Politcs In Cities

7 Pages 1842 Words

control of government jobs and its ability to secure contributions from businesses enabled it to establish and maintain the machine’s second organizational tier, the precinct or ward organization. Benefits at the ward and precinct level provided the machine’s link to the foundations of its organization, the party loyalists in the electorate. It was this type of political structure that was the back bone for machine politics and it was this type of politics that inspired Edwin O’Connor’s popular novel “The Last Hurrah” in 1956. This novel chronicles the career of Frank Skeffington, the longtime Irish-American mayor of a major eastern city, as he begins an unsuccessful reelection campaign. Skeffington is modeled on James M. Curly, the longtime mayor of Boston, and his power is built on personal relationships and patronage, with his charm and kindness making his corruption seem less dangerous. Frank Skeffington is a typical political machine boss and his political dealings can be compared to other big bosses like; Boss Tweed, Tim Sullivan, and Richard Croker. These bosses all provided the city with the programs and relief that it needed, even though, some provided it using more legal methods than others did. This was a time when the federal government did not provide any type of relief programs or aid for the poor. Because of this lack in government programs the public was left empty and without hope; these bosses came into th...