Politics > Politics-USA > Theodore Roosevelt, the Masculine President and George Bush, the "Metro Male"President
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Politics > Politics-USA |
| User: |
"Marcus Aurelius" |
| Date: |
21 Sep 2006 12:19:55 PM |
| Object: |
Theodore Roosevelt, the Masculine President and George Bush, the "Metro Male"President |
Theodore Roosevelt was President of the USA from 1901 to 1909.
President. George Walker Bush has been President of the USA from 2001
to present.
President Roosevelt was a Republican as is President Bush.
Both attended Harvard College.
Both came from wealthy families, although the Roosevelt family was from
"old money".
This is where the similarities between these two Presidents end.
President Roosevelt, "helped define masculinity".
His motto was "Speak softly but carry a big stick"
President Bush, from a family in which men are dominated by matriarchs
demonstrates his subservience women by his public and private acts as
well as legislation. President Bush is definitely a "metro male"
President. (a Metro male is a male that adopts feminist attitudes and
beliefs in order to maintain socio-political-economic status and who,
sometimes, is somewhat effiminate.)
Bush's apparant motto is: "Speak loudly and carry a little stick."
In the Spanish American War, as a Colonel, Roosevelt led the charge up
Kettle Hill in San Juan.As a result of the same, he won the
Congressional Medal of Honor.
George Bush served in the Texas Air National Guard during the War in
Vietnam. He saw no military service in Vietnam.
President Roosevelt fought corruption in big business, obtained the
Elkins Law (1903) forbidding rebates to favored corporations He
supported the working man and was the first President to speak up in
strongly favor of unions.
President Bush favors big business at the expense of the working man.
His administration has witnessed significant corruption in big business
and has favored legislation which has unjustly rewarded big business to
the unjust detriment of the average american.
President Roosevelt sponsored policies, both national and international
benefited American Industry and the American worker.
President Bush, as a "monopoly capitalist" has sponsored treaties and
policies which have resulted in the outsourcing of industries and jobs.
He has favored illegal immigration and the unjust immigration to the US
of foreign workers.
President Roosevelt was the first trully conservationist President.
President Bush is known for ignoring conservationist policies in the
interest of big business.
Roosevelt sponsored the Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906 as well as the
Meat Inspection Act of 1906.
President Bush has sponsored legislation deregulating industry.
President Roosevelt won the Noble Peace Prize for his assistance in
ending the Russo-Japanese War.
President Bush has been condemned internationally for his aggressive
and illegal Second War in Iraq.
The dramatic comparisons between Roosevelt and Bush are quite evident.
For futher information on President Roosevelt, a man's man, and
President Bush, a "metro male", please read the partial quote from the
Wikipedia below."
Quote:
"From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Jump to: navigation, search
Theodore Roosevelt
26th President of the United States
In office
September 14, 1901 - March 4, 1909
Vice President(s) None (1901-1905)
Charles Warren Fairbanks (1905-1909)
Preceded by William McKinley
Succeeded by William Howard Taft
Born October 27, 1858
New York City, New York, in Gramercy, Manhattan
Died January 6, 1919
Oyster Bay, New York
Political party Republican Party
Spouse 1st:Alice Hathaway Lee Roosevelt;
2nd:Edith Carow Roosevelt
Religion Dutch Reformed
Signature
25th Vice President of the United States
In office
March 4, 1901 - September 14, 1901
President William McKinley
Preceded by Garret Hobart
Succeeded by Charles W. Fairbanks
Theodore Roosevelt, Jr. (October 27, 1858 - January 6, 1919), also
known as T.R. and to the public as Teddy, was the 26th President of the
United States (1901-1909). He is most famous for his personality -
he dominated a generation by his energy, his vast range of interests
and achievements, and his model of masculinity - the famous
"cowboy" persona. At age 42, he became President after the
assassination of President William McKinley.
Roosevelt was a Progressive reformer who sought to move the Republican
Party into the Progressive camp. He distrusted wealthy businessmen and
as a "trust buster" broke up numerous large corporations. His "Square
Deal" promised a fair shake for the average citizen, including
regulation of railroad rates and pure foods and drugs. As an
outdoorsman he promoted the conservation movement, emphasizing
efficient use of natural resources. After he started attacking the
courts as biased against labor unions, he broke with his friend and
anointed successor William Howard Taft and ran unsuccessfully as a
third-party candidate in 1912 on the Bull Moose ticket.
As Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Navy he prepared for and advocated
war with Spain in 1898. He organized and helped command the First U.S.
