Unlike most presidents, Theodore Roosevelt was more aggressive during his second term as President. After winning a term of his own, he embarked on a series of reform measures which often led him to oppose the Republican Congress. Roosevelt gradually drifted to the left politically, and there was some speculation that he might break a 1904 promise not to run for President again.
Roosevelt’s foreign policy emphasized that the United States was a player on the world political scene. He was instrumental in bringing the Russian and Japanese governments together to draft a treaty ending the war between the two nations in 1905. He was also involved in the international acceptance of Japan’s occupation of Korea. After that point, relations with Japan deteriorated. It looked like the USA would be going to war against Japan. Roosevelt decided to send the American fleet on a cruise around the world – a bold stroke that paid off because the Japanese government became less belligerent.
TR’s most successful domestic program involved the conservation of western lands. Working with Gifford Pinchot, he succeeded in dramatically increasing the amount of western acreage in federal reserves (from 45 million acres in 1901 to 195 million acres in 1909).
One of the most troubling incidents for the Roosevelt administration was the Brownsville shootings. Some black soldiers from the 25th Infantry became angered by treatment by the residents of Brownsville TX, so on the night of 8/3/
[More...]Unlike most presidents, Theodore Roosevelt was more aggressive during his second term as President. After winning a term of his own, he embarked on a series of reform measures which often led him to oppose the Republican Congress. Roosevelt gradually drifted to the left politically, and there was some speculation that he might break a 1904 promise not to run for President again.
Roosevelt’s foreign policy emphasized that the United States was a player on the world political scene. He was instrumental in bringing the Russian and Japanese governments together to draft a treaty ending the war between the two nations in 1905. He was also involved in the international acceptance of Japan’s occupation of Korea. After that point, relations with Japan deteriorated. It looked like the USA would be going to war against Japan. Roosevelt decided to send the American fleet on a cruise around the world – a bold stroke that paid off because the Japanese government became less belligerent.
TR’s most successful domestic program involved the conservation of western lands. Working with Gifford Pinchot, he succeeded in dramatically increasing the amount of western acreage in federal reserves (from 45 million acres in 1901 to 195 million acres in 1909).
One of the most troubling incidents for the Roosevelt administration was the Brownsville shootings. Some black soldiers from the 25th Infantry became angered by treatment by the residents of Brownsville TX, so on the night of 8/3/1906 some of the soldiers fired into the town. One person died. No one saw which soldiers were involved, and none of the 160 soldiers in the unit would give any information. On the day before the midterm election, Pres. Roosevelt discharged all of the 160 men without honor (including six Medal of Honor recipients). This move was applauded by the south but widely criticized in the North. Sen. Joseph Foraker called for a congressional investigation into the details of the incident. Foraker’s support for the black soldiers drew the ire of the President. The two men exchanged some strong words at a club dinner, and debate on the affair continued for many months. Foraker had already decided to run for President in 1908, but the Brownsville incident ended his campaign. Newspapers reported that Foraker was on the payroll of Standard Oil, one of the most distrusted corporations in the nation. Foraker’s political career came to an end.
After Pres. Roosevelt’s first choice for his successor declined to run (Elihu Root), William Howard Taft of Cincinnati became TR’s choice. Taft had represented TR in China, Japan, Rome, and Panama. Roosevelt wanted to appoint Taft to the Supreme Court, but Taft was not interested. When the Republican convention met, Taft won on the first ballot with 72% of the delegate votes. Robert LaFollette of Wisconsin presented a series of reform planks for the platform, but the convention voted against all of them (the plank on campaign funding lost by 880 to 94, the railroad plank lost by 917 to 63, and the direct election of the U.S. Senators failed by a vote of 866 to 114).
The Democrats met in their convention in Denver CO. William J. Bryan again was the favorite of the delegates as the convention opened. Bryan had endorsed the latest reform ideas – popular election of U.S. Senators, the use of the primary, and initiative and referendum. Joseph Pulitzer hoped that the Democrats would nominate Bryan and lose the election just to tarnish the reform measures. Bryan was nominated on the first ballot, carrying all but five states.
One of the disillusioned Democrats, the newspaperman William R. Hearst, created a new party to support his presidential ambitions. However, when the Independence Party convention met, it passed over Hearst and nominated Thomas L. Hisgen on the third ballot.
Taft and Bryan both canvassed the states seeking votes. Bryan led the charge with his question “Shall the people rule?” Even with the trust-busting policies of the Roosevelt administration, there was a need to enforce the laws against corporate excesses. TR encouraged Taft to take the offensive. Taft’s action reduced Bryan’s list of issues, as the two men both favored direct election of the Senators, enforcing laws against the trusts, and the adoption of a graduated income tax. Bryan was reduced to the issues of the tariff, labor, and limited government. He drew the greatest crowds of his career, but he needed a more important campaign issue. Some businessmen approached him and offered their support if he would fill Supreme Court vacancies with pro-business justices. Bryan refused to accommodate them, and they gave their support reluctantly to Taft.
When election day was over, the voters gave a sweeping victory to Taft. Only three of the states that supported TR in 1904 voted for Bryan in 1908. Taft’s 52%–43% margin in the popular vote was greater than either of McKinley’s margins. In Congress, however, the Democrats expanded upon their 1906 gains, adding two Senators and eight Representatives.
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