Public Versus Private Power During the Truman Administration

the long version

Public versus Private Power during the Truman Administration offers the first thorough historical analysis of one of the most contentious aspects of the Fair Deal - President Harry S. Truman's electric power policies. In 1948, Truman championed as part of his liberal program a major expansion of public power. De Luna shows how these plans were adulterated by a powerful combination of forces: the opposition of private power, discord among agencies and individuals in the executive branch, and a split in the Democratic Party. Forced to compromise on this important issue, the last Truman administration unwittingly helped usher in a more conservative period in American political life.