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Revision as of 17:13, 5 July 2005 by 69.158.143.70 (talk) (→Denouement)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)The Business Plot or the The Plot Against FDR was a supposed conspiracy against President Franklin D. Roosevelt among a group of millionaire businessmen, led by the Du Pont and J. P. Morgan empires. Alarmed by the President's plan to redistribute wealth from the rich to the poor, these men allegedly plotted to overthrow Roosevelt with a military coup and install a fascist government over the United States. The alleged conspirators supposedly tried to recruit United States Marine Corps General Smedley Butler, promising him an army of 500,000, unlimited financial backing and generous media spin control. The plot was supposedly foiled in 1933 when Butler informed the Congress of a "business plot" to replace the constitutional government of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. However, no evidence of such a plot outside of Butler's personal testimony was ever presented. The question of whether or not a true "business plot" historically existed continues to the present day.
Ostensible Plot
It is estimated that the plot was conceived in the year 1932, in response to US President Franklin D. Roosevelt's New Deal program for ameliorating the effects of the worldwide economic Depression in the United States. To fund New Deal spending in part the top tax rate escalated from 25% to 63%. This alarmed many members of the business establishment who saw this as a massive redistribution of their wealth to the poor. In addition, there were doubts that even this could prevent the obvious breakdown of the capitalist system, leading to a rapid transformation into socialism or communism. Thus a coup to eliminate the "creeping communism" of the New Deal and guarantee the future of American capitalism was created by the conspirators. While the full intentions of the conspirators are uncertain, critics of the plot highlight its fascist undertones.
Alleged Conspirators
The plot is said to have included some of America's richest and most famous names of the time:
- Irénée du Pont - Right-wing chemical industrialist and founder of the American Liberty League, the organization assigned to execute the plot.
- Grayson Murphy - Director of Goodyear, Bethlehem Steel and a group of J. P. Morgan banks.
- William Doyle - Former state commander of the American Legion and a central plotter of the coup.
- John Davis - Former Democratic presidential candidate and a senior attorney for J. P. Morgan.
- Al Smith - Roosevelt's bitter political foe from New York. Smith was a former governor of New York and a codirector of the American Liberty League.
- John J. Raskob - A high-ranking DuPont officer and a former chairman of the Democratic Party.
- Robert Clark - One of Wall Street's richest bankers and stockbrokers.
- Gerald MacGuire - Bond salesman for Clark, and a former commander of the Connecticut American Legion. MacGuire was the key recruiter to General Butler.
The hypothetical plan
General Smedley Butler was chosen to lead a march of 500,000 soldiers on Washington D.C. Despite Butler's loyalty to Roosevelt, the plotters felt his good reputation and popularity were vital to attract enough support. He was also seen as easier to manipulate than other well-educated candidates.
MacGuire is said to have played on Butler's passionate loyalty to his fellow veterans and soldiers. One of the goals of the plotters was a return to the gold standard, as a solution to rapid inflation. Knowing of an upcoming bonus in 1945 for World War I Veterans, MacGuire told Butler, "We want to see the soldiers' bonus paid in gold. We do not want the soldier to have rubber money or paper money."
The conspirators also claimed one of their goals was to protect Roosevelt from other plotters. Butler would hold the power in a newly created position of "Secretary of General Affairs", while Roosevelt receded into a figurehead role. Butler would then implement fascist measures to correct the economy, as such steps were deemed at the time to be the most efficient way to fight communism while preserving socio-economic status quo.
Denouement
Butler saw through the plotters' concern for the President and began asking more questions. Once the MacGuire had revealed more details of the plot, Butler went public with what he had been told, thus aborting the conspiracy.
The names said to be associated with the plot all claimed innocence. Butler's testimony before the McCormack-Dickstein Committee, which would later become the House Committee on Un-American Activities was largely ignored. The committee failed to call in any of the coup plotters for questioning, other than MacGuire.
Sources
House Committee on Un-American Activities report part 1
House Committee on Un-American Activities report part 2
House Committee on Un-American Activities report part 3