Chapter 23
"Making The World Over": The Progressive Era
I. Elements of reform
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A. Diverse goals of progressivism
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1. An element of conservatism in progressivism
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2. Urban industrial ills required government responses
B. The varied sources of progressivism
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1. Populism
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2. The Mugwumps
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3. Socialism
C. The muckrakers
II. The main features of progressivism
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A. Greater democracy
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1. Direct primaries
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2. The initiative, referendum, and recall
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3. Popular election of senators
B. The “gospel of efficiency“
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1. Frederick W. Taylor and The Principles of Scientific Management
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2. Shorter ballots
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3. New ideas for municipal government—commission system and the city-manager plan
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4. Robert La Follette and the “Wisconsin idea“
C. Corporate regulation
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1. Alternative solutions to the problems of big business
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2. The trend toward regulation
D. Social justice
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1. Labor laws
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a. Child labor
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b. The Supreme Court and state labor laws
2. Prohibition
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E. Public service functions of government
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F. Progressivism and religion
III. Roosevelt’s progressivism—first term
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A. Trusts
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1. Roosevelt thought effective regulation better than attempts to restore competition
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2. Decision in United States v. E. C. Knight and Company (1895) held manufacturing to be intrastate activity
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3. Supreme Court ordered the Northern Securities Company dissolved
B. Coal strike of 1902
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1. Workers struck for more pay and fewer hours
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2. Mine owners closed mines
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3. Roosevelt threatened to take over the mines
C. More trust cases
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1. Overall, brought about 25 anti-trust suits
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2. Swift and Company v. United States (1905)
D. Anti-trust and regulatory legislation of 1903
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1. Creation of the Bureau of Corporations
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2. The Elkins Act
IV. Roosevelt’s progressivism—second term
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A. The election of 1904
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B. The Hepburn Act of 1906
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C. Food and drug regulations
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1. Campaign against patent medicines
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2. Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle and meat packers
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3. The Meat Inspection Act (1906)
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4. The Pure Food and Drug Act (1906)
D. Conservation
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1. Origins tied to the sportsman-naturalist
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a. Roosevelt a model
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2. Effect of state conservation laws
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3. Gifford Pinchot
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4. Reclamation Act
E. The election of 1908
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1. Roosevelt handpicked Taft
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2. Taft’s victory over Bryan
V. Taft’s progressivism
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A. Taft’s early career
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B. Tariff reform
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1. Taft wanted lower tariff
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2. Tariff raised many rates
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3. Fearful of party split, Taft backed new tariff
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C. Ballinger-Pinchot controversy
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1. Chief of Forestry Pinchot went public with accusations against Secretary of the Interior Ballinger
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2. Pinchot fired by Taft for insubordination
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3. Taft’s image as progressive tarnished
D. The Taft-Roosevelt break
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1. United States Steel suit
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2. Review of accomplishments of Taft’s administration
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3. In Republican primary for 1912, Taft controlled party machinery
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4. Roosevelt and the Progressive party
VI. The election of 1912
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A. The rise of Woodrow Wilson
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B. Campaign
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1. Roosevelt shot
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2. Taft had no chance
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3. Roosevelt’s New Nationalism
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a. Influence of Herbert Croly
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b. Hamiltonian means to achieve Jeffersonian ends
4. Wilson’s New Freedom
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a. Influence of Louis Brandeis
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b. Restoration of an economy of small-scale competitive units
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C. Election figures—victory for Wilson
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D. Significance of the election of 1912
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1. A high-water mark for progressivism
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2. Brought Democrats back into effective national power
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3. Brought southerners back into national and international affairs
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4. Altered the character of the Republican party
VII. Wilsonian reform
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A. Relied more on party politics than popular support to pass reforms
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B. Underwood-Simmons Tariff (1913)
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1. Lowered average duty by about one-fifth
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2. To replace lost revenue, began income tax
C. The Federal Reserve Act (1913)
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1. Allowed reserves to be pooled
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2. Made currency and bank credit more elastic
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D. Wilson and trusts
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1. The Clayton Anti-Trust Act of 1914
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a. Outlawed price discrimination, “tying“ agreements, interlocking directorates in large corporations
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b. Prevented corporations from buying up stock of competitors to gain control of the market
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c. Exempted farm labor organizations
2. Federal Trade Commission
E. Wilson and social justice
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3. Lessened concentration of reserves in New York
1. Little legislation before 1916
F. Progressivism for whites only
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1. Wilson’s racial attitudes
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2. Spread of uncompromising racists in Wilson’s government
G. A resurgence of progressivism
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1. Wilson added to his progressive record to form broad base of support for 1916 election
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2. Farm reforms (credit and education)
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3. Federal Highways Act (1916) subsidized state highway departments
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4. Labor reform
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a. Keating-Owen Act (1916) excluded from interstate commerce goods manufactured by children under fourteen
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b. Adamson Act (1916) provided for eight-hour day for railroad workers
H. Under Wilson, progressivism became a movement for positive government
VIII. The limits of progressivism
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A. Disenfranchisement of blacks
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B. Decisions made more by faceless policy makers
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C. Decline in voter participation