Since the issues of states’ rights and autonomy had been settled for the most part by the Civil War, the government was expanding. The authorities in many parts of new territories were corrupt and self-serving. Outlaws of the time show that the country was in turmoil as a new police force struggled for legitimacy in a lawless environment, and the expanding government was unpopular in many areas.
In the late 19th century, the people of the West were still struggling to accept the resident authorities. Before that time, it was up to each man to protect his own property, but the arriving powers took it upon themselves to establish order. The outlaws of the time, or at least the ones that live on in current memory, were what James White calls social bandits (387). These were men pushed into the fringes of society by the letter of the law, not the spirit of the community (White 389). He argues that these people gained the support of the community mostly because they still embodied the values of the area, such as masculinity and bravery (White 403). This contrast between law and practice shows that the populace did not really consent to the expanding government. As bad as it seemed during the roving gang period of the 1880s and 90s, the unhappiness would manifest itself even more clearly in the Depression era bandits.
Criminals like John Dillinger and Bonnie and Clyde were the next hurdle governments had to clear in establishing control in their areas. These characters were immensely popular among the general population for a variety of reasons: they were free to do as they liked; they stole from “deserving targets” like banks (Gorn 171-172). The ability of people to look past the horrific violence of Bonnie and Clyde, for instance, and support them, shows how much their defiance meant (Cott 223). The victory over such criminals was not just about restoring order, it was “part of a larger vision of a new centralized state” (Gorn 168). All these criminals were dead by 1935, however.
Perhaps the resistance to federal authority came from the natural retaliation against changes to the status quo, but it also may have been a sign of deep rooted unhappiness with the government. As said before, consent is a major issue in American society. In a way, governments ensured the complicity of the people by removing those who refused to play by the rules.