attorney general a. mitchell palmer hunted down what three groups

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Who tried to kill a Mitchell Palmer?

Dec 09, 2010 · What three groups were hunted down by hoover and palmer during the red score? Wiki User. ... How did the justice department under A mitchell palmer respond to this fear? ...

What did Attorney General Palmer do during the Red Scare?

Dec 30, 2015 · Alexander Mitchell Palmer was a lawyer, Congressman from Pennsylvania and the U.S. Attorney General under President Wilson (1919 - 1921). Using the Espionage Act of 1917 and the Sedition Act of 1918, Palmer launched a campaign against political radicals, suspected dissidents, left wing groups and aliens. In January 1920, federal agents in thirty-three cities …

Who was the Attorney General in 1919?

The US attorney general (A. Mitchell Palmer) hunted down suspected communists. Warren G. Harding. A president whose goal was to promote peace and calm. Teapot Dome Scandal. Oil-rich public lands were leased to the navy but instead of using them, the navy sold the land to oil companies for a profit, this led to corruption.

What did the Palmer Raids do?

US Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer and his assistant J. Edgar Hoover hunted down suspected Communists, socialists, and anarchists. They trampled people's civil rights, invading private homes and offices and jailing suspects without allowing them legal counsels.

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Mar 05, 2020 · Mitchell Palmer, Edgar Hoover, and their agents hunted down suspected Communists, socialists, and anarchists. Raided their homes, deported hundreds, but evidently failed to turn up any evidence of "revolutionary conspiracy". Which group inspired the Red Scare of the 1920s? Sacco & Vanzetti: The Red Scare of 1919–1920.

What college did Palmer graduate from?

Palmer graduated from Swarthmore College in 1891. At Swarthmore, he was a member of the Pennsylvania Kappa chapter of the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity. After graduation, he was appointed court stenographer of Pennsylvania's 43rd judicial district.

What role did Palmer play in the 1912 election?

At the 1912 Convention, he played a key role in holding the Pennsylvania delegation together in voting for Woodrow Wilson. Following the election of 1912, Palmer hoped to join Wilson's Cabinet as Attorney General. When he was offered Secretary of War instead, he declined citing his Quaker beliefs and heritage.

How many deportations did Freeland Post get?

Only the dismissal of most of the cases by Assistant Secretary of Labor Louis Freeland Post limited the number of deportations to 556. At a Cabinet meeting in April 1920, Palmer called on Secretary of Labor William B. Wilson to fire Post, but Wilson defended him.

What party was Palmer in?

He became a member of the Democratic Party and won election to the United States House of Representatives, serving from 1909 to 1915. During World War I, he served as Alien Property Custodian, taking charge of the seizure of enemy property. Palmer became attorney general under President Woodrow Wilson in 1919.

What was the role of the Custodian of the United States?

A wartime agency, the Custodian had responsibility for the seizure, administration, and sometimes the sale of enemy property in the United States. Palmer's background in law and banking qualified him for the position, along with his party loyalty and intimate knowledge of political patronage.

Where was Palmer born?

Palmer was born into a Quaker family near White Haven, Pennsylvania, in the small town of Moosehead, on May 4, 1872. He was educated in the public schools and Bethlehem, Pennsylvania 's Moravian Parochial School. Palmer graduated from Swarthmore College in 1891. At Swarthmore, he was a member of the Pennsylvania Kappa chapter of the Phi Kappa Psi fraternity. After graduation, he was appointed court stenographer of Pennsylvania 's 43rd judicial district. He studied law at Lafayette College and George Washington University, and continued his studies with attorney John Brutzman Storm.

Where was the bomb in the Palmer family home?

This first bomb was intercepted and defused, but two months later, Palmer and his family narrowly escaped death when an anarchist exploded a bomb on their porch at 2132 R Street, N.W., Washington D.C. The home of a Department of Justice Bureau of Investigation (BOI) field agent Rayme Weston Finch was also attacked.

How many radicals were arrested in the 1920s?

The largest raids occurred on January 2, 1920 when over 4000 suspected radicals were seized nationwide. Over 800 were arrested in New England from locations that included Boston, Brockton, Chelsea, Fitchburg, Lawrence, and Lynn.

