On Sept. 8, 1935, the most dictatorial governor in American History was felled by an assassin’s bullet. Huey Long was a demagogue who had one the 1928 governor’s election. He won in a landslide by promising to tilt politics to the lower class. His slogan was “Every Man a King.” His program included free school textbooks, improved roads and bridges, and an end to the poll tax. He took on Standard Oil Company. Things did improve for the poor and he was very popular. So popular that he was able to grab tremendous power. He could appoint most public officials and teachers. He used the state police as his own private army. Long gave himself the nickname The Kingfish. The Kingfish was a blowhard from the Amos and Andy Show. In 1930, he was elected U.S. Senator, but he continued to run the state through his puppet governor. He supported FDR in the election of 1932, but soon became a political opponent. Long planned to run for President in 1936, he probably could not have won, but he could have pulled enough electoral votes to throw the election into the Senate. Long’s Share Our Wealth plan called for redistribution of wealth from the rich to the poor. It promised every household a minimum $2,500 per year. On Sept. 8, Long was in the state capitol building running the legislature. He was moving from one chamber to the other when a doctor named Carl Weiss confronted him and fired two shots, one hit long in the chest. He was rushed to the hospital. Weiss was made into swiss cheese (he was hit by more than 24 bullets) by Long’s body guards. The bullet was removed, but the doctor did not check for internal bleeding. Long died 31 hours after the assassination. His last words were “God, don’t let me die. I have so much to do.” Long was buried on the state capitol grounds. (There is a statue over his grave.) 200,000 thousand attended the funeral.
There were conspiracy theorists even back then. The official version was that Weiss was upset about Long taking steps against his father-in-law who was a judge and opponent of Long. House Bill Number One called for re-redistricting the judge so he would be voted out. It was claimed that the last straw for Weiss was the claim that the judge had “negro blood.” (There is no prove for the claim.) Weiss owned a gun and it was used in the shooting. The inquest heard only from Long supporters and there was no autopsy and no ballistics test. However, the 29-year-old Weiss was a recent father and seemingly did not have a death wish. The leading alternative theory is that Weiss punched Long and then Huey’s body guards (sometimes called his “Cossacks” or “skullcrushers”) opened fire and a bullet hit Long accidentally. If so, there would have been a coverup that included taking Weiss’ pistol from his glove compartment and putting it in his hand. Weiss’ car keys were not found on his body. A nurse later claimed that when treating a busted lip, Long told her “that’s where he got me.” Ear witnesses over the years claimed they heard body guards admit to the accidental shooting. However, the official story is most likely what happened.
https://www.politico.com/story/2017/09/08/huey-long-assassinated-sept-8-1935-242325
https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/huey-long-is-shot
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Assassination_of_Huey_Long
https://www.thedailybeast.com/was-huey-long-killed-by-his-own-bodyguards
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