Who was Wayne B Wheeler during Prohibition?

Answer 1

Wayne B. Wheeler was the de facto leader of the powerful Anti-Saloon League. He insisted on strict and vigorous enforcement of National Prohibition. He was a proponent of force and "he desired the most severe penalties, the most aggressive policies even to calling out the Army and navy, the most relentless prosecution."

According to his biographer,

"Wayne B. Wheeler controlled six congresses, dictated to two presidents of the United States, directed legislation in most of the States of the Union, picked the candidates for the more important elective state and federal offices, held the balance of power in both Republican and Democratic parties, distributed more patronage than any dozen other men, supervised a federal bureau from outside without official authority, and was recognized by friend and foe alike as the most masterful and powerful single individual in the United States."

Even though the cause for which he labored so tirelessly would soon be overwhelmingly repudiated by the American people as a dismal failure, Wheeler never wavered in his prohibition convictions and never rested in its pursuit. He died of exhaustion and kidney failure at his summer home in Michigan while attempting to regain his strength to continue the fight.