Young Turks (U.S. politics)

Last updated

The Young Turks was a splinter group of politicians in the United States within the Republican Party during the early 1960s. The group, mostly consisting of Congressmen who had become disenchanted with the course of the Republican Party, worked within the system to appoint their fellow members into leadership roles, so they could take control of the party. [1] They were considered "rebels" by the traditional Republicans. [1] [2] Gerald Ford, who would become President of the United States, rose to prominence as a Young Turk.

Contents

Etymology

There has been no special meaning given or discussed for the group's choice of the name "Young Turks" in any of the biographical collections of the members. The dictionary definition states, "an insurgent or a member of an insurgent group especially in a political party...one advocating changes within a usually established group". [3] . On the other hand, Young Turks term refers to a group of intellectual Turks in 19th Century Ottoman Empire, who were in opposition to Sultan Abdulhamid II.

Formation

The group began in the early 1960s as a loose network of younger Republican congressmen. [4] According to an article that appeared in New York Magazine in 1975, Charles E. Goodell of New York and Robert P. Griffin of Michigan got together in January 1963 and came up with a plan to supplant one of the elder statesmen, Charles Hoeven, who was Chairman of the House Republican Conference. They solicited Gerald Ford of Michigan as the challenger. Ford agreed and won the ballot, becoming the new Chairman. [2]

It was Lyndon B. Johnson's landslide defeat of Barry Goldwater in the 1964 Presidential election, coupled with heavy losses in the House, that mobilized all the key players to further action. The Young Turks questioned the Republican Party's viability [4] and wanted to change the direction of the Republican Party. [5] [6] Donald Rumsfeld, another member of the group, later wrote about how dire it was, "Republicans in the U.S. House of Representatives were reduced to a low of 140 of the 435 Members of Congress. There were so many Democrats that some had to sit in the Republican side of the [a]isle." [7]

The Young Turks decided it was time to take control and replace the top Republican leadership in Congress. They picked Gerald Ford over their other option, Melvin Laird (Wisconsin), to oust the presiding House Minority Leader, Charles Halleck. [5] Their choice of Ford, and his subsequent win, set the stage for Ford to later be tapped as Vice President, and then President by succession.[ citation needed ]

Members

According to New York , members included: [2]

Representative from Missouri, January 3, 1951 – January 3, 1969
Representative from Kansas, January 3, 1961 – January 3, 1967
Deputy Secretary of Defense, December 1975 – January 1977 (under Ford)
Representative from Michigan, January 3, 1949 – December 6, 1973
House Minority Leader, January 3, 1965 – December 6, 1973
Vice President, December 6, 1973 – August 9, 1974 (under Richard Nixon)
President, August 9, 1974 – January 20, 1977
Representative from New York, May 26, 1959 – September 9, 1968
Senator from New York, September 10, 1968 – January 3, 1971
Representative from Michigan, January 3, 1957 – May 11, 1966
Senator from Michigan, May 11, 1966 – January 3, 1979
Representative from Wisconsin, January 3, 1953 – January 21, 1969
Secretary of Defense, January 21, 1969 – January 29, 1973 (under Nixon)
Representative from Minnesota, February 18, 1958 – January 3, 1979
Governor of Minnesota, January 4, 1979 – January 3, 1983
Representative from Illinois, January 3, 1963 – March 20, 1969
White House Chief of Staff, September 21, 1974 – November 20, 1975 (under Ford)
Secretary of Defense, November 20, 1975 – January 20, 1977 (under Ford)
Secretary of Defense, January 20, 2001 – December 18, 2006 (under George W. Bush)

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Donald Rumsfeld</span> American politician (1932–2021)

Donald Henry Rumsfeld was an American politician, government official and businessman who served as Secretary of Defense from 1975 to 1977 under president Gerald Ford, and again from 2001 to 2006 under President George W. Bush. He was both the youngest and the oldest secretary of defense. Additionally, Rumsfeld was a three-term U.S. Congressman from Illinois (1963–1969), director of the Office of Economic Opportunity (1969–1970), counselor to the president (1969–1973), the U.S. Representative to NATO (1973–1974), and the White House Chief of Staff (1974–1975). Between his terms as secretary of defense, he served as the CEO and chairman of several companies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">United States Secretary of Defense</span> Leader of the United States armed forces following the president

