To Power in the City (Part 2 of 2)

Core idea

In the last two weeks of the 1933 campaign, Moses delivered a series of radio addresses that became the defining attacks of the Fusion campaign. He attacked Tammany corruption, mocked the McKee caretaker mayoralty, and explicitly tied the Casino in Central Park and a dozen other Walker-era follies to the entire Tammany apparatus. The speeches lifted Fusion. La Guardia, watching, decided Moses would be his Parks Commissioner the day after the election. The deal was made in November 1933 and consummated in January 1934.

Why it matters

Moses on radio — a new medium for an old voice

Radio was the new political medium of the early 1930s. Moses's voice — measured, sardonic, somewhere between a Yale dean and a prosecutor — worked perfectly. His addresses landed. They are credited by Caro with shifting the New York metropolitan independent vote toward Fusion in the closing weeks.

The Parks Commissioner deal

La Guardia had been considering Moses for the city Parks Department since before the election. The radio addresses sealed the appointment. La Guardia announced Moses's nomination in December 1933; Moses was sworn in January 19, 1934 at 5 p.m., minutes after the legislation creating a citywide Park Department took effect. Within hours Moses had begun firing patronage employees.

Key takeaways

Mental model

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Practical application

Example

Modern campaign endorsements from celebrities or major political figures land most effectively in the closing two weeks. Earlier endorsements get absorbed into the noise. Late endorsements coordinate the marginal voter. Moses's 1933 radio addresses were the early template.

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