Bryan, Bryan, Bryan, Bryan
Of men and whirling flowers and beasts,
The bard and the prophet of them all.
Prairie avenger, mountain lion,
Bryan, Bryan, Bryan, Bryan,
–Vachel Lindsay
With the revival of All things Democrat, it seems an appropriate time to examine the idea of what it has meant to be a Democrat over the last century, especially to those Democratic presidents and presidential candidates who have helped to shape the modern party.
Perhaps the best place to start is with one of the most misunderstood figures in American history, William Jennings Bryan. Over the next few weeks and months posts in this ongoing series will explore Woodrow Wilson, Al Smith, FDR, Harry Truman, and others. The posts will not focus on the usual recitations of what they did, but instead on their beliefs: what did they define as the core values of the Democratic Party? Where possible I also will try to draw parallels with current issues such as Iraq and the role of government. What do these people who helped define what it means to be a Democrat–and for some a progressive –have to contribute to the current debate about where America and Democrats should be headed?
For most of the turn of the last century William Jennings Bryan dominated the Party, serving as its presidential nominee three times–more than anyone else other than Franklin Delano Roosevelt. It is possible he might have even run a fourth time but in 1912 he threw his support to Woodrow Wilson, a move that was crucial in enabling Wilson to win the nomination and go on to capture the presidency. Bryan today seems book-ended by two events–the Cross of Gold Speech the first put him on the national stage and the Scopes Trial which was his exit–that many present-day Americans regard as the defining moments of an eccentric man with harebrained ideas.
Known to his contemporaries as “The Great Commoner,” Americans today might style him “The Great Crackpot.” This is not helped by the contemporary image of him that appears occasionally on cable television in the movie Inherit the Wind, Stanley Kramer’s dramatization of the Scopes trial. Frederick March’s over-the-top portrayal of Bryan (who in the movie is named Brady)–which was intended to deliberately contrast with Spencer Tracey’s laid-back Clarence Darrow (Drummond in the movie)–cemented an image of The Great Commoner in our cultural consciousness as an out-of-control zealot.
Yet Bryan did not earn three presidential nominations–and perhaps could have even had a fourth–because he was a crackpot. (more…)
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