WESTWARD EXPANSION INDUSTRIALIZATION URBANIZATION 1870 1900
AMERICAN INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENT IN THE GILDED AGE
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Question
[CLICK ON ANY CHOICE TO KNOW THE RIGHT ANSWER]
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credit mobilier
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political machine
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corrected democracy
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electoral politics
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Detailed explanation-1: -During the Gilded Age, politics were riddled with corruption as presidents awarded government positions to political supporters through the patronage or spoils system.
Detailed explanation-2: -This system of political control-known as “bossism"-emerged particularly in the Gilded Age. A single powerful figure (the boss) was at the center and was bound together to a complex organization of lesser figures (the political machine) by reciprocity in promoting financial and social self-interest.
Detailed explanation-3: -In the Gilded Age, corruption and graft permeated every level of American politics. Campaigns promised patronage and civil service positions in order to win elections and access to infrastructure benefitted corporations over small-scale farmers. This corruption met various forms of resistance.
Detailed explanation-4: -The most notorious political boss of the age was William “Boss” Tweed of New York’s Tammany Hall.
Detailed explanation-5: -The major political issues of the Gilded Age were the tariff, currency reform and civil service reform. The first two issues were of obvious interest to businessmen, and they lobbied and spent freely to gain support for favorable tariff legislation and business-friendly monetary policy.