Sometimes politics can turn the greatest of friends into bitter enemies. This was the fate for two of the four presidential candidates of 1912. Those two candidates were Theodore Roosevelt and William Taft. Roosevelt and Taft were the 26th and 27th presidents of the United States. Both presidents were republicans and both were very close friends at one time. In fact, William Taft was a handpicked successor of Roosevelt. Soon after though, there was a rift between the two with both calling each other names and belittling each other in the public eye. Despite the fact that they both followed the same Republican policies, there were differences between them. Why did these two presidents who were once very close friends turn on each other? …show more content…
He was also known as Theodore Roosevelts handpicked successor. Taft supported Theodore Roosevelts “Square Deal” policy which attempted to strike a balance between employers and employees as well as Conservatives and Progressives. It soon proved impossible to please everyone as Taft did not have Roosevelt’s charisma. Eventually he wound up satisfying Conservatives more than Progressives. Taft’s administration however, had pursued more antitrust suits than Roosevelt had. During his speech at Elkton, Maryland in 1912, President Taft stated that what he attempted to do during his presidency was to carry out Roosevelt’s policies. Taft also states that one of those policies was thought to be the prosecution of the trusts under the anti-trust law. Taft includes that because of this he gave orders to his attorney general to prosecute any and every trust that violated that law. During his speech Taft states “the only difference between me and Mr. Roosevelt is that I prosecuted the Steel Trust and the Harvester Trust, and he did not”. Unlike Roosevelt who was known for his fiery personality, President Taft was calm and quiet. He preferred to work behind closed doors in private. President Taft, being a former judge, would refuse to make hasty decisions while depending on facts to make decisions and not emotions. President Taft, unlike Roosevelt, believed that the presidency was a job and an administrative post as opposed to a “bully pulpit”. Taft however, finished the job that Roosevelt had started in dealing with big businesses and prosecuted twice as many as Roosevelt had. Despite Roosevelt’s reputation as being a reformer and trust buster, Taft had actually reformed more business practices in the United States by initiating more lawsuits to bring the trusts down than Roosevelt. Taft believed in many of the same things as Roosevelt but he wanted those same goals through legal means.
Lyndon B. Johnson and Ronald Reagan have many difference in the government. Lyndon B. Johnson saying that congress role to promote “general welfare” to discover ways to improve government. Reagan called the war on poverty a failure and proposed budget to reduce spending social programs but increase the size of military. By compare and contrasting Lyndon B. Johnson’s speech on affirmative action with Ronald Reagan’s inaugural address can show the differences and alikeness in federal Government.
The United States has a long history of great leaders who, collectively, have possessed an even wider range of religious and political convictions. Perhaps not unexpectedly, their beliefs have often been in conflict with one another, both during coinciding eras, as well as over compared generations. The individual philosophies of William Jennings Bryan, Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson, with regard to America’s roles in world affairs and foreign diplomacy; are both varied and conflicted. Despite those conflicts however, each leader has left his own legacy behind, in terms of how the U.S. continues to engage in world affairs today.
Between 1895 and 1920, the years in which William McKinley, Theodore Roosevelt, William Taft, and Woodrow Wilson reigned in the presidents, the United States struggled for not only justice at home but abroad as well. During this period policies such as Roosevelt’s Big Stick diplomacy, William Taft’s Dollar diplomacy, and Woodrow Wilson’s Moral diplomacy were all used in foreign affairs in hopes of benefit for all involved. However, it would be appropriate to say that self-interest was the most important driving factor for American policy and can be exemplified through economic, social, and political relations.
In 1901 Vice President Theodore Roosevelt took over as President after William McKinley was assassinated. The country had many opportunities ahead but was in need of some changes that the American people were all too ready for. Roosevelt was brought up in a well to do family and had was Harvard educated. But he was known to be a down to earth man that understood the needs of the people. His first priority as president was to give the people a “square deal” which encompassed his plan for the era. He wanted to reduce control the big businesses had over the U.S. economy and the workers, create more protection for the consumer, and create a plan to conserve our natural resources.
Compare and contrast the foreign policies of Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson. Which do you think was a more effective president? Why?
While both of these men considered themselves to be part of the progressives and shared some similar opinions, they also differed from each other greatly and were apparent in their views during this time. These two candidates believed strongly that rising power should come with the presidency, economic improvement, opposition of monopolistic businesses, and they both advocated steering away from the isolationism that the country once upheld. The campaigns of the two men spoke of New Nationalism and New Freedom, and the two campaigns had some commonality between the two of them. Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson both expressed their concerns about the wrongs of corruption and what roles could be served by increased government control and regulation over businesses.
Firstly, FDR did not reach the White House the same way that his 5th cousin Teddy did. FDR had campaigned for the Presidency, against the incumbent Herbert Hoover. FDR was a Democrat and felt that the government needed to do more to help its people. Hoover, a Republican, did not believe in direct government intervention. He believed in voluntaryism, asking working corporations to voluntarily improve working conditions and wages.
