Mr. Smith Goes To Washington & American Ideals

This 1939 film was produced and directed by Frank Capra, who had been born in Italy, but came to the United States as a kid. Capra often liked to show average people standing up against crooked and power grabbing business people. But he also showed how taking a stand against ruthless and powerful interests can be tough and downright dangerous, and that doing the right thing can be painful. 

In "Mr. Smith Goes To Washington," one of a state's U.S. Senators dies, just as an important bill is about to be voted upon in Congress. Jim Taylor, played by Edward Arnold, is the state's major businessman and the controller of a political machine there. He agrees to the appointment of Jefferson, "Jeff," Smith, played by Jimmy Stewart, a patriotic adult leader of a group for boys, called the Boy Rangers. Smith is filled with idealism about the United States and is a great admirer of Abraham Lincoln. Taylor wants the state's other senator, Joseph Paine, played by Claude Rains, to tell the young appointee how to vote, especially on the pending legislation, as there is a special clause in one section about a dam that will financially benefit Taylor tremendously. Years before, Paine was the best friend of Smith's father, and together they fought injustices, often losing, and earning for themselves the title, "Twin Champions of Lost Causes." Jeff's father, a publisher of a small newspaper, was shot in the back during a campaign he undertook for a miner against a mining syndicate. Paine, a lawyer, lost much of his idealism after his friend's murder and buckled under to the pressure and chose to support Jim Taylor, who not only got Paine elected to the Senate, but got him reelected a couple of times. Although Paine became a well respected senator, most people didn't know he was, and is, so beholden to Taylor for his position.

Jeff Smith is enthralled by the sights when he arrives in Washington, and he wanders off to visit various historical sights, including the Lincoln Memorial. He finally turns up at his office, where he meets his aide "Saunders," played by Jean Arthur. She has been around Washington for some time, making her cynical and fed up with the games played and with the corruption, so she wants to leave, but after she meets Jeff, she sees that he is a decent man who will need help to learn the ways of the Washington political establishment. Senator Paine and Jeff reminisce about Jeff's father, which hits home to Paine's former search to do right, even for lost causes. The new senator tells Paine he wants "to study the bills" to be voted on, which takes Paine back a bit, fearful that Smith will learn about the special section on the dam in their state. Paine tells Jeff he will instruct him on how to vote. He also tells Jeff to write and introduce a bill of his own on a new boys' camp in their state, which gives Smith a lot of excitement. He wants the government to put up the money for the camp, and then be repaid from contributions by kids from all over the country.

Saunders begins the process of helping Jeff draft his new bill, but when Smith tells her the new boys' camp will be around Willett Creek (often pronounced colloquially as if, "crick"), Saunders is startled, as she is already aware of the dam to be going there (she had worked for the recently deceased senator, who also was under Taylor's thumb). She doesn't tell Jeff, but she gets a reporter friend of hers, "Diz," played by Thomas Mitchell, to show up for the next day's session in the Senate, when Smith will read his bill, including its location on the land around Willett Creek. She tells Diz to keep his eyes on Senator Paine and on one of Taylor's henchmen, who is seated in the visitor's gallery. Sure enough, when Smith utters the words "Willett Creek," Paine immediately leaves the Senate floor and the other man leaves the gallery. The savvy Saunders knew exactly what she was talking about (everyone calls her by her last name, "Saunders," but her first name is "Clarissa"), and she finally tells Jeff about Taylor and about the dam being a crooked deal for Taylor to profit. When Smith goes to Senator Paine and tells him, the senator advises Jeff him not to interfere, as there are powerful interests involved.

Taylor flies to Washington and meets Jeff Smith. The ruthless, greedy businessman tells the young senator he wants him to cooperate, and in return, he will make sure he is a senator for as long as he wishes. The honest and idealistic Smith is unimpressed, and thus he begins a battle against the tremendous power of Jim Taylor. Jeff goes to Senator Paine and tells him what Taylor has said, but the next day, when Smith rises to tell the Senate about the crooked deal included in the bill, Senator Paine asks Smith if he will yield the floor, which he immediately does, because it is Senator Paine asking. Now the new senator begins to learn what he is up against, as Paine tells the Senate he has information that the land for Smith's boys' camp is owned by Smith, who will benefit greatly from the camp going there; thus, making it look as if Jeff is taking money from kids for his own benefit, as kids are already sending contributions to pay for the camp. Unknown to Jeff and to the Senate, Taylor has had the land records changed to show Smith as the owner. With the respected Senator Paine now speaking out against Smith, the senators want to expel Smith from the Senate. Taylor, through Paine, has witnesses appear before a special Senate committee and testify against Smith. Jeff is so distraught by the lies and forged documents, he leaves the hearing and goes to the Lincoln Memorial. He feels betrayed and stupid at allowing himself to be set up, and for believing in American ideals, but the once cynical Saunders shows up, figuring he will be at the memorial, and she gives him a good pep talk, telling him that his hero, Mr. Lincoln, had his Taylors and Paines to contend with too, and that he would want Jeff to "root out the Taylors into the open." With his spirit restored, the two devise a strategy.