Volunteer Cavalry Regiment, the "Rough Riders", during the
Spanish-American War. Returning to New York as a war hero he was
elected Republican governor in 1898. He was a professional historian,
naturalist and explorer of the Amazon Basin; his 35 books, listed
online [1], include works on outdoor life, natural history, U.S.
Western and political history, Naval Battles of the War of 1812 , and
his autobiography.
Roosevelt understood the strategic significance of the Panama Canal,
and negotiated for the U.S. to take control of its construction in
1904. It was completed in 1914, after he left office. He felt that the
Canal's completion was his most important and historically significant
international achievement. He was the first American to be awarded the
Nobel Prize, winning its Peace Prize in 1906, for negotiating peace
between Russia and Japan.
The dominant personality of the era, he helped redefine masculinity. He
preached and lived the "strenuous life," ridiculing the sedentary life
of luxury and attempting the most strenuous and dangerous feats--which
finally cost his life. Historian Thomas Bailey, who disagreed with
Roosevelt's policies, nevertheless concluded, "Roosevelt was a great
personality, a great activist, a great preacher of the moralities, a
great controversialist, a great showman. He dominated his era as he
dominated conversations....the masses loved him; he proved to be a
great popular idol and a great vote getter." [1] His image stands
alongside Washington, Jefferson and Lincoln on the Mount Rushmore
monument. Surveys of scholars have consistently ranked him from #3 to
#7 on the list of greatest American presidents. On June 26, 2006,
Roosevelt, once again, made the cover of Time Magazine with the lead
story, "The Making of Modern America - The 20th Century Express": "At
home and abroad, Theodore Roosevelt was the locomotive President, the
man who drew his flourishing nation into the future." [2]
Contents [hide]
1 Childhood and education
2 Early life
2=2E1 Early public life
2=2E2 First marriage
2=2E3 Life in Badlands and second marriage
3 Return to public life
3=2E1 Assistant Secretary of the Navy
3=2E2 War in Cuba
3=2E3 Vice presidency
4 Presidency 1901-1909
4=2E1 Anthracite coal strike of 1902
4=2E2 Square Deal
4=2E3 Regulation of industry
4=2E4 Conservationist
4=2E5 Foreign policy
4=2E5.1 Panama Canal
4=2E5.2 The Great White Fleet
4=2E6 Life in White House
4=2E7 Presidential firsts
4=2E8 Administration and Cabinet
4=2E9 Supreme Court appointments
4=2E10 States admitted to the Union
5 Post-presidency
5=2E1 African safari
5=2E2 Republican Party rift
5=2E3 Election of 1912
5=2E4 1913-1914 South American Expedition
5=2E5 Writer
6 The First World War
7 Last years
8 Personal life
9 Legacy
9=2E1 Popular culture
10 Trivia
11 Media
12 See also
13 Notes and references
13.1 Notes
13.2 Primary sources
13.3 Secondary sources
14 External links
[edit]
Childhood and education
Theodore Roosevelt in Paris in 1870, age 11 where he suffered a severe
attack of asthma, Despite this life-long affliction, Roosevelt became
known for leading what he called the "strenuous life."Roosevelt was
born at 28 East 20th Street in the modern-day Gramercy section of New
York City on October 27, 1858, the second of four children of Theodore
Roosevelt, Sr. (1831-1878) and Martha Bulloch (1834-1884). He had
an elder sister Anna, nicknamed "Bamie" as a child and "Bye," as an
adult for being always on the go; and two younger siblings-his
brother Elliott (the father of Eleanor Roosevelt), and his sister
Corinne. The Roosevelts had been in New York since the mid 17th century
and had grown with the emerging New York commerce class after the
American Revolution. Until the birth of the Republican Party, just
before the Civil War, the family was strongly Democratic in its
political outlook. By the 18th Century, the family had grown in wealth,
power and influence from the profits of several businesses including
hardware and plate-glass importing. Theodore's father, known in the
family as "Thee," was a New York City philanthropist, merchant, and
partner in the family glass-importing firm Roosevelt and Son. Martha
Bulloch was a Southern belle from a slave-owning family in Savannah,
Georgia and had Confederate sympathies. On his mother's side,
Theodore's uncle, James Dunwoody Bulloch, "Uncle Jimmy," was a 14 year
U=2ES. Navy officer turned secret Confederate naval procurement agent in
England. James' brother Irvine Bulloch was the youngest officer on the
Confederate raider, CSS Alabama and both had been exiled to Liverpool,
England after the war. During the Civil War, Martha supported her
southern relatives' struggles and quietly mailed packages south.
