Fighting Bob La Follette: The Righteous Reformer [Hardcover]

Nancy C. Unger (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 30, 2000

Robert "Fighting Bob" La Follette (1855-1925) was one of the most significant leaders of American progressivism. Nancy Unger integrates previously unknown details from La Follette's personal life with important events from his storied political career, revealing a complex man who was a compelling mixture of failure and accomplishment, tragedy and triumph.

Serving as U.S. representative from 1885 to 1891, governor of Wisconsin from 1901 to 1906, and senator from Wisconsin from 1906 to his death in 1925, La Follette earned the nickname "Fighting Bob" through his uncompromising efforts to reform both politics and society, especially by championing the rights of the poor, workers, women, and minorities.

Based on La Follette family letters, diaries, and other papers, this biography covers the personal events that shaped the public man. In particular, Unger explores La Follette's relationship with his remarkable wife, feminist Belle Case La Follette, and with his sons, both of whom succeeded him in politics. The La Follette who emerges from this retelling is an imperfect yet appealing man who deserves to be remembered as one of the United States' most devoted and effective politicians.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

One of America's most important Progressive-era leaders, Robert Marion La Follette (1855-1925) was an uncompromising advocate for workers and the poorAboth in Washington, D.C., as a senator and representative, and in Wisconsin, as governor. This new biography, by historian Unger (Santa Clara University) elegantly weaves together the story of La Follette's family life with his heralded career. The two strands of his life merge best through Unger's account of his marriage to Belle Case La Follette, whom Unger calls "[o]ne of the most... politically influential spouses in American history." Although that may overstate the case (Belle doesn't really appear to be in the same league as Eleanor Roosevelt or even Abigail Adams), her independent spirit did help shape her husband's career. Having refused for years to commit to marrying BobAopting for the women's suffrage lecture circuit insteadAshe was instrumental in getting her husband to think about women's rights. Unger's narrative is riveting even when she is considering political history straightforwardlyAthat is, without the charms of family anecdotes. Under La Follette's governorship, she recounts, Wisconsin led the nation in Progressive reformAthe state adopted the direct primary, passed an antilobby law, reformed civil service statutes, enacted land conservation regulations and reined in the railroads and utilities. A politician who put the well-being of the American people over petty party politics, La Follette, Unger argues, prefigured the New Deal era. This passionate, engaging and scholarly book may not alter the fact that Americans have largely forgotten about La Follette and his legacy, but it does a good job trying. Illus. (Sept.)
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Robert M. La Follette (1855-1925), Wisconsin governor and U.S. senator, was a giant among progressive-era (1880s-1920s) reformists. He and Belle Case La Follette, his wife, relentlessly championed the political and economic rights of workers, women, minorities, farmers, and the poor while assailing racial and sexual discrimination and industrialists' overwhelming influence in Congress. Unger (history, Santa Clara Univ.) mines voluminous collections of private papers and documents to reveal La Follette's dynamism, childhood, married life, recurring illnesses, and sense of righteous perfection and his progressive ideas (e.g., the direct election of senators), which are now part of American civic culture. Unger also explains how events like the Titanic disaster and the 1912 presidential election influenced La Follette's political plans. A worthwhile purchase for academic and public libraries, Unger's critical biography hints that today's America desperately needs democratic, grass roots- oriented politicians of high caliber like La Follette. Recommended for public and academic libraries.DCharles L. Lumpkins, Pennsylvania State Univ., State College
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 408 pages
• Publisher: The University of North Carolina Press (August 30, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 080782545X
• ISBN-13: 978-0807825457
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.4 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,520,365 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fighting Bob Comes Alive, January 5, 2003

By 

Jeffrey J. Matthews (University Place, WA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fighting Bob La Follette: The Righteous Reformer (Hardcover)

This is an excellent biography of a most worthy subject. Nancy Unger provides readers with a vivid and often entertaining account of one of the most important American political figures of the early twentieth century. Crucial to Unger's effectiveness is her dedication to balanced histocial writing. Her portrayal of La Follette is multifacted. It is political and personal. La Follette comes to life for the reader, not only enroute to his many political successes but also amid his failures and personal shortcomings. Unger's lauditory praise of her subject is deserving and her sharp criticisms are valid and substantiated. La Follette was an influential and flawed champion of democacy and social equity, and interested readers will thoroughly enjoy this insightful retelling of his life story.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding!, June 22, 2004

By 

Edward T. O'Donnell (Holden, MA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Fighting Bob La Follette: The Righteous Reformer (Hardcover)

Nancy Unger has written an outstanding and insightful biography of one of turn-of-the-century America's most influential political figures. Indeed, it is the first full-scale biography of Robert M. La Follette of Wisconsin. For anyone seeking to understand the Progressive Era this book is a must read, for Unger's subject was at the center of the defining reform struggles of the age - from women's rights and corporate regulation, to labor and political reform. Drawing upon a vast collection of private papers and primary sources, Unger brings to life not only the public persona of "Fighting Bob" but also the private La Follette that few people know about. We learn, for example, how his early life struggles shaped his personality (for good and for ill), as well as how much he relied upon his wife, suffragist and reformer Belle Case La Follette, for advice and strength. Written in a lively yet balanced style, this book greatly adds to our knowledge of a complex and fascinating man and era.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Clear and Direct History Writing, July 10, 2002

By 

Marcia Meyers "Arthur Meyers, Librarian" (Middletown, CT United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Fighting Bob La Follette: The Righteous Reformer (Hardcover)

As a public library director with a special interest in the Progressive era, I found Fighting Bob LaFollette by Unger exactly what I seek in history writing. It has the strengths of all solid history in its sources but the author draws on other fields, in particular medicine, to broaden our understanding.

More than a century ago, LaFollette said "We are one people" and recognized the importance of minority groups shaping their own future. Before the mass media and big money took over political campaigns, Progressive reformers focused on the needs of average people. In three-hour speeches, LaFollette fought for what was needed and was the right thing for the nation to do. The author's direct and clear prose brings the reformer and the times to life. We can learn much from the book for our time.