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Carter Glass (January 4, 1858 – May 28, 1946) was an American newspaper publisher and politician from Lynchburg, Virginia. He served many years in Congress as a member of the Democratic Party. As House co-sponsor, he played a central role in the development of the 1913 Glass-Owen Act that created the Federal Reserve System. Glass subsequently served as the U.S. Secretary of the Treasury under President Woodrow Wilson. Later elected to the Senate, he became widely known as co-sponsor of the Glass–Steagall Act of 1933, which enforced the separation of investment banking and commercial banking, and established the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC).
Carter Glass in Joe Steele[]
Senator Carter Glass was one of several Southern Democrats who initially opposed President Joe Steele's proposed legislation to nationalize the country's banks on the ground of states' rights. The fact that he'd once been Secretary of the Treasury gave his opinions some additional weight.[1]
However, after a one-on-one meeting with Steele, Glass abruptly changed his mind, calling the nationalization bill a "worthy piece of legislation."[2] Other Southern Democrats fell in line.[3]
What the public never knew was that Steele's ally, J. Edgar Hoover, director of the Bureau of Investigation, had found "evidence" that Glass had had an affair with his family's Negro maid, Emma, which produced a son. Steele threatened to release that information to the public unless Glass fell in line.[4]
Literary comment[]
The historical record doesn't support the idea that Glass had an illegitimate child. Within the novel, Stas Mikoian strongly suggests that the whole story of the affair is a fabrication concocted by the Steele Administration.
See Also[]
- Strom Thurmond, historical US Senator from South Carolina who supported segregation. Upon his death in 2003, his mixed-race daughter, whose mother was a Thurmond family maid, made her existence known. This OTL affair broadly parallels Glass' fictional affair in Joe Steele. Although there have been similar cases throughout Southern history, Thurmond's is the most well known, and Harry Turtledove seems to be fond of including Thurmond-based trivia in other stories.
References[]
- ↑ Joe Steele, pg. 49.
- ↑ Ibid., pg. 50-51.
- ↑ Ibid. pg. 51.
- ↑ Ibid., pg. 54-56.
| Political offices (OTL) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Peter J. Otey |
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Virginia's 6th congressional district |
Succeeded by James P. Woods |
| Preceded by William G. McAdoo |
Secretary of the Treasury December 16, 1918 – February 1, 1920 |
Succeeded by David F. Houston |
| Preceded by B. Patton Harrison |
President pro tempore of the United States Senate July 11, 1941 – January 2, 1945 |
Succeeded by Kenneth McKellar |
| Preceded by Thomas S. Martin |
U.S. Senator (Class 2) from Virginia February 2, 1920 – May 28, 1946 |
Succeeded by Thomas G. Burch |
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