1896

[narrator] At the peak of their power,

J.P. Morgan, John Rockefeller, and
Andrew Carnegie are worth the modern

equivalent of over $1 trillion
combined.

But while Carnegie, Rockefeller, and
Morgan continue to get richer,

others are struggling to get by.

The gap between the rich and the poor

is as big as it's ever been.

As the country approaches the 1896
presidential election,

America's poor are desperate and
without hope.

One man sees the opportunity to harness
their anger,

and in the process propel himself to the
White House.

William...

Jennings...

Bryan.

Bryan runs on a ticket promising equality
for all, vowing to be a voice for the poor

and to take the fight to the country's
elite.

[H.W. Brands] The monopolies, the
trust, became a target of Democrats,

so that "antitrust" became a rallying cry
of everybody who was, well, not seen

as in the hip-pocket of the corporations
themselves.

I will tear down these trusts!

- [applause]
- Do you hear me, Carnegie?

Do you hear me, Rockefeller?

[cheering]

[narrator] Bryan's emergence is the
biggest threat the titans have ever faced.

He promises to dismantle their companies,

and to not rest until they're behind bars.

[somber music]

Desperate to protect the empires they've
spent their lifetimes building,

the titans throw their full support
behind the candidacy of Ohio Governor

William McKinley.

[Brands] William McKinley's campaign
manager was an industrialist himself.

And he went, essentially, hat in hand
around Wall Street dunning them,

saying, "If McKinley doesn't win, that
crazy man Bryan will be president. And if

Bryan is president, don't you realize
what that is going to do to the

credibility of the United States
around the world?"

[narrator] The titans wield more power
than any group of men in American history.

And they're about to use it.

[man offscreen] Much appreciated.

[narrator] Rockefeller, Morgan, and
Carnegie

each give over $200,000
to McKinley,

the equivalent of $20 million
today.

The campaign is by far the most expensive
in American history,

and McKinley outspends Bryan by a factor
of five to one.

On election day, the lines are drawn.

It's Wall Street versus Main Street,

rich versus poor.

As the results are tallied, the nation
hold its breath...

until, finally...

a president is chosen.

Rockefeller, Carnegie, and Morgan have
dodged a bullet.

The country remains in their control.

McKinley rolls back regulations, and
profits once again skyrocket.

And Carnegie, Rockefeller, and Morgan
are set to become even more powerful

than ever before.

[music crescendoes]