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Business Plot
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Business Plot
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The Business
Plot was an alleged political conspiracy in 1933. Retired Marine Corps Major General Smedley
Butler claimed that wealthy businessmen were plotting to create a fascist veterans'
organization and use it in a coup
d'état to overthrow President of the United States Franklin D. Roosevelt, with Butler as leader
of that organization. In 1934, Butler testified to the Special Committee on Un-American
Activities Congressional committee (the
"McCormack-Dickstein Committee") on these claims.[1] In
the opinion of the committee, these allegations were credible.[2] No
one was prosecuted.
While historians
have questioned whether or not a coup was actually close to execution, most
agree that some sort of "wild scheme" was contemplated and discussed.[2][3][4][5][6] Contemporaneous media dismissed
the plot, with a New York Times editorial characterizing it
as a "gigantic hoax".[7]
Contents
[hide]
- 1 Background
- 2 McCormack–Dickstein
Committee
- 3 Contemporary
reaction
- 4 Later
reactions
- 5 Sources
and further reading
- 6 References
- 7 External
links
Background[edit]
Butler and the
veterans[edit]
Shacks, erected
by the Bonus
Army on theAnacostia flats, burning after being set on fire by the
U.S. military (1932)
Main article: Bonus Army
On July 17, 1932,
thousands of World War I veterans converged on Washington,
D.C., set up tent camps, and demanded immediate payment of bonuses due them
according to theWorld War Adjusted Compensation Act of
1924 (the original act made the bonuses initially due no earlier than 1925 and
no later than 1945). Walter
W. Waters, a former Army sergeant, led this "Bonus Army".
The Bonus Army was encouraged by an appearance from retired Marine Corps Major
General Smedley Butler; as a popular military figure of the
time, Butler had some influence over the veterans. A few days after Butler's
arrival, President Herbert Hoover ordered the marchers removed,
and U.S. Army cavalry troops under the command of General Douglas
MacArthur destroyed their camps.
Butler, although
a self-described Republican, responded by
supporting Franklin D. Roosevelt in the 1932 U.S. presidential
election.[8]
By 1933 Butler
started denouncing capitalism and bankers, saying as a Marine general he
was "a racketeer for capitalism."[9]
Reaction to Roosevelt[edit]
The election of
Roosevelt was upsetting for many conservative businessmen of the time, his
"campaign promise that the government would provide jobs for all the
unemployed had the perverse effect of creating a new wave of unemployment by
businessmen frightened by fears of socialism and reckless government
spending."[10]
The Hoover administration
had steadfastly defended the gold
standard even when Britain abandoned it in September 1931. With a
devalued currency, British manufactured goods became cheaper than American
counterparts, resulting in more economic hardship for American industry.
Roosevelt's campaign had promised to re-evaluate America's commitment to the
gold standard and, through a series of actions from March 6 to April 18, 1933,
abandoned it.
Conservative
businessmen and other supporters of the gold standard were dismayed. Hoover,
who had championed the standard, wrote that its abandonment was the first step
toward "communism, fascism, socialism, statism, planned economy."[10] He
argued that the standard was needed to stop governments from "confiscating
the savings of the people by manipulation of inflation and deflation....We have
gold because we cannot trust Governments."[10]
Roosevelt also
dissolved any "gold clause" within contracts, public or private, that
guaranteed payment in gold. This clause was part of every government bond and
most corporate bonds. "It was a standard feature of mortgage agreements
and other contracts. For creditors, it offered protection against inflation or
congressional tinkering with the currency." For debtors, though, it was
dangerous, as "The gold dollar, before Roosevelt reduced it, was $1.69.
This meant that a bank, for example, could suddenly require a farmer to make
mortgage payments in gold coin-transferring a $10,000 mortgage into one worth
$16,900, raising the farmer's debt burden by nearly 70 percent."[11] Likewise,
the U.S. treasury could be required to pay the bearer of a $10,000 Liberty Bond
$16,900 in gold coins.[11] (The
constitutionality of this Roosevelt policy was later challenged before the
Supreme Court in the Gold
Clause Cases.)
