Chapter #28: Progressivism and the Republican Roosevelt – Big Picture Themes
1. The Progressives grew out of the Populist (or People’s) Party and sought to correct injustices.
2. Progressives and “muckraker” writers attacked city corruption, corporate greed, poor living and working conditions, alcohol, and women’s right to vote. Each of these ills saw laws and/or Amendments passed to attempt to better the condition.
3. Teddy Roosevelt made a name for himself as a “trust-buster”. That is, he broke up a few high-profile companies that he said were monopolies (or trusts). Busting trusts and thus creating competition was to benefit the average person.
4. He also obtained huge tracts of land, usually out West, for parks and conservation.
5. Roosevelt picked Taft to follow him, but Taft began to stray from Roosevelt’s ways and the two split.
Chapter# 28: Identifications
Jacob Riis
He was famous for using photography to capture the horribly poor conditions of many poverty stricken communities in the early 1900s. He also wrote "How the Other Half Lives".
Ida Tarbell
She was a magazine editor who exposed the corruption of the oil industry with her work “A History of Standard Oil” in 1904.
Robert M. La Follette
He was a progressive who reformed the voting system so people could vote for candidates themselves. He made sure people were given jobs based on a merit system.
Charles Evans Hughes
He was a reformist and Republican governor of New York. Earlier, he had gained national fame by investigating the corruption and malpractice of gas and insurance companies and the coal trust.
Upton Sinclair
He got people interested in the process of canned food products by writing the novel “The Jungle” in 1906. He intended to focus on workers’ conditions, but readers were more concerned with food sanitation. This led Roosevelt to appoint a special investigating commission, which also led to the Meat Inspection Act.
Initiative
It allowed any citizen to introduce a bill into the legislative and required members to take a vote on it.
Referendum
It was the name given to the political process where the public votes on an issue of public concern.
Recall
It was the act of removing an official by petition especially those who had been bribed by corporations or businessmen.
Muckrakers
They were reporters who wrote or documented in some way to expose “evil”. It refers to newspaper reporters and other writers who pointed out the social problems of the era of big business. Theodore Roosevelt made up the name. They used their public influence to reveal corporate corruption.
Elkins Act
It strengthened the Interstate Commerce Act of 1887 by putting heavy fines on railroads that offered rebates and on shippers that accepted them.
Hepburn Act
In 1906, it restricted free passes, expanded the Interstate Commerce Commission and it extended to include express companies, sleeping-car companies, and pipelines. It was able to nullify existing rates and lower maximum rates.
Northern Securities Case
In 1902 Roosevelt attacked the Northern Securities Company, which tried to achieve a virtual monopoly of the railroads in the Northwest. The court had Roosevelt's antitrust suit and ordered the company to be dissolved, which it did. The decision jolted Wall Street and angered big business but greatly enhanced Roosevelt's reputation as a trust smasher.
Meat Inspection Act
It was passed by Roosevelt in 1906 as a response to the book “The Jungle”. It stated that the preparation of meat shipped over state lines would be subject to federal inspection.
Pure Food and Drug Act
Passed in 1906, it went along with the Meat Inspection Act. It was designed to prevent the mislabeling of foods and medicine.
Newlands Act
In 1902, Washington was authorized to collect money from the sale of public lands in the western states and then use these funds for the development of irrigation. Settlers repaid the cost of reclamation from their productive soil, and the money was put into a fund to finance more of these projects. It also lead to widespread dam construction.
Dollar diplomacy
It was President Taft's policy of using economic interests as a way to bind other nations to the US.
Payne-Aldrich Act
It was a tariff passed by the Taft Administration in 1909. It’s purpose was to lower tariffs but it was a goal that miserably failed. It outraged the progressive wing of his Republican party.
Ballinger-Pinchot Affair
It happened in 1910 when Ballinger opened public lands to corporate development. He was then criticized by Pinchot. Taft fired Pinchot on the grounds of insubordination, and conservationists and Rooseveltians protested. The whole affair further widened the growing rift between Taft and TR.
Chapter #28: Guided Reading Questions
Progressive Roots
Know: Progressives, Laissez-faire, Henry Demarest Lloyd, Jacob Riis, Theodore Dreiser, Jane Addams, Lillian Weld
1. What were the goals of the Progressives?
One was: before the first decade of the 20th century, the U.S. would be influenced by a "Progressive movement” that went against monopolies, corruption, inefficiency, and social injustice. The purpose of the Progressives was to use the government as an agency of human welfare.
