade agreement, and its lengthy negotiations to bring china into the world trade organization. bill clinton delivered a healthy economy as measured by the standard national statistics, but inside it were large pockets of woe, thanks to rising inequality and the departure of manufacturing jobs for mexico, china, and other locations abroad. “we saw that this approach get government out of the way, don’t give business a reason to invest here led to inequality and massive dislocation,” lael brainard, the head of biden’s national economic council, who also worked in the clinton and obama administrations, told me. “you saw a downward spiral of investment.” deregulation of the financial system made it less risk proof and helped to set the stage for the 2008 crisis. some argue that, if obama’s stimulus package initially estimated at seven hundred and eighty seven billion dollars had been bigger, the great recession, and the resulting level of political discontent, would have been less severe. obama was reëlected easily, in 2012, but the democrats’ bill came due in 2016. during the primary season, bernie sanders, a politician whom the democratic establishment didn’t take seriously, performed unexpectedly well by running to the left of hillary clinton on economic issues. in the november election, trump another outsider, running as a right wing populist peeled off enough formerly democratic voters, especially white working class men, to win. it wasn’t just that the republicans flipped contested states such as wisconsin and pennsylvania; formerly competitive states, among them florida, iowa, and ohio, now seemed to be moving permanently out of the democrats’ reach. hacker describes the mood around that time this way: “trump gets elected. you can’t understate this. people woke up. nothing concentrates the mind as much as the prospect of losing your democracy. we lost the heartland.” after a defeat, parties often rethink their strategies. the 2016 election was such an extreme shock to the democrats that the rethinking had a special urgency. “sanders and trump tapped into something,” elizabeth wilkins noted. “we had to speak to economic populism as we hadn’t before.” people who had expected to be working in a hillary clinton administration “spent a lot of time coming up with policy proposals because after 2016 they had nothing to do.” there was an explicit focus on finding ways to address people’s problems in their own communities particularly in the places where the political tide had turned against democrats. as hacker put it, “a lot of america had been devastated by trade and by inequality. you lose civic capital in places. it’s one thing to compensate the losers. but, if you don’t, it’s a total fucking disaster.” in high level policy circles, a number of democrats took up efforts to reconnect with the working class and distanced themselves from past economic policies. jake sullivan, now biden’s national security adviser, conducted a public self examination after the 2016 election; he wrote an article in which he argued, “the american electorate as a whole is moving to embrace a more energized form of government one that tackles the excesses of the free market and takes on big, serious challenges through big, serious legislation.” even before 2016, john podesta, another clinton obama veteran now back in the white house, had co founded a think tank called the washington center for equitable growth. the argument that the democratic party can win by moving to the center is a staple of op ed pages, and it seems to be shaping the harris campaign. but inside the political world the economic left had earned significant clout by proving that it could produce new policy ideas and win votes. in 2020, sanders ran another spirited presidential campaign, and his reward for dropping out of the race and endorsing biden was the creation of two unity task forces, one populated with some of his supporters and the other with some of biden’s. senator elizabeth warren’s presidential campaign had ended earlier, but the broad array of policy proposals that she put forth, generated by a network of young lawyers she had cultivated over the years, gave her a great deal of influence, too. the unity task forces jointly released a hundred and ten page set of potential policies in july, 2020. biden didn’t wind up trying to enact everything in this document, but just about everything he has proposed is in there somewhere. also in july, 2020, biden made a few economic policy speeches that clearly signalled his retreat from neoliberalism one on reviving american manufacturing, one on climate and infrastructure, one on racial economic equity, and one on the “care economy.” there was, at the time, a sense of forces within the democratic party and external events converging to yield a new political consensus. the covid pandemic, and the high level of alarm about trump throughout the party, meant that the biden administration was coming to power during a dire national emergency. no prominent democrats were arguing that it was a time for the government to exercise restraint. as one member of a rising generation of activists, who ended up working in the biden white house, put it, “it’s not clear that there’s a neoliberalism to go back to.” link copied one feature of this post neoliberal period is that super ambitious, impeccably credentialled administration officials now feel the need to demonstrate that they have not become clueless creatures of the coastal élite. jake sullivan’s wife, maggie goodlander, another former white house official, is currently running for congress to represent a district in northern new hampshire, and if she wins he would presumably join her there. buttigieg has moved to traverse city, michigan, the home town of his husband, chasten glezman buttigieg. over the summer, i visited brian deese, another high ranking official in the obama and biden administrations, in his new home town, portland, maine. during the obama era, deese, a onetime aide of larry summers, was seen as a neoliberal; during the trump years, he worked for blackrock. biden appointed deese, then in his early forties, as the director of the national economic council, a business facing unit of the white house which bill clinton created. i met deese a slight, bearded, blue eyed man who has the informal manner and the intensity of a silicon valley executive at a new graduate school created to promote the development of tech companies in maine. he gave me his version of the origins of bidenomics: “two things were going on in the spring of 2020: biden secured the nomination, and covid. he did something that’s unusual in politics. he shifted his policy vision to be more expansive. usually, it’s the other way around.” the result was the american rescue plan, a $1.8 trillion bill more than double the size of obama’s stimulus legislation. it came only a year after trump had signed a bill of equivalent size, in the early days of the pandemic, that was also meant to prevent a recession or a depression. and, indeed, the covid recession was far shorter and less severe than the recession that followed the financial crisis. there were many items in the bill that signalled biden’s priorities beyond just getting through the worst of covid. nearly ninety billion dollars went toward increasing the child tax credit, eighty billion went to shoring up union pension funds, eighty eight billion went to infrastructure projects, and three hundred and fifty billion went to state and local governments. the rap on the rescue bill is that it set off several years of inflation now finally under control which made biden’s management of the economy widely unpopular. jason furman, who was obama’s last chair of the council of economic advisers and now teaches at harvard, has been a persistent public critic of the bill, especially for its provisions authorizing more than four hundred billion dollars in checks to be sent to families with annual incomes of less than seventy five thousand dollars. “nobody could defend it as the right policy,” furman told me. “the idea of sending people two thousand dollar checks was invented by trump.” (economists prefer tax credits.) “nancy pelosi and biden adopted them to troll the republicans and to win the senate races in georgia. people already had money in the bank because they couldn’t buy anything,” with stores closed and supplies short, on account of the pandemic. so the price of everything rose. by that time, it was clear that more traditional economic voices like furman’s would not be dominant in biden’s white house. on economic policy, most of the people who served under clinton and obama had been, as furman put it, “robert rubin” a former head of goldman sachs and the first director of the national economic council “and his children and grandchildren,” figuratively speaking. (he’s one of the grandchildren.) but the ferment of the years after the financial crisis had produced a new talent pool, associated especially with elizabeth warren. former aides and allies of warren’s, and former staff members at think tanks like the economic policy institute, wound up on the council of economic advisers, working for deese at the national economic council, or at many of the federal regulatory agencies. jobs that customarily had gone to economists, who are predisposed to trust in markets, went instead to lawyers (like deese), who are trained to focus on rules and institutions. i asked deese whether he considers himself a repentant former neoliberal. he wasn’t willing to agree to that, but he did say that some of the ideas he was charged with implementing in the biden administration would not have been given serious consideration under obama. “if you had said to me in 2010 that i would be supervising industrial strategy, i would have said, ‘that’s crazy. nobody would listen,’ ” deese told me. “if you wanted to say ‘industrial strategy,’ you couldn’t. it was ‘picking winners.’ ” deese said that his perspective changed when he was in the obama white house, working to keep general motors and chrysler in business during the financial crisis. “that made me see the potential for government to shape the economy,” he said. “i gained a deeper and more ground level sense of what it meant to have economic capacity and why it’s essential. those ideas were made super real for me by seeing an industry in free fall. we have intervened time and again in the auto industry, including in the reagan administration. saying we don’t do that is a wrong description of what we’ve done as a country.” the biden administration passed three more colossal bills in 2021 and 2022: the infrastructure investment and jobs act ($1.2 trillion), the chips and science act ($280 billion), and the inflation reduction act (originally estimated at $380 billion, now thought to have an actual cost of more than $800 billion). together, these laws have hundreds of provisions. but, broadly speaking, the first is intended to fund bridges, roads, harbors, and other building projects; the second brings semiconductor production back to the united states; and the third finances the transition to non carbon producing energy sources. in our conversation, deese argued that the three initiatives should be thought of as one big legislative package. they share the same goal: to rebuild and redirect the industrial capacity of the united states. “we don’t just want the economy to grow,” heather boushey, a member of the council of economic advisers, said. “growing from the middle out means that what we make and how we make it matters.” that idea animates many other things the biden administration has done (and one thing it hasn’t done: negotiate any new trade agreements). in addition to passing legislation, the white house has issued a number of significant executive orders. probably the most important came in july, 2021 an order on competition which stands as the strongest presidential statement on monopoly and antitrust in american history. biden also filled the country’s regulatory agencies with appointees from the economic left of the party. the best known of these is lina khan, of the federal trade commission, but similar appointees are running the justice department’s antitrust division, the securities and exchange commission, the national labor relations board, and all the environmental agencies. the obama administration opened an antitrust investigation of google and then dropped it. the biden administration sued google and won. obama, after recruiting elizabeth warren to design the consumer financial protection bureau, rejected her request to be nominated as its initial director. biden appointed to the position rohit chopra, one of warren’s aides from those days. then there are parts of the government that are practically unknown to the outside world biden remade many of those, too. one example is the office of information and regulatory affairs, which clinton established in the first year of his presidency, to reduce the number of federal regulations. obama’s head of the o.i.r.a. was cass sunstein, a law professor and the co author, with the behavioral economist richard thaler, of the book “nudge.” that selection was a gesture in the direction of light touch regulation. biden reversed course by putting k. sabeel rahman, a warren ally, in the job, and approving a new way for the government to calculate the cost benefit ratio of initiatives, giving more weight to social benefits. such considerations are embedded in the biden legislation. the chips act allowed the government to mandate company paid child care for the workers in the new factories it’s financing, and for the construction workers building them, too. forty per cent of federally backed climate investments are required to be made in disadvantaged communities. “we were trying to fuse the realities of race and other structural inequities with economics,” rahman told me. “some people say, ‘just talk about the economics of it.’ but we were trying to put these economic programs together in a way that would actually address structural inequalities.” biden’s most dramatic departure from past democratic policy might be on climate change. for decades, incentive systems have been the dominant idea for reducing carbon emissions. leah stokes, a professor at the university of california, santa barbara, who’s also a prominent climate activist, said, “it’s wildly unpopular to make fossil fuels more expensive. you put up the cost of everything.” the obama administration’s major climate initiative was based on cap and trade, which allows companies to buy and sell emission allowances. the proposal never came to a vote in the senate, and biden wound up abandoning these ideas entirely. john podesta, who’s now responsible for climate policy in the white house, said that any biden proposal “had to be politically viable, and to show a path forward for american workers. so we flipped the politics of it shifted from ‘what do we need to shut down?’ to ‘what do we need to build?’ ” the way this played out was determined in the summer of 2022. the american rescue plan had passed quickly, though with no republican votes, and the infrastructure bill had followed, but another four trillion dollars in biden proposals remained. most of it was divided into two parts, called the american jobs plan and the american families plan. the democratic house passed a bill combining the two, called build back better, but it died in the senate. the senator with the key vote, joe manchin, of west virginia, made it clear that he opposed the american families plan which included child care, paid family leave, and free community college because he considered it to be a series of handouts. but he opened negotiations on the american jobs plan, which was devoted mainly to business friendly, globalization skeptical clean energy provisions. it was eventually renamed (actually, misnamed) the inflation reduction act and passed that august. “it came together, and we were able to get it over the finish line,” deese said. link copied the inflation reduction act heavily bears manchin’s stamp. at its core are generous tax credits to businesses, mostly but not entirely in clean energy, and west virginia will do very well. once you get past understanding it simply as a landmark piece of climate legislation, the act is a large, unkempt thing. with the exception of a couple of relatively minor provisions, it penalizes no one for anything. some of its provisions will benefit fossil fuel companies. more than eighty per cent of its projects are being built in republican districts partly because they have more empty land and looser regulatory environments. (conversely, around the country, feuds have broken out between environmentalists who want to push the clean energy revolution forward and environmentalists who are opposed to, say, establishing mines to extract the minerals used in electric vehicle batteries.) the projects have been rolling out slowly. one reason that the law will cost so much more than was estimated when it passed is that some of its subsidies come in the form of uncapped tax credits anybody below a fairly generous income ceiling who wants a seventy five hundred dollar tax credit for buying an electric vehicle can have one, and the credits can’t be applied to cheaper chinese e.v.s, because of the administration’s ethic of “build american, buy american.” european allies are upset because the inflation reduction act’s tax credits are so generous that they are enticing businesses in their own countries to build new factories in the united states. the white house says that, by the end of this decade, the bill will reduce carbon emissions from 2005 levels by forty per cent, and that it has created three hundred thousand new jobs across more than three hundred projects. deese told me that more than five per cent of all new investments in the united states are now being made in clean energy, up from about one per cent in 2018, because of how powerfully the inflation reduction act’s tax incentives change the economic calculus for private companies. back in the new deal days, the democrats were straightforwardly the party of labor, and the republicans were the party of business. that simple division became much more complicated in the nineties. the biden administration showed its loyalties by doing a lot for at least some businesses, and for labor, and for all its other major constituencies and hoped for constituencies. whether that approach is sustainable, especially with biden gone, is another question. kamala harris hasn’t spent a lot of time on the campaign trail visiting biden administration funded infrastructure projects. that duty falls primarily to her former rival in the 2020 presidential campaign, pete buttigieg. he is the public face of the infrastructure bill, which got sixty nine votes in the 50 50 senate, partly because it’s hard for politicians to oppose noncontroversial building projects in their districts. (by contrast, no republicans voted for the inflation reduction act.) buttigieg has held public events at infrastructure sites in all fifty states. i spent the better part of a week touring the midwest with him, visiting administration funded projects. in menominee, michigan, we went to a small, privately owned port on lake michigan that often ships large wind turbines. it got a twenty one million dollar grant, its first ever from the federal government, to deepen and upgrade its shipping channel. in manitowoc, wisconsin, a local malt company is applying for an infrastructure grant that would help it ship products from the city’s small port. in milwaukee, the port got nine million dollars in federal funds to help wisconsin farmers send their crops through waterways to markets around the world. in kokomo, indiana, an auto manufacturer showed off facilities for its transition to producing electric vehicles, one of which has been awarded a two hundred and fifty million dollar grant from the department of energy. in each of these cases, the project bundled multiple biden goals: clean energy plus working with business plus unionization plus rebuilding the midwest’s industrial base. buttigieg crewcut, trim (he’s a triathlete), dressed in a dark blue suit, a white shirt, and a tie is very good at being the midwestern boy who left and then decided to come home. he’s polite, punctual, respectful, and fully briefed, scrubbed of all traces of the attitudes that midwesterners find suspect in people from the coasts. at each stop, he found a way to mention his local roots and his military service in afghanistan but not the republican zinging appearances that he’s been making on fox news. on the south side of milwaukee, buttigieg met a group of farmers at a restaurant mainly beefy guys with beards who, while they were waiting for him, chatted about the upcoming state fair. buttigieg walked in at 7:45 a.m. and shook hands. “thanks for stayin’ up late to see me,” he said. (farmers wake up well before dawn.) then he sat down at a long table and spent an hour hearing from everybody. in the background, on a wall mounted television with the sound turned off, an ad came on for tammy baldwin, wisconsin’s more popular than you’d expect democratic senator, pointing to her role in instituting price caps for inhalers. buttigieg and the farmers talked about five axle versus six axle trucks, the economic potential of processed soy meal, and port milwaukee’s ability to handle non containerized cargo. a couple of times, buttigieg tried gently to steer the conversation toward the larger themes of the biden administration, specifically climate change and antitrust efforts. the farmers were polite, but these issues obviously didn’t resonate with them at the same level as immediate, practical matters. after the breakfast, buttigieg went to the port for a public event, where, in front of a pair of enormous corrugated metal silos and an “investing in america” sign, flanked by local dignitaries, he told a small audience about the eight hundred thousand manufacturing jobs that the administration had created. afterward, buttigieg and i met in an empty conference room in the port’s office building, and i asked how he explains the long running industrial decline that the administration is working to reverse. “i think in most accounts the familiar culprits are globalization and automation,” he said. “i would put it a little differently, though. more than anything, it was an unwillingness to invest in the kind of industrial policy and the kind of infrastructure development that made our original industrial economy possible.” brian deese had made a similar point: industrial strategy is a venerable american tradition, going back to the days of the erie canal, one that was forgotten for a few decades, with terrible effects, and is now being revived. as buttigieg said, biden’s economic policies recover “some of the things we were wrong to walk away from, like industrial policy, support for labor unions, support for big investments in shared things like infrastructure.” i asked buttigieg whether he could offer a single rubric that would encompass all the administration’s economic policies. he said that he’d been thinking about this. “what i landed on,” he said, “was the idea that we’ll one day come to remember this as the big deal. there’s the new deal. there’s the square deal” teddy roosevelt’s name for his domestic programs. “now we’ve got the big deal, because in some ways its bigness is the defining factor.” in infrastructure building, at least, “the prior examples were more one mode at a time. the interstate highway system was massive, but that was confined to highways. the transcontinental railroad was massive, but that was about one mode: railroads. the big deal is more multimodal.” that brings us back to the question of why the world hasn’t thought to call the administration’s programs the big deal, or even to consider them a big deal. in kokomo, i had another conversation with buttigieg, in an empty classroom at a community college that trains people to work in electric vehicle production, and i asked him about this. he gave the standard argument of administration officials who are leading the implementation of the new economic programs: it will take a while for their political effects to arrive. “two things i think are going to happen in terms of political impact,” buttigieg said. “they’re totally separate and apart from ‘oh, you did the bridge, we’re going to support you now.’ i don’t just mean project level political impact. the two things i would point to are more subtle, but i think very powerful. one of them is public trust. if you look as we often do as americans on the left and center left to the nordic countries, one of the things you find there is a high level of confidence that the system is fair, partly because they use tax revenue to deliver services that people appreciate. and so you have a higher level of social and political trust, because things are delivered. there’s a virtuous cycle where, if people see something for their tax dollars, they’re more likely to be confident that they can and should support public things with their tax dollars.” he went on, “the other is when you reduce inequality, and especially when you reduce inequality across social lines, like racial wealth gaps, that is conducive to a better political environment for everybody. tony judt, in ‘ill fares the land,’ put forward some data showing that, even on the same average income, the society with more inequality will have worse public health outcomes, more violence, you name it. so, for example, the data we’ve seen on the reduction in the racial wealth gap between 2019 and 2022 is really important. i’m not saying that a voter consciously gives the elected official who engineered that credit twenty years down the line, but i do think it just creates a better environment for all of our political processes to play out.” if you squint, you can see the outlines of a new post neoliberal democratic coalition. fast growing clean energy industries wind, solar, batteries, hydrogen, electric vehicles could join hollywood and silicon valley in supporting the democratic party. purple tinted states, such as georgia and arizona, which are getting lots of clean energy projects (georgia is in the “battery belt,” arizona in the “hydrogen belt”), could turn bluer. (the biden administration even has plans to spend hundreds of millions of dollars reviving the steel industry in j. d. vance’s home town of middletown, ohio.) the administration’s insistence on union labor in its building projects could begin to reverse the long decline of private sector unionization. (the national rate is currently six per cent, down from about a third in the fifties.) a more successful push for the policies that were part of the american families plan could bolster not just family incomes but also the care industry and its employees’ unions. all these policies would help black and latino families, and so might shore up their wobbling loyalty to the democratic party. link copied here’s a specific example of the way democrats are hoping things work out politically. on january 23, 2017, the first full workday of the trump administration, sean mcgarvey, the president of north america’s building trades unions a muscular, heavily male zone of the labor movement which the republican party has been wooing intermittently for decades stood in front of the white house, at the head of a platoon of union leaders and members in the construction industry, and made a brief, exuberant public statement: “we just had probably the most incredible meeting of our careers with the president, and the vice president, and the senior staff. . . . the respect that the president of the united states showed us and when he shows it to us he shows it to three million of our members across the united states was nothing short of incredible.” five years later, mcgarvey took the podium at a convention of the building trades unions and offered up half an hour of ardent love for the biden administration. i asked mcgarvey what happened. trump, mcgarvey said, “never did anything he said he was going to do. he never did infrastructure. his national labor relations board was laden with anti labor ideologues. he never did pensions. pretty much you name it. that first meeting was all the things he was going to do. and then we had four years of a knife fight in a phone booth.” the biden administration, by contrast, had “delivered every possible thing we could ever possibly ask for or imagine. there have been things they did for us that we wouldn’t have had the chutzpah to ask for.” partly because of the administration’s projects, the building trades unions have added fifty thousand new members in the past year their most significant growth since the fifties. in the view of the designers of bidenomics, this kind of shift would be just the beginning, because, once you put into place the idea of the government remaking the economy, policy and politics will begin to operate together in a continuous self reinforcing loop. but that’s far closer to being a hope than a certainty. where we are now, near the conclusion of the 2024 campaign, is profoundly strange. people love to complain that politics organizes itself around perception, not reality. here’s the reality: one party, the g.o.p., ditched its establishment, embraced a form of economic nationalism and populism, and surprised everybody by winning a presidential election. this wasn’t just a freak event; versions of the same thing happened around the world. in the united states, the trump administration, once it was in power, mostly pursued not what it ran on but an old fashioned republican program of tax cuts and deregulation. meanwhile, the democrats began competing for the voters trump had attracted, and, after this helped lead to a victory in 2020, they enacted an ambitious program aimed at the economic lives of working  and middle class americans. and still, outside a limited cadre of activists and policymakers, none of this is the dominant narrative of american politics. another complaint that people make about politicians is that they are all talk, no action. with biden, on these issues, it has been almost the opposite: lots of action, very little talk. as harris’s campaign wore on, she began speaking more about economic issues, especially during her visits to midwestern states, but her language has been quite different from that of other biden officials. if biden’s actual economic policies were the main topic of the campaign, perhaps the outcome of the election would determine their future. their absence from the election makes their fate more of a mystery. if harris wins, will she stay the course that biden has set? biden hasn’t been articulate enough lately to lay out his economic vision, and harris’s instinct is to present all her ideas, including economic proposals, in specific, tangible, personal terms. rohini kosoglu, a former policy director for harris, told me, “sometimes she tells people who work for her to imagine going to someone’s wedding and then being invited to their house and seeing the wedding album on a table. if you open it, what are you going to be looking for? a picture of yourself at the wedding. the american people want to know that we see them when we think through our policy.” harris’s earliest economic proposal, a ban on price gouging in supermarkets, meets the wedding album test you can see yourself in the policy but nobody thinks of it as a major economic reimagining. her economic background and biden’s bear little resemblance. he comes from a downwardly mobile family who had to relocate to the declining blue collar city of scranton, pennsylvania, and who lost everything after the second world war. her parents were upwardly mobile immigrants, and her home ground is the booming, innovation celebrating bay area. people who work with biden say that he has an instinctive mistrust of economists, especially those from élite universities. harris is the daughter of successful academics; her father is an economist who worked for years at an élite university. harris’s career has not centered on economic issues, as sanders’s and warren’s have, and she has strong ties to silicon valley, which is skeptical of biden’s economic policies, especially on antitrust, trade, and unions. (her brother in law tony west is a senior executive at uber, now on leave to work on the campaign.) economically oriented democratic policymakers have been obsessively parsing her every move for clues about how post neoliberal she will or won’t be. having become the nominee much later than biden did in 2020, she hasn’t had time to set a full policy agenda or to create a cadre of future officials for her administration. gene sperling has left the white house and joined her campaign full time but karen dunn, the lead lawyer for google in one of the administration’s lawsuits against the company, was on the small team that prepared her for her debate with trump. harris frequently says that she wants to create an “opportunity economy,” which isn’t language that post neoliberals would use they’d prefer “shared prosperity.” she has ratcheted down a biden proposal on capital gains and corporate taxes, to lower the rates, and she has been notably silent on the activities of regulatory agencies, such as the s.e.c. and the f.t.c., that are intensely unpopular with business. warren, in an interview on a boston radio station back in january, declined to say whether she thought biden should renominate harris as his running mate; it seems unlikely that harris would use warren as an informal personnel director the way that biden has. on the other hand, harris is obviously enthusiastic about care oriented policies like the child tax credit and paid family medical leave. she gives no hint of being a limited government person on principle. harris rarely talks about antitrust, or industrial policy, or trade, or the larger idea that the government should actively structure the market economy. because these are rather technical issues, she can promise to help the middle class without being very specific. in the debate, she was vague about her economic plans, but she took pains to mention that goldman sachs, the wharton school, and many prominent economists prefer her plans to trump’s. that wasn’t a very bidenesque message. in harris’s first major economic address as the democratic nominee, in north carolina in august, she attacked trump for levying tariffs that would “in effect” raise taxes on the middle class. this seemed to imply that she accepts the standard view of economists that tariffs are taxes and are a bad idea. but biden has imposed heavy tariffs on, for example, chinese electric vehicles. (as buttigieg put it in one of our conversations, “there is a legitimate national interest in insuring that these programs create american jobs, even if that interest is not free of charge.”) will harris keep these tariffs? will she retain lina khan, the bête noire of the democratic donor class, at the f.t.c.? did harris’s one anodyne line about unions in her first speech “you should be able to join a union if you choose” signal a loosening of biden’s intimate embrace of organized labor? if trump wins, will he dismantle bidenomics? maybe not, or not entirely. trillions of dollars’ worth of tax cuts that trump passed during his presidential term will expire at the end of next year. if trump gets another term, he will likely try to extend them, and that will constrict what the government can do. but biden’s major legislation is designed to be difficult to repeal. the money is legally committed, and there are quiet efforts under way to speed up the slow pace of project launches, and to make project cancellations legally difficult, in order to trump proof the biden program. because so much of the spending is going toward the kinds of projects that elected officials love, and is in republican held political territory, and is aimed at the voters trump claims to represent, it’s meant to be difficult for republicans to abandon. also, underneath the bluster, threats, and theatrics, trump is running on an economic program that would have been unimaginable coming from any previous republican nominee, including him. he is now officially devoted to preserving obamacare, which he spent his previous term trying to overturn. he has promised not to cut medicare, to increase social security by making its benefits tax free, and to eliminate taxes on tips and overtime pay. he wants to impose new tariffs that would be much larger than the ones he put in place when he was president. j. d. vance has proposed more than doubling the child tax credit, to five thousand dollars, a move that would cost trillions. the most vulnerable of the major biden bills is the inflation reduction act, but trump has stopped short of promising to repeal it. its largest provision is a subsidy for domestically produced electric vehicles, and one of trump’s richest and most vocal supporters is the leading manufacturer of them, elon musk. consistency has never been trump’s hallmark. a great deal depends not just on who is elected president but on whom that person puts in key economic positions, and on the results of the house and senate elections. a divided congress and a sense that the country isn’t immediately in crisis would not make for favorable weather for major changes. still, american politics feels very different from the way it did at the turn of the millennium we have been through the political version of climate change. in his 1996 state of the union address, clinton declared, “the era of big government is over.” inside the daily chaos of politics, there seems to be a new invisible foundation: the era of the era of big government being over is over. both parties have accepted the premise that the government has failed voters without a college degree, especially in the middle of the country, and both are actively wooing them partly because they determine the balance of power in american politics. (that’s why trump and harris chose the running mates they did.) both accept that the wrong to these voters was done through excessive faith in unfettered markets. that faith isn’t miraculously going to reappear as the controlling principle of american politics anytime soon, but that hardly leaves matters settled. the parties have radically different ideas different in substance, different in values, different in methods, maybe also different in sincerity about how to achieve what they present as the same goal. the question that will dominate the years to come is whose version of the new, enlarged role of government will prevail. ♦ searching for the cause of a catastrophic plane crash. the man who spent forty two years at the beverly hills hotel pool. gloria steinem’s life on the feminist frontier. where the amish go on vacation. how colonel sanders built his kentucky fried fortune. what does procrastination tell us about ourselves? fiction by patricia highsmith: “the trouble with mrs. blynn, the trouble with the world” sign up for our daily newsletter to receive the best stories from the new yorker. sections more © 2025 condé nast. all rights reserved. the new yorker may earn a portion of sales from products that are purchased through our site as part of our affiliate partnerships with retailers. the material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of condé nast. ad choices

