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.

Unemployment insurance under state laws — Franklin D. Roosevelt, 1932

Similar by rationale solution · rationale

Score	Cycle	Candidate	Issue	Position
0.54	1936	Alf Landon	Independence of the Supreme Court	An independent Supreme Court secure from executive or legislative invasion; maintain the balance between States and nation
0.51	1932	Herbert Hoover	Regulation of securities issuance and exchanges	No federal 'blue sky' law — securities regulation belongs to the states, and the President should not police booms
0.51	1936	Franklin D. Roosevelt	Amending the Constitution to enlarge (or restrain) federal power	Meet constitutional obstacles by 'clarifying amendment' -- and say nothing about the Supreme Court
0.47	1932	Franklin D. Roosevelt	Federal responsibility for relief	Federal leadership in distress relief — federal credit to states whose resources are exhausted
0.47	1932	Herbert Hoover	Public ownership of electric power	Federal regulation of interstate power; opposition to government operation of the power business
0.44	1932	Alfred E. Smith	National Prohibition	Outright repeal of the Eighteenth Amendment — the issue Roosevelt was downplaying
0.40	1936	William E. Borah	Federal anti-lynching legislation	Oppose the Wagner-Costigan federal anti-lynching bill as unconstitutional; attack party leaders who promise it
0.37	1932	Norman Thomas	Independence of the Supreme Court	A Workers' Rights Amendment; curb the Supreme Court's power over Congress; proportional representation; direct election of the President
0.37	1932	Herbert Hoover	Overall role and scale of the federal government	Preserve 'ordered freedom' and equality of opportunity; reject a state-controlled or state-directed economy as 'tyranny'
0.37	1932	Franklin D. Roosevelt	National Prohibition	Repeal the Eighteenth Amendment by state conventions; legalize beer now; states control liquor and bar the saloon
0.36	1932	Newton D. Baker	League of Nations and international organizations	Do not make the League of Nations a party issue; no entry until a majority of Americans approve
0.36	1936	Franklin D. Roosevelt	Income and inheritance tax progressivity	Taxes levied according to ability to pay; lower taxes for 99 percent, higher at the top
0.36	1932	Alfred E. Smith	Overall role and scale of the federal government	War on any candidate who makes 'demagogic appeals to the masses' setting class against class
0.35	1936	Norman Thomas	Communism, radicalism and "alien isms" as a political issue	Keep the Socialist vote independent; chide the La Follettes for handing Roosevelt 'everything on a silver platter'
0.35	1932	Albert C. Ritchie	National Prohibition	Repeal of the Eighteenth Amendment as a matter of states' rights
0.35	1936	William E. Borah	Antitrust and concentration of economic power	Drive monopoly and price fixing out of the system or face governmental regimentation
0.35	1936	Alf Landon	Regulation of securities issuance and exchanges	Keep federal regulation of securities marketing and interstate utilities, vested in independent tribunals under definite standards subject to court review
0.33	1932	Franklin D. Roosevelt	Benefits for disabled and service-connected veterans	Full justice and generosity for veterans disabled by actual wartime service — silence on the bonus
0.33	1936	Franklin D. Roosevelt	How to finance old-age and unemployment insurance (contributory reserve vs. pay-as-you-go)	Defense of the payroll-tax financing: the employer pays an equal share and the reserves are safe
0.33	1932	Franklin D. Roosevelt	European war debts and reparations	No cancellation of the war debts — make payment possible by restoring trade
0.32	1932	Albert C. Ritchie	Federal responsibility for relief	States' rights and business-led recovery — no federal intervention in relief
0.32	1936	Franklin D. Roosevelt	Concentrated economic power vs. the average citizen (rhetorical framing)	Take power from the 'economic royalists': the mandate of 1932 is to end economic tyranny
0.32	1936	Alf Landon	Tariff levels	Protect the farmer against imports of livestock, dairy and farm products; keep non-competing goods on the free list
0.32	1932	Alfred E. Smith	Tariff levels	Endorsement of the Smoot-Hawley tariff
0.31	1932	Newton D. Baker	European war debts and reparations	Entry into the World Court and cancellation of the war debts (the record that made him 'politically unpopular')