Joseph Weldon Bailey, Sr. (October 6, 1862April 13, 1929), was a
United States senator
The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States.
The composition and powe ...
,
United States Representative
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...
, lawyer, and
Bourbon Democrat
Bourbon Democrat was a term used in the United States in the later 19th century (1872–1904) to refer to members of the Democratic Party who were ideologically aligned with fiscal conservatism or classical liberalism, especially those who su ...
who was famous for his speeches extolling
conservative
Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...
causes, such as opposition to
woman suffrage
Women's suffrage is the right of women to vote in elections. Beginning in the start of the 18th century, some people sought to change voting laws to allow women to vote. Liberal political parties would go on to grant women the right to vot ...
or restrictions on
child labor
Child labour refers to the exploitation of children through any form of work that deprives children of their childhood, interferes with their ability to attend regular school, and is mentally, physically, socially and morally harmful. Such e ...
. He served as a
Congressional Representative between 1891 and 1901, and as the
House minority leader
Party leaders of the United States House of Representatives, also known as floor leaders, are congresspeople who coordinate legislative initiatives and serve as the chief spokespersons for their parties on the House floor. These leaders are el ...
from 1897 until 1899. In 1901, he was elected to the Senate, serving until 1913. Historian Elna C. Green says that Bailey was known in Texas as a rigorous defender of
states' rights
In American political discourse, states' rights are political powers held for the state governments rather than the federal government according to the United States Constitution, reflecting especially the enumerated powers of Congress and the ...
,
constitutional conservatism, and governmental economy. His opponents considered him the symbol of privilege and
corruption in government.
Biography
Born in
Crystal Springs in
Copiah County outside
Jackson
Jackson may refer to:
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* Jackson (name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the surname or given name
Places
Australia
* Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region
* Jackson North, Qu ...
,
Mississippi
Mississippi () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States, bordered to the north by Tennessee; to the east by Alabama; to the south by the Gulf of Mexico; to the southwest by Louisiana; and to the northwest by Arkansas. Miss ...
, Bailey attended the
University of Mississippi
The University of Mississippi ( byname Ole Miss) is a public research university that is located adjacent to Oxford, Mississippi, and has a medical center in Jackson. It is Mississippi's oldest public university and its largest by enrollment ...
at
Oxford
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
, where in 1879 he joined the prestigious Delta Psi fraternity (AKA St. Anthony Hall). He graduated with a law degree from
Cumberland University
Cumberland University is a private university in Lebanon, Tennessee. It was founded in 1842. The campus's current historic buildings were constructed between 1892 and 1896.
History
1842-1861
The university was founded by the Cumberlan ...
in 1883 and was
admitted to the bar
An admission to practice law is acquired when a lawyer receives a license to practice law. In jurisdictions with two types of lawyer, as with barristers and solicitors, barristers must gain admission to the bar whereas for solicitors there are dist ...
in Mississippi that same year. He moved to
Gainesville in north
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...
in 1885, where he continued to practice law.
He had been politically active as a
Democrat
Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to:
Politics
*A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people.
*A member of a Democratic Party:
**Democratic Party (United States) (D)
**Democratic ...
in both Mississippi and his new home and had a reputation as an excellent public speaker who promoted
Jeffersonian democracy
Jeffersonian democracy, named after its advocate Thomas Jefferson, was one of two dominant political outlooks and movements in the United States from the 1790s to the 1820s. The Jeffersonians were deeply committed to American republicanism, whic ...
. He was elected to the House in 1891 and quickly distinguished himself as leading advocate for
free silver, which contributed to his election as
Minority Leader of the United States House of Representatives
Party leaders of the United States House of Representatives, also known as floor leaders, are congresspeople who coordinate legislative initiatives and serve as the chief spokespersons for their parties on the House floor. These leaders are ele ...
in 1897.
He exerted considerable influence on his colleagues, but also struggled to unify his divided caucus.
On April 14, 1897, some House Democrats, led by
David A. De Armond
David Albaugh De Armond (March 18, 1844 – November 23, 1909) was a Democratic Party (United States), Democratic United States House of Representatives, Representative representing Missouri's 12th congressional district from March 4, 1891 unti ...
sought to block a three day adjournment, a maneuver understood as a repudiation of Bailey's cooperative relationship with Republican Speaker
Thomas Brackett Reed
Thomas Brackett Reed (October 18, 1839 – December 7, 1902) was an American politician from the state of Maine. A member of the Republican Party, he was elected to the United States House of Representatives 12 times, first in 1876, and served ...
.
Bailey's most severe disappointment as minority leader came in 1898, when he argued that congressmen who had accepted commissions to serve in the army without resigning from Congress had violated the
Ineligibility Clause
The Ineligibility Clause (sometimes also called the Emoluments Clause, or the Incompatibility Clause, or the Sinecure Clause) is a provision in Article 1, Section 6, Clause 2 of the United States Constitution that makes each incumbent member o ...
of the Constitution. Despite Bailey's advocacy, a majority of Democrats opposed a motion to consider a resolution which would have removed several members from Congress who had simultaneously held commissions during the
Spanish–American War
, partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence
, image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg
, image_size = 300px
, caption = (clock ...
. The next day, Bailey declared that he would not be a candidate for minority leader in the next Congress.
He was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1901. His political career was tarnished by an assault against Senator
Albert J. Beveridge
Albert Jeremiah Beveridge (October 6, 1862 – April 27, 1927) was an American historian and US senator from Indiana. He was an intellectual leader of the Progressive Era and a biographer of Chief Justice John Marshall and President Abraham Linco ...
, an Indiana Republican. Subsequent investigations brought to light suspicious income and financial ties that Bailey had to the burgeoning oil industry. Nevertheless, financial allegations against Bailey in 1906 threatened his reelection to the Senate, a task then the prerogative of the Texas legislature, rather than party voters.
His tenure ended on January 3, 1913 when he resigned his Senate seat.
After his defeat by
Pat M. Neff in the Democratic
gubernatorial
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
primary in 1920, Bailey moved to
Dallas
Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...
to practice law. On April 13, 1929, he died in a courtroom in
Sherman
Sherman most commonly refers to:
*Sherman (name), a surname and given name (and list of persons with the name)
** William Tecumseh Sherman (1820–1891), American Civil War General
*M4 Sherman, a tank
Sherman may also refer to:
Places United St ...
, Texas, having just sat down after completing an argument.
References
Further reading
* Acheson, Sam Hanna. ''Joe Bailey, The Last Democrat'' (New York, 1932)
* Gould, Lewis. ''Progressives and Prohibitionists: Texas Democrats in the Wilson Era'' (U of Texas Press, 1973),
External links
*
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bailey, Joseph Weldon
1862 births
1929 deaths
Minority leaders of the United States House of Representatives
People from Crystal Springs, Mississippi
Democratic Party United States senators from Texas
People from Gainesville, Texas
Politicians from Dallas
University of Mississippi alumni
Texas lawyers
Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Texas
19th-century American lawyers
Bourbon Democrats
People born in the Confederate States