thomas woodrow wilson (december 28, 1856   february 3, 1924) was the 28th president of the united states, serving from 1913 to 1921. he was the only democrat to serve as president during the progressive era when republicans dominated the presidency and legislative branches. as president, wilson changed the nation's economic policies and led the united states into world war i. he was the leading architect of the league of nations, and his stance on foreign policy came to be known as wilsonianism. born in staunton, virginia, wilson grew up in the southern united states during the american civil war and reconstruction era. after earning a ph.d. in history and political science from johns hopkins university, wilson taught at several colleges prior to being appointed president of princeton university, where he emerged as a prominent spokesman for progressivism in higher education. wilson served as the governor of new jersey from 1911 to 1913, during which he broke with party bosses and won the passage of several progressive reforms. in the 1912 election, wilson defeated incumbent republican william howard taft and third party nominee theodore roosevelt, becoming the first southerner to win the presidency since the 1848 election. during his first year as president, wilson authorized the widespread imposition of segregation inside the federal bureaucracy and his opposition to women's suffrage drew protests. his first term was largely devoted to pursuing passage of his progressive new freedom domestic agenda. his first major priority was the revenue act of 1913, which began the modern income tax, and the federal reserve act, which created the federal reserve system. at the outbreak of world war i in 1914, the u.s. declared neutrality as wilson tried to negotiate a peace between the allied and central powers. wilson was narrowly re elected in the 1916 election, defeating republican nominee charles evans hughes. in april 1917, wilson asked congress for a declaration of war against germany in response to its policy of unrestricted submarine warfare that sank american merchant ships. wilson concentrated on diplomacy, issuing the fourteen points that the allies and germany accepted as a basis for post war peace. he wanted the off year elections of 1918 to be a referendum endorsing his policies but instead the republicans took control of congress. after the allied victory in november 1918, wilson attended the paris peace conference. wilson successfully advocated for the establishment of a multinational organization, the league of nations, which was incorporated into the treaty of versailles that he signed; back home, he rejected a republican compromise that would have allowed the senate to ratify the versailles treaty and join the league. wilson had intended to seek a third term in office but had a stroke in october 1919 that left him incapacitated. his wife and his physician controlled wilson, and no significant decisions were made. meanwhile, his policies alienated german  and irish american democrats and the republicans won a landslide in the 1920 election. in february 1924, he died at age 67. into the 21st century, historians have criticized wilson for supporting racial segregation, although they continue to rank wilson as an above average president for his accomplishments in office. conservatives in particular have criticized him for expanding the federal government, while others have praised his weakening the power of large corporations and have credited him for establishing modern liberalism. thomas woodrow wilson was born to a family of scotch irish and scottish descent in staunton, virginia.[1] he was the third of four children and the first son of joseph ruggles wilson and jessie janet woodrow. wilson's paternal grandparents had immigrated to the united states from strabane, county tyrone, ireland, in 1807, and settled in steubenville, ohio. wilson's paternal grandfather james wilson published a pro tariff and anti slavery newspaper, the western herald and gazette.[2] wilson's maternal grandfather, the reverend thomas woodrow, moved from paisley, renfrewshire, scotland, to carlisle, cumbria, england, before migrating to chillicothe, ohio, in the late 1830s.[3] joseph met jessie while she was attending a girl's academy in steubenville, and the two married on june 7, 1849. soon after the wedding, joseph was ordained as a presbyterian pastor and assigned to serve in staunton.[4] his son woodrow was born in the manse, a house in the staunton first presbyterian church where joseph served. before he was two years old, the family moved to augusta, georgia.[5] wilson's earliest memory of his early youth was of playing in his yard and standing near the front gate of the augusta parsonage at the age of three, when he heard a passerby announce in disgust that abraham lincoln had been elected and that a war was coming.[5][6] wilson was one of only two u.s. presidents to be a citizen of the confederate states of america; the other was john tyler, who served as the nation's tenth president from 1841 to 1845. wilson's father identified with the southern united states and was a staunch supporter of the confederacy during the american civil war.[7] wilson's father was one of the founders of the presbyterian church in the confederate states of america, later renamed the presbyterian church in the united states (pcus), following its 1861 split from the northern presbyterians. he became minister of the first presbyterian church in augusta, and the family lived there until 1870.[8] from 1870 to 1874, wilson lived in columbia, south carolina, where his father was a theology professor at the columbia theological seminary.[9] in 1873, wilson became a communicant member of the columbia first presbyterian church; he remained a member throughout his life.[10] wilson attended davidson college in davidson, north carolina, in the 1873 74 school year but transferred as a freshman to the college of new jersey, which is now princeton university,[11] where he studied political philosophy and history, joined the phi kappa psi fraternity, and was active in the whig literary and debating society.[12] he was also elected secretary of the school's football association, president of the school's baseball association, and managing editor of the student newspaper.[13] in the hotly contested presidential election of 1876, wilson supported the democratic party and its nominee, samuel j. tilden.[14] after graduating from princeton in 1879,[15] wilson attended the university of virginia school of law in charlottesville, virginia, where he was involved in the virginia glee club and served as president of the jefferson literary and debating society.[16] poor health forced wilson to withdraw from law school, but he continued to study law on his own while living with his parents in wilmington, north carolina.[17] wilson was admitted to the georgia bar and made a brief attempt at establishing a law firm in atlanta in 1882.[18] though he found legal history and substantive jurisprudence interesting, he abhorred the day to day procedural aspects of the practice of law. after less than a year, wilson abandoned his legal practice to pursue the study of political science and history.[19] in late 1883, wilson enrolled at the recently established johns hopkins university in baltimore for doctoral studies in history, political science, german, and other fields.[20][21] wilson hoped to become a professor, writing that "a professorship was the only feasible place for me, the only place that would afford leisure for reading and for original work, the only strictly literary berth with an income attached."[22] wilson spent much of his time at johns hopkins university writing congressional government: a study in american politics, which grew out of a series of essays in which he examined the workings of the federal government.[23] in 1886, wilson was awarded a ph.d. in history and government from johns hopkins university,[24] making him the only u.s. president in the nation's history to possess a ph.d.[25] in early 1885, houghton mifflin published wilson's congressional government, which was well received, with one critic calling it "the best critical writing on the american constitution which has appeared since the 'federalist' papers."[26] in 1883, wilson met and fell in love with ellen louise axson.[27] he proposed marriage in september 1883; she accepted, but they agreed to postpone marriage while wilson attended graduate school.[28] axson graduated from art students league of new york, worked in portraiture, and received a medal for one of her works from the exposition universelle (1878) in paris.[29] she agreed to sacrifice further independent artistic pursuits in order to marry wilson in 1885.[30] ellen learned german so she could help translate german language political science publications relevant to woodrow's research.[31] in april 1886, the couple's first child, margaret, was born. their second child, jessie, was born in august 1887.[32] their third and final child, eleanor, was born in october 1889.[33] in 1913, jessie married francis bowes sayre sr., who later served as high commissioner to the philippines.[34] in 1914, their third child eleanor married william gibbs mcadoo, u.s. secretary of the treasury under woodrow wilson and later a u.s. senator from california.[35] from 1885 to 1888, wilson taught at bryn mawr college, a newly established women's college in bryn mawr, pennsylvania, outside philadelphia.[36] wilson taught ancient greek and roman history, american history, political science, and other subjects. at the time, there were only 42 students at the college, nearly all of them too passive for his taste. m. carey thomas, the dean, was a staunch feminist, and wilson clashed with her over his contract, resulting in a bitter dispute. in 1888, wilson left bryn mawr college and was not given a farewell.[37] wilson accepted a position at wesleyan university, an elite undergraduate college for men in middletown, connecticut. he taught graduate courses in political economy and western history, coached wesleyan's football team, and founded a debate team.[38][39] in february 1890, with the help of friends, wilson was appointed chair of jurisprudence and political economy at the college of new jersey (the name at the time of princeton university), at an annual salary of $3,000 (equivalent to $101,733 in 2023).[40] wilson quickly earned a reputation at princeton as a compelling speaker.[41] in 1896, francis landey patton announced that college of new jersey was being renamed princeton university; an ambitious program of expansion for the university accompanied the name change.[42] in the 1896 presidential election, wilson rejected democratic nominee william jennings bryan as too far to the left and instead supported the conservative "gold democrat" nominee, john m. palmer.[43] wilson's academic reputation continued to grow throughout the 1890s, and he turned down multiple positions elsewhere, including at johns hopkins university and the university of virginia.[44] at princeton university, wilson published several works of history and political science and was a regular contributor to political science quarterly. wilson's textbook, the state, was widely used in american college courses until the 1920s.[45] in the state, wilson wrote that governments could legitimately promote the general welfare "by forbidding child labor, by supervising the sanitary conditions of factories, by limiting the employment of women in occupations hurtful to their health, by instituting official tests of the purity or the quality of goods sold, by limiting the hours of labor in certain trades, [and] by a hundred and one limitations of the power of unscrupulous or heartless men to out do the scrupulous and merciful in trade or industry."[46] he also wrote that charity efforts should be removed from the private domain and "made the imperative legal duty of the whole", a position which, according to historian robert m. saunders, seemed to indicate that wilson "was laying the groundwork for the modern welfare state."[47] his third book, division and reunion (1893),[48] became a standard university textbook for teaching mid  and late 19th century u.s. history.[49] wilson had a considerable reputation as a historian and was an early member of the american academy of arts and letters.[50] he was also an elected member of the american philosophical society in 1897.[51] in june 1902, princeton trustees promoted professor wilson to president, replacing patton, whom the trustees perceived to be an inefficient administrator.[52] wilson aspired, as he told alumni, "to transform thoughtless boys performing tasks into thinking men." he tried to raise admission standards and to replace the "gentleman's c" with serious study. wilson instituted academic departments and a system of core requirements to emphasize the development of expertise. students were to meet in groups of six under the guidance of teaching assistants known as preceptors.[53][page needed] to fund these new programs, wilson undertook an ambitious and successful fundraising campaign, convincing alumni such as moses taylor pyne and philanthropists such as andrew carnegie to donate to the school.[54] wilson appointed the first jew and the first roman catholic to the faculty, and helped liberate the board from domination by conservative presbyterians.[55] he also worked to keep african americans out of the school, even as other ivy league schools were accepting small numbers of black people.[56][a] philosophy professor john grier hibben had known wilson since they were undergraduates together. they became close friends. indeed, when wilson became president of princeton in 1902 hibben was his chief advisor. in 1912 hibben stunned wilson by taking the lead against wilson's pet reform plan. they were permanently estranged, and wilson was decisively defeated. in 1912, two years after wilson left princeton, hibben became president of princeton.[58][59] wilson's efforts to reform princeton earned him national fame, but they also took a toll on his health.[60] in 1906, wilson awoke to find himself blind in the left eye, the result of a blood clot and hypertension. modern medical opinion surmises wilson had had a stroke; he later was diagnosed, as his father had been, with hardening of the arteries. he began to exhibit his father's traits of impatience and intolerance, which would on occasion lead to errors of judgment.[61] in 1906, while vacationing in bermuda, wilson met mary hulbert peck, a socialite. according to biographer august heckscher ii, wilson's friendship with peck became the topic of frank discussion between wilson and his wife, although wilson historians have not conclusively established there was an affair.[62] wilson also sent very personal letters to her,[63] which were later used against him by his adversaries.[64] having reorganized princeton university's curriculum and established the preceptorial system, wilson next attempted to curtail the influence of social elites at princeton by abolishing the upper class eating clubs.[65] he proposed moving the students into colleges, also known as quadrangles, but wilson's plan was met with fierce opposition from princeton alumni.[66] in october 1907, due to the intensity of alumni opposition, princeton's board of trustees instructed wilson to withdraw his plan for relocating student dormitories.[67] late in his tenure, wilson had a confrontation with andrew fleming west, dean of princeton university's graduate school and his ally, ex president grover cleveland, who was a princeton trustee. wilson wanted to integrate a proposed graduate school building into the core of the campus, but west preferred a more distant campus site. in 1909, princeton's board accepted a gift made to the graduate school campaign subject to the graduate school being located off campus.[68] wilson became disenchanted with his job as princeton university president due to the resistance to his recommendations, and he began considering a run for political office. prior to the 1908 democratic national convention, wilson dropped hints to some influential players in the democratic party of his interest in the ticket. while he had no real expectations of being placed on it, wilson left instructions that he should not be offered the vice presidential nomination. party regulars considered his ideas politically and geographically detached and fanciful, but the seeds of interest had been sown.[69] in 1956, mcgeorge bundy described wilson's contribution to princeton: "wilson was right in his conviction that princeton must be more than a wonderfully pleasant and decent home for nice young men; it has been more ever since his time."[70] by january 1910, wilson had drawn the attention of james smith jr. and george brinton mcclellan harvey, two leaders of new jersey's democratic party, as a potential candidate in the upcoming gubernatorial election.[71] having lost the last five gubernatorial elections, new jersey democratic leaders decided to throw their support behind wilson, an untested and unconventional candidate. party leaders believed that wilson's academic reputation made him the ideal spokesman against trusts and corruption, but they also hoped his inexperience in governing would make him easy to influence.[72] wilson agreed to accept the nomination if "it came to me unsought, unanimously, and without pledges to anybody about anything."[73] at the state party convention, the bosses marshaled their forces and won the nomination for wilson. on october 20, wilson submitted his letter of resignation to princeton university.[74] wilson's campaign focused on his promise to be independent of party bosses. he quickly shed his professorial style for more emboldened speechmaking and presented himself as a full fledged progressive.[75] though republican william howard taft had carried new jersey in the 1908 presidential election by more than 82,000 votes, wilson soundly defeated republican gubernatorial nominee vivian m. lewis by a margin of more than 65,000 votes.[76] democrats also took control of the general assembly in the 1910 elections, though the state senate remained in republican hands.[77] after winning the election, wilson appointed joseph patrick tumulty as his private secretary, a position he held throughout wilson's political career.[77] wilson began formulating his reformist agenda, intending to ignore the demands of his party machinery. smith asked wilson to endorse his bid for the u.s. senate, but wilson refused and instead endorsed smith's opponent james edgar martine, who had won the democratic primary. martine's victory in the senate election helped wilson position himself as an independent force in the new jersey democratic party.[78] by the time wilson took office, new jersey had gained a reputation for public corruption; the state was known as the "mother of trusts" because it allowed companies like standard oil to escape the antitrust laws of other states.[79] wilson and his allies quickly won passage of the geran bill, which undercut the power of the political bosses by requiring primaries for all elective offices and party officials. a corrupt practices law and a workmen's compensation statute that wilson supported won passage shortly thereafter.[80] for his success in passing these laws during the first months of his gubernatorial term, wilson won national and bipartisan recognition as a reformer and a leader of the progressive movement.[81] republicans took control of the state assembly in early 1912, and wilson spent much of the rest of his tenure vetoing bills.[82] he nonetheless won passage of various reform laws [83][84] including ones that restricted labor by women and children and increased standards for factory working conditions.[85] a new state board of education was set up "with the power to conduct inspections and enforce standards, regulate districts' borrowing authority, and require special classes for students with handicaps."[86] before leaving office wilson oversaw the establishment of free dental clinics and enacted a "comprehensive and scientific" poor law. trained nursing was standardized, while contract labor in all reformatories and prisons was abolished and an indeterminate sentence act passed.[87] a law was introduced that compelled all railroad companies "to pay their employees twice monthly", while regulation of the working hours, health, safety, employment, and age of people employed in mercantile establishments was carried out.[88] shortly before leaving office, wilson signed a series of antitrust laws known as the "seven sisters", as well as another law that removed the power to select juries from local sheriffs.[89] wilson became a prominent 1912 presidential contender immediately upon his election as governor of new jersey in 1910, and his clashes with state party bosses enhanced his reputation with the rising progressive movement.[90] in addition to progressives, wilson enjoyed the support of princeton alumni such as cyrus mccormick and southerners such as walter hines page, who believed that wilson's status as a transplanted southerner gave him broad appeal.[91] though wilson's shift to the left won the admiration of many, it also created enemies such as george brinton mcclellan harvey, a former wilson supporter who had close ties to wall street.[92] in july 1911, wilson brought william gibbs mcadoo and "colonel" edward m. house in to manage the campaign.[93] prior to the 1912 democratic national convention, wilson made a special effort to win the approval of three time democratic presidential nominee william jennings bryan, whose followers had largely dominated the democratic party since the 1896 presidential election.[94] speaker of the house champ clark of missouri was viewed by many as the front runner for the nomination, while house majority leader oscar underwood of alabama also loomed as a challenger. clark found support among the bryan wing of the party, while underwood appealed to the conservative bourbon democrats, especially in the south.[95] in the 1912 democratic party presidential primaries, clark won several of the early contests, but wilson finished strong with victories in texas, the northeast, and the midwest.[96] on the first presidential ballot of the democratic convention, clark won a plurality of delegates; his support continued to grow after the new york tammany hall machine swung behind him on the tenth ballot.[97] tammany's support backfired for clark, as bryan announced that he would not support any candidate that had tammany's backing, and clark began losing delegates on subsequent ballots.[98] wilson gained the support of roger charles sullivan and thomas taggart by promising the vice presidency to governor thomas r. marshall of indiana.[99] and several southern delegations shifted their support from underwood to wilson. wilson finally won two thirds of the vote on the convention's 46th ballot, and marshall became wilson's running mate.[100] in the 1912 general election, wilson faced two major opponents: one term republican incumbent william howard taft, and former republican president theodore roosevelt, who ran a third party campaign as the "bull moose" party nominee. the fourth candidate was eugene v. debs of the socialist party. roosevelt had broken with his former party at the 1912 republican national convention after taft narrowly won re nomination, and the split in the republican party made democrats hopeful that they could win the presidency for the first time since the 1892 presidential election.[101] roosevelt emerged as wilson's main challenger, and wilson and roosevelt largely campaigned against each other despite sharing similarly progressive platforms that called for an interventionist central government.[102] wilson directed campaign finance chairman henry morgenthau not to accept contributions from corporations and to prioritize smaller donations from the widest possible quarters of the public.[103] during the election campaign, wilson asserted that it was the task of government "to make those adjustments of life which will put every man in a position to claim his normal rights as a living, human being."[104] with the help of legal scholar louis brandeis, he developed his new freedom platform, focusing especially on breaking up trusts and lowering tariff rates.[105] brandeis and wilson rejected roosevelt's proposal to establish a powerful bureaucracy charged with regulating large corporations, instead favoring the break up of large corporations in order to create a level economic playing field.[106] wilson engaged in a spirited campaign, criss crossing the country to deliver numerous speeches.[107] ultimately, he took 42 percent of the popular vote and 435 of the 531 electoral votes.[108] roosevelt won most of the remaining electoral votes and 27.4 percent of the popular vote, one of the strongest third party performances in u.s. history. taft won 23.2 percent of the popular vote but just 8 electoral votes, while debs won 6 percent of the popular vote. in the concurrent congressional elections, democrats retained control of the house and won a majority in the senate.[109] wilson's victory made him the first southerner to win a presidential election since the civil war, the first democratic president since grover cleveland left office in 1897,[110] and the first and only president to hold a ph.d.[111] after the election, wilson chose william jennings bryan as secretary of state, and bryan offered advice on the remaining members of wilson's cabinet.[112] william gibbs mcadoo, a prominent wilson supporter who married wilson's daughter in 1914, became secretary of the treasury, and james clark mcreynolds, who had successfully prosecuted several prominent antitrust cases, was chosen as attorney general.[113] publisher josephus daniels, a party loyalist and prominent white supremacist from north carolina,[114] was chosen to be secretary of the navy, while young new york attorney franklin d. roosevelt became assistant secretary of the navy.[115] wilson's chief of staff ("secretary") was joseph patrick tumulty, who acted as a political buffer and intermediary with the press.[116] the most important foreign policy adviser and confidant was "colonel" edward m. house; berg writes that, "in access and influence, [house] outranked everybody in wilson's cabinet."[117] wilson introduced a comprehensive program of domestic legislation at the outset of his administration, something no president had ever done before.[120] he announced four major domestic priorities: the conservation of natural resources, banking reform, tariff reduction, and better access to raw materials for farmers by breaking up western mining trusts.[121] wilson introduced these proposals in april 1913 in a speech delivered to a joint session of congress, becoming the first president since john adams to address congress in person.[122] wilson's first two years in office largely focused on his domestic agenda. with trouble with mexico and the outbreak of world war i in 1914, foreign affairs increasingly dominated his presidency.[123] democrats had long seen high tariff rates as equivalent to unfair taxes on consumers, and tariff reduction was their first priority.[124] he argued that the system of high tariffs "cuts us off from our proper part in the commerce of the world, violates the just principles of taxation, and makes the government a facile instrument in the hands of private interests."[125] by late may 1913, house majority leader oscar underwood had passed a bill in the house that cut the average tariff rate by 10 percent and imposed a tax on personal income above $4,000.[126] underwood's bill represented the largest downward revision of the tariff since the civil war. it aggressively cut rates for raw materials, goods deemed to be "necessities", and products produced domestically by trusts, but it retained higher tariff rates for luxury goods.[127] nevertheless, the passage of the tariff bill in the senate was a challenge. some southern and western democrats wanted the continued protection of their wool and sugar industries, and democrats had a narrower majority in the upper house.[124] wilson met extensively with democratic senators and appealed directly to the people through the press. after weeks of hearings and debate, wilson and secretary of state bryan managed to unite senate democrats behind the bill.[126] the senate voted 44 to 37 in favor of the bill, with only one democrat voting against it and only one republican voting for it. wilson signed the revenue act of 1913 (called the underwood tariff) into law on october 3, 1913.[126] the revenue act of 1913 reduced tariffs and replaced the lost revenue with a federal income tax of one percent on incomes above $3,000, affecting the richest three percent of the population.[128] the policies of the wilson administration had a durable impact on the composition of government revenue, which now primarily came from taxation rather than tariffs.[129] wilson did not wait to complete the revenue act of 1913 before proceeding to the next item on his agenda banking. by the time wilson took office, countries like britain and germany had established government run central banks, but the united states had not had a central bank since the bank war of the 1830s.[130] in the aftermath of the nationwide financial crisis in 1907, there was general agreement to create some sort of central banking system to provide a more elastic currency and to coordinate responses to financial panics. wilson sought a middle ground between progressives such as bryan and conservative republicans like nelson aldrich, who, as chairman of the national monetary commission, had put forward a plan for a central bank that would give private financial interests a large degree of control over the monetary system.[131] wilson declared that the banking system must be "public not private, [and] must be vested in the government itself so that the banks must be the instruments, not the masters, of business."[132] democrats crafted a compromise plan in which private banks would control twelve regional federal reserve banks, but a controlling interest in the system was placed in a central board filled with presidential appointees. wilson convinced democrats on the left that the new plan met their demands.[133] finally the senate voted 54 34 to approve the federal reserve act.[134] the new system began operations in 1915, and it played a key role in financing the allied and american war efforts in world war i.[135] having passed major legislation lowering the tariff and reforming the banking structure, wilson next sought antitrust legislation to enhance the sherman antitrust act of 1890.[136] the sherman antitrust act barred any "contract, combination ... or conspiracy, in restraint of trade", but had proved ineffective in preventing the rise of large business combinations known as trusts.[137] an elite group of businessmen dominated the boards of major banks and railroads, and they used their power to prevent competition by new companies.[138] with wilson's support, congressman henry clayton, jr. introduced a bill that would ban several anti competitive practices such as discriminatory pricing, tying, exclusive dealing, and interlocking directorates.[139] as the difficulty of banning all anti competitive practices via legislation became clear, wilson came to back legislation that would create a new agency, the federal trade commission (ftc), to investigate antitrust violations and enforce antitrust laws independently of the justice department. with bipartisan support, congress passed the federal trade commission act of 1914, which incorporated wilson's ideas regarding the ftc.[140] one month after signing the federal trade commission act of 1914, wilson signed the clayton antitrust act of 1914, which built on the sherman act by defining and banning several anti competitive practices.[141] wilson thought a child labor law would probably be unconstitutional but reversed himself in 1916 with a close election approaching. in 1916, after intense campaigns by the national child labor committee (nclc) and the national consumers league, the congress passed the keating owen act, making it illegal to ship goods in interstate commerce if they were made in factories employing children under specified ages. southern democrats were opposed but did not filibuster. wilson endorsed the bill at the last minute under pressure from party leaders who stressed how popular the idea was, especially among the emerging class of women voters. he told democratic congressmen they needed to pass this law and also a workman's compensation law to satisfy the national progressive movement and to win the 1916 election against a reunited gop. it was the first federal child labor law. however, the u.s. supreme court struck down the law in hammer v. dagenhart (1918). congress then passed a law taxing businesses that used child labor, but that was struck down by the supreme court in bailey v. drexel furniture (1923). child labor was finally ended in the 1930s.[142] he approved the goal of upgrading the harsh working conditions for merchant sailors and signed lafollette's seamen's act of 1915.[143] wilson commissioned members of the fraternal order of eagles were to study old age pension laws overseas to determine whether similar policy could be adopted in the united states.[144] pensions for civil servants employed by the federal government were introduced during wilson's final year in office.[145] wilson called on the labor department to mediate conflicts between labor and management. in 1914, wilson dispatched soldiers to help bring an end to the colorado coalfield war, one of the deadliest labor disputes in american history.[146] in 1916 he pushed congress to enact the eight hour work day for railroad workers, which ended a major strike. it was "the boldest intervention in labor relations that any president had yet attempted."[147] wilson disliked the excessive government involvement in the federal farm loan act, which created twelve regional banks empowered to provide low interest loans to farmers. nevertheless, he needed the farm vote to survive the upcoming 1916 election, so he signed it.[148] wilson embraced the long standing democratic policy against owning colonies, and he worked for the gradual autonomy and ultimate independence of the philippines, which had been acquired in 1898. continuing the policy of his predecessors, wilson increased self governance on the islands by granting filipinos greater control over the philippine legislature. the jones act of 1916 committed the united states to the eventual independence of the philippines, and granted filipinos further autonomy with the establishment of a filipino senate and house of representatives, replacing the american run philippine commission and filipino run philippine assembly, respectively.[149] in 1916, wilson purchased by treaty the danish west indies, renamed as the united states virgin islands.[150] immigration from europe declined significantly once world war i began and wilson paid little attention to the issue during his presidency.[151] however, he looked favorably upon the "new immigrants" from southern and eastern europe, and twice vetoed laws passed by congress intended to restrict their entry, though the later veto was overridden.[152] wilson nominated three men to the united states supreme court, all of whom were confirmed by the u.s. senate. in 1914, wilson nominated sitting attorney general james clark mcreynolds. despite his credentials as an ardent trust buster,[153] mcreynolds became a staple of the court's conservative bloc until his retirement in 1941.[154] according to berg, wilson considered appointing mcreynolds one of his biggest mistakes in office.[155] in 1916, wilson nominated louis brandeis to the court, setting off a major debate in the senate over brandeis's progressive ideology and his religion; brandeis was the first jewish nominee to the supreme court. ultimately, wilson was able to convince senate democrats to vote to confirm brandeis, who served on the court until 1939. in contrast to mcreynolds, brandeis became one of the court's leading progressive voices.[156] when a second vacancy arose in 1916, wilson appointed progressive lawyer john hessin clarke. clarke was confirmed by the senate and served on the court until retiring in 1922.[157] wilson sought to move away from the foreign policy of his predecessors, which he viewed as imperialistic, and he rejected taft's dollar diplomacy.[158] nonetheless, he frequently intervened in latin america, saying in 1913, "i am going to teach the south american republics to elect good men."[159] the 1914 bryan chamorro treaty converted nicaragua into a de facto protectorate, and the u.s. stationed soldiers there throughout wilson's presidency. the wilson administration sent troops to occupy the dominican republic and intervene in haiti, and wilson also authorized military interventions in cuba, panama, and honduras.[160] wilson took office during the mexican revolution, which had begun in 1911 after liberals overthrew the military dictatorship of porfirio díaz. shortly before wilson took office, conservatives retook power through a coup led by victoriano huerta.[161] wilson rejected the legitimacy of huerta's "government of butchers" and demanded mexico hold democratic elections.[162] after huerta arrested u.s. navy personnel who had accidentally landed in a restricted zone near the northern port town of tampico, wilson dispatched the navy to occupy the mexican city of veracruz. a strong backlash against the american intervention among mexicans of all political affiliations convinced wilson to abandon his plans to expand the u.s. military intervention, but the intervention nonetheless helped convince huerta to flee from the country.[163] a group led by venustiano carranza established control over a significant proportion of mexico, and wilson recognized carranza's government in october 1915.[164] carranza continued to face various opponents within mexico, including pancho villa, whom wilson had earlier described as "a sort of robin hood."[164] in early 1916, pancho villa raided the village of columbus, new mexico, killing or wounding dozens of americans and causing an enormous nationwide american demand for his punishment. wilson ordered general john j. pershing and 4,000 troops across the border to capture villa. by april, pershing's forces had broken up and dispersed villa's bands, but villa remained on the loose and pershing continued his pursuit deep into mexico. carranza then pivoted against the americans and accused them of a punitive invasion, leading to several incidents that nearly led to war. tensions subsided after mexico agreed to release several american prisoners, and bilateral negotiations began under the auspices of the mexican american joint high commission. eager to withdraw from mexico due to tensions in europe, wilson ordered pershing to withdraw, and the last american soldiers left in february 1917.[165] world war i broke out in july 1914, pitting the central powers (germany, austria hungary, the ottoman empire, and later bulgaria) against the allied powers (britain, france, russia, serbia, and several other countries). the war fell into a long stalemate with very high casualties on the western front in france. both sides rejected offers by wilson and the house to mediate an end to the conflict.[166] from 1914 until early 1917, wilson's primary foreign policy objectives were to keep the united states out of the war in europe and to broker a peace agreement.[167] he insisted that all u.s. government actions be neutral, stating that americans "must be impartial in thought as well as in action, must put a curb upon our sentiments as well as upon every transaction that might be construed as a preference of one party to the struggle before another."[168] as a neutral power, the u.s. insisted on its right to trade with both sides. however the powerful british royal navy imposed a blockade of germany. to appease washington, london agreed to continue purchasing certain major american commodities such as cotton at pre war prices, and in the event an american merchant vessel was caught with contraband, the royal navy was under orders to buy the entire cargo and release the vessel.[169] wilson passively accepted this situation.[170] in response to the british blockade, germany launched a submarine campaign against merchant vessels in the seas surrounding the british isles.[171] in early 1915, the germans sank three american ships; wilson took the view, based on some reasonable evidence, that these incidents were accidental, and a settlement of claims could be postponed until the end of the war.[172] in may 1915, a german submarine torpedoed the british ocean liner rms lusitania, killing 1,198 passengers, including 128 american citizens.[173] wilson publicly responded by saying, "there is such a thing as a man being too proud to fight. there is such a thing as a nation being so right that it does not need to convince others by force that it is right".[174] wilson demanded that the german government "take immediate steps to prevent the recurrence" of incidents like the sinking of the lusitania. in response, bryan, who believed that wilson had placed the defense of american trade rights above neutrality, resigned from the cabinet.[175] in march 1916, the ss sussex, an unarmed ferry under the french flag, was torpedoed in the english channel and four americans were counted among the dead. wilson extracted from germany a pledge to constrain submarine warfare to the rules of cruiser warfare, which represented a major diplomatic concession.[176] interventionists, led by theodore roosevelt, wanted war with germany and attacked wilson's refusal to build up the army in anticipation of war.[177] after the sinking of the lusitania and the resignation of bryan, wilson publicly committed himself to what became known as the "preparedness movement", and began to build up the army and the navy.[178] in june 1916, congress passed the national defense act of 1916, which established the reserve officers' training corps and expanded the national guard.[179] later in the year, congress passed the naval act of 1916, which provided for a major expansion of the navy.[180] the health of ellen wilson declined after her husband entered office, and doctors diagnosed her with bright's disease in july 1914.[181] she died on august 6, 1914.[182] president wilson was deeply affected by the loss, falling into depression.[183] on march 18, 1915, wilson met edith bolling galt at a white house tea.[184] galt was a widow and jeweler who was also from the south. after several meetings, wilson fell in love with her, and he proposed marriage to her in may 1915. galt initially rebuffed him, but wilson was undeterred and continued the courtship.[185] edith gradually warmed to the relationship, and they became engaged in september 1915.[186] they were married on december 18, 1915. woodrow wilson joined john tyler and grover cleveland as the only presidents to marry while in office.[187] wilson was renominated at the 1916 democratic national convention without opposition.[188] in an effort to win progressive voters, wilson called for legislation providing for an eight hour day and six day workweek, health and safety measures, the prohibition of child labor, and safeguards for female workers. he also favored a minimum wage for all work performed by and for the federal government.[189] the democrats also campaigned on the slogan "he kept us out of war", and warned that a republican victory would mean war with germany.[190] hoping to reunify the progressive and conservative wings of the party, the 1916 republican national convention nominated supreme court justice charles evans hughes for president; as a jurist, he had been completely out of politics by 1912. though republicans attacked wilson's foreign policy on various grounds, domestic affairs generally dominated the campaign. republicans campaigned against wilson's new freedom policies, especially tariff reduction, the new income taxes, and the adamson act, which they derided as "class legislation".[191] the election was close and the outcome was in doubt with hughes ahead in the east, and wilson in the south and west. the decision came down to california. on november 10, california certified that wilson had won the state by 3,806 votes, giving him a majority of the electoral vote. nationally, wilson won 277 electoral votes and 49.2 percent of the popular vote, while hughes won 254 electoral votes and 46.1 percent of the popular vote.[192] wilson was able to win by picking up many votes that had gone to roosevelt or debs in 1912.[193] he swept the solid south and won all but one western state, while hughes won most of the northeastern and midwestern states.