With the end of
the gold standard, "conservative financiers were horrified. They viewed a
currency not solidly backed by gold as inflationary, undermining both private
and business fortunes and leading to national bankruptcy. Roosevelt was damned
as a socialist or Communist out to destroy private enterprise by sapping the
gold backing of wealth in order to subsidize the poor."[12]
Ending the gold
standard allowed the country to escape the cycle of deflation,
but the shift was not painless. "Since higher prices were not yet
accompanied by higher wages, inflation meant lower [real] incomes for those
fortunate enough to be employed. Until the effects of increased investment
spending spread through the economy, there was little reason for investment
incomes and hence consumption to rise dramatically. Industrial production
remained volatile."[13]
To encourage
foreign investment, Roosevelt had the Reconstruction Finance Corporation purchase
gold with dollars, thereby driving up the price of gold and reducing the value
of the dollar. Still, this did not immediately affect the balance of trade.
Those considering buying American goods anticipated that there would be a
further depreciation that would allow their own currency further purchasing
power and therefore greater profits, so they held back their orders. At the
same time, Americans fearing additional depreciation purchased more foreign
commodities in fear they would lose purchasing power in the future. "The
volume of U.S. imports rose by 10 percent between 1932 and 1933. In contrast,
exports stagnated. The consequence was a deteriorating balance of trade."[13]
Another Roosevelt
policy also had an unanticipated effect on the recovery: the National Industrial Recovery Act of
June 16, 1933, provided established minimum wages of 40 cents an hour and
revised upward the entire wage structure of many of the industries it covered;
this placed upward pressure on labor costs.
The sustained
recovery of industrial production "had to await stabilization of the
dollar in 1934, along with the concomitant growth of commodity exports and
capital imports."[13]
McCormack–Dickstein
Committee[edit]
The Committee
began examining evidence on November 20, 1934. On November 24, the committee
released a statement detailing the testimony it had heard about the plot and
its preliminary findings. On February 15, 1935, the committee submitted its
final report to the House of Representatives.[14]
During the
McCormack–Dickstein Committee hearings, Butler testified that Gerald
C. MacGuire[15] attempted
to recruit him to lead a coup, promising him an army of 500,000 men for a march
on Washington, D.C., and financial backing.[16]Butler
testified that the pretext for the coup would be that the president's health
was failing.[17]
Despite Butler's
support for Roosevelt in the election[8] and
his reputation as a strong critic of capitalism,[18] Butler
said the plotters felt his good reputation and popularity were vital in
attracting support amongst the general public and saw him as easier to
manipulate than others.
Though Butler had
never spoken to them, Butler implicated several prominent businessmen and
veteran leaders as backers of the plot. The committee chose not to publish
these allegations because they were hearsay.[19][20]
Given a
successful coup, Butler said that the plan was for him to have held
near-absolute power in the newly created position of "Secretary of General
Affairs", while Roosevelt would have assumed a figurehead role.
Those implicated
in the plot by Butler all denied any involvement. MacGuire was the only figure
identified by Butler who testified before the committee. Others Butler accused
were not called to appear to testify because the "committee has had no
evidence before it that would in the slightest degree warrant calling before it
such men... The committee will not take cognizance of names brought into
testimony which constitute mere hearsay."[19]
In response,
Butler said that the committee had deliberately edited out of its published
findings the leading business people whom he had named in connection with the
plot.[21] He
said on February 17, 1935, on Radio WCAU, "Like most committees it has slaughtered the
little and allowed the big to escape. The big shots weren't even called to
testify. They were all mentioned in the testimony. Why was all mention of these
names suppressed from the testimony?"[21]
On the final day
of the committee,[22] January
29, 1935, John L. Spivak published the first of two
articles in the communist magazine New Masses,
revealing portions of the Congressional committee testimony that had been
redacted as hearsay. Spivak argued that the plot was part of a "conspiracy
of Jewish financiers working with fascist groups", referring specifically
to Felix Warburg, the McCormack–Dickstein Committee, and
certain members of the American Jewish Committee in
collusion with J. P. Morgan. Hans Schmidt concludes that while
Spivak made a cogent argument for taking the suppressed testimony seriously, he
embellished his article with his "overblown" claims regarding Jewish
financiers, which Schmidt dismisses as guilt by association not supported by the
evidence of the Butler-MacGuire conversations themselves.[14][23]
Butler's
testimony in detail[edit]
|
1933[edit]
On July 1, 1933,
Butler met with MacGuire and Doyle for the first time. Gerald C. MacGuire was a
$100-a-week bond salesman for Murphy & Company[24][25] and
a member of the Connecticut American Legion.[26][27] Bill
Doyle was commander of the Massachusetts American Legion.[28] Butler
stated that he was asked to run for National Commander of the American
Legion.[29]
On July 3 or 4,
Butler held a second meeting with MacGuire and Doyle. He stated that they
offered to get hundreds of supporters at the American
Legion convention to ask for a speech.[30] MacGuire
left a typewritten speech with Butler that they proposed he read at the
convention. "It urged the American Legion convention to adopt a resolution
calling for the United States to return to the gold standard, so that when
veterans were paid the bonus promised to them, the money they received would
not be worthless paper."[12] The
inclusion of this demand further increased Butler's suspicion.
