The answer is b, Huey P. Long

Q. In the 1930's, there were many ideas on how to solve the problems of the Great Depression, including a "Share Our Wealth" plan from one U.S. Senator. This radical plan would increase the taxes of wealthy people, only allow them a limited personal fortune, and redistribute the money to the poor. Who was the senator?     a. Robert F. Wagner     b. Huey P. Long     c. Daniel Patrick Moynihan     d. Strom Thurmond

Long, a Democratic U.S. Senator from Louisiana, was colorful and controversial. An ardent enemy of corporate interests, he championed the "little man" against the rich and privileged.

He

"There is nothing wrong with the United States. We have more food than we can eat. We have more clothes and things out of which to make clothes than we can wear. We have more houses and land than the whole 120 million can use if they all had good homes. So what is the trouble? Nothing except that a handful of men have everything and the balance of the people have nothing ..." -- Huey P. Long, in a 1934 Senate speech

nicknamed himself Kingfish because, he said: "I'm a small fish here in Washington. But I'm the Kingfish to the folks down in Louisiana."

Long's "Share Our Wealth" program called on the federal government to create a new tax code and guarantee every family in the nation an annual income of $5,000 so they could buy a home, radio, and an automobile.

He also suggested limiting private fortunes to $50 million, legacies to $5 million, and annual incomes to $1 million. "The wealth of this land is tied up in a few hands," Long argued. "...They have not worked any more than many other people who have nothing. Now we do not propose to hurt these very rich persons. We simply say that when they reach the place of millionaires, they have everything they can use and they ought to let somebody else have something."

Under Long's proposed plan included old-age pensions for everyone age 60 years and older, free higher education, and a limit on the number of hours that people could work at their jobs. His slogan was "Every Man a King."

Senator Long's wealth redistribution plan was largely rejected. According to the U.S. Senate Historical Office, "his proposals died in committee because they were considered too radical to be taken seriously. President Franklin D. Roosevelt considered the Louisiana senator 'one of the two most dangerous men in the country' and handled him with care."

In 1935, at the age of 42, Long was assassinated in Baton Rouge by the son-in-law of one of his political rivals.

If you have a tax-related question, please contact Tax Specialist Crystal Martin. You can call her at 717-757-6999 or 800-745-8233 or send her an email by using the form below.

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