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From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The goo-goos, or good government guys, were political groups working in the early 20th century to reform urban municipal governments in the United States that were dominated by graft and corruption. Goo-goos supported candidates who would fight for political reform. The term was first used in the 1890s by their detractors.
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In New York City, the exclusive City Club of New York was the domain of "goo-goos," who sponsored "Good Government Clubs" in every assembly district. Their efforts led to the election of a reform mayor in 1894, a setback for the political machine known as Tammany Hall.
Members of several political reform movements in the late 19th and early 20th centuries were often labeled as goo-goos, including the Mugwumps and the Progressives. While old political labels like mugwump and progressive have been reinvented several times, and have shifted in meaning as a result, the term goo-goo still has political currency, and has changed little since it was first used in the late 19th century.
In American politics, the term is still used occasionally as a mildly derisive label for high-minded citizens or reformers. Mike Royko, a Chicago political columnist of the late 20th century, revived the word without reinventing it. Royko was a critic and astute observer of Chicago politics. When Royko wrote about the "goo-goos" along Lake Shore Drive, he may even have agreed with them, but Slats Grobnik, his fictional Chicagoan, was very cynical about them.