| − | In 1948, Johnson ran in another controversial Senate race, this time against former governor Coke Stevenson. After no candidate won a majority of the votes in the election, Johnson defeated Stevenson in a run-off election. The result of this election was highly controversial, most historians, even those sympathetic to Johnson consider Johnson's 87 vote victory over Stevenson to be fraudulent.<ref>See eg Robert A Caro Master of the ''Senate Means of Assent''</ref> After joining the Senate, Johnson established relationships with several senior senators, including [[Richard Russell]]. Johnson was appointed to the powerful [[Armed Services Committee]] in 1950, and became chairman of the Preparedness Subcommittee which brought him into the public spotlight much like [[Harry Truman]] used the "Truman Committee" during the Second World War. He was named minority whip in 1951 under Democratic leader Bob McFarland, and he became the leader of the [[Democratic Party]] in the Senate in 1953. His first major policy, with the support of Russell, was to bypass the Seniority rule in committee assignments, which meant that Senators became reliant on his favour in order to obtain positions on important committees. This move, in combination with his strong personality gave him power of senators that had not been seen before (or since) in Senate History. He is often referred to as the "Master of the Senate". Surprisingly, after he bacame majority leader in 1955 he supported many of Eisenhower's proposals despite the partisan resistance of the liberal wing of the Democratic party. This allowed him to bask in the reflected glow of Eisenhower's immense popularity and gain a reputation for working across the aisle and getting things done. | + | In 1948, Johnson won an election for [[U.S. Senate]] by stealing the election, according even to historians sympathetic to him. Johnson ran against former governor Coke Stevenson; neither candidate won a majority of the votes in the election, which under Texas law forced a runoff between Johnson and Stevenson. Johnson then claimed a 87-vote victory over Stevenson in the runoff, which was fraudulent.<ref>See eg Robert A Caro Master of the ''Senate Means of Assent''</ref> After joining the Senate, Johnson established relationships with several senior senators, including [[Richard Russell]]. Johnson was appointed to the powerful [[Armed Services Committee]] in 1950, and became chairman of the Preparedness Subcommittee which brought him into the public spotlight much like [[Harry Truman]] used the "Truman Committee" during the Second World War. He was named minority whip in 1951 under Democratic leader Bob McFarland, and he became the leader of the [[Democratic Party]] in the Senate in 1953. His first major policy, with the support of Russell, was to bypass the Seniority rule in committee assignments, which meant that Senators became reliant on his favour in order to obtain positions on important committees. This move, in combination with his strong personality gave him power of senators that had not been seen before (or since) in Senate History. He is often referred to as the "Master of the Senate". Surprisingly, after he became majority leader in 1955 he supported many of Eisenhower's proposals despite the partisan resistance of the liberal wing of the Democratic party. This allowed him to bask in the reflected glow of Eisenhower's immense popularity and gain a reputation for working across the aisle and getting things done. |
| | Although publicly posing as a Civil Rights hero, in private Johnson was—like most southern Democrats of the 1960s—a racist: When his sometime chauffeur, Robert Parker, told LBJ he’d prefer to be called by his name rather than "boy," "nigger" or "chief," Johnson replied, "As long as you are black, and you're gonna be black till the day you die, no one's gonna call you by your goddamn name. So no matter what you are called, nigger, you just let it roll off your back like water, and you’ll make it. Just pretend you’re a goddamn piece of furniture."<ref>Robert Parker and Richard L. Rashke, ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=JKhpZMj8Z6wC Capitol Hill in Black and White]'' (Penguin Group, 1989), ISBN 0515101893, p. v.</ref> | | Although publicly posing as a Civil Rights hero, in private Johnson was—like most southern Democrats of the 1960s—a racist: When his sometime chauffeur, Robert Parker, told LBJ he’d prefer to be called by his name rather than "boy," "nigger" or "chief," Johnson replied, "As long as you are black, and you're gonna be black till the day you die, no one's gonna call you by your goddamn name. So no matter what you are called, nigger, you just let it roll off your back like water, and you’ll make it. Just pretend you’re a goddamn piece of furniture."<ref>Robert Parker and Richard L. Rashke, ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=JKhpZMj8Z6wC Capitol Hill in Black and White]'' (Penguin Group, 1989), ISBN 0515101893, p. v.</ref> |