Three Progressive Presidents

1. Three Progressive Presidents Roosevelt, Taft, and Wilson

2. The Progressives • Believed that an efficient government could protect public interest & restore order to society • Middle class reformers addressed many social problems, including • Working conditions • Rights for women & children • Economic reforms • Environmental issues • Social welfare

3. Theodore Roosevelt • 1st president to use the government to directly help the public interest • Saw the presidency as a "bully pulpit" to preach his ideas • Often bypassed congressional opposition (like Jackson) • Offered Americans a Square Deal • Was enormously popular with many Americans

4. Regulation of Corporations • Anthracite Coal Strike (1902) • United Mine Workers union in Pennsylvania went on strike • The president of the company demanded that Roosevelt prosecute the union leader for violation of the Sherman Antitrust Act • Roosevelt threatened to seize the mines & operate them with federal troops if the owners refused compromise • The owners consented to arbitration

5. Regulation of Corporations • Elkins Act (1903) • Allowed heavy fines for railroads & shippers that abused rebates • Hepburn Act (1906) • Restricted the railroad’s use of free passes • Allowed the government to stipulate maximum rates • Concluded that there were “good trusts” & “bad trusts”

6. Consumer Protection • European markets threatened to ban American meat since some was found to be tainted • The public was sickened by Upton Sinclair’sdescription of unsanitary food products • He had detailed accounts of filth, disease, & putrefaction in Chicago’s damp and ill-ventilated slaughterhouses • Roosevelt appointed a special investigating commission whose report almost out-did Sinclair’s novel

7. Consumer Protection • Meat Inspection Act (1906) • Made meat shipped across state lines subject to federal inspection throughout the meat-making process • Pure Food & Drug Act (1906) • Prevented the mislabeling of food & drugs

8. Conservation • Newlands Reclamation Act (1902) • Authorized the government to collect money from the sale of public lands in western states & use the funds for the development of irrigation projects • Settlers repaid the cost of reclamation by building successful farms • Money was put into a revolving account in order to finance additional projects • Allowed for the construction of dams on virtually every major western river

9. William Howard Taft • Won the election of 1908 • Lacked Roosevelt’s fire & guts • Content to keep the status quo rather than rock the boat • Adopted a passive attitude towards Congress

10. Trustbusting • Brought 90 suits against trusts during his 4 years in office – twice as many as Roosevelt • United States v. American Tobacco Company (1911) • The Supreme Court ordered the company to reorganize based on the “rule of reason” which allowed only “reasonable” restraints on trade • Worked to impair the government’s anti-trust activities • Also in 1911, the Court ordered the dissolution of the Standard Oil Company • Determined that it violated the Sherman Anti-Trust Act of 1890

11. Progressive Legislation • Taft’s contributions to conservation rivaled those of Roosevelt • Established the Bureau of Mines to control mineral resources • Protected water-power sites from private development • Postal Savings Bank System (1910) • Authorized the Post Office Department to receive savings deposits from individuals & pay interest of 2% per year • Mann Elkins Act (1911) • Put telegraph, telephone, & cable corporations under federal jurisdiction

12. Split in the Republican Party • Payne-Aldrich Tariff (1909) • Taft had made a campaign promise to address the tariff • The House passed a moderately reductive bill, but the Senate made revisions that raised the tariff to 37% • Taft signed the Payne-Aldrich Tariff, thus betraying his campaign promises • The Progressive wing of the party was outraged

13. Taft-Roosevelt Split • National Progressive Republican League (1911) • Robert La Follette of Wisconsin emerged as the party’s leading candidate only to be pushed aside by Roosevelt • Republican Convention (1912) • Although Roosevelt clearly had a majority of Republican votes, Taft was given the nomination • Prompted the Progressives to leave the party & create their own – Roosevelt “Bull Moose” Party • Gave the Republican Old Guard control of the GOP

14. The Bull Moose Party

15. Election of 1912 • Republican – William Howard Taft • Supported by “Old Guard” Republicans • Did little campaigning • Progressive – Theodore Roosevelt • Supported by cultured, middle-class people • Called for a “New Nationalism” • Believed that only a powerful federal government could regulate the economy & guarantee social justice • Thought that concentration in industry was a natural part of the economy that should be paralleled by the growth of powerful regulatory agencies • Wanted a broad program of social welfare

16. Election of 1912 • Democrat – Woodrow Wilson • Supported by young Southern progressives • Called for a “New Freedom” • Attacked the Triple Wall of Privilege: The tariff, the banks, & the trusts • Favored small businesses & a return to a free competitive economy without monopolies • Believed that all trusts were bad • Rejected a stronger role for the government in human affairs

17. Election of 1912 • Socialist – Eugene V. Debs • Found support in industrial cities & ethnic communities • Divided into conservative & radical wings • Conservatives called for government ownership of the railroads & utilities, factory inspections, & the abolition of the Senate & the presidential veto • Radicals – supported by the International Workers of the World (IWW) – advocated strikes & sabotage over politics

18. Election of 1912

19. Woodrow Wilson • Born in Virginia • Former president of Princeton University • Governor of New Jersey • Believed the president should play a dynamic role in government • Lacked Roosevelt’s common touch • Moral righteousness often made him uncompromising

20. Underwood Tariff (1913) • Wilson called for a special session of Congress to address the tariff issue • The Underwood Tariff Bill was passed by the House • Reduced the tariff to 25% • Enacted a graduated income tax under authority granted by the 16th Amendment • 1% on incomes over $4000 • 7% on incomes over $500,000 • The Senate then allowed numerous increases in rates to be added • Wilson appealed to the people to demand that their Senators pass the bill

21. Federal Reserve Act (1913) • Created the Federal Reserve System & granted it the authority to issue paper money • Established a Federal Reserve Board – appointed by the president – to oversee a nationwide system of privately owned regional banks • Current functions of the Fed include: • Addressing the problem of banking panics • Managing the nation’s money supply • Maintaining the stability of the financial system • Strengthening the US’s standing in the world economy

22. Federal Trade Commission (1914) • Empowered a commission – appointed by the president – to monitor industries engaged in interstate commerce • Allowed commissioners to issue cease & desist orders, ending unfair trade practices such as false advertising, mislabeling, & bribery

23. Clayton Antitrust Act (1914) • Supplemented the Sherman Antitrust Act (1890) by: • Outlawing price discrimination • Regulating mergers & acquisitions • Enforced by the Federal Trade Commission • Exempted labor & agricultural organizations from antitrust prosecution while explicitly legalizing strike & peaceful picketing • Union leader Samuel Gompers hailed the act as the “Magna Carta of labor”

24. Other Progressive Reforms • Federal Farm Loan Act (1916) – Low interest loans for farmers • Federal Highway Act (1916) – Highway construction in rural areas • Workingmen’s Disability Act (1916) – Assistance to federal civil-service employees during periods of disability • Keating-Owen Act (1916) – Child labor restrictions on products sold through interstate commerce • Ruled unconstitutional in 1918 on the grounds that it interfered with states’ powers

25. Other Progressive Reforms • Adamson Act (1916) – 8-hour workday, with extra pay for overtime, for interstate rail workers • Minimum wages • Prisons & “reform” schools forced to shift from punishment to rehabilitation