Around August 1,
MacGuire visited Butler alone. Butler stated that MacGuire told him Col. Murphy
underwrote the formation of the American Legion in New York and Butler told
MacGuire that the American Legion was "nothing but a strike
breaking outfit."[31] Butler
never saw Doyle again.
On September 24,[32][33] MacGuire
visited Butler's hotel room in Newark.[34] In
late-September Butler met with Robert Sterling Clark.[35] Clark
was an art collector and an heir to the Singer Corporation fortune.[36][37] MacGuire
had known Robert S. Clark when he was a second lieutenant in China during the Boxer
Rebellion. Clark had been nicknamed "the millionaire lieutenant".[37]
1934[edit]
During the first
half of 1934, MacGuire traveled to Europe and mailed postcards to Butler.[38] On
March 6, MacGuire wrote Clark and Clark's attorney a letter describing the Croix-de-Feu.[39]
On August 22,
Butler met MacGuire at a hotel, the last time Butler met MacGuire.[40][41] According
to Butler's account, it was on this occasion that MacGuire asked Butler to run
a new veterans' organization and lead a coup attempt against the President.
On September 13, Paul
Comly French, a reporter who had once been Butler's
personal secretary,[42] met
MacGuire in his office.[43] In
late September, Butler told Van Zandt that co-conspirators would be meeting him
at an upcomingVeterans of Foreign Wars convention.
On November 20,
the Committee began examining
evidence. Journalist Paul
Comly French broke the story in the Philadelphia Record and New
York Post on November 21.[44] On
November 22, The New York Times wrote its first
article on the story and described it as a "gigantic hoax".
Committee
reports[edit]
The Congressional
committee preliminary report said:
This committee
has had no evidence before it that would in the slightest degree warrant
calling before it such men as John W.
Davis, Gen. Hugh Johnson, General Harbord, Thomas
W. Lamont, Admiral Sims, or Hanford
MacNider.
The committee
will not take cognizance of names brought into the testimony which constitute
mere hearsay.
This committee is
not concerned with premature newspaper accounts especially when given and
published prior to the taking of the testimony.
As the result of
information which has been in possession of this committee for some time, it
was decided to hear the story of Maj. Gen. Smedley D. Butler and such others as
might have knowledge germane to the issue. ...
The Congressional
committee final report said:
In the last few
weeks of the committee's official life it received evidence showing that
certain persons had made an attempt to establish a fascist organization in this
country. No evidence was presented and this committee had none to show a
connection between this effort and any fascist activity of any European
country. There is no question that these attempts were discussed, were planned,
and might have been placed in execution when and if the financial backers
deemed it expedient.
This committee
received evidence from Maj. Gen Smedley D. Butler (retired), twice decorated by
the Congress of the United States. He testified before the committee as to
conversations with one Gerald C. MacGuire in which the latter is alleged to
have suggested the formation of a fascist army under the leadership of General
Butler.
MacGuire denied
these allegations under oath, but your committee was able to verify all the
pertinent statements made by General Butler, with the exception of the direct
statement suggesting the creation of the organization. This, however, was
corroborated in the correspondence of MacGuire with his principal, Robert
Sterling Clark, of New York City, while MacGuire was abroad studying the
various forms of veterans organizations of Fascist character.[45]
Contemporary
reaction[edit]
A New York Times editorial dismissed
Butler's story as "a gigantic hoax" and a "bald and unconvincing
narrative."[7][46] Thomas
W. Lamont of J.P. Morgan called it "perfect
moonshine".[46] General Douglas
MacArthur, alleged to be the back-up leader of the putsch if Butler
declined, referred to it as "the best laugh story of the year."[46] Time magazine
and other publications also scoffed at the allegations.
