Origins of Progressive Reform: Municipal, State, and National and Roosevelt, Taft, and Wilson as Pro

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Origins of Progressive Reform Municipal, State,
and National and Roosevelt, Taft, and Wilson as
Progressive Presidents
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The Bull Moose Party

• In the election of 1912, former president
  Theodore Roosevelt split the Republican Party
  when he lost the nomination to William Howard
  Taft.
• In response to the claim that Roosevelt was no
  longer fit for the office, he responded that he
  was "fit as a bull moose" it was from this
  comment that the Progressive Party received its
  nickname.
• The Progressives substantially overshadowed the
  Republicans in the election, but never again
  regained the amount of support garnered in the
  1912 election, primarily due to adjustments on
  behalf of both of the mainstream parties.

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Socialism

• The Progressive movement was not the only reform
  movement in play at the turn of the century the
  Socialists were also growing in prominence.
• Often at odds with Progressives, the Socialists
  followed a different ideology, ranging from
  radicalism to social democracy.
• Eugene V. Debs was the most prominent Socialist
  of his time he was promoted as the Socialist
  candidate for the presidency 5 times.

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Tariffs

• Tariffs were one of the most salient and
  contentious issues in Progressive era politics
  they were the largest source of income for the
  United States government through the end of World
  War I.
• For this reason, the rate of tariffs varied
  dramatically over the turn of the century and
  throughout the course of Progressive
  presidencies, each man tailoring the tariff rates
  to his specific ideology.

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Trade Regulation

• The first time government regulated business was
  in 1887 when the Interstate Commerce Act was
  passed.
• Many farmers in the Western half of the country
  resented the control that the railroads exerted
  over them, they set the prices for shipping at
  will and often much higher than market value.
• Regulation was first attempted at the state
  level, but the laws were deemed unconstitutional
  by the Supreme Court.
• The Interstate Commerce Act effectively created
  the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC), the
  first federal regulatory commission.
• Designed to keep the railroads from forming
  monopolies and employing unfair business
  practices, the Act mandated reasonable, published
  shipping rates and outlawed price discrimination
  and secret rebates to preferred customers.
• The responsibilities of the ICC expanded to
  include worker safety and anti discrimination
  through two subsequent acts, Elkins Act of 1903
  and the Mann-Elkins Act of 1920.

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Trust Busting

• Along with the rise of industry and corporations
  in America, was the emergence of trusts and
  monopolies, business entities that aimed to
  control an entire market in order to manipulate
  prices and garner profits significantly higher
  than the market would allow.
• Senator John Sherman initially introduced the
  legislation to prevent trusts from forming to
  protect the American Consumer.
• Although Theodore Roosevelt is most closely
  associated with trust busting, William Howard
  Taft and William McKinley both played major roles
  in the era, by beginning anti-trust proceedings
  and initiating the Industrial Commission on
  Trusts.

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• The first, United States v E. C. Knight Co.,
  decided in 1895, was the first case heard by the
  Supreme Court concerning the Sherman Anti-Trust
  Act.
• The Court decided that the Legislature did not
  have the authority to regulate the monopoly in
  question and it effectively limited the
  governments power over them.
• The second, Northern Securities v United States,
  decided in 1904, determined that the Sherman
  Anti-Trust Act was sufficient to regulate a
  monopoly, overturning the earlier E.C. Knight Co.
  decision.
• Northern Securities was a railroad conglomerate
  formed by the financiers JP Morgan, James Hill,
  JD Rockefeller, and EH Harriman and essentially
  controlled all rail lines in the northern portion
  of the United States. The decision dissolved the
  trust.
• The third decision listed is that of Standard Oil
  Co. of New Jersey v United States from 1911.
• The company was found guilty of intentionally
  monopolizing the petroleum market and forced to
  split into multiple competing organizations.

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Coal Strike 1902

• In 1902, the United Mine Workers of America
  launched a strike in the Anthracite coalfields in
  eastern Pennsylvania that effectively changed the
  governments relationship with labor and
  corporations.
• Whereas no coal was being mined and the nation
  used coal to heat homes, and in light of the
  coming winter, the president was forced to
  intervene to prevent a national disaster.

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Conservation

• The Conservation Movement began in the late 19th
  century, but enjoyed greater support through
  legislation, such as the Forest Reserve Act and
  the Newlands Reclamation Act, during the early
  20th century.
• The conservation movement was supported by
  Theodore Roosevelt and promoted the protection of
  forests for the greater good for the greatest
  length.
• Conservationists wanted to use lands for public
  activities and commercial endeavors, whereas an
  offshoot group, the preservationists, wanted the
  lands to be preserved for their natural beauty,
  scientific study, and recreation.