Sickly and asthmatic as a youngster, Roosevelt had to sleep propped up
in bed or slouching in a chair during much of his early childhood, and
had frequent ailments. Despite his illnesses, he was a hyperactive and
often mischievous young man. His lifelong interest in zoology was
formed at age seven upon seeing a dead seal at a local market. After
obtaining the seal's head, the young Roosevelt and two of his cousins
formed what they called the "Roosevelt Museum of Natural History".
Learning the rudiments of taxidermy, he filled his makeshift museum
with many animals that he caught, studied, and prepared for display. At
age nine, he codified his observation of insects with a paper titled
"The Natural History of Insects." [3]
To combat his poor physical condition, his father compelled the young
Roosevelt to take up exercise. To deal with bullies, Roosevelt started
boxing lessons. [4] Two trips abroad had a permanent impact: family
tours of Europe in 1869 and 1870, and of the Middle East 1872 to 1873.
Theodore Sr. had a tremendous influence on young Theodore and was a
life-long source of inspiration. Of him Roosevelt wrote, "My father,
Theodore Roosevelt, was the best man I ever knew. He combined strength
and courage with gentleness, tenderness, and great unselfishness. He
would not tolerate in us children selfishness or cruelty, idleness,
cowardice, or untruthfulness." [5] Roosevelt's sister later wrote, "He
told me frequently that he never took any serious step or made any
vital decision for his country without thinking first what position his
father would have taken."[6]
Young "Teedie," as he was nicknamed as a child was mostly homeschooled
by tutors and his parents. A leading biographer says: "The most obvious
drawback to the home schooling Roosevelt received was uneven coverage
of the various areas of human knowledge." He was solid in geography
(thanks to his careful observations on all his travels) and very well
read in history, strong in biology, French and German, but deficient in
mathematics, Latin and Greek. [7]. He matriculated at Harvard College
in 1876, graduating magna ***** laude. His father's death in 1878 was a
tremendous blow, but Roosevelt redoubled his activities. He did well in
science, philosophy and rhetoric courses but fared poorly in Latin and
Greek. He studied biology with great interest and indeed was already an
accomplished naturalist and published ornithologist. He had a
photographic memory and developed a life-long habit of devouring books,
memorizing every detail[8]. He was an unusually eloquent
conversationalist who, throughout his life, sought out the company of
the smartest men and women. He could multitask in extraordinary
fashion, dictating letters to one secretary and memoranda to another,
while browsing through a new book. As an adult, a visitor would get a
not so subtle hint that Roosevelt was losing interest in the
conversation when he would pick up a book and begin looking at it now
and then as the conversation continued.
While at Harvard, Roosevelt was active in numerous clubs, including
Delta Kappa Epsilon and Alpha Delta Phi fraternities. He also edited a
student magazine. He was runner-up in the Harvard boxing championship,
losing to C.S. Hanks. The sportsmanship Roosevelt showed in that fight
was long remembered. Upon graduating from Harvard, Roosevelt underwent
a physical examination and his doctor advised him that due to serious
heart problems, he should find a desk job and avoid strenuous activity.
Roosevelt disregarded the advice and chose to embrace the strenuous
life instead. [9]
He graduated Phi Beta Kappa and magna ***** laude (22nd of 177) from
Harvard in 1880 , and entered Columbia Law School. At Columbia,
Roosevelt researched and wrote his first major book, "The Naval War of
1812", in 1882, which still is considered the only comprehensive
history on the subject. [10] Presented with an opportunity to run for
New York Assemblyman in 1881, he dropped out of law school to pursue
his new goal of entering public life. [11]
[edit]
Early life
[edit]
Early public life
Roosevelt as NY State Assemblyman 1883, photoRoosevelt was a Republican
activist during his years in the Assembly, writing more bills than any
other New York state legislator. Already a major player in state
politics, he attended the Republican National Convention in 1884 and
fought alongside the Mugwump reformers; they lost to the Stalwart
faction that nominated James G. Blaine. Refusing to join other Mugwumps
in supporting Democrat Grover Cleveland, the Democratic nominee, he
stayed loyal to the party and supported Blaine.[12]
[edit]
First marriage
At the age of 22, Roosevelt married his first wife, 19-year-old Alice
Hathaway Lee, on October 27, 1880, at the Unitarian Church in
Brookline, Massachusetts. Alice was the daughter of the prominent
banker George Cabot Lee and Caroline Haskell Lee. The couple first met
in 1878. He proposed in June 1879. However, Alice waited another six
months before accepting the proposal. They announced their engagement
on Valentine's Day 1880. Alice Roosevelt died exactly four years later,
only two days after the birth of their first child, also named Alice.