In this battle, Jeff is helped along by Saunders, who sees someone she likes for his honesty and decency, and also a man to whom she has taken a fancy. Senator Paine is stunned the next day when Smith calls out "HERE," in answer to the roll call. Saunders sits with Diz in the Senate gallery and periodically gives signals to Jeff to help him along with the Senate rules. When the Senate is about to vote on his expulsion, she signals to Jeff, and he rises to be recognized by the chair (Senate president), when another senator rises at the same time to try to prevent Smith from being heard at all. After some comments back and forth, and a cry from the gallery by Saunders to, "Let him speak," the President of the Senate,* played by Harry Carey (Sr.), recognizes Senator Smith, and we're off to a filibuster.** Smith tells the senators that he will speak to the people of his state from the floor of the Senate and he proceeds to tell them about Taylor and his political machine, and how he saw three congressmen in Taylor's hotel suite when Taylor met with him. Senator Paine is so respected, the other senators still believe Smith is the bad guy. The first dent in the Taylor/Paine armor comes when Paine rises and accuses Smith of tying him to corruption. Smith speaks up and says he had said no such thing; that he never said Paine was in Taylor's room, but inadvertently, Paine blurts out, "I was in that room." This brings gasps from many, but Paine quickly tries to explain it away by saying what an honorable man Taylor is and that he met with him simply to receive the evidence against Smith from him. As the situation goes on, Paine has pangs of conscience, but he can't bring himself to go against Taylor, as he is in so deep with him, something he is reminded of by Taylor, who tells him that if anybody starts believing Smith, "you (Paine) just as well blow your brains out." Taylor has his men back in his home state make sure all of the newspapers and radio stations (no television back then) speak out against Smith and not publish or report anything Smith is saying in Washington. He also has them send telegrams condemning Smith. When Diz learns what is happening, he tells Saunders, who calls Jeff's mother and has her and the Boy Rangers use the club's little printing press to print leaflets telling the truth. Taylor's men confiscate the leaflets, often smacking around some of the boys in the process. Taylor's men even use vehicles to run over and destroy the kids' wagons used to distribute the leaflets.

Meanwhile, Smith talks for hours, reading the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. Saunders receives a call from Jeff's mother telling her how boys have been hurt by Taylor's men all over Jeff's hometown. Inside the Senate, the final showdown is near, as Paine has baskets full of anti-Smith telegrams brought into the Senate chamber. Jeff glances at several telegrams, and disheartened, he looks at the Senate president, who gives him a smile, prompting a slight smile from Jeff in return. Worn out and with a weakened voice, Jeff says, "I guess this is just another lost cause... You people don't know about lost causes, Mr. Paine does. And he fought for them once." He stands right before Paine as he continues to remind Paine of his younger days, when, as a young lawyer, he, and Jeff's father, took on rich and powerful interests to help those with little or no money. With the whole Senate watching and listening, Jeff tells them they think he's licked, but that he plans to continue the filibuster until someone listens to him, but he collapses. Paine dashes from the Senate floor. As some members try to revive Smith, gunshots are heard, with the scene then shifting to a room outside the Senate chamber, where a senator or two are trying to stop Paine from shooting himself. He screams that he's the one the Senate needs to expel, that he's not fit for office or fit to live. Paine charges out onto the Senate floor screaming, "Every word that boy said is true, expel me, not him!" The audience cheers and the President of the Senate leans back in his chair and smiles.

* By the Constitution, the President of the U.S. Senate is the Vice President of the United States. For times when the vice president is not present, the Senators will have chosen a "temporary president" (actually in the Constitution in the Latin expression, "pro tempore;" that is, "for temporary time," or, "for the time being"). This temporary president is an actual member of the Senate and can, therefore, vote on any and all matters before the Senate. The vice president is NOT a senator and can only vote if there is a tie. While the film never makes it clear, "apparently" the role played by Harry Carey is that of the Vice President of the United States.

** A "filibuster" is "a deliberate, but proper, delay of proceedings in a legislative body, often to prevent a vote on some issue, and/or to gain time to make a case on the issue." In the U.S. it is most commonly associated with the U.S. Senate. While the movie depicts only Senator Smith as launching the filibuster, more than one person can participate, and this gives the filibuster more chance to continue, as each participant can pass the floor on to another participant; thus, each gets a rest period. During a filibuster, participants may talk about matters TOTALLY beyond the subject at hand in the legislation. 

Photo is of the 2008 Sony Pictures Home Entertainment DVD 

WORD HISTORY:
Creed-This word, distantly related to "cardiac" (a word borrowed by English from French, which had it from Latin, which had borrowed it from Greek) and "credit" (a word of Latin derivation borrowed by English from French), but also, "heart" (an original English word of Germanic derivation), goes back to Indo European "kerddeh," which meant, "to put into the heart;" thus, "to believe," as the heart was judged by many of our ancient ancestors as the center of emotion and belief (root of "kerd" being the ancestor of "heart, credit and cardiac," and several more words). This gave Latin "credere," meaning, "to believe," the first person singular of which, "credo," came to be used as a noun (beside the verb form) to mean, "religious belief," initially, "Christian belief, set of Christian beliefs." This was borrowed into Old English as "creda," with the same meaning. This then became "crede," before the modern version, and the meaning broadened beyond religious beliefs.