When the
committee released its report, editorials remained skeptical. Time wrote:
"Also last week the House Committee on Un-American Activities purported to
report that a two-month investigation had convinced it that General Butler's
story of a Fascist march on Washington was alarmingly true." The New
York Times reported that the committee "alleged that definite
proof had been found that the much publicized Fascist march on Washington,
which was to have been led by Major. Gen. Smedley D. Butler, retired, according
to testimony at a hearing, was actually contemplated."[47][48]
Separately,
Veterans of Foreign Wars commander James E. Van Zandt stated to the press,
"Less than two months" after General Butler warned him, "he had
been approached by 'agents of Wall Street' to lead a Fascist dictatorship in
the United States under the guise of a 'Veterans Organization'."[49]
Later reactions[edit]
Pulitzer
Prize-winning historian Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr. said,
"Most people agreed with Mayor La Guardia of New York in dismissing it as
a 'cocktail putsch'."[50] In
Schlesinger's summation of the affair, "No doubt, MacGuire did have some
wild scheme in mind, though the gap between contemplation and execution was
considerable, and it can hardly be supposed that the Republic was in much
danger."[2]
Robert F. Burk
wrote: "At their core, the accusations probably consisted of a mixture of
actual attempts at influence peddling by a small core of financiers with ties
to veterans organizations and the self-serving accusations of Butler against
the enemies of his pacifist and populist causes." [3]
Hans Schmidt
wrote: "Even if Butler was telling the truth, as there seems little reason
to doubt, there remains the unfathomable problem of MacGuire's motives and
veracity. He may have been working both ends against the middle, as Butler at
one point suspected. In any case, MacGuire emerged from the HUAC hearings as an
inconsequential trickster whose base dealings could not possibly be taken alone
as verifying such a momentous undertaking. If he was acting as an intermediary
in a genuine probe, or as agent provocateur sent to fool Butler, his employers
were at least clever enough to keep their distance and see to it that he
self-destructed on the witness stand."[4]
Many years later,
McCormick continued to vouch for Butler: "General Smedley Butler was one
of the outstanding Americans in our history. I cannot emphasize too strongly
the very important part he played in exposing the Fascist plot in the early
1930s backed by and planned by persons possessing tremendous wealth."[21]
In a book about
art collector Robert Sterling Clark, art historian and non-profit executive
Nicholas Fox Weber wrote: "Butler's testimony to the House Committee,
which was played down in the newspaper and magazine accounts at the time, and
made to seem largely specious by influential commentators, seems credible about
the attempt to overthrow FDR, and Robert Sterling Clark's role in it. Butler's
Claims, moreover, were supported by the committee's subsequent investigations
and conclusions."[6]
James E. Sargent,
reviewing The Plot to Seize the White House by Jules Archer,
wrote: "Thus, Butler (and Archer) assumed that the existence of a
financially backed plot meant that fascism was imminent, and that the planners
represented a widespread and coherent group, having both the intent and the
capacity to execute their ideas. So, when his testimony was criticized, and
even ridiculed, in the media, and ignored in Washington, Butler saw (and Archer
sees) conspiracy everywhere. Instead, it is plausible to conclude that the
honest and straightforward, but intellectually and politically unsophisticated,
Butler perceived in simplistic terms what were, in fact, complex trends and
events. Thus, he leaped to the simplistic conclusion that the President and the
Republic were in mortal danger. In essence, Archer swallowed his hero
whole."[5]
Other
commentators[edit]
The BBC's online
teaser for its documentary program The White House Coup said,
"The coup was aimed at toppling President Franklin D. Roosevelt with the
help of half-a-million war veterans."[21]
Sources and
further reading[edit]
- Archer, Jules (1973, reprinted 2007). The
Plot to Seize the White House. Skyhorse Publishing. ISBN 1-60239-036-3. "Book
Information and Chapter Summaries, Executive
summary and/or extensive quotes of Jules Archer's book, mostly
relating to Butler's testimony concerning attempts to bribe him into
speaking in favor of the gold standard"
- Colby, Gerard (1984). Du Pont
Dynasty: Behind the Nylon Curtain. L. Stuart. ISBN 0-8184-0352-7.
