How Did Huey P Long Influence His Government

Huey P. Long once said “Every man a king, but no one wears a crown.” this was a man that truly believed that anyone could thrive. During his time in office as a senator and Governor of Louisiana, he had ideas to fix the current depression. He developed the “Share Our Wealth” program as a new welfare program for the country. He had a close connection to the agricultural community since he grew up on a farm as a child, and then rose to high status later in life. He originally used his power and influence to support Franklin D. Roosevelt, but changed his opinion when Huey P. Long decided that FDR’s New Deal plan was too slow. Huey P. Long’s upbringing in poverty and farming made him more sympathetic to the poor once he rose to political power, and therefore he …show more content…
When his father sold a large portion of their property to the Arkansas railroad, the Longs became one of the wealthiest families in the parish. Long’s mother pushed him towards a life in the ministry, even giving him money to attend a Baptist college, in Oklahoma, though there is no evidence showing his enrolment. For a while he worked as a traveling salesman for a few different companies. His first political position was on the state railroad commission at the age of 27. From the start of Long’s political career, he opposed the political theme in Louisiana at the time of just brushing over the poverty and backwardness of the system (Kolbert, Elizabeth). When he grew up the biggest political presence in Louisiana was the New Orleans Democratic Machine, The Old Regulars. They had a long reach in the state being that they were backed by Standard Oil, and Long openly opposed them and their ways of operating. Huey P. Long proposed that the oil company should be declared a public utility which would give the commission control over the pipelines. He then opposed the railroads, telegraph and even went against the current governor at the