In a tragic coincidence, Roosevelt's mother died of typhoid fever on
the same day at the Roosevelt family home in Manhattan.
Although he noted her loss in his diary and made several references to
her in the subsequent months, from the next year on Roosevelt refused
to speak his first wife's name again (even omitting her name from his
autobiography) and did not allow others to speak of her in his
presence. He came to despise his popular nickname "Teddy", both because
he thought it undignified and because it was the lover's name used by
his first wife.
Later that year, Roosevelt left the General Assembly and his infant
daughter Alice, whom he had left in the long-term care of his older
sister, Bamie. He moved to his ranch in the Badlands of the Dakota
Territory to live a more simple life as a rancher and lawman.
This practice put an early strain on his relationship with his daughter
who was given his late wife's name. However, as she grew into adulthood
and better understood her father's deep moral convictions, the bond
between them became strong. Alice continued to support her father's
ideas after his death in 1919.
[edit]
Life in Badlands and second marriage
Theodore Roosevelt as Badlands hunter in 1885. New York studio photo.
Note the engraved knife and rifle courtesy of Tiffany and Co.Living
near the boomtown of Medora, North Dakota, Roosevelt learned to ride
and rope, occasionally getting involved in fistfights, and spent his
time in the rough-and-tumble world of the final days of the American
Old West. On one occasion, as a deputy sheriff, he hunted down three
outlaws taking a stolen boat down the Little Missouri River,
successfully taking them back overland for trial.
While working on a tough project aimed at hunting down a group of
relentless horse thieves, Roosevelt came across the famous Deadwood
Sheriff Seth Bullock. The two would remain friends for life. (Morris,
Rise of, 241-245, 247-250)
After the 1886-1887 winter wiped out his herd of cattle and his $60,000
investment (together with those of his competitors), he returned to the
East, where in 1885, he had purchased Sagamore Hill in Oyster Bay, New
York. It would be his home and estate until his death. Roosevelt ran as
the Republican candidate for mayor of New York City in 1886, coming in
a distant third.
Following the election, he went to London in 1886 and married his
childhood sweetheart, Edith Kermit Carow. [13] They honeymooned in
Europe, and Roosevelt climbed Mont Blanc, leading only the third
expedition of record to reach the summit, a feat which resulted in his
induction into the British Royal Society. <Encyclopedia Britannica,
1910 Edition, Topic: Theodore Roosevelt> They had five children:
Theodore Jr., Kermit, Ethel Carow, Archibald Bulloch "Archie", and
Quentin. Although Roosevelt's father was also named Theodore Roosevelt,
he died while the future president was still childless and unmarried,
so the future President Roosevelt took the suffix of Sr. and
subsequently named his son Theodore Roosevelt, Jr. Because Roosevelt
was still alive when his grandson and namesake was born, his grandson
was named Theodore Roosevelt III, and the president's son retained the
Jr. after his father's death. "Uncle Ted" was the godfather and
favorite uncle of Eleanor Roosevelt, whom he gave away in marriage to
their cousin Franklin D. Roosevelt on St. Patrick's Day (March 17)
1905.
Roosevelt is the only President to have become a widower and remarry
before becoming President.
In the 1880s, he gained recognition as a serious historian. His The
Naval War of 1812 (1882) was the standard history for two generations,
but his hasty biographies of Thomas Hart Benton (1887) and Gouverneur
Morris (1888) were potboilers. His major achievement was a four-volume
history of the frontier, The Winning of the West (1889-1896), which had
a notable impact on historiography as it presented a highly original
version of the frontier thesis elaborated upon in 1893 by his friend
Frederick Jackson Turner. His many articles in upscale magazines
provided a much-needed income, as well as cementing a reputation as a
major national intellectual. He was later chosen president of the
American Historical Association.
[edit]
Return to public life
New York City Police Commissioner 1896In the 1888 presidential
election, Roosevelt campaigned for Benjamin Harrison in the Midwest.
President Harrison appointed Roosevelt to the United States Civil
Service Commission, where he served until 1895. [14] In his term, he
vigorously fought the spoilsmen and demanded the enforcement of civil
service laws. In spite of Roosevelt's support for Harrison's reelection
bid in the presidential election of 1892, the eventual winner, Grover
Cleveland (a Bourbon Democrat), reappointed him to the same post.
