WILLIAM HOWARD TAFT

27th PRESIDENT

1908-1912

WILLIAM HOWARD TAFTKnown as the “Reluctant President” - “I don’t remember that I ever was President.”Teddy Roosevelt’s hand-picked successorJovial, genial, conscientious, desire to avoid conflictAlways wanted to be a judgeOnly Pres. to ever also serve as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court

QUALIFICATIONS:Graduate of Yale (2nd in class!)

Ohio Judge

Federal Circuit Court Judge

Governor of the Philippines

Secretary of War under TR

Supporter of the Square Deal

Liked by the Old Guard a/w/a/ progressives of the Republican Party

TAFT TRIVIALargest President, over 300 lbs. Titanic sunk on April 14, 1912, during his presidency.Started a new tradition when he threw the 1st ball on opening day of the baseball seasonKept cows on the White House lawn; milked Pauline every morningBought the White House its first car, a Ford Model-T, and turned the stable into a 4 car garageHad to order a special bathtub for the White House, because he got stuck in the old one

TAFT’STUB

Public had a low opinion of Taft

Much more conservative than Roosevelt

Felt he was destroying Roosevelt’s “Square Deal”

DOLLAR DIPLOMACYUse foreign policy to protect American investments abroad

Use American money to uphold foreign policy (investment in areas of concern to U.S. – Caribbean & China)

Revolutions in Caribbean

U.S. interventionNicaragua, Marines 1911

Cuba, Honduras, Haiti

GREATEST FAILURES:#1- PAYNE-ALDRICH TARIFF

Believed high tariffs encouraged monopo-lies so attempts to lower tariff rates

BUT 800 amendments added to this tariff bill in Congress

SO the tariff actually turns out to be higher than what Congress started with

Taft signs anyway - allowed a corporation tax; Tariff Commission

Public opinion is very low

#2-BALLINGER-PINCHOT#2-BALLINGER-PINCHOTCONTROVERSYCONTROVERSY

Over Conservation

Pinchot - Chief Forester - accuses Ballinger – Taft’s Sec. Of Interior - of opening public western lands to private developers

Taft sides with Ballinger & fires Pinchot

Ballinger’s reputation ruined; forced to resign due to the public outcryTaft seen as “selling the Square Deal down the river!’

#3 - SUPPORT OF SPEAKER CANNON

Speaker of the House, Joe Cannon, was dictatorial & opposed to most progressive legislation (particularly conservation)

Taft refused to side openly with the Progressives who opposed the Speaker; supported the Old Guard conservatives

Public opinion falls again

Republicans do poorly in 1910 congressional elections

ACHIEVEMENTS during ACHIEVEMENTS during Taft’s Administration:Taft’s Administration:

BETTER TRUSTBUSTER THAN ROOSEVELT

Busts up Standard Oil, American Tobacco, American Sugar Refining

ACHIEVEMENTS during ACHIEVEMENTS during Taft’s Administration:Taft’s Administration:

ARIZONA AND NEW MEXICO ADMITTED AS 47th &48th STATES

Empowered ICC even further - Mann-Elkins Act, 1910

Established 8 hour day for gov’t contract workers & mine safety legislation16TH AMENDMENT, gives Congress authority to collect an income tax17TH AMENDMENT, provides for the direct election of U.S. Senators

Roosevelt’s view on Taft’s performance as President

REPUBLICANWilliam H. Taft DEMOCRAT

Woodrow Wilson

PROGRESSIVE Theodore Roosevelt

THE CANDIDATES

PLATFORMS:

Did no real campaigning:He believed Wilson would

win & therefore did nothing.

The real battle was between Roosevelt & Wilson who both supported progressivism, but under different labels.

TAFT

Won Republicannomination overRoosevelt

Roosevelt’s Bull Moose Party• NEW NATIONALISM• Emphasizes a federal gov’t strong

enough to impose nationwide solutions on big business.

• Supports Progressive reforms in child labor, minimum wage, workers’ comp., etc.

• Major difference with Wilson is with trusts/business: seeks strong gov’t control of big business, not destruction

• Magnetic Personality• Dynamic speaker who appealed to

emotions

Assassinationattempt in WI

THE “BULL MOOSE” PARTY

Video: The Bull Moose

WILSON

•NEW FREEDOM• Appealed to reason and

conscience; persuasive• A convert to

progressivism• No real political

experience; took 46 ballots for nomination

• Platform seeks banking reform & tariff reductions; opposes gov’t-sponsored social welfare• Major difference with TR - viewed monopolies as

evils to be destroyed, not regulated; they are the antithesis of free competition; favors small entrepreneurship; sees TR’s plan as giving federal gov’t too much power in economy

Aloof; idealistic

“The Professor “• Wins by partisan

politics• Split in

Republican Party & his support by both conservative & liberal Democrats gives him the election

RESULTS:

WILSON & TAFT, INAUGURATION DAY 1913