Three Progressive Presidents: Theodore
Roosevelt, William H. Taft, and Woodrow
Wilson
1900-1917
The Federal Government and the
Presidency gain power, 1900-1917
Three
Progressive
Presidents: (T)
Theodore
Roosevelt, (R)19011908
William Howard
Taft (R) 1908-1912
Woodrow Wilson
(D) 1912-1920
 The Progressives are demanding more
action from the government
 Amendment passes for direct election of
U.S Senators
 People turn to the President for leadership
 IN THIS PERIOD, THE FEDERAL
GOVERNMENT AND THE PRESIDENCY
WILL GROW IN POWER AND
CONTINUE TO UNTIL THE PRESENT
DAY. WASHINGTON, D.C. BECAME THE
POWER CENTER OF THE U.S.
Theodore Roosevelt, The Accidental
President, 1901
 McKinley assassinated
 42 years old, youngest to assume office
 Believed in using the power of the Presidency!!!
 Moderate—believed using the office of the presidency and
the government as a go-between for business/industry and
the people
 He was a moderate on labor—wanted to settle disputes as a
mediator—but did support many labor issues
 Wanted regulation but not destruction of trusts and
monopolies
Roosevelt’s “Square Deal”
 Wanted to be fair to as many people as possible, “Level the Playing
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Field”
First target—railroads, Hepburn Act, Railroad Regulation
Negotiated an end to the coal strike
Used the Sherman Anti-Trust Act to bring charges against over 40
companies
Pure Food and Drug Act and Meat Inspection Act
8 Hour workday
Payment for those injured at work in factories
Regulation of the stock market
Higher Inheritance and a progressive income tax
Conservation of wilderness areas and forests
T.R. with John Muir, founder of the
Sierra Club
Financial Panic of 1907
J. P. Morgan put
together a financial
plan to support the
weak financial
institutions.
 Government had little real control over the
TODAY Warren
Buffet is financing
some firms.
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economy
Too many goods were being produced and
the global market could not absorb them
There had also been irresponsible
speculation and financial mismanagement.
J.P. Morgan helps with a bailout for the
economy
T. Roosevelt leaves office and hand picks
Taft to replace him. Safari time!
President William Howard Taft, 1909
 Could not fill Roosevelt’s shoes—personality, energy,
charisma
 Both the progressives and the conservatives thought he
shared their views---could please NO ONE
 Brought suits against over 90 corporations
 Fought with the Congress over the tariff
 Ballinger-Pinchot Affair-Debate over the use of
public lands (Angered T Roosevelt)
 Left office one of the most defeated presidents in history
 Later was appointed Chief Justice of the U.S. Supreme
Court
Election of 1912
The Return of Theodore Roosevelt?
 William Howard Taft –Republican
 Woodrow Wilson ---Democrat
 Theodore Roosevelt—”Bull Moose”
Progressive Party-New Nationalism
 Eugene Debs ---Socialist Party
 Highly emotional campaign—Taft is
devastated
T. Roosevelt is struck by a bullet during
the campaign
Woodrow Wilson’s “New Freedom”
 Served 2 terms
 Scholar—a professor and later President of Princeton
 Differed from Roosevelt in that he wanted to break up trusts and
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monopolies—not just regulate them
Clayton Anti-Trust Act, Federal Trade Commission
He took EVEN MORE POWER into his own hands as president
Approved the graduated income tax (16th Amendment)
MOST IMPORTANTLY—PASSED THE FEDERAL RESERVE
ACT – and set up the FEDERAL RESERVE BOARD to bring
stability to the banking system. This institution is very important
today and regulating our economy.
Wilson feels the pressure…..more reforms
W. Wilson
relaxed after
his first term
but soon
realized he had
to act to get
reelected.
 Passed laws against child labor
 Made it easier for farmers to get loans
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(credit)
Appointed Louis Brandeis to Supreme
Court (first Jewish justice)
Workman’s comp for employees of the
federal government
Refused to support the Woman Suffrage
Movement
Reimposed segregation in federal agencies
(TR had eliminated them)
The Progressive Movement: 19001920
 Was the Progressive Movement of the early
1900s a success or a failure? Did progressive
reformers achieve their goals? Which
groups benefitted from reforms? Which
groups were left behind in the progressive
movement?
Progressive Era Video-Summary
(33:00) Presidents begin at 10 minutes
 http://www.cleanvideosearch.com/media/action/yt/watc
h?videoId=PWmQhnK6xu8&name=Just+the+Facts+The+Emergence+of+Modern+America+The+Progressiv
e+Era&uploadUsername=wdiaz120&hitCount=4868
TEST Tomorrow