In 1895, he became president of the New York City Board of Police
Commissioners. During the two years that he held this post, Roosevelt
radically changed the way a police department was run. The police force
was reputed as one of the most corrupt forces in America. NYPD's
history division records that Roosevelt was, "an iron-willed leader of
unimpeachable honesty, (who) brought a reforming zeal to the New York
City Police Commission in 1895." [15] Roosevelt and his fellow
commissioners established new disciplinary rules, created a bicycle
squad to police New York's traffic problems and implemented
standardized 32 calibre pistol practice. [16] Roosevelt implemented
regular inspections of firearms, annual physical exams, appointed 1,600
new recruits appointed not on the basis of political affiliation but
solely for their physical and mental qualifications, opened admission
to the department to ethnic minorities and women, established the first
police meritorious service medals, shut down the corrupt police
hostelries, and a Municipal Lodging House was established by the Board
of Charities." Roosevelt required his officers to be registered with
the Board. He also had telephones installed in station houses. Always
an energetic man, he made a habit of walking officers' beats late at
night and early in the morning to make sure that they were on duty.
[17]
[edit]
Assistant Secretary of the Navy
Assistant Secretary of the Navy Roosevelt (front center) at the Naval
War College, c. 1897Roosevelt had always been fascinated by navies and
their history. Urged by Roosevelt's close friend, Congressman Henry
Cabot Lodge, President William McKinley appointed a delighted Roosevelt
to the post of Assistant Secretary of the Navy in 1897. (Because of the
poor health and inactivity of Secretary of the Navy John D. Long at the
time, this basically gave Roosevelt reign over the department.)
Roosevelt had grown up fascinated with stories of naval battles by his
mother and his uncles in Liverpool. Roosevelt had persistently
encouraged his uncle James Dunwoody Bulloch to tell his unique story of
Confederate operations in Britain during the Civil War and the secret
fitting-out of such ships as the CSS Alabama on which Bulloch's brother
Irvine had served as its youngest officer. His uncle in turn had helped
him develop his ideas that led to his War of 1812 naval history. In
that book, Roosevelt explained how near criminal neglect of Naval
issues and apathy toward British seapower had almost led to the
destruction of the new country. It was only the nautical skills of the
commanders and the training and ship handling skills of the crews that
had saved the Navy and the country. The overwhelming seapower of
Britain had shaped every aspect of the war and made the events on land,
to Roosevelt, seem almost secondary until the Battle of New Orleans.
The book was but the first link in the chain of Roosevelt's developing
views of the importance of a strong Navy to the security of the United
States.
Concurrently with Roosevelt's arrival in Washington, D.C., a
contemporary and friend, Alfred Thayer Mahan, who had met Roosevelt in
1887, had organized his earlier Naval War College lectures into his
seminal book, The Influence of Sea Power upon History, 1660-1783.
Roosevelt read it in a single weekend during the summer of 1890 and
immediately appreciated its importance. But the book, while
revolutionary to many Americans, simply reinforced Roosevelt's own
understanding of the role that Navies would play on the world stage.
His view was that only a dramatic expansion of the Navy into a service
with a global reach would put the United States on par with the growing
naval might of European nations and Japan. When asked to speak to the
Naval War College, the scope and force of Roosevelt arguments stunned
both the Secretary of the Navy as well as the President, as they had
not been approved by either man. But so persuasive was Roosevelt's
speech, that neither man publicly repudiated him. Within days of
becoming assistant secretary, Roosevelt was pushing for the
modernization of the Navy and the reorganization of both the Department
and its officer corps. He also fought for an increase in ship-building
capability, warning that building modern steel ships would take years
instead of the mere weeks of construction in the age of sail.
Roosevelt was instrumental in consciously preparing the Navy for what
he saw as an unavoidable conflict with Spain. Events would prove him
right. During the Spanish-American War, the U.S. Navy searched the
world for ships to support world-wide operations.
[edit]
War in Cuba
Roosevelt left his civilian Navy post to form the famous "Rough Riders"
Regiment
Colonel Roosevelt and his "Rough Riders" after capturing San Juan Hill
during the Spanish-American WarUpon the declaration of war in 1898 that
would be known as the Spanish-American War, Roosevelt resigned from the
Navy Department and, with the aid of U.S. Army Colonel Leonard Wood,
organized the First U.S. Volunteer Cavalry Regiment out of a diverse
crew that ranged from cowboys from the Western territories to Ivy
League friends from New York. The newspapers called them the "Rough
Riders." Originally Roosevelt held the rank of Lieutenant Colonel and
served under Colonel Wood, but after Wood was promoted to Brigadier
General of Volunteer Forces, Roosevelt was promoted to Colonel and
given command of the Regiment. Under his leadership, the Rough Riders
became famous for their dual charges up Kettle Hill and San Juan Hill
in July 1898 (the battle was named after the latter hill). [18]
Roosevelt was posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor in 2001 for his
actions.
