Raymond E. Willis of Indiana By Ray Hill Raymond Eugene Willis was literally born into the printing business. His father, Frank, had been a veteran of the Civil War and owned the Waterloo Press. The son of “a country editor” and one of six brothers and eight children,...
Legislative Craftsman: Robert F. Wagner of New York
Legislative Craftsman: Robert F. Wagner of New York By Ray Hill Robert Ferdinand Wagner was born in Germany and rose to become a towering figure in the United States Senate. Eight-year-old Bob Wagner and his parents left their village near Wiesbaden for the United...
The Merry Mortician: Kenneth S. Wherry of Nebraska
The Merry Mortician: Kenneth S. Wherry of Nebraska By Ray Hill Kenneth Spicer Wherry is completely unknown to most readers today, but the Nebraskan was one of the better-known members of the United States Senate during his time. A superlative salesman, Wherry had...
Ray Blanton, Part 1
By Ray Hill Ray Blanton is little remembered today save for one thing: the corruption of his administration. Compared to many of Tennessee’s more significant historical figures, Blanton’s political career was not long, but it was impossible not to notice the man who...
Senatorial Bloodhound: Charles W. Tobey of New Hampshire
Senatorial Bloodhound: Charles W. Tobey of New Hampshire By Ray Hill Almost certainly, hardly any reader will recall Charles William Tobey, but at one time he was a member of the first congressional committee to become a television sensation, which was headed by...
John E. Miles of New Mexico
John E. Miles of New Mexico By Ray Hill For 60 years, John E. Miles was a fixture of New Mexico’s political scene. Miles held numerous elected and appointed positions throughout his life and lived long enough to become a senior statesman of New Mexico’s Democratic...
K.D. McKellar Goes To Congress, II
K.D. McKellar Goes To Congress, II By Ray Hill The campaigns of Kenneth D. McKellar and his chief opponent for the Democratic nomination in the 1911 special election to fill the vacancy caused by the death of George Washington Gordon had heated up. McKellar...
K.D. McKellar Goes To Congress, I
K.D. McKellar Goes To Congress, I By Ray Hill Tennessee has been fortunate to have sent some to Congress who have wielded real influence in the Nation’s Capitol. Tennessee has also had a few men who served for decades in Washington, D.C. Carroll Reece and Jimmy...
The Fight for Majority Leader, 1937
The Fight for Majority Leader, 1937 By Ray Hill Sometime during the night of July 14, 1937, the heart of Joseph T. Robinson stopped beating. Arkansas had honored Joe Robinson with every distinction she could bestow upon a single individual, electing him to Congress,...
The Friend of the Workers: Olin D. Johnston of South Carolina
The Friend of the Workers: Olin D. Johnston of South Carolina By Ray Hill Olin DeWitt Talmadge Johnston was a fixture in the politics of his native South Carolina for decades. Twice elected governor and elected to the United States Senate in 1944 where he remained...
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Edward Hull Crump: The Boss, Part VII
By Ray Hill Despite...
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The U.S. Senate In The Age of McKellar: 1917 – 1953
By Ray Hill Kenneth...
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The Senator’s Secretary: D. W. McKellar
By Ray Hill...
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A Feudin’ Son of Tennessee: Kenneth McKellar Chapter 1
By Ray Hill It will...
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A Feudin’ Son of Tennessee: Kenneth McKellar Chapter 2
By Ray Hill Kenneth McKellar...
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A Feudin’ Son of Tennessee: Kenneth McKellar, Chapter 3
By Ray Hill Even as a...