The United States secretary of defense (SecDef) is the head of the United States Department of Defense, the executive department of the U.S. Armed Forces, and is a high ranking member of the federal cabinet. The secretary of defense's position of command and authority over the military is second only to that of the president of the United States, who is the commander-in-chief. This position corresponds to what is generally known as a defense minister in many other countries. The secretary of defense is appointed by the president with the advice and consent of the Senate, and is by custom a member of the Cabinet and by law a member of the National Security Council.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Melvin Laird</span> 20th-century American politician

Melvin Robert Laird Jr. was an American politician, writer and statesman. He was a U.S. congressman from Wisconsin from 1953 to 1969 before serving as Secretary of Defense from 1969 to 1973 under President Richard Nixon. Laird was instrumental in forming the administration's policy of withdrawing U.S. soldiers from the Vietnam War; he coined the expression "Vietnamization," referring to the process of transferring more responsibility for combat to the South Vietnamese forces. First elected in 1952, Laird was the last surviving Representative elected to the 83rd Congress at the time of his death.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William E. Miller</span> American politician (1914–1983)

William Edward Miller was an American politician who served in the United States House of Representatives from New York as a Republican. During the 1964 presidential election, he was the Republican nominee for vice president, the first Catholic nominated for the office by the Republican Party.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Presidency of Gerald Ford</span> U.S. presidential administration from 1974 to 1977

Gerald Ford's tenure as the 38th president of the United States began on August 9, 1974, upon the resignation of Richard Nixon from office, and ended on January 20, 1977, a period of 895 days. Ford, a Republican from Michigan, had served as vice president since December 6, 1973, following Spiro Agnew's resignation from that office. Ford was the only person to serve as president without being elected to either the presidency or the vice presidency. His presidency ended following his defeat in the 1976 presidential election by Democrat Jimmy Carter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ripon Society</span> U.S. public policy organization and think tank

The Ripon Society is an American centrist Republican public policy organization and think tank based in Washington, D.C. It publishes The Ripon Forum, the U.S.'s longest running Republican thought and opinion journal, as well as The Ripon Advance, a daily news publication.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Leslie C. Arends</span> American politician

Leslie Cornelius Arends was a Republican politician from Illinois who served in the United States House of Representatives from 1935 until 1974.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">James L. Buckley</span> American judge and politician (born 1923)

James Lane Buckley is an American politician, jurist, and lawyer who currently serves as a senior judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit. Buckley served in the United States Senate as a member of the Conservative Party of New York State in the Republican caucus from 1971 to 1977, and in multiple positions within the Reagan administration. He was also the Republican nominee in the 1980 Connecticut Senate race, but was defeated by Democrat Chris Dodd.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">93rd United States Congress</span> 1973–1975 U.S. Congress

The 93rd United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1973, to January 3, 1975, during the last 18 months of Richard Nixon's presidency, and the first 6 months of Gerald Ford's. This Congress was the first Congress with more than two Senate presidents. After the resignation of Spiro Agnew, Gerald Ford was appointed under the authority of the newly ratified 25th Amendment. Ford became president the next year and Nelson Rockefeller was appointed in his place. The apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives was based on the 1970 United States census. Both chambers had a Democratic majority. This is the earliest Congress to feature a member of the current 117th Congress, Representative Don Young (R-AK), who served until he died in 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Goodell</span> American politician and lawyer (1926-1987)

Charles Ellsworth Goodell Jr. was an American politician who represented New York in the United States House of Representatives from 1959 to 1968 and the United States Senate from 1968 to 1971. In both cases he came into office following the deaths of his predecessors, first in a special election and second as a temporary appointee succeeding Robert F. Kennedy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1964 United States House of Representatives elections</span> House elections for the 89th U.S. Congress

The 1964 United States House of Representatives elections was an election for the United States House of Representatives in 1964 which coincided with the election to a full term of President Lyndon B. Johnson. Johnson's landslide victory over Barry Goldwater allowed his Democratic Party to gain a net of 36 seats from the Republican Party, giving them a two-thirds majority in the House. The election also marked the first time since Reconstruction that Republicans made inroads in the deep South.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles A. Halleck</span> American politician (1900-1986)

Charles Abraham Halleck was an American politician. He was the Republican leader of the United States House of Representatives from the second district of Indiana.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1980 Republican National Convention</span> Political convention of the Republican Party

The 1980 Republican National Convention convened at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Michigan, from July 14 to July 17, 1980. The Republican National Convention nominated retired Hollywood actor and former Governor Ronald Reagan of California for president and former Representative George H. W. Bush of Texas for vice president.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1960 Republican National Convention</span> Political convention of the Republican Party

