Biography
He was born in 1879 in Dayton, Iowa and earned his law degree from the University of Minnesota Law School in 1905. After a brief time practicing law in St. Paul, he entered politics as a state legislator in 1908. During his second term as lieutenant governor, he succeeded Governor Hammond, who died in office.
Turbulent times surrounded America's entrance into World War I in 1917. Not all Americans supported U.S. involvement in a European war, and this feeling was heightened in Minnesota because of dissatisfaction among farmers and laborers, who were more concerned with domestic policy than with the conflict overseas. Supporters of the war, suspicious of radicals, pacifists, and the foreign-born, acted quickly to stifle dissent. Through the Public Safety Commission—which Burnquist created in 1917 to monitor public sentiment toward the war—he quashed pacifist demonstrations and denounced in his final inaugural message those "few socialistically and anarchistically inclined" who questioned America's involvement in "the world's baptism of blood." The commission, ostensibly nonpartisan, firmly opposed any action its conservative members considered suspect or un-American.
While primarily concerned with war issues, Burnquist also initiated legislation that improved the state highways, disaster assistance programs, labor relations, and, especially the welfare of children. After leaving office he practiced law for 17 years before beginning his lengthy tenure as state attorney general in 1936. Until his death in Minneapolis, Minnesota at 81, Burnquist maintained the bearing and manner of a strong-willed senior statesman.
Read more about this topic: Joseph A. A. Burnquist
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