Alben W. Barkley served as the 35th Vice President of the United States. Holding the position from 1949 to 1953, Vice President Barkley was popularly known as the “Veep.”
Early Life
Alben William Barkley was born on November 24, 1877, in Graves County, Kentucky. Originally named Willie Alben, a name that embarrassed him, Barkley changed the order and formally changed his name to Alben William.
Barkley worked his way through Marvin College, a Methodist institution in Clinton, Kentucky. After briefly attended Emory College and the University of Virginia law school, Barkley studied law and was admitted to the Kentucky bar in 1901. He married Dorothy Brower two years later, and the couple went on to have three children.
Political Career
In 1905, Barkley won his first election, becoming the county attorney for McCracken County, Kentucky. Five year later, he became a county judge. In 1912, he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives, representing Kentucky’s First District. He went on to serve seven successive terms. He left the House in 1927 to take a seat in the U.S. Senate.
After establishing his seniority in the Senate, Barley served as the Majority Leader for nearly a decade. Barkley played a key role in the administration of President Franklin D. Roosevelt and the passage of his New Deal legislation. Barkley was one of the “Big Four” that met regularly with President Roosevelt to devise the administration’s legislative strategy. Other members included Vice President Henry Wallace, House Speaker Sam Rayburn, and House Majority Leader John McCormack. While a close ally of FDR, Barkley asserted: “I was a liberal and a progressive long before I ever heard of Franklin D. Roosevelt.”
When Roosevelt became the first president to veto a revenue bill in February 1944, Senator Barkley, who had negotiated the compromise bill within the Senate Finance Committee, urged his fellow Senators to override the president’s veto. He also expressed his frustration by resigning as majority leader. The move gained the respect of his peers, and the Senate Democrats unanimously reelected Barkley the next day. However, his relationship soured with FDR, who passed him over when seeking a new Vice President.
Vice Presidency
While Barkley was not President Harry Truman’s first choice of running mate in 1948, the two men scored an upset victory over the Republican ticket. Barkley became the oldest man elected Vice President.
Once in office, the two men enjoyed a close relationship. Truman respected Barkley’s legislative experience and included him in all his cabinet meetings. Barkley also chaired the Senate Democratic Policy Committee and attended Truman’s weekly legislative conferences. Barkley also served as one of the key mouthpieces of the administration, making 40 major speeches in his first eight months in office.
According to President Harry Truman, “Barkley, as Vice President, was in a class by himself. He had the complete confidence of both the President and the Senate.” Barkley famously became known as “the Veep,” after the media learned that his young grandson couldn’t pronounce his full title.
Barkley sought the Democratic presidential nomination in 1952. However, he failed to gain the support of labor leaders, who believed he was too old. After briefly leaving politics, Barkley was reelected to the Senate in 1954. He died of a heart attack in 1956, while delivering a speech.
