Philip La Follette

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Philip Fox La Follette (May 8, 1897–August 18, 1965) was an American politician from the U.S. state of Wisconsin.

La Follette was born in Madison, Wisconsin, a member of the politically-prominent La Follette family, the son of Robert M. La Follette, Sr. and Belle Case La Follette, brother of Robert M. La Follette, Jr., brother-in-law of the playwright George Middleton, and uncle of Bronson La Follette.

La Follette was governor of Wisconsin from 1931 to 1933 and 1935 to 1939. He was elected as a member of the Progressive Party. The gregarious governor was known as "Phil" on the streets of Madison during his governorship, much as his father had been known as simply "Bob." His governorship saw the implementation of many of the progressive measures of the New Deal, with La Follette being responsible for the implementation of some of them on the state level before the Roosevelt Administration could do so on the national level.

He served as a Second lieutenant in the United States Army Infantry in 1918. In 1919 he received Bachelor of Arts from University of Wisconsin, Madison. and in 1922 a Bachelor of Laws from University of Wisconsin. He married Isabel Bacon in 1923. He was the District attorney for Dane County, Wisconsin from 1925-1927.

La Follette was defeated seeking reelection as governor in 1938. That spring he had attempted to launch the National Progressive Party of America in an attempt to create a national third party (as the La Follettes had helped create in Wisconsin) in anticipation of Franklin Delano Roosevelt not seeking a third term for President. The plan for a new national Progressive Party never materialized at the time, and Roosevelt soon decided to defy convention and precedent and seek a third term; La Follette never again sought public office for himself.

Much as his father opposed U.S. entry into World War I, Phil La Follette strongly opposed U.S. entry into World War II. Once war was declared, he abandoned his opposition and joined the U.S. Army, serving on the staff of General Douglas MacArthur. He would later spearhead a slate of delegates supporting MacArthur in the 1948 presidential campaign.

From 1955 to 1959, La Follette served as president of Hazeltine Electronics.

[edit] Notes

• Electoral dates and Lt. Governors, per Wisconsin Blue Book, 2005-2006

[edit] Published works

• La Follette, Philip Fox, Adventure in politics: the memoirs of Philip La Follette edited by Donald Young, New York: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1970.

[edit] Further reading

• Fighting Son: A Biography of Philip F. La Follette By Jonathan Kasparek. Wisconsin Historical Society (July 31, 2006) ISBN 0-87020-353-3. Book review of biography

[edit] External links

• The LaFollette Family - A Register of Its Papers in the Library of Congress
• Philip F. La Follette, Dictionary of Wisconsin History, Wisconsin State Historical Society