Bootstrap Liberalism: Texas Political Culture in the Age of FDR by Sean P. Cunningham

Abstract

Reviewed by: Bootstrap Liberalism: Texas Political Culture in the Age of FDR by Sean P. Cunningham Boris Heersink (bio) Bootstrap Liberalism: Texas Political Culture in the Age of FDR. By Sean P. Cunningham. (Lawrence: University Press of Kansas, 2022. Pp. ix, 312. $37.95 cloth; $28.49 ebook) In Bootstrap Liberalism: Texas Political Culture in the Age of FDR, historian Sean P. Cunningham engages with the puzzle of the massive popularity Franklin Delano Roosevelt and the New Deal enjoyed in Texas in the context of the long-standing perception of this state as the center of individualism and conservatism. How did voters with [End Page 205] a seemingly genuine belief in “conservative, rugged individualism, self-help, and limited government” end up supporting FDR in landslide numbers in each election between 1932 and 1944 (p. 2)? Conservatism was a major force in the Texas Democratic Party before, during, and after the New Deal. In 1928, Republican nominee Herbert Hoover won Texas by a small margin, as Democratic nominee Al Smith’s Catholicism and opposition to Prohibition resulted in a good number of Democratic politicians in the state bolting the ticket and openly supporting Hoover. But with the economic crash of 1929 and Hoover’s dramatic drop in popularity, these “Hoovercrats” quickly rejoined the Democratic side and fully backed Roosevelt in 1932. Importantly, Cunningham shows that these conservative Democrats generally were enthusiastic supporters of FDR throughout his first term and reelection effort. With the early New Deal benefitting local farmers and steering clear of racial and civil rights issues, conservatives—like Rep. Marvin Jones—were happy to tie themselves to FDR and celebrate the New Deal as “a new day and a new economic order for the American people” (p. 63). After 1936, however, unity dissolved, and the Texas Democratic Party split into roughly two factions. One consisted of true believers in the New Deal (such as Representatives Maury Maverick and Lyndon B. Johnson), who remained supportive of FDR until his death in 1945. The other faction united conservatives of different kinds, who became increasingly (and vocally) critical of the size and role of the federal government and FDR’s role as president and party leader. Cunningham carefully charts how these two camps battled each other in primaries and at state party conventions. In these clashes, both sides saw defeats and victories. Yet, after the conclusion of a nomination fight, Texas voters consistently voted the Democratic nominee—regardless of faction—into office in landslide victories. While much of this may have been the simple consequence of Texas (and the South in general) representing a de-facto single party system, Bootstrap Liberalism argues convincingly that it was also the product of the similar ways in which both conservatives and liberals presented [End Page 206] their politics to voters. Both sides claimed to represent the forgotten workingman in Texas and argued their policies would help voters achieve their goals. This approach may have allowed self-identified conservative voters to embrace the New Deal and incorporate it into their existing individualistic worldview. At the same time, Cunningham’s account also shows how such similar marketing likely confused voters. For example, Cunningham presents reports that some of rural voters in the 1942 senate primary race supported populist conservative W. Lee “Pappy” O’Daniel—who was increasingly anti-FDR, anti-New Deal, and anti-union—because they believed he would be a pro-labor ally to the president. Bootstrap Liberalism presents a fascinating insight into the workings of Texas politics in the FDR era—charting the clashes between leading Texas politicians of this period such as Maury Maverick, LBJ, “Pappy” O’Daniel, and James “Pa” and Miriam “Ma” Ferguson and spotlighting the importance of how an “individualist” presentation of the New Deal may have played a role in its popularity in Texas and—possibly—other traditionally conservative states as well. Boris Heersink BORIS HEERSINK is an assistant professor in the department of political science at Fordham University. He is the co-author of Republican Party Politics and the American South, 1865–1968 and the author of National Party Organizations and Party Brands in American Politics: The Democratic and Republican National Committees, 1912–2016. Copyright © 2022 Kentucky Historical...