Raking Muck with the Muckrakers
Know: McClure's, Lincoln Steffens, Ida M. Tarbell, Thomas W. Lawson, David G. Phillips, Ray Stannard Baker, John Spargo
2. What issues were addressed by the major muckrakers?
Lincoln Steffens revealed the corrupt alliance between big business and the government. Ida Tarbell revealed the corruption of the Standard Oil Company. Thomas Lawson exposed the corrupt gathering of American fortunes. David Phillips revealed that 75/90 U.S. Senators did not represent the people, but really the railroads and trusts. Ray Stannard Baker said that 90% of America's 9 million blacks still lived in the South, and that a third of them were illiterate. John Spargo exposed the abuses of child labor to light.
Political Progressivism
Know: Direct Primary Elections, Initiative, Referendum, Recall, Australian Ballot, Millionaires' Club, Seventeenth Amendment, Suffragists
3. Define each of the major political reforms that progressives desired.
They favored the initiative so voters could directly propose legislation, the referendum so the people could vote on laws that affected them, and the recall to remove bad officials from office. They also wanted to get rid of graft and have direct election of U.S. senators to stop corruption.
Progressivism in the Cities and States
Know: Robert M. La Follette, The Wisconsin Idea, Hiram W. Johnson, Charles Evans Hughes
4. What changes did progressives make at the city and state level?
They used expert-staffed commissions to manage urban affairs or the city-manager system. Urban reformers attacked slumlords, juvenile delinquency, and open prostitution. In Wisconsin, Governor Robert La Follette got control from the crooked corporations and returned power to the people. Under the leadership of Governor Hiram W. Johnson, other states also took to regulate railroads and trusts, such as Oregon and California. Charles Evans Hughes, governor of New York, gained fame by investigating the malpractices of gas and insurance companies.
Progressive Women
Know: Triangle Shirtwaist Company, Muller v. Oregon, Lochner v. New York, Woman's Christian Temperance Union, Frances E. Willard, "Wet" and "Dry"
5. How successful were Progressives in combating social ills?
Pretty successful. They made major improvements against child labor. The landmark case of Muller vs. Oregon showed attorney Louis D. Brandeis persuading the Supreme Court to accept the constitutionality of laws that protected women workers. Anti-liquor organizations like the Woman's Christian Temperance Union, founded by Frances E. Willard, and the Anti-Saloon League were formed. In 1919, the 18th Amendment prohibited the sale and drinking of alcohol.
TR's Square Deal for Labor
Know: Square Deal, Department of Commerce and Labor
6. What were the three C's of the Square Deal?
They were control of the corporations, consumer protection, and the conservation of the United States' natural resources.
TR Corrals the Corporations
Know: Elkins Act, Hepburn Act, Trustbusting, Northern Securities Company
7. Assess the following statement, "Teddy Roosevelt's reputation as a trustbuster is
undeserved."
He got rid of bad, monopoly trusts, but he did not want to punish the good trusts for their economic success. He wanted to prove that the government, not private business, ruled the country. He did not come down on trusts as hard as he could have.
Caring for the Consumer
Know: The Jungle, Meat Inspection Act
8. What was the effect of Upton Sinclair's book, The Jungle?
It revealed to the public the unsanitary food products in the big canning factories.
Earth Control
Know: Forest Reserve Act, Gifford Pinchot, Newlands Act, Conservation, Call of the Wild, Boy Scouts, Sierra Club
9. What factors led Americans to take an active interest in conservation?
Roosevelt was convinced by the actions of conservationists like Pinchot, head of the federal Division of Forestry, and he convinced Congress to pass the Newlands Act. He worked to preserve the nation's shrinking forests by setting aside 125 million acres in federal reserves, saving millions of acres of coal deposits, and he earmarked water resources for irrigation and power.
The "Roosevelt Panic" of 1907
10. What were the results of the Roosevelt Panic of 1907?
The panic made way for long overdue fiscal reforms. Congress passed the Aldrich-Vreeland Act in 1908 in response to the banks being unable to increase the volume of money in circulation.
The Rough Rider Thunders Out
Know: William Howard Taft, Eugene V. Debs
11. What was the legacy of Teddy Roosevelt's presidency?
He was known as the president to tame capitalism, giving it a long adult life with enthusiasm and perpetual youthfulness that sought the middle road between unbridled individualism and paternalistic collectivism, and, most of all, the president that started a conservation crusade.