Upon his return from Cuba, Roosevelt re-entered New York state politics
and was elected governor of New York in 1898. [19] He made such a
concerted effort to root out corruption and "machine politics" that
Republican boss Thomas Collier Platt forced him on McKinley as a
running mate in the 1900 election to simplify their control of the
state. [20]
Chicago newspaper sees cowboy-TR campaigning for governor[edit]
Vice presidency
Order: 25th Vice President
Term of Office: March 4, 1901 - September 14, 1901
Preceded by: Garret Hobart
Succeeded by: Charles Fairbanks
President: William McKinley
Political party: Republican
McKinley and Roosevelt won the presidential election of 1900, defeating
William Jennings Bryan and Adlai E. Stevenson I. Roosevelt found his
six months in the vice-presidency unfulfilling. One story that sums up
his feelings on the Vice-Presidency was that as President, Roosevelt
ordered a noisy chandelier removed from the White House, suggesting
that it be put in the Vice President's office, as he had nothing to do
and the chandelier would keep him awake.
Thinking that he had little future in politics, he considered returning
to law school after leaving office. [21] On September 2, 1901,
Roosevelt first uttered a sentence that would become strongly
associated with his presidency, urging Americans to "speak softly and
carry a big stick" during a speech at the Minnesota State Fair. It has
been claimed that the famous phrase was actually inspired by a
discussion Roosevelt had with French diplomat Comte =C9douard S=E9bastien
de Malo when the latter visited the US in 1900. As France was just
coming out of the traumatic Dreyfus affair, Roosevelt asked Comte de
Malo what lesson could be learned from the episode. De Malo replied:
"France may have been humbled by this event, but we still stand strong
and proud. Although we speak softly, we are still carrying a big
stick."
[edit]
Presidency 1901-1909
John Singer Sargent, Theodore Roosevelt, 1903, oil on canvas, 58=BD =D7
40=BD in., Washington, DC: White House. Click on photo for background
story.Main article: Presidency of Theodore Roosevelt
President McKinley was shot by an anarchist, Leon Czolgosz, on
September 6, 1901. When it looked as if he would recover, Roosevelt
decided to take a break and go hiking in the mountains. However, a
messenger found him in the woods and told him that the President had
taken a turn for the worse and that he should return immediately.
McKinley died on September 14, vaulting Roosevelt into the presidency.
Roosevelt took the oath of office on September 14 in the Ansley Wilcox
House at Buffalo, New York. He was the youngest person to assume the
presidency, and he promised to continue McKinley's cabinet and his
basic policies. Roosevelt did so, but after reelection in 1904, he
moved to the political left, stretching his ties to the Republican
Party's conservative leaders.
[edit]
Anthracite coal strike of 1902
Main article: Coal Strike of 1902
A national emergency was averted in 1902 when Roosevelt found a
compromise to the anthracite coal strike by the United Mine Workers of
America that threatened the heating supplies of most homes. Roosevelt
called the mine owners and the labor leaders to the White House and
found the position of the owners so repugnant, that he found in favor
of the workers. His description, as described to his secretary, were
that "The owners used language that was demeaning to the mine workers
and offensive to me," It was the first time an American president had
come down so solidly on behalf of union labor. Workers in eastern
Pennsylvania were on strike for 163 days before it ended, and they were
granted a 10% pay increase and a 9-hour day (from the previous 10
hours).
[edit]
Square Deal
Roosevelt promised to continue McKinley's program, and at first he
worked closely with McKinley's men, eventually winning them to his team
or breaking with them. His 20,000-word address to the Congress in
December 1901, asked Congress to curb the power of trusts "within
reasonable limits." They did not act but Roosevelt did, issuing 44
lawsuits against major corporations; he was called the "trust-buster."
Mark Hanna was the rival power in the Republican party. Hanna died, and
Roosevelt had an easy renomination and reelection in 1904. He won 336
of 476 electoral votes, and 56.4% of the total popular vote. He
therefore became the first President who came into office due to the
death of his predecessor to be elected in his own right.
Democrats attack Roosevelt as militarist and ineffective in this 1904
election cartoonBuilding on McKinley's effective use of the press,
Roosevelt made the White House the center of news every day, providing
interviews and photo opportunities. His children were almost as popular
as he was, and their pranks in the White House made headlines. His
daughter, Alice Lee Roosevelt, became quite popular in Washington.