[194] wilson's re election made him the first democrat since andrew jackson (in 1832) to win two consecutive terms. the democrats kept control of congress.[195] in january 1917, the german empire initiated a new policy of unrestricted submarine warfare against ships in the seas around the british isles. german leaders knew that the policy would likely provoke u.s. entrance into the war, but they hoped to defeat the allied powers before the u.s. could fully mobilize.[196] in late february, the u.s. public learned of the zimmermann telegram, a secret diplomatic communication in which germany sought to convince mexico to join it in a war against the united states.[197] after a series of attacks on american ships, wilson held a cabinet meeting on march 20; all cabinet members agreed that the time had come for the united states to enter the war.[198] the cabinet members believed that germany was engaged in a commercial war against the united states, and that the united states had to respond with a formal declaration of war.[199] on april 2, 1917, wilson addressed the u.s. congress, asking for a declaration of war against germany, saying that germany was engaged in "nothing less than war against the government and people of the united states." he requested a military draft to raise the army, increased taxes to pay for military expenses, loans to allied governments, and increased industrial and agricultural production.[200] he stated, "we have no selfish ends to serve. we desire no conquest, no dominion... no material compensation for the sacrifices we shall freely make. we are but one of the champions of the rights of mankind. we shall be satisfied when those rights have been made as secure as the faith and freedom of the nations can make them."[201] the declaration of war by the united states against germany passed congress with strong bipartisan majorities on april 6, 1917.[202] the united states later declared war against austria hungary in december 1917.[203] with the u.s. entrance into the war, wilson and secretary of war newton d. baker launched an expansion of the army, with the goal of creating a 300,000 member regular army, a 440,000 member national guard, and a 500,000 member conscripted force known as the "national army." despite some resistance to conscription and to the commitment of american soldiers abroad, large majorities of both houses of congress voted to impose conscription with the selective service act of 1917. seeking to avoid the draft riots of the civil war, the bill established local draft boards that were charged with determining who should be drafted. by the end of the war, nearly 3 million men had been drafted.[204] the navy also saw tremendous expansion, and allied shipping losses dropped substantially due to u.s. contributions and a new emphasis on the convoy system.[205] wilson sought the establishment of "an organized common peace" that would help prevent future conflicts. in this goal, he was opposed not just by the central powers, but also the other allied powers, who, to various degrees, sought to win concessions and to impose a punitive peace agreement on the central powers.[206] on january 8, 1918, wilson delivered a speech, known as the fourteen points, wherein he articulated his administration's long term war objectives. wilson called for the establishment of an association of nations to guarantee the independence and territorial integrity of all nations a league of nations.[207] other points included the evacuation of occupied territory, the establishment of an independent poland, and self determination for the peoples of austria hungary and the ottoman empire.[208] under the command of general pershing, the american expeditionary forces first arrived in france in mid 1917.[209] wilson and pershing rejected the british and french proposal that american soldiers integrate into existing allied units, giving the united states more freedom of action but requiring for the creation of new organizations and supply chains.[210] russia exited the war after signing the treaty of brest litovsk in march 1918, allowing germany to shift soldiers from the eastern front of the war.[211] hoping to break allied lines before american soldiers could arrive in full force, the germans launched the spring offensive on the western front. both sides suffered hundreds of thousands of casualties as the germans forced back the british and french, but germany was unable to capture the french capital of paris.[212] there were only 175,000 american soldiers in europe at the end of 1917, but by mid 1918 10,000 americans were arriving in europe per day.[211] with american forces having joined in the fight, the allies defeated germany in the battle of belleau wood and the battle of château thierry. beginning in august, the allies launched the hundred days offensive, pushing back the exhausted german army.[213] meanwhile, french and british leaders convinced wilson to send a few thousand american soldiers to join the allied intervention in russia, which was in the midst of a civil war between the communist bolsheviks and the white movement.[214] by the end of september 1918, the german leadership no longer believed it could win the war, and kaiser wilhelm ii appointed a new government led by prince maximilian of baden.[215] baden immediately sought an armistice with wilson, with the fourteen points to serve as the basis of the german surrender.[216] house procured agreement to the armistice from france and britain, but only after threatening to conclude a unilateral armistice without them.[217] germany and the allied powers brought an end to the fighting with the signing of the armistice of 11 november 1918.[218] austria hungary had signed the armistice of villa giusti eight days earlier, while the ottoman empire had signed the armistice of mudros in october. by the end of the war, 116,000 american servicemen had died, and another 200,000 had been wounded.[219] with the american entrance into world war i in april 1917, wilson became a war time president. the war industries board, headed by bernard baruch, was established to set u.s. war manufacturing policies and goals. future president herbert hoover led the food administration; the federal fuel administration, run by harry augustus garfield, introduced daylight saving time and rationed fuel supplies; william mcadoo was in charge of war bond efforts; vance c. mccormick headed the war trade board. these men, known collectively as the "war cabinet", met weekly with wilson.[220] because he was heavily focused on foreign policy during world war i, wilson delegated a large degree of authority over the home front to his subordinates.[221] in the midst of the war, the federal budget soared from $1 billion in fiscal year 1916 to $19 billion in fiscal year 1919.[222] in addition to spending on its own military build up, wall street in 1914 1916 and the treasury in 1917 1918 provided large loans to the allied countries, thus financing the war effort of britain and france.[223] seeking to avoid the high levels of inflation that had accompanied the heavy borrowing of the american civil war, the wilson administration raised taxes during the war.[224] the war revenue act of 1917 and the revenue act of 1918 raised the top tax rate to 77 percent, greatly increased the number of americans paying the income tax, and levied an excess profits tax on businesses and individuals.[225] despite these tax acts, the united states was forced to borrow heavily to finance the war effort. treasury secretary mcadoo authorized the issuing of low interest war bonds and, to attract investors, made interest on the bonds tax free. the bonds proved so popular among investors that many borrowed money in order to buy more bonds. the purchase of bonds, along with other war time pressures, resulted in rising inflation, though this inflation was partly matched by rising wages and profits.[222] to shape public opinion, wilson in 1917 established the first modern propaganda office, the committee on public information (cpi), headed by george creel.[226] wilson called on voters in the 1918 off year elections to elect democrats as an endorsement of his policies. however the republicans won over alienated german americans and took control.[227] wilson refused to coordinate or compromise with the new leaders of house and senate senator henry cabot lodge became his nemesis.[228] in november 1919, wilson's attorney general, a. mitchell palmer, began to target anarchists, industrial workers of the world members, and other antiwar groups in what became known as the palmer raids. thousands were arrested for incitement to violence, espionage, or sedition. wilson by that point was incapacitated and was not told what was happening.[229] after the signing of the armistice, wilson traveled to europe to lead the american delegation to the paris peace conference, thereby becoming the first incumbent president to travel to europe.[230] although republicans now controlled congress, wilson shut them out. senate republicans and even some senate democrats complained about their lack of representation in the delegation. it consisted of wilson, colonel house,[b] secretary of state robert lansing, general tasker h. bliss, and diplomat henry white, who was the only republican, and he was not an active partisan.[232] save for a two week return to the united states, wilson remained in europe for six months, where he focused on reaching a peace treaty to formally end the war. wilson, british prime minister david lloyd george, french prime minister georges clemenceau, and italian prime minister vittorio emanuele orlando made up the "big four", the allied leaders with the most influence at the paris peace conference.[233] wilson had an illness during the conference, and some experts believe the spanish flu was the cause.[234] unlike other allied leaders, wilson did not seek territorial gains or material concessions from the central powers. his chief goal was the establishment of the league of nations, which he saw as the "keystone of the whole programme".[235] wilson himself presided over the committee that drafted the covenant of the league of nations.[236] the covenant bound members to respect freedom of religion, treat racial minorities fairly, and peacefully settle disputes through organizations like the permanent court of international justice. article x of the league covenant required all nations to defend league members against external aggression.[237] japan proposed that the conference endorse a racial equality proposal; wilson was indifferent to the issue, but acceded to strong opposition from britain's dominions such as australia and south africa.[238] the covenant of the league of nations was incorporated into the conference's treaty of versailles, which ended the war with germany, and into other peace treaties.[239] aside from the establishment the league of nations and solidifying a lasting world peace, wilson's other main goal at the paris peace conference was that self determination be the primary basis used for drawing new international borders.[240] however, in pursuit of his league of nations, wilson conceded several points to the other powers present at the conference. germany was required to permanently cede territory, pay war reparations, relinquish all of her overseas colonies and dependencies and submit to military occupation in the rhineland. additionally, a clause in the treaty specifically named germany as responsible for the war. wilson agreed to allowing the allied european powers and japan to essentially expand their empires by establishing de facto colonies in the middle east, africa, and asia out the former german and ottoman empires; these territorial awards to the victorious countries were thinly disguised as "league of nations mandates". the japanese acquisition of german interests in the shandong peninsula of china proved especially unpopular, as it undercut wilson's promise of self government. wilson's hopes for achieving self determination saw some success when the conference recognized multiple new and independent states created in eastern europe, including albania, czechoslovakia, poland, and yugoslavia.[240][241][242] the conference finished negotiations in may 1919, at which point the new leaders of republican germany viewed the treaty for the first time. some german leaders favored repudiating the peace due to the harshness of the terms, though ultimately germany signed the treaty on june 28, 1919.[243] wilson was unable to convince the other allied powers, france in particular, to temper the harshness of the settlement being leveled at the defeated central powers, especially germany.[citation needed] for his efforts towards creating a lasting world peace, wilson was awarded the 1919 nobel peace prize.[244] ratification of the treaty of versailles required the support of two thirds of the senate, a difficult proposition given that republicans held a narrow majority in the senate after the 1918 u.s. elections.[246] republicans were outraged by wilson's failure to discuss the war or its aftermath with them, and an intensely partisan battle developed in the senate. republican senator henry cabot lodge supported a version of the treaty that required wilson to compromise. wilson refused.[246] some republicans, including former president taft and former secretary of state elihu root, favored ratification of the treaty with some modifications, and their public support gave wilson some chance of winning the treaty's ratification.[246] the debate over the treaty centered around a debate over the american role in the world community in the post war era, and senators fell into three main groups. the first group, consisting of most democrats, favored the treaty.[246] fourteen senators, mostly republicans, were known as the "irreconcilables" as they completely opposed u.s. entrance into the league of nations. some of these irreconcilables opposed the treaty for its failure to emphasize decolonization and disarmament, while others feared surrendering american freedom of action to an international organization.[247] the remaining group of senators, known as "reservationists", accepted the idea of the league but sought varying degrees of change to ensure the protection of american sovereignty and the right of congress to decide on going to war.[247] article x of the league covenant, which sought to create a system of collective security by requiring league members to protect one another against external aggression, seemed to force the u.s. to join in any war the league decided upon.[248] wilson consistently refused to compromise, partly due to concerns about having to re open negotiations with the other treaty signatories.[249] when lodge was on the verge of building a two thirds majority to ratify the treaty with ten reservations, wilson forced his supporters to vote nay on march 19, 1920, thereby closing the issue. cooper says that "nearly every league advocate" went along with lodge, but their efforts "failed solely because wilson admittedly rejected all reservations proposed in the senate."[250] thomas a. bailey calls wilson's action "the supreme act of infanticide".[251] he adds: "the treaty was slain in the house of its friends rather than in the house of its enemies. in the final analysis it was not the two thirds rule, or the 'irreconcilables,' or lodge, or the 'strong' and 'mild' reservationists, but wilson and his docile following who delivered the fatal stab."[252] to bolster public support for ratification, wilson barnstormed the western states, but he returned to the white house in late september due to health problems.[253] on october 2, 1919, wilson suffered a serious stroke, leaving him paralyzed on his left side, and with only partial vision in the right eye.[254][255] he was confined to bed for weeks and sequestered from everyone except his wife and his physician, cary grayson.[256] bert e. park, a neurosurgeon who examined wilson's medical records after his death, writes that wilson's illness affected his personality in various ways, making him prone to "disorders of emotion, impaired impulse control, and defective judgment."[257] anxious to help the president recover, tumulty, grayson, and the first lady determined what documents the president read and who was allowed to communicate with him. for her influence in the administration, some have described edith wilson as "the first female president of the united states."[258] link states that by november 1919, wilson's "recovery was only partial at best. his mind remained relatively clear; but he was physically enfeebled, and the disease had wrecked his emotional constitution and aggravated all his more unfortunate personal traits.[259] throughout late 1919, wilson's inner circle concealed the severity of his health issues.[260] by february 1920, the president's true condition was publicly known. many expressed qualms about wilson's fitness for the presidency at a time when the league fight was reaching a climax, and domestic issues such as strikes, unemployment, inflation and the threat of communism were ablaze. in mid march 1920, lodge and his republicans formed a coalition with the pro treaty democrats to pass a treaty with reservations, but wilson rejected this compromise and enough democrats followed his lead to defeat ratification.[261] no one close to wilson was willing to certify, as required by the constitution, his "inability to discharge the powers and duties of the said office."[262] though some members of congress encouraged vice president marshall to assert his claim to the presidency, marshall never attempted to replace wilson.[263] wilson's lengthy period of incapacity while serving as president was nearly unprecedented; of the previous presidents, only james garfield had been in a similar situation, but garfield retained greater control of his mental faculties and faced relatively few pressing issues.[264] when the war ended the wilson administration dismantled the wartime boards and regulatory agencies.[265] demobilization was chaotic and at times violent; four million soldiers were sent home with little money and few benefits. in 1919, strikes in major industries broke out, disrupting the economy.[266] the country experienced further turbulence as a series of race riots broke out in the summer of 1919.[267] in 1920, the economy plunged into a severe economic depression,[268] unemployment rose to 12 percent, and the price of agricultural products sharply declined.[269] following the bolshevik revolution in russia and similar revolutionary attempts in germany and hungary, many americans feared the possibility of terrorism in the united states. such concerns were inflamed by the bombings in april 1919 when anarchists mailed 38 bombs to prominent americans; one person was killed but most packages were intercepted. nine more mail bombs were sent in june, injuring several people.[270] fresh fears combined with a patriotic national mood sparking the "first red scare" in 1919. attorney general palmer from november 1919 to january 1920 launched the palmer raids to suppress radical organizations. over 10,000 people were arrested and 556 aliens were deported, including emma goldman.[271] palmer's activities met resistance from the courts and some senior administration officials. no one told wilson what palmer was doing.[272][273] later in 1920, the wall street bombing on september 16 killed 40 and injured hundreds in the deadliest terrorist attack on american soil up to that point. anarchists took credit and promised more violence; they escaped capture.[274] prohibition developed as an unstoppable reform during world war i, but the wilson administration played only a minor role.[275] the eighteenth amendment passed congress and was ratified by the states in 1919. in october 1919, wilson vetoed the volstead act, legislation designed to enforce prohibition, but his veto was overridden by congress.[276][277] wilson opposed women's suffrage in 1911 because he believed women lacked the public experience needed to be good voters. the actual evidence of how women voters behaved in the western states changed his mind, and he came to feel they could indeed be good voters. he did not speak publicly on the issue except to echo the democratic party position that suffrage was a state matter, primarily because of strong opposition in the white south to black voting rights.[278] in a 1918 speech before congress, wilson for the first time backed a national right to vote: "we have made partners of the women in this war....shall we admit them only to a partnership of suffering and sacrifice and toil and not to a partnership of privilege and right?"[279] the house passed a constitutional amendment providing for women's suffrage nationwide, but this stalled in the senate. wilson continually pressured the senate to vote for the amendment, telling senators that its ratification was vital to winning the war.[280] the senate finally approved it in june 1919, and the requisite number of states ratified the nineteenth amendment in august 1920.[281] despite his medical incapacity, wilson wanted to run for a third term. while the 1920 democratic national convention strongly endorsed wilson's policies, democratic leaders refused, nominating instead a ticket consisting of governor james m. cox and assistant secretary of the navy franklin d. roosevelt.[282] the republicans centered their campaign around opposition to wilson's policies, with senator warren g. harding promising a "return to normalcy". wilson largely stayed out of the campaign, although he endorsed cox and continued to advocate for u.s. membership in the league of nations. harding won the election in a landslide, capturing over 60% of the popular vote and winning every state outside of the south.[283] wilson met with harding for tea on his last day in office, march 3, 1921. due to his health, wilson was unable to attend the inauguration.[284] on december 10, 1920, wilson was awarded the 1919 nobel peace prize "for his role as founder of the league of nations".[285][286] wilson became the second sitting united states president after theodore roosevelt to become a nobel peace laureate.[287] after the end of his second term in 1921, wilson and his wife moved from the white house to a townhouse in the kalorama section of washington, d.c.[288] he continued to follow politics as president harding and the republican congress repudiated membership in the league of nations, cut taxes, and raised tariffs.[289] in 1921, wilson opened a law practice with former secretary of state bainbridge colby. wilson showed up the first day but never returned, and the practice was closed by the end of 1922. wilson tried writing, and he produced a few short essays after enormous effort; they "marked a sad finish to a formerly great literary career."[290] he declined to write memoirs, but frequently met with ray stannard baker, who wrote a three volume biography of wilson that was published in 1922.[291] in august 1923, wilson attended the funeral of his successor, warren harding.[292] on november 10, 1923, wilson made his last national address, delivering a short armistice day radio speech from the library of his home.[293][294] wilson's health did not markedly improve after leaving office,[295] declining rapidly in january 1924. he died on february 3, 1924, at the age of 67. the president and first lady, calvin and grace coolidge, attended the funeral as did former first lady florence harding. former first lady helen herron taft represented her husband, chief justice and former president william howard taft, who was too ill to attend the service. also among the 2,000 guests invited were 11 senators, many members of the house of representatives, and several foreign dignitaries.[296] wilson was interred in washington national cathedral, being the only president whose final resting place lies within the nation's capital.[297] wilson was born and raised in the u.s. south by parents who were committed supporters of both slavery and the confederacy. academically, wilson was an apologist for slavery and the redeemers, and one of the foremost promoters of the lost cause mythology.[298] wilson was the first southerner elected president since zachary taylor in 1848 and the only former subject of the confederacy. wilson's election was celebrated by southern segregationists. at princeton, wilson actively discouraged the admission of african americans as students.[299] several historians have spotlighted consistent examples in the public record of wilson's overtly racist policies and the inclusion of segregationists in his cabinet.[300][301][302] other scholars say wilson defended segregation as "a rational, scientific policy" in private and describe him as a man who "loved to tell racist 'darky' jokes about black americans."[303][304] during wilson's presidency, d. w. griffith's pro ku klux klan film the birth of a nation (1915) was the first motion picture to be screened in the white house.[305] though he was not initially critical of the movie, wilson distanced himself from it as public backlash mounted and eventually released a statement condemning the film's message while denying he had been aware of it prior to the screening.[306][307] by the 1910s, african americans had become effectively shut out of elected office. obtaining an executive appointment to a position within the federal bureaucracy was usually the only option for african american statesmen. according to berg, wilson continued to appoint african americans to positions that had traditionally been filled by black people, overcoming opposition from many southern senators. oswald garrison villard, who later became an opponent of his, initially thought that wilson was not a bigot and supported progress for black people, and he was frustrated by southern opposition in the senate, to which wilson capitulated. in a conversation with wilson, journalist john palmer gavit came to the realization that opposition to those views "would certainly precipitate a conflict which would put a complete stop to any legislative program."[308][309] since the end of reconstruction, both parties recognized certain appointments as unofficially reserved for qualified african americans. wilson appointed a total of nine african americans to prominent positions in the federal bureaucracy, eight of whom were republican carry overs. for comparison, william howard taft was met with disdain and outrage from republicans of both races for appointing thirty one black officeholders, a record low for a republican president. upon taking office, wilson fired all but two of the seventeen black supervisors in the federal bureaucracy appointed by taft.[310][311] since 1863, the u.s. mission to haiti and santo domingo was almost always led by an african american diplomat regardless of what party the sitting president belonged to; wilson ended this half century old tradition but continued to appoint black diplomats, such as george washington buckner,[312][313] as well as joseph l. johnson,[314][315] to head the mission to liberia.[316] since the end of reconstruction, the federal bureaucracy had been possibly the only career path where african americans could experience some measure of equality,[317] and was the lifeblood and foundation of the black middle class.[318] wilson's administration escalated the discriminatory hiring policies and segregation of government offices that had begun under theodore roosevelt and continued under taft.[319] in wilson's first month in office, postmaster general albert s. burleson urged the president to establish segregated government offices.[320] wilson did not adopt burleson's proposal but allowed cabinet secretaries discretion to segregate their respective departments.[321] by the end of 1913, many departments, including the navy, treasury, and post office, had segregated work spaces, restrooms, and cafeterias.[320] many agencies used segregation as a pretext to adopt a whites only employment policy, claiming they lacked facilities for black workers. in these instances, african americans employed prior to the wilson administration were either offered early retirement, transferred, or simply fired.[322] at the suggestion of oklahoma senator thomas gore, wilson nominated adam e. patterson, a black democrat from muskogee, oklahoma, for the position of register of the treasury in july 1913; patterson withdrew his name from consideration following opposition from southern democratic senators james k. vardaman and benjamin tillman. wilson proceeded to nominate gabe e. parker, who was of mixed european and choctaw descent, for the position instead, and did not nominate any other black people for federal office afterwards.[309][323] racial discrimination in federal hiring increased further when after 1914, the united states civil service commission instituted a new policy requiring job applicants to submit a personal photo with their application. the alleged impetus behind this policy was to guard against applicant fraud; however, only 14 cases of impersonation/attempted impersonation in the application process were uncovered the year prior.[324][325] as a federal enclave, washington, d.c., had long offered african americans greater opportunities for employment and less glaring discrimination. in 1919, black veterans returning home to d.c. were shocked to discover jim crow laws had set in; many could not go back to the jobs they held prior to the war or even enter the same building they used to work in due to the color of their skin. booker t. washington described the situation: "i had never seen the colored people so discouraged and bitter as they are at the present time."[326] while segregation had been present in the army prior to wilson, its severity increased significantly under his administration. during wilson's first term, the army and navy refused to commission new black officers.[327] black officers already serving experienced increased discrimination and were often forced out or discharged on dubious grounds.[328] following the entry of the u.s. into world war i, the war department drafted hundreds of thousands of black people into the army, and draftees were paid equally regardless of race. commissioning of african american officers resumed but units remained segregated and most all black units were led by white officers.[329][page needed] unlike the army, the u.s. navy was never formally segregated. following wilson's appointment of josephus daniels as secretary of the navy, a system of jim crow was swiftly implemented; with ships, training facilities, restrooms, and cafeterias all becoming segregated.[320] while daniels significantly expanded opportunities for advancement and training available to white sailors, by the time the u.s. entered world war i, african american sailors had been relegated almost entirely to mess and custodial duties, often assigned to act as servants for white officers.[330] in response to the demand for industrial labor, the great migration of african americans out of the south surged in 1917 and 1918. this migration sparked race riots, including the east st. louis riots of 1917. in response to these riots, but only after much public outcry, wilson asked attorney general thomas watt gregory if the federal government could intervene to "check these disgraceful outrages". on the advice of gregory, wilson did not take direct action against the riots.[331] in 1918, wilson spoke out against lynching in the united states, stating: "i say plainly that every american who takes part in the action of mob or gives it any sort of continence is no true son of this great democracy but its betrayer, and ... [discredits] her by that single disloyalty to her standards of law and of rights."[332] in 1919, another series of race riots occurred in chicago, omaha, and two dozen other major cities in the north. the federal government did not become involved, just as it had not become involved previously.[333] wilson is generally ranked by historians and political scientists as an above average president.[334] in the view of some historians, wilson, more than any of his predecessors, took steps towards the creation of a strong federal government that would protect ordinary citizens against the overwhelming power of large corporations.[335] he is generally regarded as a key figure in the establishment of modern american liberalism, and a strong influence on future presidents such as franklin d. roosevelt and lyndon b. johnson.[334] cooper argues that in terms of impact and ambition, only the new deal and the great society rival the domestic accomplishments of wilson's presidency.[336] many of wilson's accomplishments, including the federal reserve, the federal trade commission, the graduated income tax, and labor laws, continued to influence the united states long after wilson's death.[334] many conservatives have attacked wilson for his role in expanding the federal government.[337][338] in 2018, conservative columnist george will wrote in the washington post that theodore roosevelt and wilson were the "progenitors of today's imperial presidency".[339] wilson's idealistic foreign policy, which came to be known as wilsonianism, also cast a long shadow over american foreign policy, and wilson's league of nations influenced the development of the united nations.[334] saladin ambar writes that wilson was "the first statesman of world stature to speak out not only against european imperialism but against the newer form of economic domination sometimes described as 'informal imperialism.'"[340] notwithstanding his accomplishments in office, wilson has received criticism for his record on race relations and civil liberties, for his interventions in latin america, and for his failure to win ratification of the treaty of versailles.[341][340] despite his southern roots and record at princeton, wilson became the first democrat to receive widespread support from the african american community in a presidential election.[342] wilson's african american supporters, many of whom had crossed party lines to vote for him in 1912, found themselves bitterly disappointed by the wilson presidency, his decision to allow the imposition of jim crow within the federal bureaucracy in particular.[320] ross kennedy writes that wilson's support of segregation complied with predominant public opinion.[343] a. scott berg argues wilson accepted segregation as part of a policy to "promote racial progress... by shocking the social system as little as possible."[344] the ultimate result of this policy was unprecedented levels of segregation within the federal bureaucracy and far fewer opportunities for employment and promotion being open to african americans than before.[345] historian kendrick clements argues "wilson had none of the crude, vicious racism of james k. vardaman or benjamin r. tillman, but he was insensitive to african american feelings and aspirations."[346] a 2021 study in the quarterly journal of economics found that wilson's segregation of the civil service increased the black white earnings gap by 3.4 6.9 percentage points, as existing black civil servants were driven to lower paid positions. black civil servants who were exposed to wilson's segregationist policies experienced a relative decline in home ownership rates, with suggestive evidence of lasting adverse effects for the descendants of those black civil servants.[347] in the wake of the 2015 charleston church shooting, some individuals demanded the removal of wilson's name from institutions affiliated with princeton due to his stance on race.[348][349] the woodrow wilson presidential library is located in staunton, virginia. the woodrow wilson boyhood home in augusta, georgia, and the woodrow wilson house in washington, d.c., are national historic landmarks. the thomas woodrow wilson boyhood home in columbia, south carolina is listed on the national register of historic places. shadow lawn, the summer white house for wilson during his term in office, became part of monmouth university in 1956, and was declared a national historic landmark in 1985. prospect house in princeton, new jersey, wilson's residence as president of princeton university, has been named a national historic landmark. wilson's presidential papers and his personal library are housed in the library of congress.[350] the woodrow wilson international center for scholars in washington, d.c., is named for wilson, and the princeton school of public and international affairs at princeton university was named for wilson until 2020 when princeton's board of trustees voted to remove wilson's name from the school.[351] the woodrow wilson national fellowship foundation is a non profit that provides grants for teaching fellowships. the woodrow wilson foundation was established to honor wilson's legacy but was terminated in 1993. one of princeton university's six residential colleges was originally named wilson college.[351] numerous schools, including several high schools, bear wilson's name. several streets, including the rambla presidente wilson in montevideo, uruguay, have been named for wilson. the uss woodrow wilson, a lafayette class submarine, was named for wilson. other things named for wilson include the woodrow wilson bridge between prince george's county, maryland and virginia, and the palais wilson, which serves as the temporary headquarters of the office of the united nations high commissioner for human rights in geneva until 2023 at the end of leasing.[352] monuments to wilson include the woodrow wilson monument in prague.[353] in 1944, 20th century fox released wilson, a biopic about wilson starring alexander knox and directed by henry king, considered an "idealistic" portrayal of wilson. the movie was a personal passion project of studio president and producer darryl f. zanuck, who was a deep admirer of wilson. the movie was praised by film critics and wilson supporters,[354][355][356] and scored ten academy awards nominations, winning five.[357] despite its popularity amongst elites, wilson was a box office bomb, incurring an almost $2 million loss for the studio.[358] the movie's failure is said to have had a deep and long lasting impact on zanuck and no attempt has been made by any major studio since to create a motion picture based on the life of wilson.[357]

