Benjamin Wade
| Benjamin Franklin “Bluff” Wade | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| |||
| Former U.S. Senator from Illinois From: March 15, 1851 – March 4, 1869 | |||
| Predecessor | Thomas Ewing, Sr. | ||
| Successor | Allen G. Thurman | ||
| Former State Senator from Ohio From: 1837–1842 | |||
| Predecessor | ??? | ||
| Successor | ??? | ||
| Information | |||
| Party | Whig (before 1854) Republican (since 1854) | ||
| Spouse(s) | Caroline Marie Rosecrans | ||
Benjamin Franklin Wade (October 27, 1800 – March 2, 1878), also known as B. F. Wade and nicknamed Bluff, was a prominent Radical Republican from Ohio known for his opposition towards the lenient Reconstruction policies pushed by Presidents Abraham Lincoln and Andrew Johnson. He was previously a state senator from 1837 to 1842.
Political career
Wade's life in politics began as a prosecutor and local judge.[1] From the late 1830s to the early 1840s, Wade served in the state legislature, where he established a reputation as a staunch abolitionist and advocate of civil rights, pushing for the repeal of racist "Black Codes." He was a member of the Whig Party during this period.[1]
U.S. Senate
As a Whig, Wade won a special election to Ohio's Class I Senate seat in 1851.[2] When the party collapsed due to internal division over slavery, he helped form the Republican Party, which he joined.[1]
Joining GOP ranks as a Radical Republican, Wade was an ardent supporter of women's suffrage and trade unions.[1] He voiced heavy opposition towards the Fugitive Slave Act and the Kansas-Nebraska Act, drawing the ire of Southerners.
During the Civil War, Wade became chair of the Joint Committee on the Conduct of War.[1] He frequently criticized the policies of President Lincoln, viewing them as too lenient and hesitating against the Confederacy. Indeed, Wade even doubted Lincoln's abolitionist stances and said that the latter's viewpoints:[1]
| “ | ...could only come of one born of poor white trash and educated in a slave state. | ” |
—Wade during the Civil War | ||
Sen. Wade, with fellow Radical Republican Henry W. Davis, introduced the Wade-Davis bill pertaining to a post-war plan which called for harsh restrictions on the South to safeguard the constitutional rights of newly freed blacks.[1] Although it passed both houses of Congress, Lincoln pocket-vetoed Wade-Davis, and it never became law.
Following Lincoln's assassination, Wade initially was optimistic about the former's successor Andrew Johnson, though soon would similarly wage fierce opposition.[1] As the leader of the Senate, he was next in succession to the presidency immediately after Johnson, and this significantly impacted the Senate impeachment trial of Johnson. The racist Tennessee Democrat's Senate acquittal was in part attributed to several Republicans' distaste for Wade, knowing that he would become president if Johnson were removed from office.[1] Congressman John R. Lynch commented:[1]
| “ | ...some of [Wade's] senatorial Republican associates should feel that the best service they could render their country would be to do all in their power to prevent such a man from being elevated to the Presidency. | ” |
—U.S. representative John Roy Lynch of Mississippi's 6th congressional district | ||
The failure to convict and remove President Johnson from office led to Wade's political downfall. In 1968, he lost re-election to Democrat white supremacist Allen Granberry Thurman.[3]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9 Benjamin Wade. American Battlefield Trust. Retrieved November 9, 2021.
- ↑ OH US Senate Special Race - Mar 14, 1851. Our Campaigns. Retrieved November 9, 2021.
- ↑ OH US Senate Race - Jan 15, 1868. Our Campaigns. Retrieved November 9, 2021.