Voting Station

Robert LaFollette, Jr.

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U.S. Senator

The Resume

    (February 6, 1895-February 24, 1953)
    Born in Madison, Wisconsin
    Son of Robert LaFollette
    US Senator from Wisconsin (1925-47)
    While Senator, was a member of the Republican Party (1925-34, 1946-47) and the Wisconsin Progressive Party (1934-46)
    Committed suicide by gunshot

Why he might be annoying:

    He was elected to the Senate to fill the vacancy left when his father died.
    He was a founding member of the isolationist America First Committee (1940).
    An analysis for the British Foreign Office by Isaiah Berlin described him as 'a very eccentric and unpredictable political figure.'
    He lost the Republican primary to Joseph McCarthy (1946).
    He may have committed suicide out of fear that McCarthy was planning to accuse former members of his Senate staff of being Communists.

Why he might not be annoying:

    Berlin's analysis also noted, 'He is entirely independent of business interests and pressure groups.'
    He chaired a special Senate investigating committee that exposed the surveillance, intimidation and other techniques used by large employers to prevent workers from joining unions (1936-40).
    He drafted and secured passage of the Legislative Reorganization Act of 1946, which streamlined Congress by reducing the number of standing committees, upgraded staff support for legislators, and required lobbyists to register with Congress and file periodic reports of their activities.
    He received an award from Collier's magazine for outstanding public service (1946).

Credit: C. Fishel


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Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 32 Votes: 46.88% Annoying