Campaign Trail Results: Game #733973
Play The Campaign Trail
This Game:
- Year: 1896
- Player Candidate: William Jennings Bryan
- Running Mate: Claude Matthews
- Difficulty Level: Normal
- Winner Take All Mode?: Yes
- Game Played:
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View overall results, or a specific state:
| Candidate | Electoral Votes | Popular Votes | Pop. Vote % |
|---|---|---|---|
| ---- William Jennings Bryan | 264 | 7,204,742 | 51.83 |
| ---- William McKinley | 183 | 6,564,192 | 47.22 |
| ---- John Palmer | 0 | 132,229 | 0.95 |
Answers:
- Which of the following most closely matches your overall campaign message?Silver coinage is just one part of my platform. Let's not forget the struggles of the urban worker in his efforts to unionize and obtain fair wages.
- What do you have to say about William McKinley's campaign, at a high level?McKinley's insistence on the gold standard has alienated many prominent Republicans from his own party, such as Henry Teller.
- The novelty of a personal visit from the "Great Commoner" could probably swing the West Coast states in your direction. However, it will take two weeks to travel and return via train.
Will you divert your attention from the Midwest long enough to visit California, Oregon, and Washington?There is no time for that diversion. Heaven knows what rumors McKinley will spread while I am gone, and winning the Midwest should be our primary focus. - You have very little chance of winning New York this fall, and nearly all of that city's newspapers are anti-Bryan. That doesn't mean you couldn't draw a frenzied crowd in New York City.
Perhaps the media attention would be beneficial in building excitement for your campaign on a national scale?I will give one big speech in New York City to open my campaign. Even if winning that state is hopeless, we need the national press. - You have alluded to the need for less prejudice between the races. Senator "Pitchfork" Ben Tillman, of South Carolina, privately seeks your clarification.
Can you reassure him that the federal government will respect the rights of the states under your Administration?We will respect the rights of the states. I call for greater understanding, but certainly not for an overthrow of the natural order. - What do you think of leaving the Midwest for a week and making a circuit of the crucial upper South states? (i.e. Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, and Kentucky)It's a shame that we need to even campaign in these beacons of the South. But if we have to, let us do it with effluence.
- Without compromising on the silver issue, what can you say about McKinley to Bourbon Democrats to try and bring them back into the fold?McKinley has proposed some of the most dastardly tariffs to ever see the light of day in this country.
- Can you state your definitive position on the American monetary system?I support the free, unlimited coinage of silver at a fixed price ratio of 16-to-1 against gold.
- What is your definitive position on the tariff issue?In limited areas where we have new industries forming, tariffs can be higher. They should be low on most products.
- The United States is in the midst of a financial calamity, with masses of unemployed men on the streets. What will you do to revive business in this country?The Democratic idea has been that if you legislate to make the masses prosperous, their prosperity will find its way up through every class which rests upon them. We need to help our farmers and our workers by allowing the coinage of silver.
- Grover Cleveland sent federal troops to Illinois to end the Pullman Strike without the request of Governor Altgeld. Was this an overreach on his part?Governor Altgeld was working to mediate the dispute between the Pullman Company and the strikers when Cleveland interfered. There should have absolutely been more time given for these sides to reach an accommodation.
- What is your opinion on measures that would aim to restrict the sale or production of alcohol?Perhaps if our goal is to prevent drinking on Sunday, or public drunkenness, I am all for those measures. But a blanket temperance law is a different story.
- Should Confederate veterans be included in the federal Civil War pension system?There's just one problem with this idea -- Confederate veterans will never accept money from the Federal government. Since they deem this idea to be an exercise in humiliation, I am left with no choice but to oppose it myself.
- It has been alleged that opportunistic young women have married Union Army veterans for the sole purpose of exploiting the pension system. Do you consider this to be a form of corruption? Would you implement some standards that widows must meet before they can inherit these pensions?One can never be sure when the inspiration of love will strike. Widows' pensions should be protected unconditionally.
- A few western states have allowed women the right to vote. Do you take the calls for a women's suffrage Amendment seriously?We welcome the support of women and men. Where women are granted the vote, we are confident that they will support our ticket.
- Would you support a program to compensate workers who are injured on the job? Is this a proper responsibility of the federal government?We absolutely need a federal program for this purpose. The Bible says that we must love all people -- even those who have been cast aside by our Darwinian industrial machinery.
- What are your views on the Darwinian theory of Evolution?I'm not convinced of the veracity of this theory. It contravenes accepted Christian teaching in a large number of ways.
- Do you believe that America has a duty to civilize the lesser nations of the earth?This isn't something that we should be making an active effort to do. There are enough problems within our own country for us to worry about the state of civilization in some far-off, primitive land.
- Will you work towards international agreements to create a monetary system based on "bimetallism", i.e. a combination of gold and silver?This would be a worthwhile arrangement for the laboring classes across the civilized world. When I'm elected, however, we will allow the free coinage of silver regardless of what agreements are or aren't in place.
- Do you think that the United States Navy is large enough to adequately defend American interests on a global level?The Navy is more than adequate to meet our current needs, and will remain so as long as imperialist Republicans avoid intervening in Cuba or Hawaii.
- Do you believe that the federal government has any right to issue interest-bearing bonds, such as those sold to J.P. Morgan in 1895?Of course the government has a right to do this. Whether it is advisable or whether President Cleveland negotiated a good interest rate is another debate.
- Jacob Coxey's protests fell on deaf ears in 1894. With so many men out of work, is there any role for a public works program that would keep them occupied until business improves?This is absolutely the wrong solution to our business downturn. We must allow the free coinage of silver to reduce the burden of our debts.
- Should the federal government make an effort to build a canal through Nicaragua to more efficiently link trade in the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans?I envision an American canal, built by American workers, property of the American government, supporting the actions of a robust American Navy. I fully support these plans.
- Is it generally appropriate for federal courts to issue injunctions against striking unions?Maybe in limited cases, where unions are a threat to public safety or where they undermine an essential industry. The courts are notoriously conservative, however, and definitely take this practice too far.
- There is one week left until election day. Every state is important, but where will you give an extra push with your personal campaigning to swing the final results?Let's spend the entire week in Illinois. That is the largest state that we have a chance to win.