In the second half of the 19th century, it was nearly impossible to secure the Republican presidential nomination without an endorsement from this organization. For 10 points each:
[10m] Name this fraternal organization for Union Civil War veterans that pushed for veterans’ pensions during the 1880s and ’90s.
ANSWER: Grand Army of the Republic [or GAR]
[10h] As the third commander of the GAR, this Union general proclaimed a day of remembrance called Decoration Day that became Memorial Day. He was nominated as James Blaine’s vice presidential candidate in 1884.
ANSWER: John A. Logan [or John Alexander Logan]
[10e] Logan won office as an Illinois senator in a GAR-backed campaign by bashing Democrats with this strategy. This metaphorical action names the post-war political tactic of evoking the deaths of Union soldiers.
ANSWER: waving the bloody shirt [or bloody shirt campaigns]
<JM, American History>