ernest davidson washington booker taliaferro washington (april 5, 1856   november 14, 1915) was an american educator, author, and orator. between 1890 and 1915, washington was the primary leader in the african american community and of the contemporary black elite. born into slavery on april 5, 1856, in hale's ford, virginia, washington was freed when u.s. troops reached the area during the civil war. as a young man, booker t. washington worked his way through hampton normal and agricultural institute and attended college at wayland seminary. in 1881, he was named as the first leader of the new tuskegee institute in alabama, an institute for black higher education. he expanded the college, enlisting students in construction of buildings. work at the college was considered fundamental to students' larger education. he attained national prominence for his atlanta address of 1895, which attracted the attention of politicians and the public. washington played a dominant role in black politics, winning wide support in the black community of the south and among more liberal whites. washington wrote an autobiography, up from slavery, in 1901, which became a major text. in that year, he dined with theodore roosevelt at the white house, which was the first time a black person publicly met the president on equal terms. after an illness, he died in tuskegee, alabama on november 14, 1915. washington was a key proponent of african american businesses and one of the founders of the national negro business league. washington mobilized a nationwide coalition of middle class blacks, church leaders, and white philanthropists and politicians, with the goal of building the community's economic strength and pride by focusing on self help and education. washington had the ear of the powerful in the america of his day, including presidents. he used the nineteenth century american political system to manipulate the media, raise money, develop strategy, network, distribute funds, and reward a cadre of supporters. because of his influential leadership, the timespan of his activity, from 1880 to 1915, has been called the age of booker t. washington. washington called for black progress through education and entrepreneurship, rather than trying to challenge directly the jim crow segregation and the disenfranchisement of black voters in the south. furthermore, he supported racial uplift, but secretly also supported court challenges to segregation and to restrictions on voter registration. black activists in the north, led by w. e. b. du bois, disagreed with him and opted to set up the naacp to work for political change. after his death in 1915, he came under heavy criticism for accommodating white supremacy, despite his claims that his long term goal was to end the disenfranchisement of african americans, the vast majority of whom still lived in the south. decades after washington's death in 1915, the civil rights movement of the 1950s took a more active and progressive approach, which was also based on new grassroots organizations based in the south. washington's legacy has been controversial in the civil rights community. however, a revisionist view appeared in the late twentieth century that interpreted his actions positively. booker was born into slavery to jane, an enslaved african american woman on the plantation of james burroughs in southwest virginia, near hale's ford in franklin county. he never knew the day, month, and year of his birth[2] (although evidence emerged after his death that he was born on april 5, 1856).[a] nor did he ever know his father, said to be a white man who resided on a neighboring plantation. the man played no financial or emotional role in washington's life.[4] from his earliest years, washington was known simply as "booker", with no middle or surname, in the practice of the time.[5] his mother, her relatives and his siblings struggled with the demands of slavery. he later wrote: i cannot remember a single instance during my childhood or early boyhood when our entire family sat down to the table together, and god's blessing was asked, and the family ate a meal in a civilized manner. on the plantation in virginia, and even later, meals were gotten to the children very much as dumb animals get theirs. it was a piece of bread here and a scrap of meat there. it was a cup of milk at one time and some potatoes at another.[6] when he was nine, booker and his family in virginia gained freedom under the emancipation proclamation as u.s. troops occupied their region. booker was thrilled by the formal day of their emancipation in early 1865: as the great day drew nearer, there was more singing in the slave quarters than usual. it was bolder, had more ring, and lasted later into the night. most of the verses of the plantation songs had some reference to freedom.... [s]ome man who seemed to be a stranger (a united states officer, i presume) made a little speech and then read a rather long paper the emancipation proclamation, i think. after the reading we were told that we were all free, and could go when and where we pleased. my mother, who was standing by my side, leaned over and kissed her children, while tears of joy ran down her cheeks. she explained to us what it all meant, that this was the day for which she had been so long praying, but fearing that she would never live to see.[7] after emancipation jane took her family to the free state of west virginia to join her husband, washington ferguson, who had escaped from slavery during the war and settled there. the illiterate boy booker began painstakingly to teach himself to read and attended school for the first time.[8] at school, booker was asked for a surname for registration. he chose the family name of washington.[5] still later he learned from his mother that she had originally given him the name "booker taliaferro" at the time of his birth, but his second name was not used by the master.[9] upon learning of his original name, washington immediately readopted it as his own, and became known as booker taliaferro washington for the rest of his life.[9] booker loved books: the negro worshipped books. we wanted books, more books. the larger the books were the better we like[d] them. we thought the mere possession and the mere handling and the mere worship of books was going, in some inexplicable way, to make great and strong and useful men of our race.[10] washington worked in salt furnaces and coal mines in west virginia for several years to earn money. at age 16, he made his way east mostly on foot to hampton institute, a school established in virginia to educate freedmen and their descendants, where he also worked as a janitor to pay for his studies.[11][12][13] washington arrived to campus with very little money; and his entrance exam was to clean a room.[14][12] upon graduating from hampton at age 19, washington briefly returned home to west virginia. he later attended wayland seminary in washington, d.c. in 1878.[11][12] in 1881, the hampton institute president samuel c. armstrong recommended washington, then age 25, to become the first leader of tuskegee normal and industrial institute (later tuskegee institute, now tuskegee university), the new normal school (teachers' college) in alabama. the new school opened on july 4, 1881, initially using a room donated by butler chapel a.m.e. zion church.[15] the next year, washington purchased a former plantation to be developed as the permanent site of the campus. under his direction, his students literally built their own school: making bricks, constructing classrooms, barns and outbuildings; and growing their own crops and raising livestock; both for learning and to provide for most of the basic necessities.[16] both men and women had to learn trades as well as academics. the tuskegee faculty used all the activities to teach the students basic skills to take back to their mostly rural black communities throughout the south. the main goal was not to produce farmers and tradesmen, but teachers of farming and trades who could teach in the new lower schools and colleges for blacks across the south. the school expanded over the decades, adding programs and departments, to become the present day tuskegee university.[17][page needed] the oaks, "a large comfortable home," was built on campus for washington and his family.[18] they moved into the house in 1900. washington lived there until his death in 1915. his widow, margaret, lived at the oaks until her death in 1925.[19] in 1896 when washington reviewed the study conducted by george washington carver about the infection plaguing the soybean crop he invited carver to head the agriculture department at tuskegee, where they became close friends.[20] carver later autographed commemorative stamps issued in 1940 in washington's honor. washington led tuskegee for more than 30 years after becoming its leader. as he developed it, adding to both the curriculum and the facilities on the campus, he became a prominent national leader among african americans, with considerable influence with wealthy white philanthropists and politicians.[21] washington expressed his vision for his race through the school. he believed that by providing needed skills to society, african americans would play their part, leading to acceptance by white americans. he believed that blacks would eventually gain full participation in society by acting as responsible, reliable american citizens. shortly after the spanish american war, president william mckinley and most of his cabinet visited booker washington. by his death in 1915, tuskegee had grown to encompass more than 100 well equipped buildings, roughly 1,500 students, 200 faculty members teaching 38 trades and professions, and an endowment of approximately $2 million (~$43.6 million in 2023).[22] washington helped develop other schools and colleges. in 1891 he lobbied the west virginia legislature to locate the newly authorized west virginia colored institute (today west virginia state university) in the kanawha valley of west virginia near charleston. he visited the campus often and spoke at its first commencement exercise.[23] washington was a dominant figure of the african american community, then still overwhelmingly based in the south, from 1890 to his death in 1915. his atlanta address of 1895 received national attention. he was a popular spokesman for african american citizens. representing the last generation of black leaders born into slavery, washington was generally perceived as a supporter of education for freedmen and their descendants in the post reconstruction, jim crow era south. he stressed basic education and training in manual and domestic labor trades because he thought these represented the skills needed in what was still a rural economy.[24] throughout the final twenty years of his life, he maintained his standing through a nationwide network of supporters including black educators, ministers, editors, and businessmen, especially those who supported his views on social and educational issues for blacks. he also gained access to top national white leaders in politics, philanthropy and education, raised large sums, was consulted on race issues, and was awarded honorary degrees from harvard university in 1896 and dartmouth college in 1901.[22] late in his career, washington was criticized by civil rights leader and naacp founder w. e. b. du bois. du bois and his supporters opposed the atlanta address as the "atlanta compromise", because it suggested that african americans should work for, and submit to, white political rule.[25] du bois insisted on full civil rights, due process of law, and increased political representation for african americans which, he believed, could only be achieved through activism and higher education for african americans.[26] he believed that "the talented tenth" would lead the race. du bois labeled washington, "the great accommodator."[26] washington responded that confrontation could lead to disaster for the outnumbered blacks, and that cooperation with supportive whites was the only way to overcome racism in the long run.[citation needed] while promoting moderation, washington contributed secretly and substantially to mounting legal challenges activist african americans launched against segregation and disenfranchisement of blacks.[27][page needed] in his public role, he believed he could achieve more by skillful accommodation to the social realities of the age of segregation.[28] washington's work on education helped him enlist both the moral and substantial financial support of many major white philanthropists. he became a friend of such self made men as standard oil magnate henry huttleston rogers; sears, roebuck and company president julius rosenwald; and george eastman, inventor of roll film, founder of eastman kodak, and developer of a major part of the photography industry. these individuals and many other wealthy men and women funded his causes, including hampton and tuskegee institutes.[citation needed] he also gave lectures to raise money for the school. on january 23, 1906, he lectured at carnegie hall in new york in the tuskegee institute silver anniversary lecture. he spoke along with prominent orators of the day, including mark twain, joseph hodges choate, and robert curtis ogden; it was the start of a capital campaign to raise $1,800,000 (~$45.8 million in 2023) for the school.[29] the schools which washington supported were founded primarily to produce teachers, as education was critical for the black community following emancipation. freedmen strongly supported literacy and education as the keys to their future. when graduates returned to their largely impoverished rural southern communities, they still found few schools and educational resources, as the white dominated state legislatures consistently underfunded black schools in their segregated system.[citation needed] to address those needs, in the 20th century, washington enlisted his philanthropic network to create matching funds programs to stimulate construction of numerous rural public schools for black children in the south. working especially with julius rosenwald from chicago, washington had tuskegee architects develop model school designs. the rosenwald fund helped support the construction and operation of more than 5,000 schools and related resources for the education of blacks throughout the south in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. the local schools were a source of communal pride; african american families gave labor, land and money to them, to give their children more chances in an environment of poverty and segregation. a major part of washington's legacy, the model rural schools continued to be constructed into the 1930s, with matching funds for communities from the rosenwald fund.[30][page needed] washington also contributed to the progressive era by forming the national negro business league. it encouraged entrepreneurship among black businessmen, establishing a national network.[30][page needed] his autobiography, up from slavery, first published in 1901,[31] is still widely read in the early 21st century. washington was married three times. in his autobiography up from slavery, he gave all three of his wives credit for their contributions at tuskegee. his first wife fannie n. smith was from malden, west virginia, the same kanawha river valley town where washington had lived from age nine to sixteen. he maintained ties there all his life, and smith was a student of his when he taught in malden. he helped her gain entrance into the hampton institute. washington and smith were married in the summer of 1882, a year after he became principal there. they had one child, portia m. washington, born in 1883. fannie died in may 1884.[17] in 1885, the widower washington married again, to olivia a. davidson (1854 1889). born free in virginia to a free woman of color and a father who had been freed from slavery, she moved with her family to the free state of ohio, where she attended common schools. davidson later studied at hampton institute and went north to study at the massachusetts state normal school at framingham. she taught in mississippi and tennessee before going to tuskegee to work as a teacher. washington recruited davidson to tuskegee, and promoted her to vice principal. they had two sons, booker t. washington jr. and ernest davidson washington, before she died in 1889.[32] in 1893, washington married margaret james murray. she was from mississippi and had graduated from fisk university, a historically black college. they had no children together, but she helped rear washington's three children. murray outlived washington and died in 1925.[33] washington's 1895 atlanta exhibition address was viewed as a "revolutionary moment"[34] by both african americans and whites across the country. at the time w. e. b. du bois supported him, but they grew apart as du bois sought more action to remedy disfranchisement and improve educational opportunities for blacks. after their falling out, du bois and his supporters referred to washington's speech as the "atlanta compromise" to express their criticism that washington was too accommodating to white interests.[35] washington advocated a "go slow" approach to avoid a harsh white backlash.[34] he has been criticized for encouraging many youths in the south to accept sacrifices of potential political power, civil rights, and higher education.[36] washington believed that african americans should "concentrate all their energies on industrial education, and accumulation of wealth, and the conciliation of the south".[37] he valued the "industrial" education, as it provided critical skills for the jobs then available to the majority of african americans at the time, as most lived in the south, which was overwhelmingly rural and agricultural. he thought these skills would lay the foundation for the creation of stability that the african american community required in order to move forward. he believed that in the long term, "blacks would eventually gain full participation in society by showing themselves to be responsible, reliable american citizens". his approach advocated for an initial step toward equal rights, rather than full equality under the law, gaining economic power to back up black demands for political equality in the future.[38] he believed that such achievements would prove to the deeply prejudiced white america that african americans were not "'naturally' stupid and incompetent".[39] well educated blacks in the north lived in a different society and advocated a different approach, in part due to their perception of wider opportunities. du bois wanted blacks to have the same "classical" liberal arts education as upper class whites did,[40] along with voting rights and civic equality. the latter two had been ostensibly granted since 1870 by constitutional amendments after the civil war. he believed that an elite, which he called the talented tenth, would advance to lead the race to a wider variety of occupations.[41] du bois and washington were divided in part by differences in treatment of african americans in the north versus the south; although both groups suffered discrimination, the mass of blacks in the south were far more constrained by legal segregation and disenfranchisement, which totally excluded most from the political process and system. many in the north objected to being 'led', and authoritatively spoken for, by a southern accommodationist strategy which they considered to have been "imposed on them [southern blacks] primarily by southern whites".[42] historian clarence e. walker wrote that, for white southerners, free black people were 'matter out of place'. their emancipation was an affront to southern white freedom. booker t. washington did not understand that his program was perceived as subversive of a natural order in which black people were to remain forever subordinate or unfree.[43] both washington and du bois sought to define the best means post civil war to improve the conditions of the african american community through education.[44] blacks were solidly republican in this period, having gained emancipation and suffrage with president lincoln and his party. fellow republican president ulysses s. grant defended african americans' newly won freedom and civil rights in the south by passing laws and using federal force to suppress the ku klux klan, which had committed violence against blacks for years to suppress voting and discourage education. after federal troops left in 1877 at the end of the reconstruction era, many paramilitary groups worked to suppress black voting by violence. from 1890 to 1908 southern states disenfranchised most blacks and many poor whites through constitutional amendments and statutes that created barriers to voter registration and voting. such devices as poll taxes and subjective literacy tests sharply reduced the number of blacks in voting rolls. by the late nineteenth century, southern white democrats defeated some biracial populist republican coalitions and regained power in the state legislatures of the former confederacy; they passed laws establishing racial segregation and jim crow. in the border states and north, blacks continued to exercise the vote; the well established maryland african american community defeated attempts there to disfranchise them.[citation needed] washington worked and socialized with many national white politicians and industry leaders. he developed the ability to persuade wealthy whites, many of them self made men, to donate money to black causes by appealing to their values. he argued that the surest way for blacks to gain equal social rights was to demonstrate "industry, thrift, intelligence and property".[45] he believed these were key to improved conditions for african americans in the united states. because african americans had recently been emancipated and most lived in a hostile environment, washington believed they could not expect too much at once. he said, "i have learned that success is to be measured not so much by the position that one has reached in life as by the obstacles which he has had to overcome while trying to succeed."[17][page needed] along with du bois, washington partly organized the "negro exhibition" at the 1900 exposition universelle in paris, where photos of hampton institute's black students were displayed. these were taken by his friend frances benjamin johnston.[46] the exhibition demonstrated african americans' positive contributions to united states' society.[46] washington privately contributed substantial funds for legal challenges to segregation and disfranchisement, such as the case of giles v. harris, which was heard before the united states supreme court in 1903.[47] even when such challenges were won at the supreme court, southern states quickly responded with new laws to accomplish the same ends, for instance, adding "grandfather clauses" that covered white people and not black people in order to prevent black people from voting.[citation needed] state and local governments historically underfunded black schools, although they were ostensibly providing "separate but equal" segregated facilities. white philanthropists strongly supported education financially. washington encouraged them and directed millions of their money to projects all across the south that washington thought best reflected his self help philosophy. washington associated with the richest and most powerful businessmen and politicians of the era, as well as many other educational leaders, such as william rainey harper, president of the university of chicago.[48] he was seen as a spokesperson for african americans and became a conduit for funding educational programs.[49] his contacts included such diverse and well known entrepreneurs and philanthropists as andrew carnegie, william howard taft, john d. rockefeller, henry huttleston rogers, george eastman, julius rosenwald, robert curtis ogden, collis potter huntington and william henry baldwin jr. the latter donated large sums of money to agencies such as the jeanes and slater funds. as a result, countless small rural schools were established through washington's efforts, under programs that continued many years after his death. along with rich white men, the black communities helped their communities directly by donating time, money and labor to schools to match the funds required.[50] a representative case of an exceptional relationship was washington's friendship with millionaire industrialist and financier henry h. rogers (1840 1909). henry rogers was a self made man, who had risen from a modest working class family to become a principal officer of standard oil, and one of the richest men in the united states. around 1894, rogers heard washington speak at madison square garden. the next day, he contacted washington and requested a meeting, during which washington later recounted that he was told that rogers "was surprised that no one had 'passed the hat' after the speech".[citation needed] the meeting began a close relationship that extended over a period of 15 years. although washington and the very private rogers were seen as friends, the true depth and scope of their relationship was not publicly revealed until after rogers's sudden death of a stroke in may 1909. washington was a frequent guest at rogers's new york office, his fairhaven, massachusetts summer home, and aboard his steam yacht kanawha.[citation needed] a few weeks later, washington went on a previously planned speaking tour along the newly completed virginian railway, a $40 million enterprise that had been built almost entirely from rogers's personal fortune. as washington rode in the late financier's private railroad car, dixie, he stopped and made speeches at many locations. his companions later recounted that he had been warmly welcomed by both black and white citizens at each stop.[citation needed] washington revealed that rogers had been quietly funding operations of 65 small country schools for african americans, and had given substantial sums of money to support tuskegee and hampton institutes. he also noted that rogers had encouraged programs with matching funds requirements so the recipients had a stake in the outcome.[citation needed] in 1907 philadelphia quaker anna t. jeanes (1822 1907) donated one million dollars to washington for elementary schools for black children in the south. her contributions and those of henry rogers and others funded schools in many poor communities.[citation needed] julius rosenwald (1862 1932) was a jewish american self made wealthy man with whom washington found common ground. by 1908, rosenwald, son of an immigrant clothier, had become part owner and president of sears, roebuck and company in chicago. rosenwald was a philanthropist who was deeply concerned about the poor state of african american education, especially in the segregated southern states, where their schools were underfunded.[51] in 1912, rosenwald was asked to serve on the board of directors of tuskegee institute, a position he held for the remainder of his life. rosenwald endowed tuskegee so that washington could spend less time fundraising and more managing the school. later in 1912, rosenwald provided funds to tuskegee for a pilot program to build six new small schools in rural alabama. they were designed, constructed and opened in 1913 and 1914, and overseen by tuskegee architects and staff; the model proved successful.[citation needed] after washington died in 1915, rosenwald established the rosenwald fund in 1917, primarily to serve african american students in rural areas throughout the south. the school building program was one of its largest programs. using the architectural model plans developed by professors at tuskegee institute, the rosenwald fund spent over $4 million to help build 4,977 schools, 217 teachers' homes, and 163 shop buildings in 883 counties in 15 states, from maryland to texas.[52] the rosenwald fund made matching grants, requiring community support, cooperation from the white school boards, and local fundraising. black communities raised more than $4.7 million to aid the construction and sometimes donated land and labor; essentially they taxed themselves twice to do so.[53] these schools became informally known as rosenwald schools. but the philanthropist did not want them to be named for him, as they belonged to their communities. by his death in 1932, these newer facilities could accommodate one third of all african american children in southern u.s. schools.[citation needed] washington's long term adviser, timothy thomas fortune (1856 1928), was a respected african american economist and editor of the new york age, the most widely read newspaper in the black community within the united states. he was the ghost writer and editor of washington's first autobiography, the story of my life and work.[54] washington published five books during his lifetime with the aid of ghost writers timothy fortune, max bennett thrasher and robert e. park.[55] they included compilations of speeches and essays:[56] in an effort to inspire the "commercial, agricultural, educational, and industrial advancement" of african americans, washington founded the national negro business league (nnbl) in 1900.[57] when washington's second autobiography, up from slavery, was published in 1901, it became a bestseller remaining the best selling autobiography of an african american for over sixty years[58] and had a major effect on the african american community and its friends and allies. in october 1901, president theodore roosevelt invited washington to dine with him and his family at the white house. although republican presidents had met privately with black leaders, this was the first highly publicized social occasion when an african american was invited there on equal terms by the president. democratic party politicians from the south, including future governor of mississippi james k. vardaman and senator benjamin tillman of south carolina, indulged in racist personal attacks when they learned of the invitation. both used the derogatory term for african americans in their statements.[59][60] the meeting was also condemned by the democratic perennial presidential candidate william jennings bryan, who argued that "the more advanced race never has consented, and probably never will consent, to be dominated by the less advanced" despite him having previously praised washington.[61] vardaman described the white house as "so saturated with the odor of the nigger that the rats have taken refuge in the stable,"[62][63] and declared, "i am just as much opposed to booker t. washington as a voter as i am to the cocoanut headed, chocolate colored typical little coon who blacks my shoes every morning. neither is fit to perform the supreme function of citizenship."[64] tillman said, "the action of president roosevelt in entertaining that nigger will necessitate our killing a thousand niggers in the south before they will learn their place again."[65] ladislaus hengelmüller von hengervár, the austro hungarian ambassador to the united states, who was visiting the white house on the same day, said he found a rabbit's foot in washington's coat pocket when he mistakenly put on the coat. the washington post described it as "the left hind foot of a graveyard rabbit, killed in the dark of the moon".[66] the detroit journal quipped the next day, "the austrian ambassador may have made off with booker t. washington's coat at the white house, but he'd have a bad time trying to fill his shoes."[66][67] despite his extensive travels and widespread work, washington continued as principal of tuskegee. washington's health was deteriorating rapidly in 1915; he collapsed in new york city and was diagnosed by two different doctors as having bright's disease, an inflammation of the kidneys, today called nephritis. told he had only a few days left to live, washington expressed a desire to die at tuskegee. he boarded a train and arrived in tuskegee shortly after midnight on november 14, 1915. he died a few hours later at the age of 59.[68] his funeral was held on november 17, 1915, in the tuskegee institute chapel. it was attended by nearly 8,000 people.[11] he was buried nearby in the tuskegee university campus cemetery. at the time he was thought to have died of congestive heart failure, aggravated by overwork. in march 2006, his descendants permitted examination of medical records: these showed he had hypertension, with a blood pressure more than twice normal, and that he died of kidney failure brought on by high blood pressure.[69] at washington's death, tuskegee's endowment was close to $2,000,000 (equivalent to $60,236,842 in 2023).[70] washington's greatest life's work, the education of blacks in the south, was well underway and expanding.[citation needed] for his contributions to american society, washington was granted an honorary master's degree from harvard university in 1896, followed by an honorary doctorate from dartmouth college.[71][72][73] at the center of tuskegee university, the booker t. washington monument was dedicated in 1922. called lifting the veil, the monument has an inscription reading: he lifted the veil of ignorance from his people and pointed the way to progress through education and industry. in 1934, robert russa moton, washington's successor as president of tuskegee university, arranged an air tour for two african american aviators. afterward the plane was renamed as the booker t. washington.[74] on april 7, 1940, washington became the first african american to be depicted on a united states postage stamp.[75] in 1942, the liberty ship booker t. washington was named in his honor, the first major oceangoing vessel to be named after an african american. the ship was christened by noted singer marian anderson.[76] in 1946, he was honored on the first coin to feature an african american, the booker t. washington memorial half dollar, which was minted by the united states until 1951.[77] on april 5, 1956, the hundredth anniversary of washington's birth, the house where he was born in franklin county, virginia was designated as the booker t. washington national monument.[78] a state park in chattanooga, tennessee, was named in his honor, as was a bridge spanning the hampton river adjacent to his alma mater, hampton university.[79][80] in 1984, hampton university dedicated a booker t. washington memorial on campus near the historic emancipation oak, establishing, in the words of the university, "a relationship between one of america's great educators and social activists, and the symbol of black achievement in education".[81] numerous high schools, middle schools and elementary schools[82] across the united states have been named after booker t. washington. in 2000, west virginia state university (wvsu; then west va. state college), in cooperation with other organizations including the booker t. washington association, established the booker t. washington institute, to honor washington's boyhood home, the old town of malden, and washington's ideals.[83] on october 19, 2009, wvsu dedicated a monument to booker t. washington. the event took place at wvsu's booker t. washington park in malden, west virginia. the monument also honors the families of african ancestry who lived in old malden in the early 20th century and who knew and encouraged washington. special guest speakers at the event included west virginia governor joe manchin iii, malden attorney larry l. rowe, and the president of wvsu. musical selections were provided by the wvsu "marching swarm".[84] at the end of the 2008 presidential election, the defeated republican candidate senator john mccain recalled the stir caused a century before when president theodore roosevelt invited booker t. washington to the white house. mccain noted the evident progress in the country with the election of democratic senator barack obama as the first african american president of the united states.[85] booker t. washington was so acclaimed as a public leader that the period of his activity, from 1880 to 1915, has been called the age of booker t. washington.[58] historiography on washington, his character, and the value of that leadership has varied dramatically. after his death, he came under heavy criticism in the civil rights community for accommodationism to white supremacy. however, since the late 20th century, a more balanced view of his very wide range of activities has appeared. as of 2010, the most recent studies, "defend and celebrate his accomplishments, legacy, and leadership".[86] washington was held in high regard by business oriented conservatives, both white and black. historian eric foner argues that the freedom movement of the late nineteenth century changed directions so as to align with america's new economic and intellectual framework. black leaders emphasized economic self help and individual advancement into the middle class as a more fruitful strategy than political agitation. there was emphasis on education and literacy throughout the period after the civil war. washington's famous atlanta speech of 1895 marked this transition, as it called on blacks to develop their farms, their industrial skills, and their entrepreneurship as the next stage in emerging from slavery.[87] by this time, mississippi had passed a new constitution, and other southern states were following suit, or using electoral laws to raise barriers to voter registration; they completed disenfranchisement of blacks at the turn of the 20th century to maintain white supremacy. but at the same time, washington secretly arranged to fund numerous legal challenges to such voting restrictions and segregation, which he believed was the way they had to be attacked.[88] washington repudiated the historic abolitionist emphasis on unceasing agitation for full equality, advising blacks that it was counterproductive to fight segregation at that point. foner concludes that washington's strong support in the black community was rooted in its widespread realization that, given their legal and political realities, frontal assaults on white supremacy were impossible, and the best way forward was to concentrate on building up their economic and social structures inside segregated communities.[89] historian c. vann woodward in 1951 wrote of washington, "the businessman's gospel of free enterprise, competition, and laissez faire never had a more loyal exponent."[90] historians since the late 20th century have been divided in their characterization of washington: some describe him as a visionary capable of "read[ing] minds with the skill of a master psychologist," who expertly played the political game in nineteenth century washington by its own rules.[91] others say he was a self serving, crafty narcissist who threatened and punished those in the way of his personal interests, traveled with an entourage, and spent much time fundraising, signing autographs, and giving flowery patriotic speeches with much flag waving   acts more indicative of an artful political boss than an altruistic civil rights leader.[91] people called washington the "wizard of tuskegee" because of his highly developed political skills and his creation of a nationwide political machine based on the black middle class, white philanthropy, and republican party support. opponents called this network the "tuskegee machine". washington maintained control because of his ability to gain support of numerous groups, including influential whites and black business, educational and religious communities nationwide. he advised as to the use of financial donations from philanthropists and avoided antagonizing white southerners with his accommodation to the political realities of the age of jim crow segregation.[28] the tuskegee machine collapsed rapidly after washington's death. he was the charismatic leader who held it all together, with the aid of emmett jay scott. but the trustees replaced scott, and the elaborate system fell apart.[92][93] critics in the 1920s to 1960s, especially those connected with the naacp, ridiculed tuskegee as a producer of a class of submissive black laborers. since the late 20th century, historians have given much more favorable view, emphasizing the school's illustrious faculty and the progressive black movements, institutions and leaders in education, politics, architecture, medicine and other professions it produced who worked hard in communities across the united states, and indeed worldwide across the african diaspora.[94] deborah morowski points out that tuskegee's curriculum served to help students achieve a sense of personal and collective efficacy. she concludes: at a time when most black americans were poor farmers in the south and were ignored by the national black leadership, washington's tuskegee institute made their needs a high priority. it lobbied for government funds and especially from philanthropies that enabled the institute to provide model farming techniques, advanced training, and organizational skills. these included annual negro conferences, the tuskegee experiment station, the agricultural short course, the farmers' institutes, the farmers' county fairs, the movable school, and numerous pamphlets and feature stories sent free to the south's black newspapers.[96]

manage your account beirut (ap)   lebanon’s new prime minister on saturday formed the country’s first full fledged government since 2022. president joseph aoun announced in a statement that he had accepted the resignation of the former caretaker government and signed a decree with new prime minister nawaf salam forming the new government. salam vowed to “restore confidence between citizens and the state, between lebanon and its arab surroundings, and between lebanon and the international community” and to implement reforms needed to bring the country out of an extended economic crisis. see for yourself   the yodel is the go to source for daily news, entertainment and feel good stories. by signing up, you agree to our terms and privacy policy. “reform is the only path to a true salvation,” he said in a speech on saturday. he also promised to follow up on implementation of a ceasefire agreement that ended the most recent war between israel and the lebanese militant group and political party hezbollah in late november and to ensure that israeli forces “withdraw from lebanese territory until the last inch.” he pledged to ensure reconstruction in areas that suffered destruction during the war. salam’s cabinet of 24 ministers, split evenly between christian and muslim sects, was formed less than a month after he was appointed, and comes at a time where lebanon is scrambling to rebuild its battered southern region and maintain security along its borders. lebanon is also still in the throes of a crippling economic crisis, now in its sixth year, which has battered its banks, destroyed its state electricity sector and left many in poverty unable to access their savings. salam, a diplomat and former president of the international court of justice, has vowed to reform lebanon’s judiciary and battered economy and bring about stability in the troubled country, which has faced numerous economic, political, and security crises for decades. new government marks a shift away from hezbollah though hezbollah did not endorse salam as prime minister, the lebanese group did engage in negotiations with the new prime minister over the shiite muslim seats in government, as per lebanon’s power sharing system. that was despite comments by u.s. envoy morgan ortagus who said in a speech in beirut friday that washington had “set clear red lines from the united states” that hezbollah would not be “a part of the government.” the comments drew backlash from many in lebanon who saw them as meddling in internal lebanese affairs. lebanon’s new authorities also mark a shift away from leaders that are close to hezbollah, as beirut hopes to continue improving ties with saudi arabia and other gulf nations that have been concerned by hezbollah’s growing political and military power over the past decade. in early january, former army chief aoun was elected president, ending that position’s vacuum. he was also a candidate not endorsed by hezbollah and key allies. aoun has shared similar sentiments to salam, also vowing to consolidate the state’s right to “monopolize the carrying of weapons,” in an apparent reference to the arms of hezbollah. clashes on eastern border continue while the formation of a government appeared to be a sign of hope for the country's future stability, lebanon is still facing a tense security situation on more than one front. clashes broke out ongoing on the eastern border with syria earlier this week between lebanese clans and the security forces of the new syrian government, which are largely made up of former members of the islamist militant group hayat tahrir al sham. the porous border has long been a conduit for smuggling of people, weapons and drugs. syrian officials said security forces were cracking down on smuggling gangs. the lebanese army said saturday that several lebanese areas had been “subjected to shelling and gunfire” from syria and that it had given orders for soldiers stationed in the border area to “respond to sources of fire launched from syrian territory.” ceasefire agreement extended separately, six people were killed and two injured in an israeli drone strike saturday in the area of janata, near the eastern border with syria, lebanon’s state run national news agency reported. the israeli military said in a statement that it had struck “hezbollah operatives” who “were operating in a strategic weapons manufacturing and storage site” belonging to the militant group. israel has continued to launch near daily strikes on what it says are hezbollah facilities in lebanon since the implementation of the ceasefire agreement. the deal stipulates that both israel and lebanon maintain the right to act in “self defense” but does not define what qualifies as self defense. the original 60 day deadline for implementing the terms of the ceasefire agreement expired in late january, but lebanon and israel agreed to extend it until feb. 18.