[edit]
Regulation of industry
Roosevelt firmly believed, "The Government must in increasing degree
supervise and regulate the workings of the railways engaged in
interstate commerce." Inaction was a danger, he argued, "Such increased
supervision is the only alternative to an increase of the present evils
on the one hand or a still more radical policy on the other." (Annual
Message Dec 1904) His biggest success was passage of the Hepburn Act of
1906, giving the Interstate Commerce Commission (ICC) the power to set
maximum railroad rates; it also stopped free passes given to friends of
the railroad. Everyone at the time assumed railroads would always be a
vast and powerful force; no one dreamed they would be challenged by
trucks and automobiles and struggle to survive under the provisions of
the Hepburn Act designed to help merchants and consumers.
In response to public clamor, Roosevelt pushed Congress to pass the
Pure Food and Drug Act of 1906, as well as the Meat Inspection Act of
1906. These laws provided for labeling of foods and drugs, inspection
of livestock and mandated sanitary conditions at meatpacking plants.
Congress replaced Roosevelt's proposals with a version supported by the
major meatpackers who worried about the overseas markets, and did not
want small unsanitary plants undercutting their domestic market. [Blum
1980 pp 43-44]
[edit]
Conservationist
Roosevelt worked closely with early conservationists such as Gifford
Pinchot, pictured above, with whom he organized the first National
Governors Conservation Conference at the White House in 1908Roosevelt
was the first American president to consider the long-term effects of
human forces to be a growing negative influence on the planet. This
growing belief of Roosevelt's was not without foundation; Roosevelt had
personally witnessed and commented on the extinction of the passenger
pigeons that once blotted out the sun when migrating in flocks of tens
of millions. He had once described his brother Elliott nearly being
trampled by a mile-wide bison herd in Texas. Now the "lordly buffalo,"
as he called them had plummeted to near extinction in only 20 years -
to no herd larger than 100 and a total U.S. count of less than a
thousand. Roosevelt had also seen the effects of uncontrolled and
unregulated industrial growth on the environment. Assuming the
conservationist role was a natural step for him, and he decided that it
was overdue to put the issue high on the national agenda. He worked
with all the major figures of the movement, especially his chief
advisor on the matter Gifford Pinchot. Roosevelt urged congress to
establish the U. S. Forest Service (1905), to manage government forest
lands, and he appointed Gifford Pinchot to head the service. Roosevelt
set aside more land for national parks and nature preserves than all of
his predecessors combined, 194 million acres. The Theodore Roosevelt
National Park in the Badlands commemorates his conservationist
philosophy. In 1903, Roosevelt toured the Yosemite Valley with John
Muir, founder of the Sierra Club. In 1907, when Congress attempted to
stop the ability of the President to set aside lands for national
forests in the Pacific Northwest, Roosevelt asked about remaining
forest land, and designated 16 million acres (65,000 km=B2) of new
national forests before signing the legislation, thereby defeating the
main purpose of the bill. In May 1908, he sponsored the Conference of
Governors held in the White House, with a focus on the most efficient
use of natural resources. In an age when the natural resources of the
United States seemed almost unlimited, Roosevelt took much different
approach, writing to the governors of all the states and territories as
well as the 500 most influential men in the country and telling them,
"It seems time for the country to take account of its natural resources
and to inquire how long they are likely to last." At the Governors
Conference, Roosevelt delivered the opening address, "Conservation as a
National Duty." On the subject of conservation, Roosevelt said, "There
is an intimate relation between our streams and the development and
conservation of all the other great permanent sources of wealth. During
his presidency, Roosevelt wrote several times about the growing
conservation movement in essays for Outdoor Life magazine. Roosevelt,
like Pinchot (but unlike Muir), believed in efficient use of natural
resources by man-and by corporations like lumber companies. To
Roosevelt, conservation meant more and better usage and less waste, and
a long-term perspective. He joined sportsmen, hunters and fishermen in
this endeavor.
[edit]
Foreign policy
Roosevelt's administration was marked by an active approach to foreign
policy. Roosevelt saw it as the duty of more developed ("civilized")
nations to help the underdeveloped ("uncivilized") world move forward.
In Cuba, the Philippines, Puerto Rico, and the Panama Canal Zone, he
used the Army's medical service, under Walter Reed and William C.
Gorgas, to eliminate the yellow fever menace and install a new regime
of public health. He used the army to build up the infrastructure of
the new possessions, building railways, telegraph and telephone lines,
and upgrading roads and port facilities.
Roosevelt builds the canal-and shovels dirt on ColombiaRoosevelt
dramatically increased the size of the navy, forming the Great White
Fleet, which toured the world in 1907. Roosevelt also added the
Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine, which stated that the
United States could intervene in Caribbean affairs when corruption of
governments made it necessary.
