<論説>アメリカ革新主義運動の成果 : ウィスコンシンの運動をめぐって

Abstract

ウィスコンシンにおける革新主義運動は、全国の運動の先頭をきり、かつその典型となったものであるが、その性格を、掲げられたスローガン通りに「反マジン・反独占」と規定することは困難である。まず、その指導者ラフォレットは、一九〇〇年、鉄道インタレストと結んだ保守派マシンとの了解の上で知事に当選しており、このことは社会の工業化と都市化にたいする政治的対応の問題が超党派的必然性をもって登場していたことを意味する。そして革新主義政府の下でなされた二大改革、マシン政治の打破と大資本の規制の実質的成果は、中立的・専門技術者的政府による社会管理機能の拡大と、「金ピカ時代」の投機的企業経営からの脱却、つまり企業経営の合理化、にみとめられる。しかも、この二つの方向での改革は巨大資本が十分に適応しえたものであり、それゆえに、現代アメリカの二つの側面、官僚国家と国家独占資本主義への道を決定した改革であった。

The Progressive Movement in Wisconsin was the pioneer and the model of the national movement. It is, however, hard to define it simply as one of "anti-machine and anti-monopoly" revealed in its slogan. Its leader, Robert M. La Follette, ran for the governor (and elected in 1900) as a candidate accepted by the Republican conservative machine which allied with the railrord interests. This fact implies that at that time the political adjustments to the rapid industrialization and urbanization were becoming the urgent problems that were to be necessarilly met in any form by citizens, irrespecting their political stands, conservative or progressive. And the substantial results of two major reforms, the overthrow of machine system and the regulation of big business, attempted under the Progressive Governments, would be seen, on the one hand, in expanding function of the neutral and specialist government in managing society and, on the other hand, in rationalization of business management in which business got rid of the speculative methods prevailing in the "Gilded Age." The reforming efforts in these natures were what big businesses were able to successfully adjust themselves to and therefore, it might be said, decided the direction toward big bureaucracy and state monopoly capitalism, the two main characteristics of contemporary America.