Taft: A Round Peg in a Square Hole
12."William Howard Taft was less suited for the presidency than he appeared to be." Explain
He had none of the aspects of a dashing political leader, was passive to Congress, did not take criticism well, and he was more interested in keeping the norm than to cause changes.
The Dollar Goes Abroad as a Diplomat
Know: Dollar Diplomacy
13. What was dollar diplomacy and how was it practiced?
A policy that made Wall Street bankers to put their surplus dollars into foreign areas of concern to the U.S., especially in the Far East and in the regions critical to the security of the Panama Canal. Taft had Secretary of State Philander C. Knox propose that a group of American and foreign bankers buy the railroads and turn them over to China. Taft also pumped U.S. dollars into Honduras and Haiti, while in Cuba, Honduras, and the Dominican Republic, American forces were brought in to restore order and protect American investment. It made other nations dependent on American money.
Taft the Trustbuster
Know: Rule of Reason
14. Who deserves the nickname "Trustbuster," Roosevelt or Taft?
Taft, he brought 90 suits against trusts in 4 years. Roosevelt brought 44 suits against trusts in 7 years. In 1911, the Supreme Court ordered the dissolution of the Standard Oil Company. After Taft tried to break apart U.S. Steel despite Roosevelt being personally involved in one of the mergers that prompted the suit, Taft increasingly became Roosevelt's antagonist.
Taft Splits the Republican Party
Know: Payne-Aldrich Tariff, Richard Ballinger, Gifford Pinchot, Joe Cannon
15. Why did the Progressive wing of the Republican Party turn against Taft?
Taft signed the Payne-Aldrich Bill and betrayed his campaign promises which outraged the progressive wing of his party. Taft worsened it by proclaiming it "the best bill that the Republican party ever passed."
The Taft-Roosevelt Rupture
16. How did the Republican Party split at the party's 1912 convention?
In 1911, the National Progressive Republican League was formed, with La Follette as its leader, but in February 1912, Roosevelt began writing to state governors that he was willing to accept the Republic nomination. Roosevelt then seized the Progressive banner pushing La Follette away.
Chapter #29: Wilsonian Progressivism Abroad – Big Picture Themes
1. Wilson won the presidency mainly because Teddy Roosevelt ran as a third-party candidate and split the Republican vote with Taft.
2. Wilson was an idealist and progressive who sought to clean up problems. He attacked the tariff as too high, banks as corrupt by the rich, and trusts as milking the people.
3. Wilson hated war and wanted American foreign policy to be fair and just to all. Conditions in Latin America, however, forced this peaceful president to take military action. Notably, he ordered the US Army to chase Pancho Villa in Mexico.
4. In Europe, war had begun. In the Atlantic ocean, German subs began to sink sinks carrying Americans, notably the Lusitania. Wilson tried to keep America out of the war, and did, for the time being.
Chapter #29: Identifications
Eugene Debs
He was a labor leader arrested during the Pullman Strike in 1894 and a convert to socialism. He ran for president 5 times from 1900 - 1920. In 1920, he campaigned from prison where he was being held for opposition to American involvement in World War I.
Pancho Villa
A Mexican revolutionary who killed many Americans in Mexico, he was never captured even though the US sent John J Pershing.
John J. Pershing
Wilson ordered him and a force of about 15,000 soldiers into Mexico to capture Francisco "Pancho" Villa dead or alive but they didn’t get Pancho.
Central Powers
It was the World War I alliance between Germany, Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire
Allies
The WWI alliance that included Britain, France, Russia, and later the United States and Italy. They opposed the Central Powers.
Lusitania
It was a British liner that was sunk in 1915 by German U-Boats. This caused Wilson to issue a stern warning to the Germans, telling them not to attack unarmed vessels "without warning".
Sussex Pledge
Germany said they would temporarily stop attacks on unarmed ships unannounced but might have to resume in the future if the British continued to blockade German ports. This was after the passenger ship the Sussex was sunken by a torpedo.
Federal Reserve Act
An act that created a central banking system that consisted of 12 regional banks governed by the Federal Reserve Board. It was an attempt to provide the United States with a sound yet flexible currency.