The 1960 Republican National Convention was held in Chicago, Illinois, from July 25 to July 28, 1960, at the International Amphitheatre. It was the 14th and most recent time overall that Chicago hosted the Republican National Convention, more times than any other city.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gerald Ford</span> President of the United States from 1974 to 1977

Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. was an American politician who served as the 38th president of the United States from 1974 to 1977. He was the only president never to have been elected to the office of president or vice president as well as the only president to date from Michigan. He previously served as the leader of the Republican Party in the House of Representatives, and was appointed to be the 40th vice president in 1973. When President Richard Nixon resigned in 1974, Ford succeeded to the presidency, but was defeated for election to a full term in 1976.

"Halloween Massacre" is the term associated with the major reorganization of United States president Gerald Ford's cabinet on November 4, 1975, which was an attempt to address multiple high-level personality and policy clashes within the administration. The overhaul came at a time when the president's leadership abilities were being broadly questioned, and he was being heavily criticized by California governor Ronald Reagan and others from the nascent conservative wing of the Republican Party.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Death and state funeral of Gerald Ford</span> Public event

On December 26, 2006, Gerald Ford, the 38th president of the United States, died at home in Rancho Mirage, California at 6:45 p.m. local time. At 8:49 p.m. local time, President Ford's wife of 58 years, Betty Ford, issued a statement that confirmed his death: "My family joins me in sharing the difficult news that Gerald Ford, our beloved husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather has passed away at 93 years of age. His life was filled with love of God, his family and his country." The causes of death listed on the subsequent death certificate were arteriosclerotic cerebrovascular disease and diffuse arteriosclerosis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nelson Rockefeller</span> Vice president of the United States from 1974 to 1977

Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller, sometimes referred to by his nickname Rocky, was an American businessman and politician who served as the 41st vice president of the United States from 1974 to 1977. A member of the Republican Party and wealthy Rockefeller family, he previously served as the 49th governor of New York from 1959 to 1973. Rockefeller also served as assistant secretary of State for American Republic Affairs for Presidents Franklin D. Roosevelt and Harry S. Truman (1944–1945) as well as under secretary of Health, Education and Welfare (HEW) under Dwight D. Eisenhower from 1953 to 1954. In 1980, HEW split into 2 cabinet level agencies: Health & Human Services (HHS) & Department of Education. A son of John D. Rockefeller Jr. and Abby Aldrich Rockefeller as well as a grandson of Standard Oil co-founder John D. Rockefeller, he was a noted art collector and served as administrator of Rockefeller Center in Manhattan, New York City.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1980 Republican Party vice presidential candidate selection</span>

This article lists those who were potential candidates for the Republican nomination for Vice President of the United States in the 1980 election. Former California Governor Ronald Reagan won the 1980 Republican nomination for President of the United States, and chose former CIA Director George H. W. Bush as his running mate.

References

  1. 1 2 Rumsfeld, Donald (2012). Known and Unknown: A Memoir. Sentinel Trade. p. 91. ISBN   978-1595230843.
  2. 1 2 3 Reeves, Richard (October 13, 1975). "Why American Politicians Are So Bad: The Case History of Gerald Ford". New York Magazine: 35.
  3. ↑ Merriam-Webster Dictionary.
  4. 1 2 Siracusa Ph.D., Joseph M. (2012). Encyclopedia of the Kennedys: The People and Events That Shaped America. ABC-CLIO. ISBN   978-1598845389.
  5. 1 2 Friedersdorf, Max (30 January 2009). "Gerald R. Ford Oral History Project, interview by Richard Norton Smith". Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation. Retrieved 3 September 2021. Smith: What was the beef against Halleck? Friedersdorf: It's a combination of the age thing and minority status, and Halleck had a drinking problem. That was pretty well known. And then you had a group of Young Turks like Gerald R. Ford and Melvin Laird and Donald Rumsfeld and Bob Griffin, and they were up and coming. It was a generational difference and it was after the '64 election which was such a debacle. We lost a lot of seats in the Goldwater election. The house members felt it was time for Charlie to go.
  6. ↑ Peabody, Robert L. "Professor of Political Science". ROBERT L. PEABODY RESEARCH INTERVIEW NOTES, 1964-67. Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library & Museum. Retrieved 26 March 2013.
  7. ↑ Rumsfeld, Donald. "The Ford-Halleck Race 1964-1965" (PDF). Rumsfeld Personal Library. Retrieved March 23, 2013.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.