The Governor’s Veto: A Political Backstory
A defense of Governor Henry McBride’s 1903 veto of a local option bill, shifting blame from his personal stance to legislative corruption.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
There seems to be a wrong impression passing over this part of the state in regard to ex-Governor McBride's attitude towards local option. It is probably due to the fact that he vetoed a local option bill while governor of the state. It is the expressed opinion of friends of the bill and those who know the details of the affair, that the governor did not veto the bill because it was a local option bill but because it had been so tampered with by the whiskey ring that it bore no semblance to the original bill. Its purpose was so crossed that, had it been enacted, it would have become a boomerang in the rumsellers' hands to throw at the heads of law-abiding citizens every time they attempted to interfere with the rumseller's nefarious business, and, thus, instead of being an honor to its supporters, it would have been a deep humiliation.
“Its purpose was so crossed that, had it been enacted, it would have become a boomerang in the rumsellers' hands.”
This piece highlights the historical power of 'rum rings' and legislative maneuvering, echoing modern frustrations with how lobbyists shape, and often gut, populist legislation.
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