New Nationalism
It was favored by Roosevelt's progressive political policy; it stated heavy government intervention in order to assure social justice was necessary.
New Freedom
It was Woodrow Wilson's domestic policy that promoted antitrust modification, tariff revision, and reform in banking and currency matters.
Underwood Tariff
It was pushed through Congress by Woodrow Wilson and this 1913 tariff reduced average tariff duties by almost 15% and established a graduated income tax.
Federal Trade Commission
It was passed in 1914 and it was established to preserve competition by preventing unfair business practices and investigate complaints against companies.
Clayton Antitrust Act
It lengthened the Sherman Anti-Trust Act's list of practices. It said labor unions were not trusts and legalized strikes and peaceful picketing by labor union members.
Chapter #29 Identifications
The "Bull Moose" Campaign of 1912
Know: Bull Moose, New Nationalism, New Freedom
1. Explain the difference between Roosevelt's form of progressivism and Wilson's.
Roosevelt campaigned for female suffrage and a range social welfare problems, such as minimum-wage laws and "socialistic" social insurance. Wilson's New Freedom favored small enterprise and desired to break up all trusts.
Woodrow Wilson: A Minority President
2. "The [1912] election results are fascinating." Explain.
The Republicans split so Woodrow Wilson easily won with 435 Electoral votes, while Roosevelt had 88 and Taft only had 8, but the Democrats did not receive the majority of the popular vote. Socialist Eugene V. Debs got over 900,000 popular votes, while the combined popular totals of Roosevelt and Taft exceeded Wilson.
Wilson: The Idealist in Politics
3. How did Wilson's personality and past affect the way he conducted himself as president?
Wilson was a sympathizer with the South, a fine orator, a sincere and morally appealing politician, a very intelligent man, but he was cold personality-wise, austere, intolerant of stupidity, and very idealistic. When he thought he was right, Wilson would break before he would bend, unlike Roosevelt.
Wilson Tackles the Tariff
Know: Underwood Tariff
4. What were the three parts of the "triple wall of privilege?"
The tariffs, banks, and trusts.
Wilson Battles the Bankers
Know: The Federal Reserve Act
5. How was the Federal Reserve System different than the banking system that existed in the U.S. in 1913?
It had a nationwide system of 12 regional reserve districts, each with its own central bank, and had the power to issue paper money. A board controlled it.
The President Tames the Trusts
Know: Federal Trade Commission Act, Clayton Anti-Trust Act
6. How did Wilson curb the trusts?
In 1914, Congress passed the Federal Trade Commission Act, which created a president appointed position to investigate the activities of trusts and stop unfair trade practices like as unlawful competition, false advertising, mislabeling, adulteration, and bribery. The 1914 Clayton Anti-Trust Act lengthened the Sherman Anti-Trust Act's list of practices that were objectionable, exempted labor unions from being called trusts, and legalized strikes and peaceful picketing by labor union members.
Wilsonian Progressivism at High Tide
Know: The Federal Farm Loan Act, Warehouse Act, La Follette Seamen's Act, Workingmen's Compensation Act, Adamson Act, Louis D. Brandeis
7. Describe some of the positive and negative outcomes of Wilson’s progressive legislation and actions.
The Federal Farm Loan Act of 1916, which made credit available to farmers at low rates of interest, and the Warehouse Act of 1916, which allowed loans on the security of staple crops. The La Follette Seamen's Act of 1915 required good treatment of America's sailors, but it sent merchant freight rates soaring as a result of the cost to maintain sailor health. The Workingmen's Compensation Act of 1916 granted assistance of federal civil-service employees during periods of instability but was invalidated by the Supreme Court. The 1916 Adamson Act established an eight-hour workday with overtime pay. Wilson appeased the business by appointing a few conservatives to the Federal Reserve Board and the Federal Trade Commission, but he used most of his energies for progressive support.
New Directions in Foreign Policy
Know: Haiti
8. Contrast Wilson's ideas of foreign policy with those of Roosevelt and Taft.
Wilson, unlike Taft and TR, didn't pursue an aggressive foreign policy. He stopped "dollar diplomacy", persuaded Congress to repeal the Panama Canal Tolls Act of 1912, and even led to American bankers' pulling out of a six-nation.
