Eisenhower Administration Quotes
They are reputed to have had an affair during the war.
There are a number of periods in American history when the highest marginal income tax rate for the very wealthy was over 90 percent. The highest marginal rate is not on total income but only on the excess above a threshold amount—based on 2010 dollars, the high rate would only be paid on the income OVER $3 million in that year. Reich was right in saying that some of the greatest growth spurts of the American economy occurred at times where the marginal tax rates were over 90 percent.
What is amazing about this quotation is that it shows the naivety of one of the most sophisticated politicians in the country. He and many politicians were really surprised that commercial consumer marketing techniques would work so well. He and many others thought that the issue of marketing political candidates was something that should be debated. Meanwhile, all the pragmatic politicians of both political parties jumped on the commercial marketing bandwagon, but the Republicans tended to master and execute the techniques more skillfully.
This is a fascinating quotation because it illustrates how political attitudes have changed since then. Stevenson meant this to be an insult to and even a charge against the men who ran the Eisenhower administration and campaign but not the President personally. And that was the way that it was taken. Republicans were insulted and thought this was a scurrilous charge by a candidate who was down in the polls but wanted to throw “red meat” to his base. However, when we read the statement today, it doesn’t seem at all like an insult. As a matter of fact, there are few politicians today, of either party, who would not agree with the views that Stevenson accuses the Republican strategists of having. Arguably, the Democrats were historically very slow to arrive at he place the Republicans had achieved. But in 1956 it was almost unethical to use shows and advertising techniques to manipulate public opinion. Politicians had been doing it since the beginning of our Republic but it used to be something a little dirty—something to which no one wanted to public admit believing. Today, politicians of both parties are often criticized by their base and the pundits for not believing sufficiently in the importance of image manipulation and advertising. Today, virtually no politicians have any moral scruples about using the techniques, doing so overtly and being proud of their staffs for being good at it.
