Huey Long as a Demagogue
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T. Harry Williams, in his essay on Huey Pierce Long, "The Gentleman from Louisiana: Demagogue or Democrat," argues that the Louisiana Governor was not a dictator, nor even a demagogue (in the negative sense of the word), but rather "the greatest of Southern mass leaders," although he "did some foolish things and some wrong things" and "said some things that he should not have said and some that he did not believe." Despite these shortcomings and hyperbolic tendencies, Long was, writes Williams, a man and leader whose "mission," in the best sense of the demagogic tradition, was "to awaken the people, to awaken them to something better than everyone's daily business, to the sense of a supra-individual task to be performed" (Williams 21). This study will argue, to the contrary, that Long was a demagogue in the worst sense of the word, and even exhibited some of the more mild features of a dictator in terms of seeing himself as above the law. Williams argues that Long came from a political and cultural tradition in the South which minimized the significance of corruption in the activities of its leaders. "Louisianians," writes Williams, "seem to accept [corruption] as a necessary concomitant of political life, and, on occasion, even to delight in it" (Williams 4). This does not mean that the corrupt activities of leaders such as Long are therefore somehow acceptable, or in some sense not corrupt. Prisoners in prisons expect to experience violence at some time, but does that m
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mmoral standards, Williams excuses Long's buying of votes, refusing to judge him because his foes were engaging in the same corrupt practices. However, two wrongs do not make a right.Williams admiration for Long's joke about buying votes ["It's like going to market and getting a sack of potatoes (Williams 11)] tells us all we need to know about both the Governor's and the writer's lack of moral judgment.
Williams acknowledges that Long extended his system of patronage throughout the state---a blatant act of abuse if power---by arguing again that he was merely behaving in accordance with the moral, or immoral, standards of the state and in response to his foes' similar activities:
The basis of the Long machine was patronage. Deliberately, Long as governor extended his power over existing boards and other agencies, and through the creation of new agencies to perform new functions he continually enlarged the patronage at his disposal. Eventually he was able to deprive the opposition of almost all political sustenance. . . . In the last phase of his career he reached out for more and more power, too much power, pushing laws through the legislature [to] . . . control . . . local government and election machinery. . . . (Williams 12)
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Approximate Word count = 1620
Approximate Pages = 6 (250 words per page)
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