Moralistic Diplomacy in Mexico
Know: Victoriano Huerta, Venustiano Carranza, Francisco ("Pancho") Villa, ABC Powers, John J. ("Black Jack") Pershing
9. Why did Mexico give such trouble to the Wilson administration?
Mexico had been exploited by U.S. investors for decades in oil, railroads, and mines, but the Mexican people were still super poor, so in 1913, they revolted. They made full-blooded Indian General Victoriano Huerta the president. The rebels were very violent and threatened Americans living in Mexico, but Woodrow Wilson would not intervene to protect American lives. But after a small party of American sailors were arrested in Tampico, Mexico, in 1914, Wilson threatened to use force, and even ordered the navy to take over Vera Cruz, drawing protest from Huerta and Carranza
Thunder Across the Sea
Know: Central Powers, Allied Powers
10. What caused Europe to plunge into WWI in 1914?
In 1914, a Serbian nationalist killed Archduke Franz Ferdinand. The domino-effect happened and Austria declared war on Serbia, which was supported by Russia, who declared war on Austria-Hungary and Germany, which declared war on Russia and France, then invaded neutral Belgium, and pulled Britain into the war and igniting World War I.
A Precarious Neutrality
Know: Kaiser Wilhelm II
11. What caused an officially neutral America to turn against the Central Powers?
German and Austro-Hungarian agents in America destroyed the Central Powers' image when they resorted to violence in American factories and ports, and when one agent left his briefcase in a New York elevator, the contents of which were found to contain plans for sabotage.
America Earns Blood Money
Know: Submarine, Lusitania, Arabic, Sussex
12. How did Germany's use of submarines lead to tense relations with the U.S.?
Germany announced its use of submarine warfare around the British Isles, warning the U.S. that it would try not to attack neutral ships, but that mistakes would probably occur. German subs, or U-boats, sank many ships, including the Lusitania, a British passenger liner that was carrying arms and munitions as well. The attack killed 1,198 lives, including 128 Americans.
Wilson Wins Reelection in 1916
Know: Charles Evans Hughes, "He Kept Us Out of War"
13. What were the keys to Wilson's electoral victory in 1916?
The democrats went with the slogan "He kept us out of war" for Wilson and warned that electing Hughes would be leading America into World War I. Even though Wilson didn't specifically promise to keep America out of war, enough people felt that he did to vote for him.
Varying Viewpoints: Who Were the Progressives?
Know: Richard Hofstadter, New Left Historians
14. Which answer to the question above seems correct to you? Why?
I think the "New Left" historians are right. The Progressives wanted reform. They would not fight for reform if the corruption did not directly affect them in any way. The Progressives were the people who were affected by the corruption of trusts and wanted to do something about it.
1. The Progressives grew out of the Populist (or People’s) Party and sought to correct injustices.
2. Progressives and “muckraker” writers attacked city corruption, corporate greed, poor living and working conditions, alcohol, and women’s right to vote. Each of these ills saw laws and/or Amendments passed to attempt to better the condition.
3. Teddy Roosevelt made a name for himself as a “trust-buster”. That is, he broke up a few high-profile companies that he said were monopolies (or trusts). Busting trusts and thus creating competition was to benefit the average person.
4. He also obtained huge tracts of land, usually out West, for parks and conservation.
5. Roosevelt picked Taft to follow him, but Taft began to stray from Roosevelt’s ways and the two split.
Chapter# 28: Identifications
Jacob Riis
He was famous for using photography to capture the horribly poor conditions of many poverty stricken communities in the early 1900s. He also wrote "How the Other Half Lives".
Ida Tarbell
She was a magazine editor who exposed the corruption of the oil industry with her work “A History of Standard Oil” in 1904.
Robert M. La Follette
He was a progressive who reformed the voting system so people could vote for candidates themselves. He made sure people were given jobs based on a merit system.
Charles Evans Hughes
He was a reformist and Republican governor of New York. Earlier, he had gained national fame by investigating the corruption and malpractice of gas and insurance companies and the coal trust.
Upton Sinclair
He got people interested in the process of canned food products by writing the novel “The Jungle” in 1906. He intended to focus on workers’ conditions, but readers were more concerned with food sanitation. This led Roosevelt to appoint a special investigating commission, which also led to the Meat Inspection Act.
Initiative
It allowed any citizen to introduce a bill into the legislative and required members to take a vote on it.
Referendum
It was the name given to the political process where the public votes on an issue of public concern.
Recall
It was the act of removing an official by petition especially those who had been bribed by corporations or businessmen.
