PresidentialPositionsIssuesReceptionTimelineDocuments

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.

Outright repeal of the Eighteenth Amendment — the issue Roosevelt was downplaying — Alfred E. Smith, 1932

Similar by solution solution · rationale

ScoreCycleCandidateIssuePosition
0.721932Albert C. RitchieNational ProhibitionRepeal of the Eighteenth Amendment as a matter of states' rights
0.651932Franklin D. RooseveltNational ProhibitionRepeal the Eighteenth Amendment by state conventions; legalize beer now; states control liquor and bar the saloon
0.641932Norman ThomasNational ProhibitionRepeal the Eighteenth Amendment — the candidate preferring a binding national referendum
0.561932Norman ThomasIndependence of the Supreme CourtA Workers' Rights Amendment; curb the Supreme Court's power over Congress; proportional representation; direct election of the President
0.551932Herbert HooverNational ProhibitionResubmit the Eighteenth Amendment so each state may decide, with constitutional guarantees against the saloon and against interference with dry states; enforce the law meanwhile
0.511936Frank KnoxAmending the Constitution to enlarge (or restrain) federal powerNew federal activities only when legalized by constitutional amendment -- 'the horse and buggy method'
0.511936Alf LandonExecutive reciprocal trade agreements (1934 Act)Repeal the Reciprocal Trade Agreements Act; return treaty power to the Senate and tariff-making to Congress
0.511936Franklin D. RooseveltAmending the Constitution to enlarge (or restrain) federal powerMeet constitutional obstacles by 'clarifying amendment' -- and say nothing about the Supreme Court
0.481936Alf LandonAmending the Constitution to enlarge (or restrain) federal powerWages, hours and child labor by State law and interstate compact -- and a constitutional amendment giving the States power if the courts forbid
0.461932Norman ThomasEqual rights and opportunity for Black AmericansEconomic, political and legal equality for the Negro; a federal anti-lynching law; enforce the First Amendment
0.421932Alfred E. SmithOverall role and scale of the federal governmentWar on any candidate who makes 'demagogic appeals to the masses' setting class against class
0.411936Alf LandonUnemployment insuranceLeave unemployment insurance to State experiment; no federal tax to compel it
0.411936William LemkeMinimum wagesA 'living annual wage' -- $1,800 for a family of five -- by federal law and a constitutional amendment if necessary
0.401936Franklin D. RooseveltWorking hours and labor standardsRevive the NRA's principles 'by one device or another' (imputed; the President would not say)
0.401936Alf LandonGold standard and currency basisSound currency 'at all hazards'; no further devaluation; repeal the laws delegating the money power to the Executive
0.391932Franklin D. RooseveltOverall role and scale of the federal governmentGovernment as a check on concentrated economic power — "individualism" redefined as equality of opportunity
0.391932Franklin D. RooseveltUnemployment insuranceUnemployment insurance under state laws
0.391936Franklin D. RooseveltPolicy toward Latin America and the Western HemisphereThe Good Neighbor: no armed intervention, no territorial expansion, reduction of armaments
0.381932Newton D. BakerLeague of Nations and international organizationsDo not make the League of Nations a party issue; no entry until a majority of Americans approve
0.381932Herbert HooverEqual rights and opportunity for Black AmericansMaintain equal opportunity and rights for Negro citizens
0.371932Albert C. RitchieFederal responsibility for reliefStates' rights and business-led recovery — no federal intervention in relief
0.371936Alf LandonIndependence of the Supreme CourtAn independent Supreme Court secure from executive or legislative invasion; maintain the balance between States and nation
0.361932Herbert HooverTariff levelsPreserve the bipartisan Tariff Commission's flexible power to adjust rates without congressional log-rolling
0.361936Earl BrowderCommunism, radicalism and "alien isms" as a political issuePopular Front: nominal opposition to Roosevelt, real opposition to Landon and 'fascism'
0.351932Herbert HooverTariff levelsUnconditional most-favored-nation treatment; no reciprocal bargains or preferences