The Townsend Plan: The forgotten movement that shaped Social Security

CAPITOL WEEKLY PODCAST: In September 1933, in the depths of the Depression, Dr. Francis Townsend wrote a letter to his local newspaper, the Long Beach Press-Telegram. He had an idea that would end the Depression and alleviate the endemic poverty for the nation’s elderly. His plan was simple: the Federal Government should give each American 60 years and older a pension of $200 a month (equivalent to about $4700 today) – with the requirement that they HAD to spend the money within a month. The pensions would be paid for by a nationwide 2% transaction tax.

The idea caught on, spawning 8000 Townsend Clubs with a peak of two million members – 1% of the US population at the time – and roughly 10% of the nation’s senior citizens.  California congressman John McGroarty introduced the first Townsend Plan bill in 1935, much to the dismay of the Roosevelt administration, which was then working to pass the Social Security Act. By the late thirties there were over 100 members of a Townsend caucus in congress, and individual states – including California – proposed Townsend-inspired initiatives of their own.

Our guest today, Dr. Edwin Amenta is the author of When Movements Matter: The Townsend Plan and the Rise of Social Security. He tells the story of the Townsend Plan, how it became a movement and how it changed the conversation about old age pensions in America and ultimately shaped the Social Security we know today. Plus, Who Had the Worst Week in CA Politics?

Show Notes

1:16 Who was Townsend?

2:18 $200 a month

2:47 One of the largest organizations in US history

3:26 One person with an idea to a nationwide movement

5:08 What did retirement look like at the time?

7:23 Legislation

10:01 John McGroarty

11:42 No political home

16:11 The Townsend Caucus

18:21 “Ham and Eggs”

19:50 Culbert Olson

21:12 The evolution of Social Security

24:37 Political football

29:08 What became of Townsend and his movement?

33:12 “I just love a spectacle”

34:10 #WWCA