How did the government respond to the bombings?

The government responds. Enraged by the bombings, the United States government responded by raiding the headquarters of radical organizations and arresting thousands of suspected radicals. Several thousand who were aliens were deported. The largest raids occurred on January 2, 1920 when over 4000 suspected radicals were seized nationwide.

Why was the American Civil Liberties Union founded?

The American Civil Liberties Union was founded in 1920 largely in reaction to the violation of liberties that the Palmer raids represented. The organization later represented numerous individuals who were caught in a second Red Scare at the end of World War II, when the Soviet Union was emerging as a global power.

What was the role of the Department of Justice in the repression of radicals?

The Department of Justice and its Bureau of Investigation, an agency that later developed into the Federal Bureau of Investigation, began to conduct surveillance on immigrant anarchist groups suspected of bombings that had occurred throughout the country.

What was Palmer accused of?

Although the public generally supported these efforts, Palmer and his federal agents were accused by civil liberties groups of using illegal and unconstitutional methods for obtaining evidence and conducting surveillance, including warrantless searches, illegal wiretaps, and cruel interrogation techniques.

Why did Palmer stay in Washington?

After serving as attorney general, Palmer stayed in Washington to practice law and remained active in Democratic Party politics until his death. The Palmer raids illustrate that important legal rights are sometimes violated during times of war and perceived crisis. This article was originally published in 2009.

How many people were arrested in the Palmer raids?

They remained at Ellis Island until investigation and deportation proceedings were completed. By the end of January, 10,000 individuals had been arrested in raids. Palmer's raids became the subject of public criticism and led to the rise of the ACLU. ( Corbis Images for Education via Wikimedia Commons, public domain.)

Why did Palmer decline the post of secretary of war?

President Wilson offered Palmer a cabinet post — secretary of war — but he declined because of his pacifist Quaker beliefs.

Why did the surveillance increase after 1917?

The surveillance increased after 1917, when concerns about the Russian Revolution’s potential to spread communism combined with a new series of domestic bombings and heightened labor unrest to produce a growing public hysteria about radicals. Palmer himself was the target of two anarchist bomb attacks.

Overview

Alexander Mitchell Palmer (May 4, 1872 – May 11, 1936), was an American attorney and politician who served as the 50th United States attorney general from 1919 to 1921. He is best known for overseeing the Palmer Raids during the Red Scare of 1919–20.
He became a member of the Democratic Party and won election to the United St…

Early life and education

Palmer was born into a Quaker family near White Haven, Pennsylvania, in the small town of Moosehead, on May 4, 1872. He was educated in the public schools and Bethlehem, Pennsylvania's Moravian Parochial School. Palmer graduated from Swarthmore College in 1891. At Swarthmore, he was a member of the Pennsylvania Kappa chapter of the Phi Kappa Psifraternity. After graduation, he was appointed court stenographer of Pennsylvania's 43rd judicial district. He stu…

Career

He was admitted to the Pennsylvania Bar Association in 1893, and began to practice in Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, in partnership with Storm. Palmer also had various business interests, including serving on the board of directors of the Scranton Trust Company, Stroudsburg National Bank, International Boiler Company, Citizens' Gas Company, and Stroudsburg Water Company. He also b…

Death

On May 11, 1936, at Emergency Hospital in Washington, D.C., Palmer died from cardiac complications following an appendectomy two weeks earlier. Upon his death, Attorney General Cummings said "He was a great lawyer, a distinguished public servant and an outstanding citizen. He was my friend of many years' standing and his death brings to me a deep sense of personal loss and sorrow." He was buried at Laurelwood Cemetery (originally a cemetery of the Society of …

Notes

1. ^ Halcyon. Swarthmore, PA: Swarthmore College. 1892. p. 79. Retrieved December 6, 2016.
2. ^ "A. Mitchell Palmer Biography." Biography.com. N.p., n.d. Web. June 28, 2016. <http://www.biography.com/people/a-mitchell-palmer-38048>
3. ^ Coben, 23, 47

Sources

• United States Congress. "A. Mitchell Palmer (id: P000035)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.