Work in progress — cycles are added one at a time. Every quote is machine-verified against an archived source; follow the links to read it.
Issues › Industry, Business & Regulation
Antitrust and concentration of economic power
| Cycle | Candidate | Position | Solution | Strength | Attribution | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1932 | Franklin D. Roosevelt (Democratic) | Strengthen and impartially enforce the antitrust laws | Strengthen and impartially enforce the antitrust laws against monopoly and unfair trade practices, and revise them to better protect labor and the small producer and distributor. | directional_stance | party_platform | reversed |
| 1936 | Alf Landon (Republican) | Use the full power of the federal government to break up private monopolies and enforce the antitrust laws 'without fear or favor' | Vigorous criminal and civil enforcement plus new legislation to make private monopoly impossible; restore a free competitive system instead of NRA-style government-sanctioned price fixing. | directional_stance | candidate_direct | not_applicable |
| 1936 | Franklin D. Roosevelt (Democratic) | Vigorously enforce the antitrust laws and restore their efficacy against new corporate devices | Enforce the criminal and civil provisions of the existing antitrust laws and, where corporate devices or judicial construction have weakened them, legislate to restore their effectiveness against monopolistic practices. | directional_stance | candidate_direct | kept |
| 1936 | William E. Borah (Republican) | Drive monopoly and price fixing out of the system or face governmental regimentation | Break the 'monopoly ridden, price-fixing system' that gives 'a scanty meagre living for the vast majority and almost Incalculable wealth for the few'; wrest the party from the utilities, the du Ponts and the eastern orga… | directional_stance | reported | not_applicable |