Roosevelt gained international praise for helping negotiate the end of
the Russo-Japanese War, for which he was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
Roosevelt later arbitrated a dispute between France and Germany over
the division of Morocco. Some historians have argued these latter two
actions helped in a small way to avert a world war. [22]
[edit]
Panama Canal
Roosevelt's most famous foreign policy initiative, following the
Hay-Pauncefote Treaty, was the construction of the Panama Canal, which
upon its completion shortened the route of freighters between San
Francisco, California and New York City by 8,000 miles (13,000 km).
Colombia first proposed the canal in their country as opposed to rival
Nicaragua, and Colombia signed a treaty for an agreed-upon sum. At that
time, Panama was a province of Colombia. According to the treaty, in
1902, the U.S. was to buy out the equipment and excavations from
France, which had been attempting to build a canal since 1881. While
the Colombian negotiating team had signed the treaty, ratification by
the Colombian Senate became problematic.
The Colombian Senate balked at the price and asked for 10 million
dollars over the original agreed upon price. When the U.S. refused to
re-negotiate the price, the Colombian politicians proposed cutting the
original French company that started the project out of the deal and
giving that difference to Colombia. The original deal stipulated that
the French company was to be reasonably compensated. Realizing that the
Colombian Senate was no longer bargaining in good faith, Roosevelt
tired of these last-minute attempts by the Colombians to cheat the
French out of their entire investment.
Roosevelt ultimately decided, with the encouragement of Panamanian
business interests, to help Panama declare independence from Colombia
in 1903. A brief revolution, of only a few hours, followed the
declaration, and Colombian soldiers were bribed $50 each to lay down
their arms. On November 3, 1903, the Republic of Panama was created,
with its constitution written in advance by the United States. Shortly
thereafter, a treaty was signed with Panama. The U.S. paid $10 million
to secure rights to build on and control the Canal Zone. Construction
began in 1904 and was completed in 1914.
[edit]
The Great White Fleet
"The Great White Fleet Sails" by special permission of artist Mort
KunstlerMain article: Great White Fleet
Roosevelt, (on the 12" gun turret at right), addresses the crew of USS
Connecticut (BB18), in Hampton Roads, Virginia, upon her return from
the Fleet's cruiseAs Roosevelt's administration drew to a close, the
president dispatched a fleet consisting of four US Navy battleship
squadrons and their escorts, on a world-wide voyage of circumnavigation
from December 16, 1907, to February 22, 1909. With their hulls painted
white except for the beautiful gilded scrollwork with a red, white, and
blue banner on their bows, these ships would come to be known as The
Great White Fleet. Roosevelt wanted to demonstrate to his country and
the world that the US Navy was capable of operating in a global
theater, particularly in the Pacific. This was extraordinarily
important at a time when tensions were slowly growing between the
United States and Japan. The latter had recently shown its navy's
competence in defeating the Russians in the Russo-Japanese War and the
US Navy fleet to the west was relatively small. The Atlantic Fleet
battleships only later came to be known as the "Great White Fleet."
When the fleet sailed into Yokahama, Japan, the Japanese went to
extraordinary lengths to show that their country desired peace with the
US. Thousands of Japanese school children waving American flags greeted
the Navy brass as they came ashore. In February 1909, Roosevelt was in
Hampton Roads, Virginia to witness the triumphant return of the fleet
and indicating that he saw the fleet's long voyage as a fitting finish
for his administration. To the officers and men of the Fleet Roosevelt
said, "Other nations may do what you have done, but they'll have to
follow you." This parting act of grand strategy by Roosevelt greatly
expanded the respect for as well as the role of the United States in
the international arena.
[edit]
Life in White House
Roosevelt relished the presidency and seemed to be everywhere at once.
He took Cabinet members and friends on long, fast-paced hikes, boxed in
the state rooms of the White House, romped with his children, and read
voraciously. [23] In 1908, he was permanently blinded in his left eye
during one of his boxing bouts, but this injury was kept from the
public at the time. [24] His many enthusiastic interests and limitless
energy led one ambassador to wryly explain, "You must always remember
that the President is about six." [25]
Roosevelt shoots holes in the dictionary as the ghosts of Chaucer,
Shakespeare and Dr Johnson moanDuring his presidency, Roosevelt tried
but failed to advance the cause of simplified spelling. He tried to
force government to adopt the system, sending an order to the Public
Printer to use the system in all public documents. The order was
obeyed, and among the documents thus printed was the President's
special "
End of partial quote.
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