18001 yorba linda blvd, yorba linda, ca 92886main line: 714 983 9120research: 714 983 9320 museum hoursmonday   sunday 10:00am 5:00pmresearch hoursmonday   friday 9:30am 4:00pm visit us press born on january 9, 1913, on his parents' citrus farm in yorba, linda, california, richard milhous nixon's life spanned eight decades. follow the links below to learn more about the events in nixon's life. richard milhous nixon was born on january 9, 1913, on the citrus farm of his parents, francis anthony nixon (1878 1956) and hannah milhous nixon (1885 1967), in a house his father built in yorba linda, california. richard was the second of five brothers: harold (1909 1933), donald (1914 1987), arthur (1918 1925), and edward (1930 2019). his early life was marked by financial hardship and by the deaths of his brothers harold and arthur. in 1922, after the failure of the nixons' ranch (today the site of the nixon presidential library and museum), the family moved to be nearer hannah's relatives in whittier, california. there, frank nixon opened a combination grocery store and gas station in which the entire nixon family worked in order to make ends meet. richard nixon enrolled at whittier college in september 1930. he was an active student, pursuing his interests in student government, drama, and football while living at home and helping to run the family's store. nixon won a scholarship to attend duke university school of law in may 1934, where he was president of the student bar association and a member of the law review. he graduated in june 1937. nixon returned to whittier and joined the law firm wingert and bewley. on january 16, 1938, he met a schoolteacher named thelma catherine "pat" ryan at a rehearsal for a community play in which they were both acting. smitten, nixon pursued ryan. they were married on june 21, 1940, in the presidential suite of the mission inn in riverside, california, and honeymooned in mexico. in january 1942, the nixons moved to washington, d.c., where nixon joined the office of price administration. on june 15, 1942, he accepted an appointment as a lieutenant junior grade in the united states naval reserve and entered the naval training school, naval air station in quonset point, rhode island on august 17, 1942. upon completing the training in october 1942, nixon served as aide to the executive officer at the naval reserve aviation base in ottumwa, iowa until may 1943. he volunteered for sea duty and was assigned to the commander, air force, u.s. pacific fleet. he served as officer in charge of the south pacific combat air transport command on the island of new caledonia at bougainville, vella lavella and guadalcanal in the solomon islands, and later at green island. nixon was promoted to lieutenant on october 1, 1943. he went on to serve with fleet air wing eight and at various military offices throughout the united states. he was promoted again in june 1953 to the rank of commander in the naval reserve. for his service, richard nixon was awarded a letter of commendation, the american campaign medal, the asiatic pacific campaign medal, and the world war ii victory medal. after fifteen months overseas, nixon was transferred to the fleet air wing at alameda, california and later, the navy bureau of aeronautics in washington, d.c. at the end of the war he was engaged in negotiating the termination of navy contracts with aircraft manufacturers in baltimore, maryland. for his performance on this assignment nixon received a second letter of commendation. he was released from active duty as a lieutenant commander in march, 1946 and retired from the naval reserve on june 1, 1966. his full naval biographical profile is available via the u.s. navy's naval history and heritage command website. following the end of the war, prominent republicans in whittier approached nixon about running for congress in 1946. nixon accepted their offer, and, on november 6, 1946, defeated democratic congressman jerry voorhis by more than fifteen thousand votes. he moved to washington with his wife pat and their young daughter, patricia (known as "tricia"), who had been born on february 21, 1946. (their second daughter, julie, was born on july 5, 1948.) as a congressman, he served on the education and labor committee and supported the enactment of the taft hartley act, which greatly restricted the powers of labor unions. nixon also served on the herter committee, which traveled to europe to prepare a preliminary report on the marshall plan. in 1948, as a member of the house un american activities committee (huac), he took the lead in investigating charges against former state department official alger hiss of spying for the soviet union before and during world war ii. the case turned the young congressman into a national figure and a controversial one, because many prominent figures asserted hiss's innocence. not until decades later, after the end of the cold war, would intelligence information released both by the u.s. government and the russian government confirm hiss' guilt. nixon was easily re elected in 1948. in 1950, he defeated democratic congresswoman helen gahagan douglas to win california's vacant u.s. senate seat by more than half a million votes. the campaign was fierce. nixon, who thought the former actress was too sympathetic to left wing causes, said douglas was "pink right down to her underwear." in response, douglas labeled nixon "tricky dick." as senator, nixon criticized president harry s. truman's handling of the korean war and gave speeches across the nation warning of the threat of global communism. nixon's prominence as an anti communist soon brought him to greater national attention. general dwight eisenhower, the republican candidate for president in 1952, selected nixon as his running mate at the republican convention in chicago on july 11, 1952. two months later, the new york post ran an article claiming that campaign donors were buying influence with nixon by providing him with a secret cash fund for his personal expenses. nixon defended himself against the accusations, noting that the fund was neither secret nor unusual and produced an independent audit showing that the funds had been used only for political purposes. to rebut his critics, nixon appeared on television to the largest audience in history to date. in the live, nationwide broadcast, nixon detailed his personal financial history and then outflanked his detractors by saying that his family had accepted one campaign gift for themselves: a beloved black and white cocker spaniel named checkers whom they intended to keep. the speech was a great success, shoring up his support with the republican party's base, demonstrating his appeal to the wider public, and thus keeping him on the republican ticket and proving the importance of television as a political medium. in november 1952, eisenhower and nixon defeated the candidates on the democratic ticket, presidential nominee illinois governor adlai stevenson and running mate alabama senator john sparkman, by seven million votes. under eisenhower, nixon made the vice presidency a visible and important office. nixon chaired national security council meetings in the president's absence and undertook many goodwill tours of foreign countries in an effort to shore up support for american policies during the cold war. on one such trip to caracas, venezuela, on may 13, 1958, protesters first spat on the vice president and mrs. nixon at the airport. later that day, rioters assaulted nixon's motorcade, injuring venezuela's foreign minister and making nixon realize that he might actually be killed. nixon attracted international notice for his coolness in the face of anti american demonstrations. in july 1959, eisenhower sent nixon to the soviet union to represent the united states at the opening of the american national exhibition in moscow, the soviet capital. while touring the exhibit with soviet leader nikita khrushchev, the pair stopped at a model of an american kitchen. there they engaged in an impromptu discussion about the american standard of living that quickly escalated into an exchange over the two countries' ideological and military strength. nixon's performance in the "kitchen debate" further raised his stature back in the united states. in 1960, facing little competition, nixon won the republican nomination for president and chose former massachusetts senator henry cabot lodge, jr., then u.s. ambassador to the united nations, to be his running mate. the election of 1960 was a hard fought contest between nixon and the democratic nominee, massachusetts senator john f. kennedy, who had also been elected to congress in 1946. many observers then and later concluded that the turning point came during the first ever televised debates. nixon, wearing little make up, looked wan and uncomfortable, while kennedy appeared to be cool, composed, and confident. in november, nixon lost to kennedy by less than 120,000 votes, or 0.2 percent of the popular vote. following the 1960 election defeat, the nixon family left washington in january 1961 and returned to southern california, where nixon practiced law and wrote a bestselling memoir, six crises. throughout 1961, local and national republican leaders encouraged nixon to run for governor in 1962 against democratic incumbent edmund g. "pat" brown, sr., arguing that staying on the sidelines would mean the end of nixon's political life. despite initial reluctance, nixon entered the race. his gubernatorial campaign was hobbled by a combination of the public's suspicion that nixon viewed the office as a stepping stone, opposition from the far right of his own party, and his own lack of interest in being governor. he lost to brown by nearly 300,000 votes. at the time, even nixon viewed the defeat as the end of his career in politics, telling reporters the wednesday morning following election night 1962 that "you won't have nixon to kick around anymore because, gentlemen, this is my last press conference." the nixon family then moved to new york city, where nixon resumed his practice as a lawyer. later, after he had become president, nixon called this period his "wilderness years," comparing his time out of office to similar interludes in the lives of leaders such as winston churchill and charles de gaulle. although largely out of the public eye, nixon remained active in politics, commenting on the policies of the kennedy and johnson administrations and campaigning for republican candidates. nixon retained the support of many republicans across the country who respected his knowledge of politics and international affairs, a reputation enhanced in 1967 by nixon's article "asia after vietnam" in the eminent journal foreign affairs. nixon's strenuous efforts on behalf of republican congressional candidates around the country in 1966 further solidified his support among members of the party. in january 1968, nixon decided to once again seek the nomination of the republican party for president. portraying himself as a figure of stability in a time of national upheaval, nixon promised a return to traditional values and "law and order." he fended off challenges from other candidates such as california governor ronald reagan, new york governor nelson rockefeller, and michigan governor george romney to secure the nomination at the republican convention in miami. nixon unexpectedly chose governor spiro agnew of maryland as his running mate. nixon's campaign was helped by the tumult within the democratic party in 1968. consumed by the war in vietnam, president lyndon b. johnson announced on march 31 that he would not seek re election. on june 5, immediately after winning the california primaries, former attorney general and then u.s. senator robert f. kennedy (brother of the late president john f. kennedy) was assassinated in los angeles. the campaign of vice president hubert humphrey, the democratic nominee for president, went into a tailspin after the democratic national convention in chicago was marred by mass protests and violence. by contrast, nixon appeared to represent a calmer society, and his campaign promised peace at home and abroad. despite a late surge by humphrey, nixon won by nearly 500,000 popular votes. third party candidate george wallace, the once and future governor of alabama, won nearly ten million popular votes and 46 electoral votes, principally in the deep south. once in office, nixon and his staff faced the problem of how to end the vietnam war, which had broken his predecessor's administration and threatened to cause major unrest at home. as protesters in america's cities called for an immediate withdrawal from southeast asia, nixon made a nationally televised address on november 3, 1969, calling on the "silent majority" of americans to renew their confidence in the american government and back his policy of seeking a negotiated peace in vietnam. earlier that year, nixon and his defense secretary melvin laird had unveiled the policy of "vietnamization," which entailed reducing american troop levels in vietnam and transferring the burden of fighting to south vietnam; accordingly, u.s. troop strength in vietnam fell from 543,000 in april 1969 to zero on march 29, 1973. nevertheless, the nixon administration was harshly criticized for its use of american military force in cambodia and its stepped up bombing raids during the later years of the first term. nixon's foreign policy aimed to reduce international tensions by forging new links with old rivals. in february 1972, nixon traveled to beijing (peking), hangzhou (hangchow), and shanghai in china for talks with chinese leaders chairman mao zedong (mao tse tung) and premier zhou enlai (chou en lai). nixon's trip was the first high level contact between the united states and the people's republic of china in more than twenty years, and it ushered in a new era of relations between washington and beijing. several weeks later, in may 1972, nixon visited moscow for a summit meeting with leonid brezhnev, general secretary of the communist party of the soviet union, and other soviet leaders. their talks led to the signing of the strategic arms limitation treaty (salt), the first comprehensive and detailed nuclear weapons limitation pact between the two superpowers. foreign policy initiatives represented only one aspect of nixon's presidency during his first term. in august 1969, nixon proposed the family assistance plan, a welfare reform that would have guaranteed an income to all americans. the plan, however, did not receive congressional approval. in august 1971, spurred by high inflation rates, nixon imposed wage and price controls in an effort to gain control of price levels in the u.s. economy; at the same time, prompted by worries over the soundness of u.s. currency, nixon took the dollar off the gold standard and let it float against other countries' currencies. on july 20, 1969, astronauts neil armstrong and edwin eugene "buzz" aldrin, jr. became the first humans to walk on the earth's moon, while fellow astronaut michael collins orbited in the apollo 11 command module. nixon made what has been termed the longest distance telephone call ever made to speak with the astronauts from the oval office. and on september 28, 1971, nixon signed legislation abolishing the military draft. in addition to such weighty affairs of state, nixon's first term was also full of lighter hearted moments. on april 29, 1969, nixon awarded the presidential medal of freedom, the nation's highest civilian honor, to duke ellington and then led hundreds of guests in singing "happy birthday" to the famed band leader. on june 12, 1971, tricia nixon became the sixteenth white house bride when she and edward finch cox of new york married in the rose garden. theirs was the first wedding held in the rose garden. julie nixon had wed dwight david eisenhower ii, grandson of president eisenhower, on december 22, 1968, in new york's marble collegiate church, while her father was president elect. perhaps most famous was nixon's meeting with elvis presley on december 21, 1970, when the president and the king of rock 'n' roll discussed the drug problem facing american youth. in his 1972 bid for re election, nixon defeated south dakota senator george mcgovern, the democratic candidate for president, by one of the widest electoral margins ever, winning 520 electoral college votes to mcgovern's 17 and nearly 61 percent of the popular vote. just a few months later, investigations and public controversy over the watergate scandal had sapped nixon's popularity. the watergate scandal began with the june 1972 discovery of a break in at the democratic national committee offices in the watergate office complex in washington, d.c., but media and official investigations soon revealed a broader pattern of abuse of power by the nixon administration, leading to his resignation. the watergate burglars were soon linked to officials of the committee to re elect the president, the group that had run nixon's 1972 re election campaign. soon thereafter, several administration officials resigned; some, including former attorney general john mitchell, were later convicted of offenses connected with the break in and other crimes and went to jail. nixon denied any personal involvement with the watergate burglary, but the courts forced him to yield tape recordings of conversations between the president and his advisers indicating that the president had, in fact, participated in the cover up, including an attempt to use the central intelligence agency to divert the fbi's investigation into the break in. (for more information about watergate, please visit the ford presidential library and museum's online watergate exhibit.) investigations into watergate also revealed other abuses of power, including numerous warrantless wiretaps on reporters and others, campaign "dirty tricks," and the creation of a "plumbers" unit within the white house. the plumbers, formed in response to the leaking of the pentagon papers to news organizations by former pentagon official daniel ellsberg, broke into the office of ellsberg's psychiatrist. adding to nixon's worries was an investigation into vice president agnew's ties to several campaign contributors. the department of justice found that agnew had taken bribes from maryland construction firms, leading to agnew's resigning in october 1973 and his entering a plea of no contest to income tax evasion. nixon nominated gerald ford, republican leader in the house of representatives, to succeed agnew. ford was confirmed by both houses of congress and took office on december 6, 1973. such controversies all but overshadowed nixon's other initiatives in his second term, such as the signing of the paris peace accords ending american involvement in the vietnam war in january 1973; two summit meetings with brezhnev, in june 1973 in washington and in june and july 1974 in moscow; and the administration's efforts to secure a general peace in the middle east following the yom kippur war of 1973. the revelations from the watergate tapes, combined with actions such as nixon's firing of watergate special prosecutor archibald cox, badly eroded the president's standing with the public and congress. facing certain impeachment and removal from office, nixon announced his decision to resign in a national televised address on the evening of august 8, 1974. he resigned effective at noon the next day, august 9, 1974. vice president ford then became president of the united states. on september 8, 1974, ford pardoned nixon for "all offenses against the united states" which nixon "has committed or may have committed or taken part in" during his presidency. in response, nixon issued a statement in which he said he regretted "not acting more decisively and forthrightly in dealing with watergate." birth date: january 9, 1913, in yorba linda, california death date: april 22, 1994, in new york city, new york father: francis anthony nixon (1878 1956)born: dec. 3, 1878, elk, ohiomarried: hannah milhous   june 25, 1908, whittier, californiadied: sept. 4, 1956, la habra, californiareligion: quaker mother: hannah milhous nixon (1885 1967)born: march 7, 1885, near butlerville, indianamarried: frank nixon on june 25, 1908, whittier, californiadied: september 30, 1967, whittier, californiafather: franklin milhous, 1848 1919mother: almira park burdg milhous, 1849 1943grandfather: joshua vickers milhous, 1820 1883grandmother: elizabeth price griffith, 1827 1923religion: quaker paternal grandparents: samuel brady nixon (1847 1914) and sarah ann wadsworth (1852 1886) maternal grandparents: franklin milhous (1848 1919) and almira park burdg (1849 1943) brothers: harold samuel nixon   born june 1, 1909; died march 7, 1933 at age 23 from tuberculosisfrancis donald nixon   born november 23, 1914; died june 27, 1987 at age 73 from cancer; m. clara jane lemke, august 9, 1942arthur burdg nixon   born may 26, 1918; died august 10, 1925 at the age of 7 of tubercular encephalitisedward calvert nixon   born may 3, 1930; died february 27, 2019; m. gay lynne woods, june 1, 1957 birth date: march 16, 1912, in ely, nevada death date: june 22, 1993, in park ridge, new jersey father: william martin ryan (1866 1930) mother: katharine "kate" halberstadt (1879 1926) siblings: children of william martin ryan and kate halberstadt:william george ryan, 1910 1997thomas sanford ryan, 1911 1991thelma catherine "pat" ryan, 1912 1993children of kate halberstadt by her first marriage to matthew bender (d. 1904):matthew gottfried bender, 1903 1973neva louise (bender) renter, 1904 1981 wedding: thelma catherine (pat) ryan and richard milhous nixon married on june 21, 1940, in the presidential suite of the mission inn in riverside, california, and honeymooned in mexico. daughters: patricia (known as "tricia") born on february 21, 1946 in whittier, california. on june 12, 1971, tricia became the sixteenth white house bride when she and edward finch cox of new york married in the rose garden. they have one son: christopher nixon cox (1979 ). julie born on july 5, 1948 in washington, d.c. julie wed dwight david eisenhower ii, grandson of president eisenhower, on december 22, 1968, in new york's marble collegiate church, while her father was president elect. they have three children: jennie elizabeth eisenhower (1978 ); alex richard eisenhower (1980 ); and melanie catherine eisenhower (1984 ). pets: checkers   cocker spaniel   given to nixon family in 1952, died september 6, 1964. buried at bideawee association pet cemetery memorial park, wantagh, nassau county, new york.white house petsking timahoe   irish setter   given to president nixon by staff in january 1969   died circa 1979vicky   miniature poodle   julie nixon eisenhower's pet   died circa 1976pasha   yorkshire terrier   trisha nixon cox's pet   died circa 1978 the following list illustrates the wide range of social, cultural, and political events that occurred during the years of richard nixon's life (1913 1994). january 20richard milhous nixon inaugurated president of the united states on the east portico of the u.s. capitol in washington, d.c. reference: public papers. inaugural address (1) february 23 march 2visits european capitals reference: public papers. remarks at andrews air force base on departing for europe (66) and remarks at andrews air force base on returning from europe (94). see also items (67) (93) for remarks made during the trip. march 14asks congress to approve modified antiballistic missile (abm) system reference: public papers. statement on deployment of the antiballistic missile system (109) march 17 (eastern standard time)nixon orders secret bombings of cambodia to destroy north vietnamese supply routes and base camps, commencing with "operation breakfast." reference: henry kissinger. the white house years. boston: little, brown, and co., 1979, pgs. 239 254 and h. r. haldeman. the haldeman diaries. new york: g. p. putnam's sons, 1994, pgs. 40 41 may 13delivers special message to congress on reforming military draft reference: public papers. special message to the congress on reforming the military draft (194) may 14supreme court justice abe fortas, who was appointed by president lyndon johnson in 1965, resigns reference: public papers. letter accepting the resignation of abe fortas as associate justice of the supreme court of the united states (197) may 21nominates warren burger as chief justice of the supreme court reference: public papers. remarks announcing the nomination of judge warren earl burger to be chief justice of the united states (209) and facts on file 1969 pgs. 343f2; 390d2 june 8meets with republic of vietnam president nguyen van thieu on midway island; announces troop reduction in vietnam reference: public papers. remarks at honolulu en route to a meeting with president nguyen van thieu of the republic of vietnam at midway island (june 7, 1969) (230); remarks following initial meeting with president thieu at midway island (231); joint statement following the meeting with president thieu (232); remarks at the conclusion of discussion with president thieu (233); remarks on departure from midway island (234); remarks on return from meeting with president thieu at midway island (june 10, 1969) (235) june 9by a vote of 74 3, senate confirms nomination of warren burger as chief justice of the supreme court reference: facts on file 1969 p. 376a1 june 23warren burger takes the judicial oath as chief justice of the supreme court reference: facts on file 1969 p. 390d2 july 20apollo 11 lands on the moon. astronauts neil armstrong and edwin "buzz" aldrin become the first people to walk on the moon, while crewmate michael collins orbits in the columbia command module. reference: public papers. telephone conversation with the apollo 11 astronauts on the moon (272) july 25nixon outlines what became known as the nixon doctrine whereby the united states would provide arms and aid  but not military forces  to its asian allies, who would provide their own military forces in resisting communist aggression. reference: public papers. informal remarks in guam with newsmen (279) july 26 august 2meets with asian leaders reference: public papers. remarks on arrival at manila, the philippines (281); remarks on departure from pakistan (306); see also items (282) (305) august 2 3visits romania reference: public papers. remarks on arrival at bucharest, romania (307); remarks on departure from romania (310); see also items 308 and 309 august 8nixon announces the family assistance plan, his welfare reform proposal providing direct payments to the working poor. rejected by congress, the fap never became law. reference: public papers. address to the nation on domestic programs (324) august 18nominates clement f. haynsworth, jr., as associate justice of the supreme court reference: public papers. appendix a, august 18, announcement by the press secretary of the nomination of judge clement f. haynsworth, jr., as associate justice of the supreme court october 15vietnam moratorium disturbances reference: john herbers. "vietnam moratorium observed nationwide by foes of the war." new york times, october 16, 1969, p.1 october 29supreme court orders school integration "at once" reference: alexander v. holmes county board of education, 396 u.s. 1218 (1969) november 3nixon outlines the policy of "vietnamization" whereby the united states would provide south vietnam with equipment and financial aid but withdraw american troops. he asks for the support of the "silent majority."****listen to excerpts from speech reference: public papers. address to the nation on the war in vietnam (425) november 21senate rejects nixon's nomination of clement f. haynsworth, jr., as associate justice of the supreme court by a vote of 55 to 45 reference: public papers. statement following the senate vote on the nomination of judge clement f. haynsworth, jr., as associate justice of the supreme court (454) and facts on file 1969 p. 759c2 november 24signs non proliferation of nuclear weapons treaty reference: public papers. statement on signing the instrument of ratification of the treaty on the non proliferation of nuclear weapons (458) december 30signs tax reform act of 1969 and defense appropriation act of 1970 reference: public papers. statement on signing the tax reform act of 1969 (501) and facts on file 1969 p. 839d3 january 1signs national environmental policy act of 1969 reference: public papers. remarks on signing the national environmental policy act of 1969 (1) january 19nominates g. harrold carswell as associate justice of the supreme court reference: public papers. appendix a, january 19, biographical data on judge g. harrold carswell nominated as associate justice, united states supreme court and robert semple. "southerner named to supreme court; carswell, 50, viewed as conservative," new york times, january 20, 1970, p.1 january 26vetoes the department of health, education, and welfare (hew)  labor appropriation bill reference: public papers. remarks on vetoing the labor hew oeo appropriations bill (13) and veto message on the labor hew oeo appropriations bill (january 27, 1970) (14) march 11announces an expanded program to combat drug abuse reference: public papers. statement announcing an expanded federal program to combat drug abuse (76) april 8senate rejects nixon's nomination of g. harrold carswell as associate justice of the supreme court by a vote of 51 to 45 reference: public papers. remarks to reporters about nominations to the supreme court (108) and statement about nominations to the supreme court (109) both made on april 9, as well as facts on file 1970 p. 237d2 april 14nominates harry a. blackmun as associate justice of the supreme court reference: public papers. statement about nominations to the supreme court (108 ftn.) and appendix a, april 14 april 30announces the launching of military attacks on enemy sanctuaries in cambodia reference: public papers. address to the nation on the situation in southeast asia (139) may 4national guardsmen fire on antiwar demonstrators at kent state university protesting the american invasion of cambodia, killing four and wounding nine students. reference: public papers. statement on the deaths of four students at kent state university, kent, ohio (140) may 12by a vote of 94 0, senate confirms nomination of harry a. blackmun as associate justice of the supreme court reference: facts on file 1970 p. 326a1 june 10announces extension of welfare reform proposals reference: public papers. statement announcing extensions of welfare reform proposals (183) and facts on file 1970 p. 420e2 july 9announces plan to establish the environmental protection agency and the national oceanic and atmospheric administration reference: public papers. special message to the congress about reorganization plans to establish the environmental protection agency and the national oceanic and atmospheric administration (215) september 27 october 5visits italy, vatican city, yugoslavia, spain, and great britain reference: public papers. remarks on arrival in rome, italy (304) and remarks at andrews air force base on returning from europe (329). see also items (305) (328) december 21elvis presley meets president nixon in the oval office reference: nixon presidential materials. white house central files he 5 1 [ex], december 21, 1970, memo for the president and the national archives' exhibit when nixon met elvis december 31signs clean air act of 1970 reference: public papers. remarks on signing the clean air amendments of 1970 (485). as enacted, the bill (h.r. 17255) is public law 91 604 (84 stat. 1676). february 11signs executive order 11582, "observance of holidays by government agencies," announcing the new federal holiday calendar. this change adds columbus day as a legal public holiday and designates certain mondays for five of the nine holidays. nixon did not issue a proclamation changing the federal holiday's name from "washington's birthday" to "president's day." reference: c. l. arbelbide, "by george, it is washington's birthday," prologue winter 2004: 31 37. february 16begins secretly recording conversations and meetings in the oval office and in the cabinet room reference: john powers, "the history of presidential audio recordings and the archival issues surrounding their use" (1996) available at: the university of virginia's miller center march 17signs increase in social security benefits reference: public papers. statement on signing bill increasing social security benefits (107) april 20supreme court rules that busing children as a means of dismantling dual school systems is constitutional reference: swann v. board of education, 402 u.s. 1 (1971) and facts on file 1971 p. 290c1 june 10ends u.s. china trade embargo reference: public papers. appendix a, june 10, statement: announcing termination of trade controls on nonstrategic u.s. exports to and imports from the people's republic of china  by press secretary ronald l. ziegler june 12daughter patricia ("tricia") nixon marries edward ridley finch cox at the white house. reference: washington post "tv coverage" june 12, 1971 "there will be no live television coverage of the white house wedding of tricia nixon and edward finch cox today" p. c2 june 13new york times begins publishing the "pentagon papers" that revealed duplicity of the kennedy and johnson administrations' vietnam policy. reference: sheehan, neil. "vietnam archive: pentagon study traces 3 decades of growing u. s. involvement." new york times, june 13, 1971, p. 1 june 30twenty sixth amendment to the constitution adopted granting eighteen , nineteen , and twenty year olds the right to vote reference: public papers. statement about ratification of the 26th amendment to the constitution (219) july 12signs emergency employment act reference: public papers. remarks on signing the emergency employment act of 1971 (227) and statement about the emergency employment act of 1971 (228) july 15announcement of the president's forthcoming trip to the people's republic of china reference: public papers. remarks to the nation announcing acceptance of an invitation to visit the people's repbulic of china (231) august 5establishes the national business council for consumer affairs reference: public papers. statement on signing executive order establishing the national business council for consumer affairs (252) august 15under the authority of the economic stabilization act of 1970 (84 stat. 799), announces phase i of the economic stabilization program, a new economic policy of wage and price controls and a new international economic system that results in the end of the gold standard reference: public papers. address to the nation outlining a new economic policy: "the challenge of peace" (264) and executive order 11615 september 3quadripartite agreement on berlin is signed by the united states, soviet union, united kingdom and france to establish trade and travel relations between west berlin and west germany and communications between east berlin and west berlin. reference: facts on file 1971 p. 686f3 "envoys sign berlin draft. the four envoys who negotiated the berlin draft agreement in august signed the accord sept. 3 after it had been approved by the governments of the u.s., britain, france, and the soviet union, the countries with responsibility for the future of berlin." september 17supreme court justice hugo black, who was appointed by president franklin roosevelt in 1937, resigns reference: public papers. remarks at a question and answer session with a 10 member panel of the economic club of detroit (297 ftn. p. 976) september 23supreme court justice john marshall harlan, who was appointed by president eisenhower in 1955, resigns reference: public papers. remarks at a question and answer session with a 10 member panel of the economic club of detroit (297 ftn. p. 976) october 21nominates lewis f. powell, jr., and william h. rehnquist as associate justices of the supreme court reference: public papers. address to the nation announcing intention to nominate lewis f. powell, jr., and william h. rehnquist to be associate justices of the supreme court of the united states (337) november 14phase ii of the economic stabilization program goes into effect reference: facts on file 1971 p. 887a1. "phase two begins" and executive order 11627 november 22 december 16the indo pakistani war of 1971 leads to india's victory and independence of bangladesh. reference: facts on file 1971 pgs. 846, 863, 885, 901, 924, 941, 961 963, and 985 december 6by a vote of 89 to 1, senate confirms lewis f. powell, jr., as associate justice of the supreme court reference: public papers. statement about senate confirmation of lewis f. powell, jr., and william h. rehnquist as associate justices of the supreme court (391) and facts on file 1971 p. 947f2 december 10by a vote of 68 to 26, senate confirms william h. rehnquist as associate justice of the