"pp. 324–330 Excerpts of the book relating to the plot are here"
- Denton, Sally (2012). The
Plots Against the President: FDR, A Nation in Crisis, and the Rise of the
American Right. Bloomsbury Press. ISBN 978-1-60819-089-8. Interview
of the author and an excerpt are available at NPR's "When The Bankers
Plotted To Overthrow FDR" here
- Feran, Tim (1999-02-12). "History
Channel Looks At Plot to Oust FDR". Columbus Dispatch
(Ohio): 1H.
- Schlesinger Jr., Arthur M. (2003). The
Politics of Upheaval: 1935–1936, The Age of Roosevelt, Volume III (The Age
of Roosevelt). Mariner Books. ISBN 0-618-34087-4.
- Schmidt, Hans (1998). Maverick
Marine: General Smedley D. Butler and the Contradictions of American
Military History. University Press of Kentucky. ISBN 0-8131-0957-4. Excerpts
of Schmidt's book dealing with the plot are available online.[51]
- Seldes,
George (1947). 1000 Americans: The Real Rulers of the
U.S.A. Boni & Gaer. ASIN: B000ANE968. "pp. 292–298 Excerpts
from the book can be found here"
- Spivak,
John L. (1967). A Man in His Time. Horizon Press.
ASIN: B0007DMOCW. pp. 294–298 Excerpts: Socioeconomic
and Political Context of the Plot, General
Smedley Butler.
References[edit]
- Jump
up^ Schlesinger,
p. 85
- ^ Jump
up to:a b c Schlesinger,
p. 83
- ^ Jump
up to:a b Burk,
Robert F. (1990). The Corporate State and the Broker State: The
Du Ponts and American National Politics, 1925–1940. Harvard
University Press. ISBN 0-674-17272-8.
- ^ Jump
up to:a b Schmidt
p. 226, 228, 229, 230
- ^ Jump
up to:a b Sargent,
James E.; Archer, Jules (November 1974). "Review
of: The Plot to Seize the White House, by Jules Archer". The
History Teacher(The History Teacher, Vol. 8, No. 1) 8 (1):
151–152.doi:10.2307/491493. JSTOR 491493.
- ^ Jump
up to:a b Weber
(2007). The Clarks of Cooperstown. Knopf. ISBN 0-307-26347-9. Unknown
parameter |unused_data= ignored (help)
- ^ Jump
up to:a b "Credulity
Unlimited". The New York Times. November 22, 1934.
- ^ Jump
up to:a b Schmidt,
p. 219 "Declaring himself a "Hoover-for-Ex-President
Republican," Smedley used the bonus issue and the army's use of gas
in routing the "Bonus Expeditionary Force" – recalling
infamous gas warfare during the Great War – to disparage Hoover during
the 1932 general elections. He came out for the Democrats "despite
the fact that my family for generations has been Republican," and
shared the platform when Republican Senator George W. Norrisopened a coast-to-coast
stump for FDR in Philadelphia....Butler was pleased with the election
results that saw Hoover defeated; although he admitted that he had
exerted himself in the campaign more "to get rid of Hoover than to
put in Roosevelt," and to "square a debt." FDR, his old Haiti ally,
was a "nice fellow" and might make a good president, but
Smedley did not expect much influence in the new administration."
- Jump up^ Schmidt p. 2
- ^ Jump
up to:a b c Peter
L. Bernstein (2000). The Power of Gold: the history of an
obsession. NY, NY: John Wiley & Sons.
- ^ Jump
up to:a b Jeff
Shesol (2010). Supreme Power: Franklin Roosevelt Vs. the Supreme
Court. NY, NY: W.W. Norton & Co.
- ^ Jump
up to:a b Jules
Archer (1973). Skyhorse Publishing. p. The Plot to Seize the White
House: The Shocking True Story of the Conspiracy to Overthrow FDR. Missing
or empty |title= (help)
- ^ Jump
up to:a b c Barry
J. Eichengreen (1992). Golden Fetters: The Gold Standard and the
Great Depression, 1919–1939. NY, NY: Oxford University Press.
