Joseph Taylor Robinson
Joseph Taylor Robinson ( born August 16, 1872 in Lonoke, Lonoke County, Arkansas, † July 14, 1937 in Washington DC ) was an American politician and governor of Arkansas in 1913 and then U.S. Senator.
Early years and political rise
Joseph Robinson first attended the schools of his home before he studied at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville. After studying law at the University of Virginia, he was admitted to the bar in 1895. Then he practiced in his native Lonoke.
Robinson was a member of the Democratic Party and in 1894 elected for a term of office in the House of Representatives from Arkansas. After that he worked as a lawyer again. In 1902 he was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives in Washington. He remained there until January 1913. In 1912 he won the election for governor of Arkansas. His term began on January 16, 1913. Linesmen came two days before his mandate in the House of Representatives.
Governor of Arkansas
Joseph Taylor was only until March 8, 1913 Governor of his state, because he had been elected on 28 January for the recently deceased Senator and ex- Governor Jeff Davis in the U.S. Senate. Robinson was also the last U.S. Senator, who was elected by a State Parliament; yet in 1913, the direct election of senators was prescribed by the people through the 17th Amendment. In his short time as governor created the conditions for the completion of the Capitol in Little Rock. The order was issued to the architect and ex- Governor George Donaghey. With the Bureau of Labor Statistics, a working office was established. In addition to the Highway Commission created a new sub-division, which took care of the expansion of highways.
Further CV
From March 4, 1913 until his death in July 1937 remained Robinson in the Senate. There he was a member of various committees and temporary leader of the Democratic senators. His party nominated him in 1928 as a candidate for the vice presidency. However, as the leading candidate Al Smith Republican Herbert C. Hoover was defeated, Robinson was denied this office. In the 1930s, he was a supporter of Franklin D. Roosevelt and his New Deal policies.