supreme court reference: public papers. statement about senate confirmation of lewis f. powell, jr., and william h. rehnquist as associate justices of the supreme court (391) and facts on file 1971 p. 970f2 january 7announces candidacy for a second presidential term reference: public papers. letter announcing candidacy for renomination and reelection (6) january 7lewis f. powell, jr., and william h. rehnquist take the judicial oath as associate justices of the supreme court reference: facts on file 1972 p. 9c1 february 7signs federal election campaign act of 1971 reference: public papers. statement on signing the federal election campaign act of 1971 (46) february 21 28visits people's republic of china reference: public papers. chronology of visit to the people's republic of china (63a). see also items (64) (73) march 25signs equal employment opportunities act of 1972 reference: public papers. statement about signing the equal employment opportunity act of 1972 (105) may 8announces mining of north vietnamese harbors reference: public papers. address to the nation on the situation in southeast asia (147) may 15george c. wallace, governor of alabama, shot while campaigning reference: public papers. statement about attempt on life of governor george c. wallace of alabama (151) may 20 june 1visits austria, u.s.s.r., iran, and poland and signs the strategic arms limitation treaty (salt) reference: public papers. chronology of visit to austria, the soviet union, iran, and poland (162a). see also items (163) (188) june 17five burglars from a domestic espionage network working for the commitee to re elect the president are arrested inside the democratic national committee headquarters in the washington, d.c., watergate office complex. reference: watergate: chronology of a crisis. washington, d.c.: congressional quarterly, inc., 1975, p. xv june 23haldeman and nixon discuss the progress of the fbi's investigation, especially the tracing of the source of money found on the burglars. they propose having the cia ask the fbi to halt its investigation of the watergate break in by claiming that the break in was a national security operation. this conversation is commonly referred to as the "smoking gun." [see also: "smoking gun" conversation (741 02)] reference: nixon presidential materials. white house tapes, june 23, 1972, conversation number 741 2 june 29supreme court rules the death penalty unconstitutional reference: furman v. georgia, 408 u.s. 238 (1972) july 1signs veterans' compensation and relief act of 1972 reference: public papers. statement about signing the veterans' compensation and relief act of 1972 (218) august 23accepts the presidential nomination of the republication national convention in the convention hall, miami beach, florida reference: public papers. remarks on accepting the presidential nomination of the republican national convention (266) september 5olympic games disrupted when palestinian terrorists kill eleven israeli athletes reference: public papers. remarks to reporters about the assault on israeli athletes at the olympic games in munich, germany (287) november 7nixon is re elected to a second term in the largest land slide victory in american political history. reference: public papers. remarks on being reelected to the presidency (414) december 18 30"christmas bombing" of north vietnam reference: information please almanac atlas and yearbook 1974. new york: simon and schuster, 1973, p.68 and facts on file 1972 p.1013a1 december 30announces halt to bombing in north vietnam reference: public papers. appendix b, december 30, "...in a news briefing following the announcement, deputy press secretary gerald l. warren stated, 'the president has ordered that all bombing will be discontinued above the 20th parallel as long as serious negotiations are under way.'" and information please almanac atlas and yearbook 1974. new york: simon and schuster, 1973, p.68 january 11phase iii of the economic stabilization program goes into effect reference: public papers. special message to the congress announcing phase iii of the economic stabilization program and requesting extension of authorizing legislation (6) and executive order 11695 january 20inauguration reference: public papers. oath of office and second inaugural address (8) january 22supreme court rules in roe v. wade, stating that the constitutional right to privacy "is broad enough to encompass a woman's decision whether or not to terminate her pregnancy." reference: roe v. wade, 410 u.s. 113 (1973) january 23announces agreement reached on end to vietnam war reference: public papers. address to the nation announcing conclusion of an agreement on ending the war and restoring peace in vietnam (12) january 27peace treaty ending the vietnam war signed in paris reference: information please almanac atlas and yearbook 1974. new york: simon and schuster, 1973, p.68 and public papers. address to the nation announcing conclusion of an agreement on ending the war and restoring peace in vietnam (12) january 30james mccord and g. gordon liddy convicted of conspiracy, burglary, and wiretapping reference: watergate: chronology of a crisis. washington, d.c.: congressional quarterly, inc., 1975, p. xxi; 9 11; ford library watergate exhibit and united states v. george gordon liddy, everett howard hunt, james w. mccord, bernard l. barker, eugenio r. martinez, et al. (u. s. district court for the district of columbia cr 827 72) february 7u.s. senate creates the senate select committee on presidential campaign activities with senate resolution 60 reference: watergate: chronology of a crisis. washington, d.c.: congressional quarterly, inc., 1975, p. 3 and ford library watergate exhibit february 12first group of vietnam prisoners of war (pows) returns reference: public papers. statement on the return of the first group of american prisoners of war from southeast asia (february 11) (38) and james p. sterba, "airlift is begun." new york times, february 12, 1973, p.1 march 21conversation among president nixon, john dean, and h. r. haldeman. dean recaps the history of the watergate break  in and subsequent cover up for the president. dean tells the president that the cover up is "a cancer on the presidency" that must be excised or his presidency would be in danger. reference: nixon presidential materials. white house tapes, march 21, 1973, conversation number 886 8 march 27vetoes vocational rehabilitation bill reference: public papers. veto of the vocational rehabilitation bill (91) april 30accepts the resignations of assistant to the president h. r. haldeman, assistant to the president for domestic affairs john d. ehrlichman, attorney general richard kleindienst, and counsel to the president john dean. accepts responsibility for the watergate affair reference: public papers. statement announcing resignation of the attorney general and members of the white house staff, and intention to nominate elliot l. richardson to be attorney general (133) may 1senate votes for a resolution calling for the appointment of a watergate special prosecutor reference: watergate: chronology of a crisis. washington, d.c.: congressional quarterly, inc., 1975, p. 28 and senate resolution 105 may 2signs bill extending economic stabilization act of 1970 reference: public papers. statement about signing a bill extending the economic stabilization act of 1970 (137) july 11signs bill increasing social security benefits reference: public papers. statement about signing a bill increasing social security benefits (200) july 12last presidential conversation recorded on the secret taping system. reference: nixon presidential materials staff, national archives and records administration july 13during a private interview with investigators from the senate select committee on presidential campaign activities, alexander p. butterfield, administrator of the federal aviation administration and a former white house aide, reveals the existence of the secret white house taping system in advance of his public testimony reference: hearings before the select committee on presidential campaign activities of the united states senate, phase i: watergate investigation, book 5. washington: gpo, 1973 july 16during his testimony at the public hearings of the senate select committee on presidential campaign activities, alexander butterfield publicly reveals the existence of the white house taping system and details specifics of how the system worked reference: hearings before the select committee on presidential campaign activities of the united states senate, phase i: watergate investigation, book 5. washington: gpo, 1973 july 18phase iv of the economic stabilization program goes into effect reference: public papers. statement announcing measures to be taken under phase iv of the economic stabilization program (207) and executive order 11730 july 31representative robert f. drinan (d mass.) introduces impeachment resolution in congress reference: information please almanac atlas and yearbook 1974. new york: simon and schuster, 1973, p. 24 and lyons, richard l. "impeachment move offered." washington post, august 1, 1973, p. a1 august 10signs agriculture and consumer protection act of 1973 reference: public papers. statement on signing the agriculture and consumer protection act of 1973 (231) september 22henry a. kissinger sworn in as secretary of state reference: public papers. remarks at the swearing in of henry a. kissinger as secretary of state (268) october 6 24arab israeli war (yom kippur war) occurs when a coalition of arab nations led by egypt and syria attacks israel. reference: kissinger, henry. years of upheaval. boston: little brown, 1982 pgs. 450 575 october 10vice president spiro t. agnew resigns after corruption charges beginning when he was county executive of baltimore county, maryland. gerald r. ford replaced agnew as vice president. reference: public papers. letter to spiro t. agnew about his decision to resign as vice president (290) october 12nominates house minority leader gerald r. ford for vice president reference: public papers. remarks announcing intention to nominate gerald r. ford to be vice president (294) october 20attorney general elliot richardson and deputy attorney general william ruckelshaus resign rather than fire the watergate special prosecutor, archibald cox. acting attorney general robert bork fires cox. these events are commonly referred to as the "saturday night massacre." reference: public papers. letter accepting the resignation of elliot l. richardson as attorney general (308) and letter directing the acting attorney general to discharge the director of the office of watergate special prosecution force (309) october 24vetoes war powers resolution reference: public papers. veto of the war powers resolution (311) december 6gerald r. ford becomes vice president reference: public papers. appendix b, december 6, "the president accompanied gerald r. ford to the house chamber at the capitol where mr. ford took the oath of office as the 40th vice president of the united states." december 11signs bill establishing american revolution bicentennial administration reference: public papers. remarks on signing a bill establishing the american revolution bicentennial administration (356) and (87 stat. 697) january 2signs emergency highway energy conservation act reference: public papers. statement on signing the emergency highway energy conservation act (3) february 6house of representatives votes to proceed with their presidential impeachment probe reference: watergate: chronology of a crisis. washington, d.c.: congressional quarterly, inc., 1975, p. 521; ford library watergate exhibit; and house resolution 803 february 19meets with foreign minister saqqaf of saudi arabia and foreign minister fahmy of egypt on prospects for peace in the middle east reference: public papers. remarks following a meeting with arab foreign ministers to discuss prospects for peace in the middle east (52) march 6vetoes energy emergency bill reference: public papers. veto of the energy emergency bill (69) april 8signs fair labor standards amendments of 1974 reference: public papers. statement on signing the fair labor standards amendments of 1974 (104) april 29announces that nixon is publishing transcripts of forty six taped conversations subpoenaed by the watergate special prosecutor and the house judiciary committee reference: public papers. address to the nation announcing answer to the house judiciary committee subpoena for additional presidential tape recordings (122) may 7signs federal energy administration act of 1974 reference: public papers. remarks on signing the federal energy administration act of 1974 (130) june 10 19visits austria, egypt, saudi arabia, syria, israel, and jordan reference: public papers. remarks on departure for the middle east (170). see also items (171) (193) june 25 july 3visits belgium and the soviet union reference: public papers. remarks on departure for belgium and the soviet union (198). see also items (199) (211) july 24supreme court rules in u.s. v. nixon that president nixon must hand over subpoenaed tapes to john sirica, u.s. district court chief judge reference: public papers. statement announcing intention to comply with supreme court decision requiring production of presidential tape recordings (228) and 418 u.s. 683 (1974) july 27  30house judiciary committee adopts three articles of impeachment against the president reference: watergate: chronology of a crisis. washington, d.c.: congressional quarterly, inc., 1975, p. 752 and ford library watergate exhibit august 8in a television broadcast, nixon announces to the nation that his resignation that would be effective the next day. [see also: resignation letter] reference: public papers. address to the nation announcing decision to resign the office of the president of the united states (244) august 9leaves office. at 10:00 a.m. boards helicopter on the south grounds of the white house and flies to andrews air force base, maryland. from there, flies to el toro marine corps air station, california aboard the spirit of 76. reference: public papers. remarks on departure from the white house (245) and nixon presidential materials. daily diary, august 9, 1974, box rc 14 in many cases, the source cited is the public papers of the presidents: richard nixon. the public papers of the presidents volumes are available in print at many public or university libraries and on the following websites: 18001 yorba linda blvd, yorba linda, ca 92886 monday   sunday 10am 5pm plan your event

water was created first, life and land were created next, land promised to take care of all life, all life promised to take care of the land. a long time ago the indian people also promised to protect the land and have the responsibility to care for her. water represents an integral link in a world view where water is sacred and extremely important in preserving precious balance. water is the origin of and essential for the survival of all life. the columbia river system encompasses over hundreds of thousands of miles of streams with over a billion cubic feet per second a year passing along its shores into the pacific ocean. the system reaches deep into the interior of north america and drains over 259,000 square miles. the river flows from sources in the north american rockies, from mountain sources along snake river including the middle rocky mountains, from both sides of the cascade mountains, and flows through estuaries to the pacific. due to the cool clean water from many different sources the environment of the columbia plateau region produced abundant and diverse natural resources.the numbers of salmon, lamprey, steelhead, sturgeon and other fish were infinite. the fisheries were the staple of all life on the columbia plateau. eagles, bears, coyotes, cougars and indians were amongst those who relied on the salmon. elk, deer, antelope, and many other smaller mammals were abundant. the rivers and streams abounded with beaver and otters, seals and sea lions were known to venture up the columbia river to the great fisheries at celilo. several kinds of grouse, quail, and multitudes of geese and ducks as well as hawks, owls, badger, rabbits, and other wildlife shared the diverse wetland, steppe, desert, and upland . roots, nuts, berries, mushrooms, medicine, food, and fiber plants were seasonally available during the year. the hillsides were covered with lush bunch grasses, the timbered mountains were healthy, natural wildfires and floods were part of the cycle, the river vegetation was lush, and the water was cool and clean. the conditions were pristine and wildlife was naturally abundant. survival was not easy for indian people but the tools and resources were available to support tribal life since time immemorial. salmon, huckleberries, and other resources were gathered seasonally. as with most foods the huckleberries had to be dried for future or winter use. dried berries, roots, onions, nuts, herbs, spices, mushrooms, meat and fish would be dried and cached for later use. foods would be dried individually or sometimes would be mixed and pounded to form cakes for storage. the hunting, gathering, and procurement of food and raw materials for tools was the order of the day. living not only required a supply of raw material and food; an organizational strategy and an efficient disciplined skilled source of labor was required to ensure survival throughout the year. fish were dried and pounded into cakes and packed into baskets for winter subsistence or commerce. tribal fishermen would harvest from several different salmon runs occurring during different times of the year. many tribal members would move toward the columbia and its main tributaries during the fishing seasons. fishing was the primary means of livelihood and survival for tribal members. the conditions along the columbia and snake river systems were so good that all that was required for a fisherman was a dip net, gaff hook, small spear, or a hook and line depending on where and what season they were fishing. salmon ran during spring, summer, and again into the fall. some tribal members would stay at their usual and accustomed sites for the whole season others for the entire year. the extensive and productive fishery allowed some tribal people lived on the columbia river year round. as seasons permitted some tribal people would head into the mountains to hunt and gather plants, medicines, and other resources and again to fish in the tributary headwaters. columbia river people accessed the region through the river system by canoe and travel into the mountains was on foot sometimes relying on dogs to help pack the load. there were specific spiritual and practical preparations that had to be adhered to ensure prosperity and subsistence. it required a diverse cultural system, with rules and a specialized division of labor to ensure survival. without strict adherence to many of those cultural traditions survival for over 13,000 years would not have been possible. the entry of spring on the columbia plateau with the arrival of fresh plants and the dramatic return of the salmon are reaffirmed annually, year after year. first food feasts gather the tribe to celebrate the renewal of life cycles together with their community. spiritually, the tribes do not separate themselves from the surrounding natural world. individuals have a personal relationship with the creator through the sweathouse and individual weyekin. larger groups reinforce this personal relationship with the land and the creator in the long house. the longhouse is the community center where indian people come together as a community to practice religion, to mourn, to socialize, and to celebrate the occasion. water is honored first at the feasts. individual faith is also practiced on a personal level such as through the sweathouse. the sweathouse is utilized to communicate with the creator, for medicinal purpose, as well as to build of one's physical and spiritual strength. the winter on the columbia plateau was often hard and severe. careful preparation for winter was crucial for survival until the spring. social discipline, responsibilities and roles of men, women, children and elders were maintained and reinforced through daily educational experiences such as ritual, relationships, food and resource procurement, and language. youth learned from elders and were encouraged in the many skills required. extended family relationships were known by all, as well as where one's people originated from, their number, character, and abilities. indian names were given based on individual attributes. indian names also reflect the history and ancestry of the tribes with names reflecting past leaders, special events, or even places. elders remind us that there did not used to be tribes as we know them today, indian people were identified as so and so's people, were recognized by their family, or by where they come from. survival was depended on working with each other as one elder reminds us; "indians used to help each other. in the old days there was no welfare or aid. if someone was down people would help them." the walla walla and umatilla are river peoples among many who shared the big river (columbia). the cayuse lived along the tributary river valleys in the blue mountains. the tribes lived around the confluence of the yakama, snake, and walla walla rivers with the columbia river. the river system was the lifeblood of the people and it linked many different people by trade, marriage, conflict, and politics. the people fished, traded, and traveled along the river in canoes and over land by foot. the walla walla, were mentioned by lewis and clark in 1805 as living along the columbia just below the mouth of the snake river as well as along the yakama, walla walla, and snake rivers. the walla walla included many groups and bands that were often referred to by the village whence they originated from such as the wallulapums and chomnapums. the umatilla occupied both sides of the columbia river from above the junction of the umatilla river downstream to the vicinity of willow creek on the oregon side and to rock creek on the washington side. the river people were tied with other tribes along the river with close family, trade, and economic interests in the columbia river gorge and the northern plateau. the walla walla and the umatilla were a part of the larger culture of shahaptian speaking river people of southeastern washington, northeastern oregon, and western idaho. the cayuse, whose original language is known to linguists as waiilatpuan, lived: "..south of and between the nez perces and wallah wallahs, extending from the des chutes or wawanui river to the eastern side of the blue mountains. it [their country] is almost entirely in oregon, a small part only, upon the upper wallah wallah river, lying within washington territory." prior to the horse the cayuse were tributary fishermen. after the arrival of the horse and gun they sometimes were mounted warriors to protect their way of life. they lived throughout the lower columbia plateau from the cascade to the blue mountains, and grazed horses on the abundant grasses of southeast washington, the deschutes umatilla plateau. as horsemen the cayuse had close ties to the horsemen of the palouse and nimipu. the area from wallula to the mouth the yakama river where many members of the tribes lived could be considered the cross roads of the columbia river system. this area was shared by many related bands and was a central hub of tribal life on the columbia plateau. extended family relationships, social, and economic interests exists between many tribal people from throughout the columbia plateau. the people on the columbia plateau were multi lingual. tribal members learned and spoke several trade jargons, other indian dialects of shahaptian, as well as, salish, chinookian, and klamath. later they adapted to french and english. inter tribal relationships were based upon many needs key to the survival of columbia plateau life. tribes throughout the region established relationships like any sovereignty, for military security and protection, trade and economic prosperity, education, religion, and family ties. the umatilla, walla walla and the cayuse were very influential within the region in economics and politics of the plateau due to their key geographical setting, halfway between the pacific coast and the great plains. the geographic setting also placed the umatilla, walla walla, and cayuse in the prime situation of being the middlemen of trade between the buffalo country of the great plains and rainforest and ocean resources of the pacific coast cultures. tribal members relied on trade goods from the plains such as buffalo meat and hides, obsidian from the south as well as abundant seafood, plants, and medicines from the pacific northwest coast. gatherings were held at many places throughout the region. very large gatherings were known to be held and in the wallula area near the confluence of the snake river and at wascopum near the ancient fishing grounds of celilo falls and nine mile rapids. smaller gatherings were held in the many fertile river valleys in the region where peoples paths crossed during their seasonal round. at such gatherings many traditions such as language, religion, ritual, music, dance, legends, stories, feasts, sport, gambling, and families values were continued and passed on. perhaps due to the harsh realities of living close to the elements the tribes created many forms of entertainment often involved risk. the tribes on the plateau enjoyed gambling and wagering on stick games, foot races, wrestling, hide races, horse racing, or other competitive feats. wagers would include items of value such as raw materials, meats, fish, roots, berries, horses, slaves, finished products such as baskets, nets, bows, arrows and many other items of value. risk was sometimes greater as a participant in some of the races if one was fortunate to be there to ride. the way of life and daily risk were such that the people developed a great sense of honor and humor. trade and barter was a significant aspect of indian life on the plateau and essential for the survival of indian people. indians relied on other indians to provide goods they themselves were not able to obtain, were not available during their seasonal round, or not available in their country. often groups from a single village community would travel different directions as part of their seasonal round. through years of trade relationships, elders new exactly what other indians needed in exchange for goods they needed. the abundance of salmon in the columbia and snake rivers and their tributaries gave wealth to the tribes who fished there. they dried and processed the salmon for their own subsistence and for trade to the other tribes of the plateau and surrounding regions. the vast grasslands and the mountains populated with game, roots and berries were wealth for those tribes who occupied them. to protect the regions abundant resources and their way of life it became necessary for the tribes to develop and maintain strong warrior traditions to defend the people, resources, and territory from their enemies. a strong warrior tradition helped to provide a foundation for defense and survival. life on the columbia plateau was recorded by the people in traditions and art. songs, dances, and stories that embody the history of the indian people are passed down generation to generation by oral transmission. stories and symbols were weaved into the many baskets, hats, and bags utilized by the people. basketry evolved as a crucial survival tool and an art form. elaborate balls of long hand woven string kept tract of many events of the peoples history. rock art, cairns, and unique geological formations were present at many locations providing reference to the peoples lives. personal histories are reflected through the individuals preparation of personal regalia and dance. wealth was personal strength, family, community, comfort, and happiness. individual abilities were recognized by elders at an early age. headmen and chiefs were selected based upon their experience, abilities and skills. elders were respected and often leaders had council with elders. individuals were recognized for their spiritual strength, medicinal abilities, warrior qualities, recognized for their hunting and tracking abilities, fishing skills, art, weaving, education, discipline, healing, cooking or other skills. labor and skills were divided as many survival skills were necessary. conflicts and issues were resolved by council of elders and leaders. leaders were decisive when they believed that their followers had arrived at a consensus. if there was no consensus, powerful orations between the headmen and chiefs might soon swing the people on issues or problems of the day. if an individual disagreed with the decisions of the band, he did not, nor was he forced to comply with the decision. overall decisions of the tribe were arrived at by consensus of the people. planning and preparations were conducted in ways to prepare for future generations. a very elaborate and complex indian civilization once flourished on the columbia plateau. resources were so abundant that the development of elaborate cultural material was not necessary. today columbia plateau social traditions have been maintained on the umatilla indian reservation, the warm springs reservation of oregon, the nez perce indian reservation of idaho, on the yakama and colville reservations of washington, at communities like celilo falls, and priest rapids. many tribes from the columbia plateau are related to one another by blood and marriage, linguistics, traditions, history, and religion. the tribes owned a tremendous number of horses. the bunch grass covered hills of columbia basin was the home of the cayuse and appaloosa, as well as pintos, paints, and mustang horses. due to the extraordinary amount of horses owned by the indians living at the headwaters of the umatilla the rugged cayuse horse was identified with the people who have traditionally lived along the headwaters of the umatilla river, on the foothills of the blue mountains. appaloosas were bread for speed and ceremony by the cayuse, palouse, and nimipu (nez perce). the cayuse tribe was known for their large horse herds that grazed in the foothills of the blue mountains. cayuse ponies were stout and able to move quickly through the steep and timbered blue mountains prestige and wealth was partially reflected by the number of horses that a person owned. tribal elders tell us that in those days the indians had thousands and thousands of horses and that they needed areas for them to graze. there wasn't enough grazing area so they had to spread the horses out. the cayuse used to graze horses all through the umatilla basin, across the columbia river on the horse heaven hills all the way to hanford to the north, on the east side of the blue mountains from the grande ronde country all the way to huntington, to the john day river country in the south and all the way to the cascades in the west. the horse expanded shahaptian and cayuse culture, improved mobility and brought the cayuse, walla walla, and umatilla into contact with other indian cultures in montana, wyoming, canada, california, nevada, and throughout the pacific northwest. horses increased the tribes mobility allowing members to travel further, faster. horses allowed for new ideas to be introduced from new places as well as allowing other indians to travel and trade along the columbia river. while on the extended seasonal round, indians would hunt elk, deer, and gather plant foods. instead of packing resources themselves or by dog they would now dry meat and plants and pack them onto horses and move on to the next destination. they would go down to the river to trade and fish. if there was a surplus of food supplies and/or horses procured during the seasonal round the surplus would be used for trading to obtain desirable resources. history is often disregarded in today's fast moving, technological society, but for the remaining indian tribes living in the united states, history is a reality that still greatly affects the lives of the people on the reservations. the treaty of 1855 and subsequent acts of congress in the middle 1800's have directly impacted indian economics, politics, social structure, and the individual lives of the indians themselves. the united states was a new nation during the late 18th century and early 19th century. most of the world was being divided up amongst imperialistic european governments. by spouting right of religion, technology, and military might these nations were beginning to systematically claim land and lock up the new worlds natural resources for their needs, a practice that has continued into the 20th century. due to the political climate that imperialism created in europe, the united states were able to buy a parcel of land that was known as the "louisiana purchase from the french." by the stroke of a quill pen "all louisiana, from the gulf to the 49th parallel, and west to the rocky mountains, became the territory of the united states for the insignificant price of $15,000,000. " immediately thereafter, then president thomas jefferson, sent lewis and clark forward on a mission to explore the purchase and to strengthen the united states claims on the lands beyond the rocky mountains to the pacific. although the coast was explored early on the pacific northwest was still predominately unclaimed by european nations, the french were there and russians, spanish, and the british were rapidly moving in, trying to claim the wealth of the regions resources. disease had already moved up the columbia many times prior to the arrival of the americans. by the time louis and clarke traveled the columbia it was estimated that two different outbreaks of western disease had decimated the people living along the big river. the spanish reached the northwest coast as early as 1775 and the english in 1796. european contacts at the coast spread disease rapidly inland and disease claimed whole villages. the inevitable reality was that the land was claimed by political circles beyond the scope of the tribes. no government at the time doubted that resident tribes had the superior military capability and controlled the region. tribal peoples knew the land intimately and were considered as necessary and crucial allies by euro americans. without direct involvement with the tribes, euro american interests could not compete with each other. since the french and indian war alliances with indian tribes were highly desirable on political and economic levels. the resources that euro americans were first driven by were furs and salmon. oregon was eventually nicknamed the beaver state. wealth in trade was furs and nothing was going to stop the interests competing for furs. local native inhabitants were viewed either as necessary allies for exploiting a landscape foreign to the traders or as simply in the way. "the incentive of great gains in the fur trading business was a direct cause of the exploration and settlement of the oregon country." historically we should not undervalue the influence of the beaver as an international commodity and the impacts that procurement of such a resource had on the environment. because of the immense value of its pelt we should not underestimate the greed of the entrepreneur or the impacts of such people on the environment. the economic factor driving fur trading was the european and chinese market demand for furs. the communities that were benefiting from the furs were far removed from the environmental impacts that their demands created. the fur traders introduced new technological goods such as steel, knives, pot, pans, blankets, etc.. this was done to entice the indians in the fur trade. the fur companies in fact had already established a long tradition of working with indians to exploit their knowledge of the environment. iroquois indians employed by fur companies came to live in the pacific northwest. fur traders, however, had to make local connections. "the umatilla abounded with beaver, and the indians were induced to trap this animal, as its skin could easily be sold to the white traders." the tribes essentially became involved in the traders competition for furs. early contacts between the pacific northwest tribes and the white culture were initially economic in nature. initially the tribes viewed the goods and supplies that foreign traders and trappers offered as a welcome addition to their already thriving economy. fort nez perce was established sometime around 1817 1818 as a trading outpost at the confluence of the walla walla and columbia river. in 1835 it was renamed fort walla walla. the first explorers to the columbia basin were often amazed by