The Republican Party of 1892 stood upon a platform largely based on its 1888 iteration and the administration’s record. Some elements are remarkably similar to party positions today, but in some cases the 1892 platform was more progressive than the 2016 platform.
“Protectionism” carried the headline, as businessmen, entrepreneurs, and manufacturers sought high tariffs to keep out foreign competition.
…all imports coming into competition with the products of American labor, there should be levied duties equal to the difference between wages abroad and at home.
However, the Republicans had pioneered the notion of “reciprocity” in 1890, that is, the negotiation of mutually beneficial trade deals with lower rates.
Western Republicans demanded further inflation of the currency through the purchase of silver to match the gold standard.
The most progressive piece centered on civil rights. Republicans decried any practice that in effect lowered voter turnout.
We demand that every citizen of the United States shall be allowed to cast one free and unrestricted ballot in all public elections, and that such ballot shall be counted and returned as cast; that such laws shall be enacted and enforced as will secure to every citizen, be he rich or poor, native or foreign-born, white or black, this sovereign right, guaranteed by the Constitution. The free and honest popular ballot, the just and equal representation of all the people, as well as their just and equal protection under the laws, are the foundation of our Republican institutions, and the party will never relax its efforts until the integrity of the ballot and the purity of elections shall be fully guaranteed and protected in every State.
Moreover, The platform agreed upon at the 1892 Republican National Convention was the last to include language promising action to halt discrimination in the South:
We denounce the continued inhuman outrages perpetrated upon American citizens for political reasons in certain Southern States of the Union.
The party of Lincoln abandoned civil rights as a dead issue in favor of “harmony” with the South beginning in 1896.
Militarily, the platform called for further increases to the Navy, “friendly relations with all foreign powers; entangling alliances with none; and the protection of the rights of our fishermen.” As for border security, Republicans called for “more stringent laws and regulations for the restriction of criminal, pauper and contract immigration.” That will sound familiar.
Here is something that won’t:
The Republican party has always been the champion of the oppressed and recognizes the dignity of manhood, irrespective of faith, color, or nationality; it sympathizes with the cause of home rule in Ireland, and protests against the persecution of the Jews in Russia.
The ultimate reliance of free popular government is the intelligence of the people, and the maintenance of freedom among men. We therefore declare anew our devotion to liberty of thought and conscience, of speech and press, and approve all agencies and instrumentalities which contribute to the education of the children of the land, but while insisting upon the fullest measure of religious liberty, we are opposed to any union of Church and State. We reaffirm our opposition, declared in the Republican platform of 1888, to all combinations of capital organized in trusts or otherwise, to control arbitrarily the condition of trade among our citizens.
Not only did the GOP platform in 1892 specifically identify the plight of Catholics in Ireland and Jews in Russia, but it also reaffirmed commitment to freedom of the press, and separation of church and state. This is a far cry from today’s GOP, which routinely mocks the press. The 19th century’s Republican party also opposed massive business combinations.
The last few sections asserted the importance of the Postal Service, commitment to civil service reform, and support for the temperance movement and Union veterans. The party voiced support for the Chicago Columbian Exposition, and for a Nicaraguan Canal (later scrapped and moved to Panama).
Finally, the party rested on President Harrison’s record:
We commend the able, patriotic and thoroughly American administration of President Harrison. Under it the country has enjoyed remarkable prosperity and the dignity and honor of the Nation, at home and abroad, have been faithfully maintained, and we offer the record of pledges kept as a guarantee of faithful performance in the future.
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