...he government to the ordinary people as explained in July 5, 1892 by the Omaha Morning World –Herald (Doc F). Lastly, the laws for the regulation of businesses was enforces until President Theodore Roosevelt had also contributed by suing companies that violated the Sherman Anti-Trust Act.
Presidents Johnson and Reagan led the United States in two very different eras, and have left much different legacies from their time in office. Their social policies while President were almost completely opposites. Johnson was focused on making social reforms to benefit all Americans, while Reagan wanted to lessen the aid given to those in poverty.
One of his accomplishments was when he went down in of the United States’ first submarines to show officers and men who were enlisted that he was not going to ask them to try something that he was not willing to try himself. Other successes for President T. Roosevelt was his involvement in the Alaskan-Canadian border dispute and his involvement in the Algeciras Conference – which avoided a war. Roosevelt’s main accomplishments during his second term were the Hepburn Bill, the Pure Food and Drug Act, The Panic of 1907, and creating the first wildlife refuge. Toward the end of his second term, Teddy started thinking about who would be the best fit for the next president. He had it between William Howard Taft and Elihu Root, but in the end thought that Taft would be the best bet and America agreed with him when Taft was up against William Jennings Bryan in the
This take on Roosevelt’s policies highlights the perceived negative effects. This article does not necessarily support the theory of an ‘anti-business’ president, but it does shed some light on some of the arguments for the failure of Roosevelt’s policies. It also gives credence to other motivations behind Roosevelt’s policies.
In 1890 the Congress of the United States passed the Sherman Antitrust Act, this act was passed to promote Compton in the field where there may be a monopoly, by breaking up the company (Lowman 372). But it would not be until 1902 that this Act would be put to use, when Northern Securities Company was put on trial (Lowman 451). Theodore Roosevelt was the President at this time, and earned himself the nickname trustbuster, "because he used this tactic so frequent in his presidency. He put other policies in commission, which made it even easier to convict companies. One of these was the Expedition Act; the Act was put in place to speed up the antitrust cases in the courts" (Lowman 452).
In Theodore Roosevelt's opinion, trusts are inevitable. As said in his 1910 "New Nationalism" speech, "There can be no effective control of corporation while their political activity remains. To put an end it will be neither a short nor an easy task, but it can be done". Woodrow Wilson had a somewhat different view on how trusts react in our society. He believes that trusts are natural but not inevitable. Wilson states in his speech in 1912 that trusts are manmade and believes they're intolerable. "I am not willing to be under the patronage of the trusts, no matter how providential a government presides over the process of their control of my life", Wilson exclaims during a campaign speech. He didn't care how much governmental control they were under and he would like to do anything in his power to stop them completely from taking over the industries.
William Taft was picked by his successor, Roosevelt. Taft, the secretary of war was chosen as the Republican candidate for 1908. Taft easily defeated the other candidates thanks to Roosevelt’s “good words”. However, Taft did not live up to Roosevelt’s expectations. He lacked the strength of personality and cared more about his dealings with congress. In fact, Taft didn’t share the same progressive ideas and polices that Roosevelt backed. The first major catastrophe to the Progressives that occurred during Taft’s presidency was the Payne-Aldrich Tariff of 1909. Taft called on Congress to address what many people thought of as excessive tariffs. After which the House of Representatives passed a bill that slightly restricted tariffs, but their legislation was strictly modified when it arrived to the Senate. Taft signed the bill and stated that it was “the best bill that the Republican Party ever passed.” This astounded and confused the Progressives and began the internal struggle for the command of the Republican Party. Another issue was Taft’s conservation problems. Taft was a conservationist much like Roosevelt but a large chunk of his work was undone by the Ballinager-Pinchot dispute. This was where Pinchot the leader of the Department of Forestry attacked Secretary of the Interior, Ballianger, for his handling of public lands. Furthermore, Ballinager opened up millions of acres for public use which angered Pinchot, in
Theodore Roosevelt stepped into head of office on September 19, 1901 when President William McKinley was assassinated. He was the youngest man to become president. His motto was “speak softly but carry a big stick.” President Roosevelt would come into power offering America the square deal. He would take the power away from the industrialists as he controlled big business from the White House. He would soon become known as a TrustBuster. Roosevelt used American power for American interests and was quoted as saying, “I am an American first and last. “ Although some historians argue that Roosevelt acted like a six-year-old throughout his presidency and that he didn’t think things through, ie “he thought with his hips”, one can admire the tremendous leadership qualities that Teddy Roosevelt had. First, he was a very bold man who graduated magna cum laude from Harvard. The average citizen was aware of what a “positive, warm and tough, authoritative and funny” president that they had leading them. His leadership qualities stemmed from his time as a New York state Assembly man, a deputy sheriff, a ...