- ^ Jump
up to:a b Archer,
p. x (Foreword)
- Jump up^ Wikisource: McCormack–Dickstein
Committee report, Testimony of Maj. Gen. S. D. Butler (ret)
- Jump up^ Wikisource: McCormack–Dickstein
Committee report, pg. 2
- Jump
up^ Archer,
p. 155.
- Jump up^ Schmidt, p. 231
- ^ Jump
up to:a b Public
Statement on Preliminary findings of HUAC, November 24, 1934, page 1
- Jump up^ Beam, Alex (2004-05-25).
"A Blemish Behind Beauty at The Clark".The Boston Globe:
E1.: "In his congressional testimony, Butler described Clark as
being "known as the "millionaire lieutenant" and was sort
of batty, sort of queer, did all sorts of extravagant things. He used to
go exploring around China and wrote a book on it, on explorations. He was
never taken seriously by anybody. But he had a lot of money."
"Clark was certainly eccentric. One of the reasons he sited his
fantastic art collection away from New York or Boston was that he feared
it might be destroyed by a Soviet bomber attack during the Cold
War..."(Clark) was pointed out to me during a trip to Paris,"
says one on his grandnieces. "He was known to be pro-fascist and on
the enemy side. Nobody ever spoke to him.""
Wikisource: McCormack–Dickstein Committee - ^ Jump
up to:a b c d BBC
Radio 4 Document "The White House Coup – Greenham's
Hidden Secret"
- Jump up^ Archer, p. 189
- Jump
up^ Schmidt,
p. 229
- Jump up^ Schmidt, p. 224
- Jump
up^ s:McCormack–Dickstein
Committee#Testimony of Gerald C. Macguire
- Jump up^ Archer, p. 6.
- Jump
up^ This
contradicts MacGuire's testimony: "You are a past department
commander in the American Legion?" "No, sir; never held an
office in the American Legion I have just been a Legionnaire—oh, I beg
your pardon. I did hold one office. I was on the distinguished guest
committee of the Legion in 1933, I believe." Wikisource: McCormack–Dickstein
Committee report, testimony of Gerald C. MacGuire
- Jump up^ Archer, p. 6
- Jump up^ Wikisource: McCormack–Dickstein
Committee report, pg. 1
- Jump up^ Wikisource: McCormack–Dickstein
Committee report
- Jump up^ Wikisource: McCormack–Dickstein
Committee report
- Jump up^ Archer, p. 178
- Jump up^ Wikisource: McCormack–Dickstein
Committee report, pg. 20
- Jump up^ Wikisource: McCormack–Dickstein
Committee report
- Jump up^ Wikisource: McCormack–Dickstein
Committee report
- Jump up^ Schmidt, p. 239, 241
- ^ Jump
up to:a b Archer,
p. 14
- Jump up^ Wikisource: McCormack–Dickstein
Committee report, pg. 3
- Jump up^ Wikisource: McCormack–Dickstein
Committee report, pg. 10
- Jump up^ Archer, p. 153
- Jump up^ Wiksource: McCormack–Dickstein
Committee report, pg. 3 and pg. 20
- Jump up^ Mennonite Church Historical
Archives Paul
French Biographical Information
- Jump up^ Wikisource: McCormack–Dickstein
Committee report, pg. 5
- Jump up^ Archer, p. 139
- Jump up^ 74th Congress House of
Representatives Report, pursuant to House Resolution No. 198, 73d
Congress, February 15, 1935. Quoted in: George Seldes, 1000
Americans (1947), pp. 290–292. See also Schmidt, p. 245
- ^ Jump
up to:a b c Schmidt,
Hans (1998). Maverick Marine (reprint,
illustrated ed.).University Press of Kentucky.
p. 224. ISBN 0-8131-0957-4.
- Jump
up^ "Plot
Without Plotters". Time magazine. 1934-12-03.
"Gen. Butler Bares 'Fascist Plot' To Seize Government by Force; Says Bond Salesman, as Representative of Wall St. Group, Asked Him to Lead Army of 500,000 in March on Capital – Those Named Make Angry Denials – Dickstein Gets Charge.". The New York Times: 1. 1934-11-21.;
Philadelphia Record, November 21 and 22, 1934;Time magazine, February 25, 1935: "Also last week the House Committee on Un-American Activities purported to report that a two-month investigation had convinced it that General Butler's story of a Fascist march on Washington was alarmingly true."