the amount of natural resources that were present and were eager to exploit them. indian regulation of trade was enforced by the headmen and chiefs. the northwest fur employees eventually abided by the rules set down by the indians simply because of the control the indians exerted over their neighbors and for locational and business purposes. tariffs were levied against the trading post for incoming and outgoing goods by the leaders of the bands whose forts occupied their lands. contacts with the trading posts had initially introduced the indian nations to christianity. this was done through british protestants, and french canadian trappers who were for the most part of the catholic faith. the trappers were much impressed by the native religion in the area and found no conflict between christianity and native religion. fur companies often encouraged their men to take indian wives and marry into the tribes to strengthen trade relationships. protestant missionaries had been in contact with indians and some of the headmen in the region. the american board of foreign missions in 1835, promised to locate missions in cayuse and nez perce territories. in 1836, dr. marcus whitman and henry spalding arrived at fort walla walla. whitman founded his mission with the cayuse at waiilatpu near walla walla, washington. spalding was assigned to convert the nez perce people and founded a mission at lapwai, idaho. in 1838, two catholic priests, fathers blanchet and modesta demers of the diocese of quebec, arrived at fort walla walla to estimate the possibilities of beginning a catholic mission in the territory. saint rose of the cayuse was established near walla walla. in 1847 father john b. brouillett established a mission called st. anne along the umatilla river in a cabin donated by chief taawitoy. in 1847, dr. whitman and his followers were killed by a band of cayuse, along with some of their umatilla, and nez perce allies. the reasons for this are many and varied but included: whitman claimed to be a doctor and preacher as well as being a missionary, merchant, and trader. in the tribes tradition the failure of a medicine man was sometimes death, especially, when peoples lives were believed taken by that medicine man. differences in indian and non indian values and attitudes set the stage for the so called "cayuse war" of 1847 1850. actually, the "war" consisted of minor skirmishes with cayuse led war parties against the territorial militia and responses by the oregon territorial malitia massacring any unfortunate indian they stumbled across. the war parties were represented by mostly interior tribesmen who felt compelled to turn the immigrations back. the war ended in 1850 when five cayuses sacrificed themselves to stop the violence and injustice toward their people. they were convicted of killing whitman and were hanged in oregon city. they were essentially sentenced whether guilty or not to appease non indian concerns and fears. the facts that whitman was living on their lands by their customs, had not converted many indians as a missionary, was believed to have brought disease to the tribes and was encouraging non indians to take indian lands never entered the case. after the events at whitman mission the cabin was burned. it was almost two decades before the catholic missionaries returned. the oregon territory and columbia river basin were enticing to those living in the over crowded east coast. economic conditions for non indians were hard in the east. most of the land was already owned and very expensive. enticing stories of the west including the columbia basin had made it into print on the east coast, romanticizing the west as a "garden of eden" with unlimited resources. such encouraged people to emigrate to the oregon territory. "passed by way of the columbia river, the land along which is a mere collection of sand and rocks, and almost without vegetation. but a few miles from the columbia toward the hills and mountains, the prairies open wide covered with a low grass of the most nutritious kind, which remains good throughout the year. in september, there are slight rains, at which times the grass starts; and in october and november, there is a good coat of green grass, which remains until the ensuing summer; and about june, it is ripe in the lower plains, and drying without being wet, is like made hay. it is in this state that it remains until the autumn rains revive it. the herdsman in this extensive valley of more than one hundred and fifty miles in width, could at all times keep his animals in good grass by approaching the mountains, on the declivities of which there is almost any climate; and the dry grass of the country is at all times excellent." early euro american occupation in the pacific northwest was extremely difficult and only fur traders and missionaries dared to make their way into the interior. the first wagon train into the oregon country was in 1843 however, successive waves of emigrants were to cross the united states on the oregon trail. "reports of explorers and fur traders aroused interests in the new frontiers promise of rich land and bounteous life." "in 1843 nearly 900 immigrants crossed the plains to the pacific northwest." "an estimated 1,200 settlers followed the oregon trail in 1844. the number swelled to 3,000 in 1845. the boundary line was approved by treaty in 1846 and from that time on immigrants knew they were settling in american territory." "the great tide of migration in 1847 an estimated 4,700 settlers coming into oregon". (meacham 1923) pioneer journals from the oregon trail mention meeting cayuse families returning from buffalo hunting in the mountain valleys of idaho. quite often, the tribes traded their fine horses, and later their harvested vegetables, with the explorers and emigrants for cattle, clothing, blankets, and utility items. their descriptions also alluded to the wealth of the land. "...we are now traveling down the umtillo river the indians hear has a great maney horses very fatt and the best i ever saw in my life they are very rich som indians has from 50 to 100 horse and cattle in propostion they raise plenty of corn and potaters and peas pumpkins squashes cabeges &c. this countery is very fertile..."   absalom b. harden, journal, 1847 the west at that time was very rough and hard on settlers from the east. the country was described as forlorn and formidable, a deep wild place. two thousand miles and six months of hard overland travel or a long voyage by sea was required to get to the oregon territory. estimates from 1842 to 1849 indicate a total of 12, 287 immigrants moved through tribal homelands. the indians' view of the immigration were mixed. the tribesmen saw the travelers as poor people moving through the country. their horses and cattle were as exhausted as the immigrants themselves, who were often dirty and hungry. for the most part, both races viewed each other as inferior people. indian tribes were willing to live with the newcomers until relations were strained by continual immigration into their land, loss of resources, disease and other pressures. certainly there were cultural differences between indians and non indians but in the beginning there was diplomacy, communication, and consideration. after time non indians began to take land the u.s. government had offered that it did not own. initially the tribes welcomed the newcomers but as the steady stream of emigrants arrived steady pressures on lands and resources began. the tribes were faced with people encroaching on their lands and enforced their laws as dictated through their traditions, and cultural practices. in some cases the tribes actions were defensive and aggressive and non  indians viewed this as hostile. the tribes have always sought to live peacefully with their non indian neighbors only to be served a helping of injustice. as immigrations began to increase, the tribes heard rumors that government representatives were plotting to steal the homelands. the donation land act of 1850, and territorial approval of settlers in the columbia plateau without regard to tribal consent, made for a pressure packed situation. the american government was encouraging its citizens to move to the oregon territory. this was without first extinguishing the indians' claims to their lands, and by depriving them of their usual and accustomed means of livelihood. the united states made purchases and claims for vast portions of western north america. this was intended to alleviate the economic pressures in the east. consideration was never given to the native americans already living there. treaties on the plateau were an after thought when the tribes provided a military obstacle and hazard to settlers. treaties would be the tool to move all indians to reservations. the execution of the whitman's and the so called "native hostility" in the columbia region clearly demonstrated the political and military control of the region. this was considered unstable by non indians wishing to settle in the area. as more and more non indians entered the country the mood became hostile and indian uprisings and wars erupted in protest of this invasion. this made the fur traders, missionaries, settlers and the united states government uneasy. eastern oregon was essentially closed to non indians for a period of twelve years. in 1851, the tribes negotiated with anson dart, the commissioner of indian affairs, whom wished to build a sawmill. instead of a sawmill, the utilla indian agency was built on the banks of the umatilla river near present day echo, oregon. this agency was burned down. with the increasing influx of settlers, miners, soldiers and cattlemen, the tribes began planning to rid themselves of the intruders once again. in early 1853, plans were agreed upon by kamiakin, of the more numerous yakamas, as well as most of the interior tribes who had heard the rumors to displace them. word was sent out by runners contacting other tribes in the northwest. councils were met with tribes from northern california, shoshone and bannocks in southern idaho, and flatheads of montana. tribes on the columbia plateau were protective of their sovereignty and had elaborate warrior traditions and defended the people of the plateau from their enemies. due to the military strength of tribes such as the cayuse, nez perce, palouse, and certain bands of the yakama the united states began to meet with the indian tribes in the northwest to negotiate and sign treaties in an attempt avoid further violence. the primary purpose of the treaty process with indian tribes from the united states perspective was to establish peace by removing the indians from the land and to make way for industry and settlers. the unstable situation in eastern oregon was the product of the 1850 oregon donation land act. emigrants were given land as an incentive to move out west but the political environment was not always safe. by 1854, governor joel palmer of oregon had convinced the indian department that no further settlements were to be established east of the cascades until the indians there could be moved to reservations by treaty. by the end of july, congress authorized negotiation of treaties in order to purchase the indian lands, and establish a reservation for indians. isaac steven's then became governor of the washington territories and had a program of action. stevens' program of action included; settling indian and foreign claims, conducting rapid surveys, provide adequate transportation, educational opportunities, and military protection for newly arriving emigrants. on may 29, 1855, a council was convened at the old indian grounds on mill creek, six miles above waiilatpu in the walla walla valley to discuss the situation in eastern oregon and to negotiate a treaty. officiating were isaac i. steven's, governor and superintendent of indian affairs for the washington territory, and joel palmer, superintendent of indian affairs for the oregon territory. they met with chiefs, delegates, and headmen from the nez perces, cayuse, walla walla, yakamas, and palouses, with representatives of other tribes present. the events surrounding and the results of the treaty council of 1855 at wai i lat pu had profound impacts on the columbia plateau. the treaty of june 9, 1855 between the united states and members of the walla walla, cayuse, and umatilla tribes was signed. the umatilla indian reservation, the yakama indian reservation and the nez perce reservations were created during these negotiations. originally stevens and palmer had planned on putting all the indians in the region on the yakama indian reservation. the treaty negotiations determined otherwise. the umatilla, walla walla, and cayuse tribes agreed to live on the umatilla indian reservation. the cayuse, walla walla, and umatilla had ceded 6.4 million acres to the united states and reserved rights for fishing, hunting, gathering foods and medicines, and pasturing livestock. they had also reserved 510,000 acres on which to live. the treaty was subsequently ratified by congress on march 8, 1859. in negotiating such treaties stevens, was successful in his drive toward opening up the columbia river and the washington territory. the indian people who traditionally lived along the rivers for a major part of the year were systematically removed sometimes by military force to the reservations. this was the actual beginning of non indian control of the land. by 1858, the materially superior forces of the americans had prevailed and most of the warring tribes were at peace. because of the prolonged wars and conflicts with the united states the indians were impoverished and greatly reduced in number. to make matters worse, the shoshoneans begin to take advantage of the war weakened shahaptians of the region by constantly raiding for slaves and stock. the federal government forced the indians onto the umatilla reservation and the ceded indian territories were declared public domain and were auctioned at public sale, usually to land speculators and the railroads. g. h. abbott was given orders by the indian department and forced by the settlers, under threat of hanging indians, to move the cayuses, umatillas and walla wallas to their reservation. by this time, many settlers had moved into the walla walla valley and conflicts between the indians and non indians was common place. as for the indians on the reservation, there were problems with ever increasing immigration both east and west. whiskey peddling, horse stealing, and other depredations by the outsiders were beginning to cause the superintendent of the umatilla agency many problems. the transition to reservation life was not easy but the tribes had little choice. the tribes and bands at the walla walla treaty council were very close with family or traditional ties. families and friends had to determine where and what reservation to live on. it was not an easy decision. the decision also meant a change in lifestyle. instead of relying on each other indians were taught the christian work ethic and self sufficiency. many of the people went to raising gardens along the umatilla in one to five acre lots. trade continued with the non indians. the people still had many horses and were able to fish for salmon which were still the heart of their economy. leadership on the reservation was constantly challenged by the agents assigned in the early 1860's. the agents were charged with educating and civilizing the indians. conflicts arose when the agents did not use the chiefs and headmen, or when the agent directly supervised the people without the consent of the leaders. some of the elders have stated that agents refused to recognize traditional leader purposely because the treaty called for annual payments to the chiefs of the tribes that the government representatives did not want to pay. children were educated by the catholic or protestant missionaries. strict discipline was adhered to hair was cut, uniforms were worn, and children were punished for speaking their native language. some indians refused to go live on the reservations. homli and smohalla were amongst those who refused to go to the reservations. they were concerned about their traditional ways, the old ways. they were not interested in the new god, farming, or new ways of life. they only wished to live by the unwritten traditional law. father brouillett was replaced by father adolph vermeersh a belgian priest who rebuilt st. anne's near the present government campus in 1865. there was a turnover in the resident clergy and in 1883, st. annes was moved to a site below emigrant hill and included a boarding school. the school was rare in that it was run by the catholics under the direction of the government superintendent. a church was built in this location in 1884 and was named st. joseph's. the sisters of mercy operated the school until government officials began to interfere more and more. finally the sisters closed the school in 1888 and opened a new one in pendleton. the resident priest moved and was replaced. father urban grassi, sj., arrived on july 8, 1888. he moved the st. anne's mission to a more convenient location a quarter mile to the east and began the development of a school. tutuilla mission a protestant mission was established in 1882 introduced by a nez perce missionary. the black robed french catholics and protestants would have a lasting effect on the tribes educating indian children and ministering catholicism. the jesuits left in 1961 and the baker diocese took over management and a new st. andrew's was dedicated in 1964. the reservation boundaries were under attack even before it was surveyed. public meetings were held in lagrande, pendleton, and walla walla by the late 1860's, to remove the indians from the umatilla reservation. the settlers had discovered that indian lands were capable of producing wheat, and the mountains were good for livestock grazing. roads and trails were utilized by the whites constantly encroaching on reservation lands. the settler's were in hopes of pushing the tribes into another war, the objective being to extinguish the reservation. the u.s. government had agreed in the treaty to move the oregon trail south of the reservation to prevent problems. the establishment of a reservation caused problems for non indians as well. there were restrictions and rules on the reservation that were not elsewhere in the state. for example, there could be no alcohol on the reservation. the tribes had reserved 510,000 acres for the reservation in 1855. the actually surveyed reservation totaled approximately 245,000 acres or approximately half of the reservation reserved by treaty. much of the debate arises over the location of "lee's encampment". whether its location was in meacham where the boundary was surveyed and the location where a major lee of the oregon militia once camped, or a place by five points creek on the grande ronde where jason lee the missionary once wintered, has never been resolved. it is known that the town of meacham near the summit of the blue mountains was a rest area for oregon trail travelers and was to be along the future railroad. the tavern and brothel at meacham made a good deal of money serving a wide variety of refreshments. the constant pressure of non indians on indian land was great. non indian encroachment of tribal lands was causing many problems especially if the indian land had any exploitable value to the non indian. in 1877 the lower nez perce went to war over their homelands after others renegotiated and sold their reservation lands out from under them because non indians had an interest in the land. members of the cayuse tribe frustrated at the changes and pressures brought by the united states fought with joseph and his people in the nez perce war. other tribes such as the yakama and bannocks would also end up fighting against the injustice on non indians claiming their homelands. non indians desired to own lands on the umatilla indian reservation that were seen as valuable agricultural lands. by 1878 in the "annual report" from the commissioner of indian affairs it states in a discussion about the umatilla indian reservation. non indians were quick to point out that horses were impacting the environment. basically, horses were preventing them from wheat farming on the reservation. the agent reported: "the rapid settling of that portion of the state has surrounded the reservation with white farming population, who have already run across it a telegraph line and several roads. the route of the blue mountain and columbia river railroad line transverses the southern portion, and the junction of the road with a proposed branch line is to fall within reservation boundaries. this valuable tract is occupied by only 1,000 indians, who cultivate between two and three thousand acres, and use of so much of the remainder of their lands as is required to furnish range for their 22,000 head of stock. for several years past the citizens of oregon have made persistent effort to have these lands open to settlement, and several bills to that effect have been introduced in congress. this desire, which, gains strength yearly, is well known to the indians, and begets a feeling of restlessness and uncertainty decidedly unfavorable to their progress in civilization." this encroachment was devastating to tribal culture and economic well being. as tribal people, they were horsemen and fishermen, and wealth was determined in terms of livestock particularly horses. horses allowed tribal members the means to travel to usual and accustomed resource procurement areas. the umatilla reservation was prime for the grazing of horses and the natural resources were "extraordinarily rich". in fact, early indian agents descriptions of the umatilla reservation described the grazing and grass resources as "without limit". "the horses and cattle are always in splendid condition, and scarcely need any care in winter as grazing is good all year rendering it a very popular as well as profitable business to raise stock." as a result on continued pressure from non indian citizens, the us congress enacted legislation in the late 1800s, which continued reducing the size of the umatilla reservation. the legislation created land allotments for the individual tribal members at that time, then proclaimed the remaining acres as surplus and opened it up for settlement by non indians. as a result of these things, today the umatilla reservation is 172,882 acres, of which 52% is in indian ownership and 48% is owned by non indians. we have a checkerboarded ownership pattern and non indians still own land and reside within the umatilla reservation. by the 1870's, many government and non government policies had been developed to subdue and eradicate the power of indian nations. treaties were entered into for the purpose of physically controlling the nations and for extinguishing the claims of indians on their territory. by the 1880's the 1855 treaty and reservation had been breached by non indians many times. the walla walla's were not paid for peo peo mox mox's land claim; the oregon trail was not moved south of the reservation; the reservation boundary was mis surveyed; the town of pendleton was allocated 640 acres of the reservation; and the railroad was making plans to come through the reservation. by direction of the secretary of interior, an indian agent arbitrarily drew a line and removed the southern reservation. in 1885 the slater allotment act was introduced and it turned into a prototype as a model for the sale of "surplus" indian allotments. by 1887 the dawes allotment act was in full swing and approximately 100,000 acres on the umatilla indian reservation were allotted to non indians. approximately 30,000 acres were put up for sale. the goal was to acculturate tribal members by intermixing non indians amongst tribal members. by doing such indian culture, religion, tradition, leadership and government would be destroyed and the indians would enter the "american melting pot". most of this allotted land was inevitably used for agriculture, specifically wheat and livestock. indian agents on the reservations were ordered to "educate and civilize" the indians, which meant missionaries, schools, apprenticeships, farming, and the allotment of lands. by 1890, indian treaty lands in the united states had been reduced by half. the umatilla reservation, through the allotment, or dawes act of 1887, was reduced from 245,699 acres to 158,000 acres. many "forced" fee patents were issued to individuals who were described as being "competent" by the agent and his "committee from town." indians and "breeds" weren't often considered competent. much of the 87,699 acres not allotted was purchased by land speculators, timber, or sheep industries. with the influx of non indians came many new things and ideas that would affect the columbia basin. with the settlers came land ownership, fences, livestock, agriculture, and new species of plants some of which are now considered noxious weeds in the basin. at the time, the tribes began to take residence on the umatilla indian reservation and non indians began to make the majority of decisions about the use and management of the environment. the railroad came through without really ever trying to meet any of the tribes concerns. they already had their plans and railroad designs and were paid in subsidy from the united states to construct their projects. the tribes had asked the railroad company to tie its new rail line into the grade the ran up wildhorse creek instead of coming out of meacham creek and heading down the umatilla river. the tribes were concerned about child safety, livestock, land, water, and root fields. the railroad, the biggest business of the time, was only concerned with real estate and money. the umatilla river and meacham creek were irreparably damaged by railroad construction efforts with the arrival of the non indian came the western euro american system of government, religion, politics, legislation and economics. legislation such as the railroad land grants and the allotment acts were developed that encouraged exclusively non indian interests. the indians whom had ceded lands to the united states with reserved rights were relegated to staying on the reservation and had to have permission to leave. they were prevented from accessing many of their traditional use areas. during the historic period ctuir lands were reduced from over 6.4 million acres to 158,000 acres. allotment acts, incentives for railroads, miners, ranchers, and settlers led to increased pressure on lands significant to the tribes and even the reservation. the tribes interests were mishandled by agents, congressmen, and agencies. the situation was similar to the proverbial "fox guarding the hen house". the reflection is that the tribes wealth was reduced from a status of relative wealth and well being to poverty as a direct consequence of actions and policies of the u.s. government. the treaty and the next century would be a harsh introduction for the tribes to paper laws, politics, money, and greed in the american capitalistic and democratic system. four decades after establishment of the reservation a number of congressional acts were passed. the tribes started the twentieth century playing legislative catch up trying to find out what had happened to our homelands. the acts for the most part were land based, punitive actions on the part of congress to correct the failing allotment act of 1887. the correction was not to return lands, the failure was that the allotment acts failed to integrate indians into american society. in 1891, the leasing act and subsequent amendments were implemented on the umatilla reservation. the passage of the lease act promptly placed the non indians in a situation whereby they could approach indians on a one to one basis for control of indian resources. in umatilla county political lobbies and groups were formed by local farmers and traders as early as 1900 to promote their interests on a legal avenue. the burke act of may, 1906, authorized the secretary of interior to issue fee patents to indians deemed "competent." this too, expanded the market for sale of indian lands. heirship acts from 1902 to 1916 further authorized the secretary to sell lands of indians deemed competent or incompetent. money received was held for a 25 year period.congress passed an act on july 1, 1902, for the sale of 70,000 acres of timber and range land now allotted ("surplus treaty boundary lands"). transactions with public and semi public agencies were conducted during the early 1900's. many of these transactions were based upon article 10 of the 1855 treaty, which specified creation of roads, easements, and rights of way for "public purposes." during this time questions were being raised about the management and status of the indians and reservations. there was discussion about the wheeler howard act and other legislation being passed by non indians that supposedly "in the best interests" of the tribes. everywhere you went tribes were talking about the indian reorganization act (ira). indians enrolled from adjoining reservations were living on the umatilla indian reservation. some had inherited allotments and were living on them. issues were many the reservation was fractionated, there were hunting and fishing issues, horse roundup issues, and legislative issues. at this time many older indians still spoke french and council was conducted in nez perce. indians who attended meetings would contribute what ever they could to have representatives attend local, state and national meetings. nationally the conditions on reservation was very noticeable. the miriam report of 1928, was a comprehensive study of post congressional acts and their impact upon the indian communities. the result of the study indicated mismanagement of indian affairs by congress and recommended a change in policies. as a result of the 1928 miriam report, the indian reorganization act of 1934 was offered to the umatilla tribes as a reform of the federal government's indian policy. at that time the reservation dwellers were satisfied with how the bia handled all our affairs relying on their trust responsibility and the success of getting lands returned to trust. this system also allowed for the continuing to use the traditional way of family leaders meeting in council. due to the efforts of tribal members petitioning local officials and politicians in washington d.c., lands not sold or surplused to non indians were taken off the market and were set aside and managed by the bureau of indian affairs. the tribal council voted by a 2 to 1 margin not to accept the provisions of the indian reorganization act. tribal elders recall that farmers, ranchers, and merchants in the area vigorously opposed the indian reorganization act. the non indians claimed that the concept of i.r.a. was communistic and would further erode the powers of the council. after ten more years of discussion the tribes were able to have lands restored to the reservation. the johnson creek restoration act of 1939, returned 14,140 acres of land to the confederated tribes. the 14,000 acres of 352,000 taken were returned to trust status through a series of congressional actions aimed at improving the lot of reservation indians. world war ii ended any appropriations to through this act. goals were not being attained at a very fast rate under the current system if anything times were worse complicated by a depression and world wars. the issues were becoming bigger and more complicated. the tribes were no longer satisfied with those agents charged with upholding the treaty of 1855. for years since the treaty, indians had to continually fight to exercise their rights off the reservation and at usual and accustomed fishing locations. the bia had failed to uphold the tribes treaty rights. tribal members were arrested for exercising their rights, even after the courts reaffirmed their rights, often it was racism that prevented tribal members from exercising treaty rights and cultural practices. fishwheels and canneries did extensive damage to the fisheries and often inhibited or prevented the tribes ability to access the fish. hydroelectric and reclamation dams were being developed on the columbia river and tributaries were continually threatened by irrigation. ancient usual and accustomed fishing locations along the river were becoming lost or worse useless. in the case of the umatilla river the salmon were made extinct by irrigation and reclamation efforts as early as 1914. canneries tried to exclusively take fish from the tribes usual and accustomed fishing locations. local communities were arresting indians for fishing off the reservation or for "out of season" fishing. the ctuir and other treaty tribes had to spend resources reaffirming and educating non indians about their rights. these and other assaults on many of the treaty reserved resources crucial for tribal survival necessitated the tribes to become directly involved in a new way to manage affairs. the bia had continued to manage the reservation but by the 1940's, the tribal council found itself in a dilemma due to the lack of authority to control outside interests, especially with regards to lands passing out of indian ownership or other public and unclaimed lands where resources were being impacted. another concern of the council was poor management and conservation practices of the non indian farmers and ranchers. erosion of farm lands, poor logging practices and overgrazing were primary concerns. projects such as roads were not being finished. other projects like bonneville dam in 1939 were being completed threatening many tribal resources. beginning in 1947, a committee of tribal members were authorized by the tribal council to begin researching ways in which the tribes could attain more authority over their affairs. the committee sought bureau of indian affairs assistance. at one council a bia employee and nez perce enrollee had talked about organizing under a constitution so we could have a tribal government that could handle our tribal affairs like a business." he was a well respected veteran and he helped to work out the details. in 1949, a constitution and by laws were adopted by a very close majority vote of the council with 9 votes being the "decisive factor." the establishment of the constitution and by laws as the operating charter effectively brought to an end the power of the headsmen and recognized chiefs in the tribal council. from then on we have been the confederated tribes of the umatilla indian reservation, a confederation in the homeland of the cayuse. the new leaders of the tribes, the board of trustees, would be elected. issues were pressing as usual. by laws, which were unheard of before, had to be developed, membership determined, hunting and fishing rights issues addressed. there were land and housing issues. it was very complicated and the new ctuir board of trustees needed advice. in 1950, the first board of trustees began to identify ways in which they could improve the reservation and attend to the needs of the people. financing for most tribal projects were attained through timber sales and other smaller sources of income. the needs of the community increased with additional concerns being education, standard housing, and health care. the concept of economic development was established through tribal resolutions aimed at resource management in timber, range and farming. in 1951, the umatilla tribes directed its attorney to file a claim for lands ceded to the u.s. government at the signing of the treaty of june 9, 1855. the tribes contended that thousands of acres had been excluded from the reservation, and damages from the loss of fish and eel runs in the umatilla river were also to be addressed in the courts. the indian claims commission issued its final judgment in favor of the confederated tribes for an out of court settlement. this however was just the beginning of a long judicial process to address problems with the treaty negotiations of 1855. during 1953, the tribe received $4,198,000 from the united states for the loss of fishing sties at celilo, oregon inundated by the dalles dam. all enrollees realized approximately $3,494.61 in per capita payments. at this time approximately 47% of the umatilla enrollees lived off of the reservation. in addition the u.s. army corps of engineers agreed to construct 400 acres of fishing access sites to replace the ones inundated. celilo falls was inundated by the dalles dam in 1957 closing one of the tribes greatest resources. the last salmon feast at celilo was held that year. other dams like john day, mcnary and the projects on the snake river decimated the fisheries. unemployment was very high at 60+%. the tribes were looking for opportunities to get tribal members to work. the tribes