"Public opinion throughout the United States has
moved steadily toward a just appreciation of the
value of forests, whether planted or of natural
growth."
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Muckrakers

• A muckraker, in the early 19th century, was a
  journalist who investigated and exposed societal
  issues, usually amid a flurry of controversy and
  with the goal of reform.
• The term is credited to Theodore Roosevelt who
  was in favor of the muckraking journalists he
  said of them in a speech There are, in the
  body politic, economic and social, many and grave
  evils, and there is urgent necessity for the
  sternest war upon them. There should be
  relentless exposure of and attack upon every evil
  man whether politician or business man, every
  evil practice, whether in politics, in business,
  or in social life. I hail as a benefactor every
  writer or speaker, every man who, on the
  platform, or in book, magazine, or newspaper,
  with merciless severity makes such attack,
  provided always that he in his turn remembers
  that the attack is of use only if it is
  absolutely truthful."

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• The excerpts below are from two of the better
  known muckrakers.
• The first is a selection from Upton Sinclairs
  The Jungle which describes the conditions of
  the meat packing industry and was directly
  related to both the Meat Inspection and Pure Food
  and Drug Acts.
• The second is a selection from Ida Tarbells
  History of the Standard Oil Company that
  exposed the ways big business attempted to
  circumvent anti-trust legislation an still
  maintain a monopoly.
• "the other men who worked in tank-rooms full of
  steam, and in some of which there were open vats
  near the level of the floor, their peculiar
  trouble was that they fell into the vats and
  when they were fished out, there was never enough
  of them left to be worth exhibiting,sometimes
  they would be overlooked for days, till all but
  the bones of them had gone out to the world as
  Durhams Pure Leaf Lard!"-The Jungle
• "As for independent pipelines, there were so many
  ways of "discouraging" their building that it did
  not seem probable that any one would ever go far.
  It was only a matter of time, then, when all
  remaining outside refiners must come into his
  fold or die."-History of the Standard Oil Company

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Theodore Roosevelt

• Theodore Roosevelt, Jr. was the 26th president of
  the United States of America, rising to power
  following the assassination of William McKinley.
• The Republican Party bosses attempted to
  marginalize his influence by making him vice
  president, a presumed dead-end position, but
  their plan backfired with the death of his
  predecessor.
• Roosevelt was a Progressive reformer who wanted
  to bring conservative ideals into the 20th
  century.
• In the 1912 election, he split from the
  mainstream party and created the Bull Moose
  platform, running for the presidency on a third
  party ticket.

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William Howard Taft

• William Howard Taft became the 27th President of
  the United States of America after Theodore
  Roosevelt refused the Republican nomination for
  president in the 1908 election.
• Taft was a Progressive, however, his policies
  differed from mainstream Progressive politics.
• He was more focused on the legal aspect of the
  ideology, rarely confronting business practices
  in his speeches, but initiating at least 90
  anti-trust suits.
• Taft is very closely associated with his goals
  for tariff reform, of which he spoke often, and
  his advancements in foreign policy.

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Woodrow Wilson

• Woodrow Wilson was the 28th president of the
  United States of America, elected during the
  highly contested election of 1912.
• A Democrat, but a Progressive president
  nonetheless, Wilson is most recognized for his
  regulation of the monetary system having pursued
  the Federal Reserve Act of 1913.
• Instead of pursuing multiple anti-trust suits, as
  did his predecessors, Wilson encouraged
  competition through monetary policy and the
  Federal Trade Commission.
• Whereas the legislation previously in place had
  begun to set a legal precedent, that which Wilson
  initiated created governing bodies that could be
  held responsible for the rules set in place.

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Election of 1912

• The Presidential election of 1912 was greatly
  affected by the introduction of the third party
  ticket, with former president Theodore Roosevelt
  running for the Progressive Party (Bull Moose),
  against the Republican incumbent William Howard
  Taft, and the Democratic nominee Woodrow Wilson.
• Many say that Roosevelt split the Republican vote
  allowing Wilson to win the presidency, but his
  party also appealed to many Democrats, from whom
  he also received a number of votes.
• Roosevelt made a good showing, but fell in second
  place, while Taft came in a distant third. Wilson
  garnered the majority of both the popular and
  electoral votes.

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