Jonathan Eig

You know, with the Great Depression underway, Herbert Hoover was under all kinds of pressure.

Obviously, the prohibition laws were wildly unpopular.

Not only were people still drinking, but it had spurred this massive wave of crime with gangsters killing gangsters and going unpunished for it.

So the Valentine's Day Massacre horrified Americans.

It was not just seven dead.

It was seven dead with gruesome newspaper photos on the front page of tabloids.

And I think that it really sparked something for the president, for Herbert Hoover, that this was something that needed to be addressed.

He really became obsessed with Capone.

Hoover would ask every member of his cabinet, what are we going to do to get Capone?

And Herbert Hoover was very much a bureaucrat.

He was very much about reforming the laws and appointing committees.

But he also recognized the importance of public relations.

And he thought the best way to send the signal that I'm going to get tough on crime is by making an example of Al Capone.

He's the most famous criminal in America.

So maybe if we can't pin the Valentine's Day massacre on him,

We can at least use the anger, the public resentment about this crime, this ongoing crime, to build momentum, to build support for taking out Capone.

Remember, this is all brand new.

You know, Capone's an immigrant's son and he's making a living.

Some of his work is criminal.

Some of it isn't.