The New York Times February 16, 1935. p. 1, "Asks Laws To Curb Foreign Agitators; Committee In Report To House Attacks Nazis As The Chief Propagandists In Nation. State Department Acts Checks Activities Of An Italian Consul – Plan For March On Capital Is Held Proved. Asks Laws To Curb Foreign Agitators, "Plan for “March” Recalled. It also alleged that definite proof had been found that the much publicized Fascist march on Washington, which was to have been led by Major. Gen. Smedley D. Butler, retired, according to testimony at a hearing, was actually contemplated. The committee recalled testimony by General Butler, saying he had testified that Gerald C. MacGuire had tried to persuade him to accept the leadership of a Fascist army." - Jump up^ Archer, p. 173
Philadelphia Post, November 22, 1934 - Jump up^ Schlesinger, p 85; Wolfe, Part
IV: "But James E. Van Zandt, national commander of the Veterans
of Foreign Wars and subsequently a Republican congressman, corroborated Butler's
story and said that he, too, had been approached by "agents of Wall
Street". "Zandt had been called immediately after the August 22
meeting with MacGuire by Butler and warned that...he was going to be
approached by the coup plotters for his support at an upcoming VFW
convention. He said that, just as Butler had warned, he had been
approached "by agents of Wall Street" who tried to enlist him
in their plot.""Says Butler
Described. Offer.". The New York Times: 3.
1934-11-23. Quoted material from the NYT
Schmidt, p. 224 But James E. Van Zandt, national commander of the Veterans of Foreign Wars and subsequently a Republican congressman, corroborated Butler's story and said that he, too, had been approached by "agents of Wall Street."
Archer, p.3, 5, 29, 32, 129, 176. - Jump up^ Wolfe, Part IV: "New
York's Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia,.. a (supporter) of the fascist
program of Mussolini, coined the term cocktail putsch to
describe the Butler story: It's a joke of some kind, he told the wire
services, "someone at a party had suggested the idea to the
ex-marine as a joke."
- Jump up^ Maverick
Marine: Excerpt at coat.ncf.ca
External links[edit]
Wikisource has original text related to this
article:
|
- U.S. House of Representatives,
Special Committee on Un-American Activities, Public Statement, 73rd
Congress, 2nd session, (Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office,
1934)s:McCormack–Dickstein
Committee#Public Statement on Preliminary findings of HUAC, November 24,
1934
- U.S. House of Representatives,
Special Committee on Un-American Activities, Investigation of Nazi
Propaganda Activities and Investigation of Certain Other Propaganda
Activities, Hearings 73-D.C.-6, Part 1, 73rd Congress, 2nd session,
(Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1935).
- Adams, Cecil (2005-11-18). "Oh, Smedley:
Was there really a fascist plot to overthrow the United States
government?". The Straight Dope.
- Cramer, Clayton (November 1995). "An American
Coup d'État? Plot against Franklin D. Roosevelt, 1934". History
Today 45 (11): 42. Unknown parameter |unused_data= ignored
(help) Examines Butler's testimony from
both sides
- Sanders, Richard (March 2004). "Facing
the Corporate Roots of American Fascism". Press for
Conversion! (53).
- Spivak,
John L. (1935-01-29; 1935-02-05). "Wall
Street's Fascist Conspiracy: Testimony that the Dickstein MacCormack
Committee Suppressed; Wall Street's Fascist Conspiracy: Morgan Pulls the
Strings" (PDF). New Masses.
- "The
Plot Against FDR" History Channel documentary
- Thomson, Mike (2007-07-23). "The
Whitehouse Coup". BBC. Retrieved 2007-07-24.
- Nasser, Alan (2007-10-03). "FDR's
Response to the Plot to Overthrow Him". counterpunch.org. Retrieved 2008-11-01.
- Conflicts in 1933
- 1933 in the United States
- Great Depression in
the United States
- Political history
of the United States
- Presidency of
Franklin D. Roosevelt
- Conspiracy
theories in the United States
- Attempted coups
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