"Standpatter", or "stand-patter", was a term used in US political history in the early 20th century, during the

Progressive Era The Progressive Era (1890s–1920s) was a period in the United States characterized by multiple social and political reform efforts. Reformers during this era, known as progressivism in the United States, Progressives, sought to address iss ...

, to describe the more conservative members of the Republican Party than other members, who were called "insurgents" or "progressives". The former were said to be philosophically similar to those of the earlier Stalwart faction.Michael Wolraich
''"Unreasonable Men: Theodore Roosevelt and The Republican Rebels Who created Progressive Politics"''
Palgrave Macmillan, New York, New York (2014) p.8

History

The term is said to have first been used in a political context by

Joseph G. Cannon Joseph Gurney Cannon (May 7, 1836 – November 12, 1926) was an American politician from Illinois and a leader of the Republican Party. Cannon represented parts of Illinois in the United States House of Representatives for twenty-three non ...

in 1896 with regard to US

tariffs A tariff or import tax is a duty imposed by a national government, customs territory, or supranational union on imports of goods and is paid by the importer. Exceptionally, an export tax may be levied on exports of goods or raw materials and is ...

William Safire William Lewis Safire (; Safir; December 17, 1929 – September 27, 2009Safire, William (1986). ''Take My Word for It: More on Language.'' Times Books. . p. 185.) was an American author, columnist, journalist, and presidential speechwriter. He ...

''Safire's Political Dictionary''

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the publishing house of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world. Its first book was printed in Oxford in 1478, with the Press officially granted the legal right to print books ...

(2008) It was popularised following Senator

Mark Hanna Marcus Alonzo Hanna (September 24, 1837 – February 15, 1904) was an American businessman and Republican politician who served as a United States Senator from Ohio as well as chairman of the Republican National Committee. A friend and ...

's "stand pat speech" in 1901, which suggested that "all that was necessary for Republican victory was, in poker parlance, to stand pat". In

poker Poker is a family of Card game#Comparing games, comparing card games in which Card player, players betting (poker), wager over which poker hand, hand is best according to that specific game's rules. It is played worldwide, with varying rules i ...

, a player who does not want to trade any cards declares his intention to "stand pat." A standpatter Republican was particularly conservative and was unwilling to trade or compromise. The poker parlance "stand pat" has since been used in political contexts to refer to a conservative viewpoint although the description of individuals as "standpatters" is less common. After the term's popularisation, even those unfamiliar with the game of poker understood the description.Addison B. Burk, Howard A. Chase, J. Lee Patton, Hampton Moor
Golden Jubilee of the Republican Party
Town Print Company (1906)

Prominent members

Nelson Aldrich Nelson Wilmarth Aldrich (/Help:IPA/English, ˈɑldɹɪt͡ʃ/; November 6, 1841 – April 16, 1915) was a prominent American politician and a leader of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party in the United States Senate, where he r ...

William B. Allison William Boyd Allison (March 2, 1829 – August 4, 1908) was an American politician. An early leader of the Iowa Republican Party, he represented northeastern Iowa in the United States House of Representatives before representing his state in t ...

* Joseph Foraker *

Boies Penrose Boies Penrose (November 1, 1860 – December 31, 1921) was an American politician from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, who served as a Republican member of the United States Senate for Pennsylvania from 1897 to 1921. He served as a member of th ...

Thomas C. Platt Thomas Collier Platt (July 15, 1833 – March 6, 1910), also known as Tom Platt

John Coit Spooner John Coit Spooner (January 6, 1843June 11, 1919) was an American lawyer and Republican politician from Hudson, Wisconsin. He represented Wisconsin as a United States Senator from 1885 to 1891, then again from 1897 to 1907. In his latter stint ...

External links

*James N. Tidwell
Political Words and Phrases: Card-Playing Terms
''American Speech'' Vol. 33, No. 1 (Feb., 1958), pp. 21-28,

Duke University Press Duke University Press is an academic publisher and university press affiliated with Duke University. It was founded in 1921 by William T. Laprade as The Trinity College Press. (Duke University was initially called Trinity College). In 1926 ...

"Standpat"
at

Merriam-Webster Merriam-Webster, Incorporated is an list of companies of the United States by state, American company that publishes reference work, reference books and is mostly known for Webster's Dictionary, its dictionaries. It is the oldest dictionary pub ...

References

{{reflist, 2 Political terminology of the United States Republican Party (United States) terminology Political party factions in the United States Factions in the Republican Party (United States) Conservatism in the United States

History

Prominent members

See also

External links

References