The “Bull Moose” Campaign
of 1912- The Democrats
 1912 William Jennings Bryan
announced his support of Dr.
Woodrow Wilson
 Wilson was a governor of NJ
 Didn’t allow political bosses to
push him around
 Attacked trusts & passed liberal
measures
 President of Princeton University
 Ran on the platform of “New
Freedom”
 Favored small enterprise, break up
all trusts, & shunned social
welfare programs
The “Bull Moose” Campaign
of 1912- The Progressives
 Jane Adams put Teddy’s name
on ballot at the Progressive
Convention.
 TR’s platform: New Nationalism
 Inspired by “The Promise of
Better Life” by Herbert Croly
 Government should
control bad trusts.
 Also campaigned for female
suffrage, different welfare
programs - minimum wage
and “socialistic” social
insurance.
 He was shot in the chest in
Milwaukee
The “Bull Moose” Campaign
of 1912- The Republicans
 William Howard Taft
 Taft Criticized Roosevelt
saying that electing him again
would result in a reign of
terror.
 Taft became very
conservative offering a
counter to two progressives
 Asked for recall of federal
judges and judicial decisions
on constitutional issues
 He spent a lot of time golfing
Woodrow Wilson: A
Minority President
 With Republicans split electoral votes
 435 to Wilson
 88 to Teddy Roosevelt
 8 to Taft
 Together Roosevelt and Taft got over 1.35 million
popular votes
 Wilson only got 41% of popular vote
 Eugene V. Debbs got 900,000 pop. Vote
 TR participation cost Republicans election
 Taft went onto become Chief Justice of the
Supreme Court 1921.
1912 Election Results
Woodrow Wilson
 Born in VA and grew up in
GA and Carolinas.
 2nd Democratic president
since 1861.
 Sympathizer with the
South, a fine orator,
morally appealing man,
and extremely intelligent
 Very cold personality and
extremely stubborn.
Wilson’s “Triple wall of
privilege”
 Tariffs –
 Underwood Tariff 1913
 Substantially reduced import
fees
 Enacted graduated come tax
 Banks
 Looked bad after Panic of 1907
 Investigation into banking –
 Senator Aldrich- 3rd Bank of the
U.S.
 Federal Reserve Board
•Trusts
•Federal Trade Commission
Act 1914
•Clayton Anti-Trust Act 1914
Other Progressivism
policies and Reform
 Federal Farm Loan Act of 1916
 Made credit to famers at low interest rates
 La Follette Seamen’s Act of 1915
 Good treatment of American sailors
 Workingmen’s Compensation Act of 1916
 Assistance for civil-service employees
during periods of instability
 1916 Adamson Act
 8 hour work day with overtime pay
Wilson’s Directions in
Foreign Policy
 Did not pursue aggressive foreign
policy
 Stopped “dollar diplomacy”
 Repealed Panama Canal Tolls Act of
1912
 Let American shippers not pay tolls
 Jones Act 1916 – territorial status to
Philippines
 1917 U.S. bought the Virgin Islands
from Denmark
Moralistic Diplomacy in
Mexico
 Mexico - exploited by U.S. investors
for decades
 Oil, RR, and mines.
 Mexican people tremendously poor
 In 1913 revolted and murdered
president
 Installed full-blooded Indian Gen.
Victoriano Huerta
 Rebels were violent and threatened
lives of Americans in Mexico.
Moralistic Diplomacy in
Mexico
 Wilson would not get involved.
 We had a massive immigration of Mexicans to
America.
 Wilson also refused to recognize Huerta
 Wilson did let munitions flow to Huerta’s
rivals
 Venustiano Carranza & Francisco
“Pancho” Villa
Moralistic Diplomacy in
Mexico
 1914 party of U.S. sailors
arrested in Tampico, MX.
 Wilson threatens force
 Orders nay to take over Vera
Cruz
 Argentina, Brazil, and Chile
helped mediated
 Huerta fell from power
 Succeeded by Carranza (who
resented Wilson).
“Pancho” Villa
 Bandit/ freedom fighter
 Murdered 16 Americans
 January 1916
 Gen. John J. Pershing
 Sent to capture Villa
 January 1917 U.S. withdrew
troops
“The shot heard round the
world.”
Thunder Across The Sea
 1914 Serbian nationalist killed Austro-Hungry Heir
Franz Ferdinand
 Austria declares war on Serbia
 Russia declares war on Austria-Hungry & Germany
 Germany Declares war on Russia & France
 Germany invades neutral Belgium
 This pulls Britain into war, which begins WWI
Quick World History
Review
 Who were the central powers?
 Germany and AustriaHungary,
 and later Turkey and
Bulgaria
 Who were the Allies?
 France, Britain, and Russia
 And later Japan and Italy.
Neutrality In America
 Wilson declares neutrality for
U.S.
 U.S. was mostly Anti-German
 Kaiser Wilhelm II = perfect
autocrat to hate
 Attack on Belgium =
ruthless.
 German & Austro-Hungarian
agents resorted to violence in
factories and ports.
America Earns Blood
Money
 As WWI begins America is in recession
 Americans tried to trade with Central Powers
 J.P. Morgan helped finance Allies
 This pulls U.S. out of recession
 Germany uses submarine warfare
 Wilson said they would be held to “Strict
accountability.”
 Lusitania sunk by German U-boat
 Killed 1,198 and 128 were Americans
Reaction
 Americans wanted punishment
 Wilson kept U.S. out of war by notes w/ Germany
 Germans skunk Arabic in Aug. 1915 – 2 Americans die
 Germany agrees not to sink unarmed ships w/o warning
 Breaks this with Sussex
 “Sussex pledge” agree not to sink passenger ships or merchant vessels w/o
warning
 If U.S. could get the British to stop blockade
Election of 1916
 Republicans name Charles
Evans Hughes
 “Charles Evasive Hughes”
 Democrats Woodrow Wilson
 Slogan “he kept us out of the
war”
 Results:
 Wilson electoral 277
 Hughes electoral 254
Election 1916 Results