"Standpatter", or "stand-patter", was a term used in US political history in the early 20th century, during the

Progressive Era The Progressive Era (late 1890s – late 1910s) was a period of widespread social activism and political reform across the United States focused on defeating corruption, monopoly, waste and inefficiency. The main themes ended during Am ...

, to describe the more conservative members of the

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

than other members, who were called "insurgents" or "progressives". The former were said to be philosophically similar to those of the earlier Stalwart faction.Michael Wolraich
''"Unreasonable Men: Theodore Roosevelt and The Republican Rebels Who created Progressive Politics"''
Palgrave Macmillan, New York, New York (2014) p.8

History

The term is said to have first been used in a political context by

Joseph G. Cannon Joseph Gurney Cannon (May 7, 1836 – November 12, 1926) was an American politician from Illinois and leader of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party. Cannon served as Speaker of the United States House of Representatives ...

in 1896 with regard to US

tariffs A tariff is a tax imposed by the government of a country or by a supranational union on imports or exports of goods. Besides being a source of revenue for the government, import duties can also be a form of regulation of foreign trade and polic ...

William Safire William Lewis Safire (; Safir; December 17, 1929 – September 27, 2009Safire, William (1986). ''Take My Word for It: More on Language.'' Times Books. . p. 185.) was an American author, columnist, journalist, and presidential speechwriter. He w ...

''Safire's Political Dictionary''

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...

(2008) It was popularised following Senator

Mark Hanna Marcus Alonzo Hanna (September 24, 1837 – February 15, 1904) was an American businessman and Republican politician who served as a United States Senator from Ohio as well as chairman of the Republican National Committee. A friend and pol ...

's "stand pat speech" in 1901, which suggested that "all that was necessary for Republican victory was, in poker parlance, to stand pat". In

poker Poker is a family of comparing card games in which players wager over which hand is best according to that specific game's rules. It is played worldwide, however in some places the rules may vary. While the earliest known form of the game w ...

, a player who does not want to trade any cards declares his intention to "stand pat." A standpatter Republican was particularly conservative and was unwilling to trade or compromise. The poker parlance "stand pat" has since been used in political contexts to refer to a conservative viewpoint although the description of individuals as "standpatters" is less common. After the term's popularisation, even those unfamiliar with the game of poker understood the description.Addison B. Burk, Howard A. Chase, J. Lee Patton, Hampton Moor
Golden Jubilee of the Republican Party
Town Print Company (1906)

Prominent members

Nelson Aldrich Nelson Wilmarth Aldrich (/ ˈɑldɹɪt͡ʃ/; November 6, 1841 – April 16, 1915) was a prominent American politician and a leader of the Republican Party in the United States Senate, where he represented Rhode Island from 1881 to 1911. By the ...

William B. Allison William Boyd Allison (March 2, 1829 – August 4, 1908) was an American politician. An early leader of the Iowa Republican Party, he represented northeastern Iowa in the United States House of Representatives before representing his state in th ...

Joseph Foraker Joseph Benson Foraker (July 5, 1846 – May 10, 1917) was an American politician of the Republican Party who served as the 37th governor of Ohio from 1886 to 1890 and as a United States senator from Ohio from 1897 until 1909. Foraker was b ...

Boies Penrose Boies Penrose (November 1, 1860 – December 31, 1921) was an American lawyer and Republican politician from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. After serving in both houses of the Pennsylvania legislature, he represented Pennsylvania in the United ...

Thomas C. Platt Thomas Collier Platt (July 15, 1833 – March 6, 1910), also known as Tom Platt

John Coit Spooner John Coit Spooner (January 6, 1843June 11, 1919) was a politician and lawyer from Wisconsin. He served in the United States Senate from 1885 to 1891 and from 1897 to 1907. A Republican, by the 1890s, he was one of the "Big Four" key Republicans ...

External links

*James N. Tidwell
Political Words and Phrases: Card-Playing Terms
''American Speech'' Vol. 33, No. 1 (Feb., 1958), pp. 21-28,

Duke University Press Duke University Press is an academic publisher and university press affiliated with Duke University. It was founded in 1921 by William T. Laprade as The Trinity College Press. (Duke University was initially called Trinity College). In 1926 Du ...

"Standpat"
at

Merriam-Webster Merriam-Webster, Inc. is an American company that publishes reference books and is especially known for its dictionaries. It is the oldest dictionary publisher in the United States. In 1831, George and Charles Merriam founded the company as ...

References

{{reflist, 2 Conservative Republican Party politicians Political terminology of the United States Republican Party (United States) terminology Political party factions in the United States Factions in the Republican Party (United States) Conservatism in the United States

History

Prominent members

See also

External links

References