were able to have the mcnary townsite with all the trimmings of a golf course, trailer manufacturing factory, and post office turned over to the tribes through the gsa process. the tribes negotiated with s&s steel to set up a factory there. there were homes for workers and everything needed there. the product was 55' house trailers. tribal members were hired and quality products were produced. it went well until mismanagement after the dispute resolution process the steel company got the town. in 1954, congress enacted house concurrent resolution 108, known as the termination bill. this new threat to tribal survival was vigorously opposed by the umatilla tribes. accompanying the termination bill was the notorious public law 83 280. p.l. 280's purpose was to place the people under the state government for criminal and civil jurisdiction including the maintenance of road systems which were turned over to the state and county highway departments, further alienating more trust land from the reservation. public law 280 was viewed by the federal and state governments as the initial in road to terminating the reservation. even though the tribes were not terminated, p.l. 280 was official policy until 1990. feasibility studies were being conducted but most of the ideas required more resources than the ctuir had readily available. the state of oregon was helping the tribe by poisoning the umatilla river for sport fishing interests. more and more dams were being developed on the columbia. celilo was gone. new fishing sites needed to be constructed "in lieu" of sites inundated by the dams. there was litigation and legal proceedings in the indian claims process. a watchdog group of tribal members known as "the progressives" started meeting and discussing bot management issues such as the mcnary debacle and concerned about the bot's future plans. the progressives wanted to know how the leaders were going to address unemployment, housing, and future investments of the tribes. around this time the ctuir the bia and the general contractors association began a training program on the south reservation. the project was to create a dam on jennings creek on the lands restored to the tribes. the intention was to create potential recreation development and an opportunity that would train indian people and allow them to gain experience to go further in construction if they wanted. the lake was successfully completed and was dedicated to the cayuse leader hum tipin who's band had lived in walla walla, washington. this was small but needed success for the reservation community. a turning point for the ctuir was the final results and decisions of the ctuir's claims heard before the indian claims commission. the decisions addressed issues of aboriginal use and lands controlled, claimed, and compensated for by the treaty negotiations. the ctuir had only been compensated for approximately 4.5 million acres as part of the 1855 treaty negotiations. the ctuir claim maintained that they in fact ceded 6.4 million acres. the country included lands in the john day river valley and lands in the powder river drainage. the ctuir settled on the claim and were compensated. the board of trustees program planning committee adopted a preliminary plan for the development of the reservation's human and natural resources in september 1967. at the same time, issue groups were meeting on and off the reservation. some of them had intentions of lobbying against the board of trustees' plan in favor of full per capita payments. some were meeting to support plans for the reservation development and partial per capita payments. on december 11, 1967, and march 30, 1968, tribal members attended general council meetings and overwhelmingly voted for the abandonment of the previous board's programming plans and partial per capita payments. in august of 1968, a recall of the board of trustees occurred because the majority of the board members were in favor of programming the judgment funds. the majority of the new board of trustees proposed full per capita payments with the exception of $200,000 reserved for scholarships. on october 29, 1969, a hearing was held before the sub committee on indian affairs. as a result of the hearings, in which both sides of the controversy were heard, the sub committee requested a referendum vote on disbursement of the funds. on november 29, 1969, one month after testimony was given to the interior subcommittee, the general council voted by referendum on the disbursement of the judgment funds. the general council voted for the full per capita payments with $200,000 set aside for scholarships. the 1970 per capita payments came in three separate payments. as for the board of trustees, their goal, finally realized, they finally ended up with no tribal staff, and the tribal operating budget was completely exhausted. the general council meetings, which at one time boasted 200 people per meeting, became inoperative for approximately one year due to a constant lack of quorum. after 1970, the issues of claims and per capita payments had been settled. tribal officials elected to office became heavily dependent upon non elected members of the community for help and assistance since tribal coffers had been completely decimated during the 1968 and 1969 administrations. in short, the tribe was broke and completely disorganized. anti per capita factions began to pick up the pieces of tribal government which were still left intact. they relied heavily on the program planning committee and board of trustees to program grants and contracts from the federal government. housing conditions were still poor, the community was swamped with alcoholism, and there were still no fish in the umatilla river. many tribal members had moved as part of the indian relocation program. children were still being sent to boarding schools to learn trades. members of the community quickly grasped onto the unfinished business of the 1967 board of trustees' program planning committee. eventually many of the planning committee projects were approved and funded with state and federal grants. meanwhile, the board of trustees was attending to other government functions with a small, dedicated and over worked staff under direction of the tribal executive secretary. much of the tribal staff's operating budgets were b.i.a. financed contracts. the damage to the fisheries resources and the many issues that revolve around a competitive fishery industry on the columbia river led to the members of the ctuir working with other lower columbia river tribes. in 1972 the confederated tribes and bands of the warm springs of oregon, the confederated bands of the yakama indian reservation, the nez perce tribe of idaho created the columbia river intertribal fish commission (critfc) to deal with major issues on the columbia river as they affected treaty related fisheries. the national mood toward the plight of the indian nations was very receptive. the johnson and nixon administrations sought to assist the nations in their quest for human and economic self sufficiency. indian governments were qualified to receive a myriad of federal assistance largely due to the indian self determination and education assistance act of 1974. credibility and accountability was demanded by the general council and by the federal bureaucracy. the impact of federal dollars had both a positive and a negative influence. in order to get the necessary dollars, the tribe sometimes had to compromise it's plans and priorities to become eligible. at the tribal level, federal agencies have been know to politic right along with various issue groups on the reservations, causing further disorganization, creating autonomous tribal groups which became dependent upon the agency. tribal affairs and leadership in days gone by was carried out through the chiefs and headmen, they were truly leaders, and must be credited with negotiating for the survival of the people. survival is different today but no less difficult. as for the people of the reservation, in the social sense, every indian individual has a responsibility to uphold the values and attitudes of the tribes. a strategy was initially developed through the 1979 comprehensive plan to guide growth and development and to exercise the sovereign powers of tribal government. the 1980's and 1990's can be characterized as the visible beginnings and presence of self determination efforts on the umatilla reservation. during this time there has been a substantial growth in tribal programs, services, enterprises and building and capital improvements. many of the planning initiatives and dreams of the 1960's and 1970's have become reality. the number of hud assisted indian housing units has almost doubled from 125 to 245. the number of tribal employees has grown to nearly 1,100. tribal enrollment grew to just over 2,300 by the end of 2002. the tribe's operating budget has steadily grown and was at $97 million in 2003. land acquisition and restoration of the reservation is a priority. the land base of the tribes has increased with the purchase of 2,400 acres in western umatilla county and 8,700 acres in southeastern washington, as well as other smaller tracks on the reservation. in 1992 the board of trustees accepted a broad reaching tribal wide reorganization plan that established a departmental setting for tribal programs to be supervised by an executive director under the policy direction of the board of trustees. in 1994 the plan was made effective with the strategic clustering of 15,000 square feet of new modular office and meeting space. plans are underway for a capitol building, which will eventually house most all the ctuir departments and programs. some impressive progress, however, towards obtaining self sufficiency has been several successful economic development initiatives including the wildhorse casino which employs nearly 400 persons. the casino is part of a destination resort that includes a 100 room hotel, 100 space rv park, 18 hole golf course, and the tamastslikt cultural institute. an important success the ctuir has had in establishing self sufficiency has been the establishment of an active and aggressive department of natural resources. this department has evolved as a vehicle for providing an avenue for the tribes to work directly with land managers to protect and enhance natural and cultural resources. a key accomplishment in natural resources is the restoration of salmon to the umatilla river after 70 years of extinction. the tribes have contracted for, or assumed, a number of important economic, environmental, social and community programs that were provided before by the b.i.a. or by other local, state and federal agencies. language is becoming more and more precious with fewer and fewer speakers. schools and language curriculums are being developed and a program is under way to preserve the native languages. the tribes are working to form partnerships to find ways to creatively educate, train, and prepare indian youth and young adults for the future. today the ctuir is taking a more active role in directly managing our own health care. poor water quality, pesticides, no fish, and changes in traditional diet to commodities has affected the health of the tribes. one hundred and fifty years of alcoholism, drug abuse, diabetes and high cholesterol introduced by the non indian world has also weakened and hurt the people. the health of the indian people is the future and we need to care for our family using western medicine and traditional beliefs to heal ourselves. the tribes are heading into the 21st century and are poised with the organizational leadership and confidence, professional, technical, legal, and economic resources to achieve a sustainable economy and cultural identity through self determination. the three tribes (cayuse, umatilla and walla walla) are part of a much larger culture group called the plateau culture. the plateau culture includes the nez perce bands of idaho and washington, the yakama bands of central washington and the wasco and warm springs bands of north central oregon on the lower columbia river. there were many other smaller bands and groups such as the palouse and wanapum. this large body of people belonged to the sahaptin language group and each tribe spoke a distinct and separate dialect of sahaptin. the umatilla and walla walla each spoke their own separate dialect, while the cayuse in later years spoke a dialect of the nez perce with whom they associated a great deal. the original cayuse language, which is extinct today but for a few words spoken by a few individuals on the umatilla reservation, is closely related to the mollala indian language of the oregon cascade mountains. over the decades, our native languages have gradually been lost as the primary means of communication. only a handful of our tribal members are fluent. in an effort to restore and retain our native languages, we have implemented a language program through our education department. some of our elders are now teaching the languages to the younger generations. many things we do every day are based on tradition, but in many ways, modern life on the reservation is much like modern life any where in the united states. people live in houses, drive cars, work at jobs and children go to public schools. the people speak english, have t.v.'s and eat many of the same foods that other americans eat. but there are things that make the cayuse, umatilla and walla walla indian people different from other people. the cayuse, umatilla and walla walla indian people have a culture or way of life that has been handed down to them by their parents, grandparents and great grandparents. the cayuse, umatilla and walla wallas' each have their own language and traditions. grandparents, mothers and fathers teach their children and grandchildren how to hunt, fish, dig roots, make teepees and put them up, how to dance and sing indian songs. all these are traditions of the cayuse, umatilla and walla walla peoples. a hundred and fifty years ago, the indians had to learn many of these things to stay alive. today they do many of these because it is important to them not to forget the ways of their parents and grandparents. when traditions are strong, they change very slowly. many of the traditional ways of life are taught and practiced the same way today as they were before the non indians brought their way of life to this part of the country. a celebration honoring the traditional foods, called root feast, is one tradition that continues each spring. until the early 1900s, the culture of the cayuse, umatilla and walla walla indians was based on a yearly cycle of travel from hunting camps to fishing spots to celebration and trading camps and so on. the three tribes spent most of their time in the area which is now northeastern oregon and southeastern washington. they had lived in the columbia river region for more than 10,000 years. there were no buffalo in this area. the most plentiful foods were salmon, roots, berries, deer and elk. each of these foods could be found in different places and each was available in different seasons. this meant that the indian people had to move from place to place from season to season to their food and prepare it to be eaten and to be saved for the winter. they followed the same course from year to year in a large circle from the lowlands along the columbia river to the highlands in the blue mountains. in the spring the tribes gathered along the columbia river at places like celilo falls to fish for salmon and trade goods with other tribes. they dried the salmon and stored it for later use. in late spring and early summer they traveled from the columbia to the foot hills of the blue mountains to dig for roots which they also dried. in late summer they traveled to the upper mountains to pick berries and to hunt for deer and elk. in the fall the tribe would return to the lower valleys and along the columbia river again to catch the fall salmon run. all would stay in winter camps in the low regions until spring when the whole cycle would start all over again. the earth provided all the food the cayuse, umatilla and walla walla peoples needed: "i wonder if the ground has anything to say? i wonder if the ground is listening to what is said? i wonder if the ground would come alive and what is on it? though i hear what the ground says. the ground says, it is the great spirit that placed me here. the great spirit tells me to take care of the indians, to feed them alright. the great spirit appointed the roots to feed the indians on. the water says the same thing. the great spirit directs me, feed the indians well. the ground, water and grass say, the great spirit has given us our names. we have these names and hold these names. the ground says, the great spirit has placed me here to produce all that grows on me, trees and fruit. the same way the ground says, it was from me man was made. the great spirit, in placing men on the earth, desired them to take good care of the ground and to do each other no harm... young chief1855 treaty council the salmon was the first food to appear in early spring. family bands gathered along the columbia river at their favorite or traditional fishing sites to catch and dry enough salmon to use for the year ahead. during the salmon runs, the fish traveled up every creek and river that emptied into the columbia. there were so many that it was said that you could walk across a creek on the backs of salmon. the men hooked, netted, trapped and speared huge quantities of fish. a very common net was the long handled dipnet which is still used today. platforms made of wood were suspended from rocks or bluffs. fishermen stood on these platforms and used their dipnets. the women cleaned the salmon and hung them on long racks to dry in the sun. when enough salmon was dried and stored away in caches, the bands would prepare to move to the foothills of the blue mountains to dig roots. the couse root (kowsh, also known as biscuitroot) with its bright flowers turned the late spring and early summer hillsides of eastern oregon yellow. women dug the roots with diggers made of hardwood or antlers. the roots were mashed together and shaped into small biscuits and dried in the sun. the biscuits were stored away for later use. in the late summer, the cayuse, umatilla and walla walla people would move to the upper mountains to pick huckleberries and hunt for game. the berries and meat were also dried. chokecherries were pounded with dried meat or salmon to make pemmican. black moss gathered from pine and fir trees was baked to make a cheese like food. camas bulbs were dried or baked. every food the indian people needed was provided by the earth. ceremonies were held in the spring to honor the new foods. one of those, the root feast, is still celebrated today on the umatilla reservation. although salmon is not as plentiful as it was before the dams were built on the columbia, many of the indian people of the umatilla indian reservation still eat traditional foods like roots, berries, deer, elk and salmon as part of their every day diet. in the old days the cayuse, umatilla and walla walla people had to have housing that was easy to move from place to place because they had to travel much of the time to gather food. the cayuse, umatilla, walla walla and other plateau tribes had a special kind of tent that no other indian people used. it was called a longhouse. the longhouse was made out of lodgepoles much like a tepee, only much longer. it could reach up to 80 feet in length. the longhouse resembled the modern day "a" frame house in appearance. the covering was made out of "tule" mats. the long skinny leafed tule plants grow along rivers and ponds. they were gathered, dried and strung together to make mats. the mats were placed on the poles and tied down. when the family wished to move they simply removed the mats and traveled on to the next camp. the poles were left behind because it was much easier to have a set of poles at each camp. beginning in the early 1700's the cayuse, umatilla and walla walla people raised great herds of horses. having horses made it possible for them to travel great distances from the lowlands along the columbia river to the upper reaches of the blue mountains to gather and harvest the seasonal crops of wild foods. they also traveled across the rocky mountains to trade dried roots and salmon to midwestern tribes who had buffalo meat and hides. they also learned how to make tepee's from the midwestern tribes and sometimes used buffalo hides to cover the poles; although this was never as common as tule mats. another item borrowed from the tribes east of the rocky mountains was the travois. a travois is two long poles tied together and pulled along by a horse. this was how they carried their belongings. today the indian people of the umatilla reservation live in houses, but they still use teepees on certain occasions, like traditional celebrations or camping in the mountains. however, the tepees are now covered with canvas instead of tule mats. the indian families are quite often "extended families" or families that include aunts, uncles, grandparents and cousins all living together. for instance, the walla wallas' were several closely related bands living around the area of wallula, washington and up and down the columbia river. separate bands usually went their own ways during the food gathering seasons and regrouped in the winter season to camp together in an accustomed or traditional location. this was the same with the cayuse and umatilla. the entire family   parents, children, aunts, uncles, cousins and grandparents   all lived together in a band. there was a lot of work to be done and everyone had a job to do. the men and boys hunted, fished, made arrows, weapons and tools and took care of the horses. the women and girls cooked, dried fish and meat, dug roots, picked berries, made clothes and beautiful decorations. the women also set up and tended to the tepee's. if someone didn't do their job they all might freeze or go hungry during the winter. each band had a headman or leader who made important decisions and represented his band in council or other important occasions. the headman had no power to make others do what he wanted them to, other than by convincing them that his way was the best. it was the same with other headmen. there were no headmen or chiefs of all the bands except in times of emergencies, like war. then the bands would get together and select war leaders and would usually (but not always) follow their lead. in times of peace these leaders had no authority. during the treaty council of 1855 which assigned the cayuse, umatilla and walla walla people to the umatilla reservation, it was the headman of a few of the bands that spoke for all the indian peoples. the u.s. government representatives wanted certain individual headmen to make the important decision to give up the indian lands. the government said that these persons had the authority to sign the treaty and turn over the land when in actuality they had no more right to sell another bands property or right to live in an area than someone today has to sell his next door neighbor's property. today the indian people of the umatilla indian reservation still have large or extended families but many things are different. the old ways of food gathering, hunting and fishing for a living were still very common until about 40 years ago when dams built on the columbia and hunting restrictions forced the people to adopt modern ways of life. now the individual family members work separately at jobs and professions. having separate jobs has caused the traditional indian family to break up into smaller family units with just a father, mother and children. this is called a nuclear family. often times they moved away from the reservation entirely for work somewhere else. even so, indian people love to get together for traditional celebrations and special occasions. it is very common for indian people to travel long distances and camp together at rodeos and celebrations all over the west and midwest. many people take time off from their jobs and school to attend these gatherings. drumming and singing is an important part of the cayuse, umatilla and walla walla indian culture. drumming and singing is more that just entertainment. many songs are religious, and all important occasions, celebrations and religious ceremonies have drumming and singing. each song has a special purpose. some songs are like prayers. some tell stories about important things that happened to someone. songs honor births, deaths and the changing of the seasons. some songs honor the salmon, roots and other traditional foods that come in the spring. the drum is the most common instrument that is played along with singing and dancing. there are two basic kinds of drums in our culture: the "big drum" and the "hand drum" (pictured with the children above). indian singers spend years learning to sing. songs are difficult and require much practice. even learning to strike the drum correctly requires much training. today, there is a growing number of traditional singers on the umatilla indian reservation. they play at dances and celebrations that are held throughout the year. all clothing, tools and utensils used by the cayuse, umatilla and walla walla indian people were made from things provided by nature. tools were made from wood, stone and bone. arrows for hunting were made from wood and tipped with arrow heads chipped from special rocks. antlers from animals were used for digging roots. for their tepees, they used poles and covered them with animal skins or mats woven from reeds. later, they used metal items like pots, needles and guns in addition to their natural tools. because of their love of the earth and eye for beauty, the cayuse, umatilla and walla walla indian people decorated the everyday things and special ceremonial articles with beautiful designs. each had special purposes, they didn't just make them for fun. they wove strong bags that they used to gather, prepare and store food. moccasins and other clothes were made from animal skins. beads and porcupine quills were used to decorate many things. today the indians stills make their traditional clothing, bags, baskets, and other items. although some knowledge of the art has been lost in the past, it is still an important part of their way of life. mothers and grandmothers decorate their children's indian celebration and dancing costumes. many different beaded things, drums, woven bags and other crafts are used in traditional celebrations and special occasions. stories and legends from the cayuse, umatilla and walla walla indians were usually told in the winter months when cold weather confined families to close quarters. the elder people of the family and band were the story tellers. the elderly were valued and respected for their age and wisdom. the purpose of the stories was not simply for entertainment. each legend taught lessons on how one should act or how the indians and the creatures of the world came to be. religious beliefs, the meaning of birth, death, and habits of animals were also explained in stories. a main character in many stories of the columbia plateau tribes is coyote or "ispilyay". coyote had great powers. sometimes he was the fool, sometimes the wise man. in many stories coyote rid the world of dangerous monsters and creatures to make it safe for the coming of the indian to the world. in the times of coyote, animals talked with each other and had magical powers. the woman who tells the following stories grew up in a time when many of the old ways were still practiced. it was a time when life was not rushed as it is today, but when people kept time by the sun and would sit for hours picking berries, digging roots, hunting and fishing or performing some other chore. this huge monster came up from the ocean. he came as far as he could and could go no further than where cascade locks now is. he would open his huge mouth and inhale anything that was in his path. he soon had all the salmon and other fish like sturgeon and eels, all eaten and because he was so huge he began taking in the deer and all food animals of the forest. he began on the fruits and bushes and trees like huckleberries, chokecherries and wild plums. he began on the roots, things in the ground and on the ground. soon there was nothing left for the people and they were getting hungry, and babies and old people began to die. finally someone went to coyote and told him he would have to kill the monster. he got a length of a vine that is called coyote's rope. he tied one end around his waist and coiled the other around his arm. he got some pitchy kindling and flints for starting a fire. he stood on a far hill and called the monster a shameful name, he teased him until the monster began trying to eat him. the coyote wanted the monster to eat him so he could set loose all who had been eaten before. finally he was swallowed. he had to work fast. first he built a fire with his pitch sticks. the monster didn't like the smell and heat of the fire. his own fat began dripping to into the fire and he was burning up on the inside. he would open his mouth and try to blow out the fire. every time the mouth opened, coyote would throw out some useful thing. he sent the river food back, he sent the deer, elk and mountain sheep back to the mountains. the heat inside was getting very bad, but he got out all the foods and threw them where they would do most good for the people. the monster was near collapsing. about the last gasp, coyote cut the rope and got away. the fire got so hot that the monster died and went back into the sea. some parts of him clung to the sides of the river bank so it was rough like it was before bonneville dam was built. told by esther motanic to the indian, the eagle is held in high regard. the feathers are used in ceremonies and as part of some clothing. for instance, the feathers are attached to a staff and used like a flag. this story is about a boy who saved the lives of young eagles and how the mother eagle helped. the boy had been fishing and was taking a short cut home when he was bitten by a rattlesnake. an eagle had been watching the snake. she flew down and killed the snake and took it to feed her young. at that time people and animals could talk to each other. the boy asked the eagle to help him. the eagle flew to a low marshy place and gathered medicinal grasses and seeds which the boy wrapped around the place where the bite was. soon it healed enough so he could go on home. one day the boy decided to go fishing again, and on his way home he met a group of bad boys who had a bunch of eagle feathers. he knew that they must have killed the parent eagles. he looked for them and found them both dead. he climbed the high bluff and found two young eagles who were much too young to go out and find food for themselves. he fed them the fish he had caught and made them comfortable. every day or so he would take them some food like snakes, mice, frogs, and fish. they grew fast and strong and were soon trying their wings for flight. soon they were finding small animals to eat and flying further away from the nest. one day they were gone from the nest and never returned. sometimes eagles would be seen flying high in the air. oh yes, there is a certain time of year when the eagles lose their feathers, so they would let the boy pick what he wanted. told by esther motanic the grandmother usually stayed in camp while the mother went out into the hills to dig roots, couse and other kinds when the season was right. it was up to the grandmother to care for the children. families were usually large so there was a number to care for. the grandmother was a very kind and gentle person. she knew what to do if a child was sick or got hurt. she saw to it that they had plenty of good food and took care of their clothing, and made new ones when needed. when the hunters brought in deer, she helped take of the meat. she also made the hides into the softest leather to be used for clothing. another thing she did in the fall of the year was to go to marshy places where tules grew. tules are a long reed, when dried, were sewn together into mats [tu qu]. these mats were used for shelters, to sleep on and make shade while the women worked outside. the best time of the day was when they went to bed. you know the homes of the people in those days were a circular dwelling, so everyone was in one room. the grandmother told the children stories. this they never hated because that was the time the grandmothers told them their favorite legends and sometimes scary true stories. one favorite was about a mother who had been out in the hills digging roots and gathering berries: when the mother came home, she was dry, tired and warm. as she sat down, she asked for some water to drink and wash with. no one brought it to her, they went on playing. she called again, still no one came, so she stood up and in a loud cry called for the raven to come for her. the raven came and took her out to the tops of the lodge. she had turned into a bird. the children cried and called to the mother to come back, promising to have water waiting for her. sometime later, the mother returned and true to their promise, there was always water ready for her. so, always do what your mother asks! told by esther motanic many events and ceremonies are held throughout the year on the umatilla reservation    some are open to the public, others are not. "celebrations" or "pow wows" are gatherings held at both our tribal longhouse and at our wildhorse resort & casino. they are primarily traditional dancing and drumming competitions that the public is welcome to attend. celebrations are generally free and often have lots of food and arts/crafts available for sale by local and regional vendors. many events held at our tribal longhouse are ceremonies that often involve elements of our traditional religion. examples include root feast, funerals, weddings, and namings. while many of these ceremonies are taking place it is inappropriate and against our local customs to photograph or record the ceremonies or people involved in them. 46411 timíne way | pendleton, oregon 97801 phone: (541) 276 3165 | fax: (541) 276 3095 copyright © ctuir 2020
trump administration supported by in earlier races for the white house, he pledged to get miners back to work. now, political and economic realities have shifted. by lisa friedman reporting from washington. the first time donald j. trump ran for president, he slapped on a miner’s helmet and told coal workers they would be “winning, winning, winning” when he entered the white house. now, as mr. trump campaigns for another chance at the presidency, he rarely mentions america’s coal miners and has stopped making grand promises about their future. the shift reflects political and economic realities, experts said. top among them: mr. trump oversaw coal’s decline, not its salvation. despite the fact that mr. trump gutted climate regulations and appointed a coal lobbyist to lead the country’s top environmental agency, 75 coal fired power plants closed and the industry shed about 13,000 jobs during his presidency. “not a single coal miner went back to work or power plant saved,” said erin e. bates, a spokeswoman for the united mine workers of america, the labor organization representing coal miners. “i think he’s realizing those promises were not met during his term and they’re probably not going to be met now,” she said. “politically, it probably doesn’t pay for his campaign to make more broken promises.” two decades ago, coal produced about half of all the electricity in the united states. today, it accounts for just 16 percent of american power generation. the industry employed nearly 180,000 people at its peak in the 1980s, but now that figure is about 44,800, according to the u.s. bureau of labor statistics.

 washington   the first time donald trump ran for president, he slapped on a miner’s helmet and told coal workers they would be “winning, winning, winning” when he entered the white house. now, as trump campaigns for another chance at the presidency, he rarely mentions america’s coal miners and has stopped making grand promises about their future. the shift reflects political and economic realities, experts said. top among them: trump oversaw coal’s decline, not its salvation. despite the fact that trump gutted climate regulations and appointed a coal lobbyist to lead the country’s top environmental agency, 75 coal fired power plants closed and the industry shed about 13,000 jobs during his presidency. “not a single coal miner went back to work or power plant saved,” said erin bates, a spokesperson for the united mine workers of america, the labor organization representing coal miners.