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La Follette decries party machines and private interests, 1897

Peril in the machine: R.M. La Follette's Oration


To Robert La Follette, political party machines and special interests held undue power in government and posed a continual threat to democracy. He believed that the individual citizen was the primary force in government and that each person had a right and responsibility to have a voice in governance. In a speech at the University of Chicago in 1897, La Follette describes the perils of political machines that prey on the indifference of individual citizens.

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Related Topics: The Progressive Era
The Career of Robert M. La Follette
Creator: La Follette, Robert M.
Pub Data: Chicago Times-Herald. 23 February 1897. Wisconsin Historical Society.
Citation: La Follette, Robert. "Peril in the machine: R.M. La Follette's Oration." Chicago Times Herald. (23 February 1897). Online facsimile at:  http://www.wisconsinhistory.org/turningpoints/search.asp?id=777; Visited on: 11/22/2009
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