Muckrakers
They were reporters who wrote or documented in some way to expose “evil”. It refers to newspaper reporters and other writers who pointed out the social problems of the era of big business. Theodore Roosevelt made up the name. They used their public influence to reveal corporate corruption.
Elkins Act
It strengthened the Interstate Commerce Act of 1887 by putting heavy fines on railroads that offered rebates and on shippers that accepted them.
Hepburn Act
In 1906, it restricted free passes, expanded the Interstate Commerce Commission and it extended to include express companies, sleeping-car companies, and pipelines. It was able to nullify existing rates and lower maximum rates.
Northern Securities Case
In 1902 Roosevelt attacked the Northern Securities Company, which tried to achieve a virtual monopoly of the railroads in the Northwest. The court had Roosevelt's antitrust suit and ordered the company to be dissolved, which it did. The decision jolted Wall Street and angered big business but greatly enhanced Roosevelt's reputation as a trust smasher.
Meat Inspection Act
It was passed by Roosevelt in 1906 as a response to the book “The Jungle”. It stated that the preparation of meat shipped over state lines would be subject to federal inspection.
Pure Food and Drug Act
Passed in 1906, it went along with the Meat Inspection Act. It was designed to prevent the mislabeling of foods and medicine.
Newlands Act
In 1902, Washington was authorized to collect money from the sale of public lands in the western states and then use these funds for the development of irrigation. Settlers repaid the cost of reclamation from their productive soil, and the money was put into a fund to finance more of these projects. It also lead to widespread dam construction.
Dollar diplomacy
It was President Taft's policy of using economic interests as a way to bind other nations to the US.
Payne-Aldrich Act
It was a tariff passed by the Taft Administration in 1909. It’s purpose was to lower tariffs but it was a goal that miserably failed. It outraged the progressive wing of his Republican party.
Ballinger-Pinchot Affair
It happened in 1910 when Ballinger opened public lands to corporate development. He was then criticized by Pinchot. Taft fired Pinchot on the grounds of insubordination, and conservationists and Rooseveltians protested. The whole affair further widened the growing rift between Taft and TR.
Chapter #28: Guided Reading Questions
Progressive Roots
Know: Progressives, Laissez-faire, Henry Demarest Lloyd, Jacob Riis, Theodore Dreiser, Jane Addams, Lillian Weld
1. What were the goals of the Progressives?
One was: before the first decade of the 20th century, the U.S. would be influenced by a "Progressive movement” that went against monopolies, corruption, inefficiency, and social injustice. The purpose of the Progressives was to use the government as an agency of human welfare.
Raking Muck with the Muckrakers
Know: McClure's, Lincoln Steffens, Ida M. Tarbell, Thomas W. Lawson, David G. Phillips, Ray Stannard Baker, John Spargo
2. What issues were addressed by the major muckrakers?
Lincoln Steffens revealed the corrupt alliance between big business and the government. Ida Tarbell revealed the corruption of the Standard Oil Company. Thomas Lawson exposed the corrupt gathering of American fortunes. David Phillips revealed that 75/90 U.S. Senators did not represent the people, but really the railroads and trusts. Ray Stannard Baker said that 90% of America's 9 million blacks still lived in the South, and that a third of them were illiterate. John Spargo exposed the abuses of child labor to light.
Political Progressivism
Know: Direct Primary Elections, Initiative, Referendum, Recall, Australian Ballot, Millionaires' Club, Seventeenth Amendment, Suffragists
3. Define each of the major political reforms that progressives desired.
They favored the initiative so voters could directly propose legislation, the referendum so the people could vote on laws that affected them, and the recall to remove bad officials from office. They also wanted to get rid of graft and have direct election of U.S. senators to stop corruption.
Progressivism in the Cities and States
Know: Robert M. La Follette, The Wisconsin Idea, Hiram W. Johnson, Charles Evans Hughes
4. What changes did progressives make at the city and state level?
They used expert-staffed commissions to manage urban affairs or the city-manager system. Urban reformers attacked slumlords, juvenile delinquency, and open prostitution. In Wisconsin, Governor Robert La Follette got control from the crooked corporations and returned power to the people. Under the leadership of Governor Hiram W. Johnson, other states also took to regulate railroads and trusts, such as Oregon and California. Charles Evans Hughes, governor of New York, gained fame by investigating the malpractices of gas and insurance companies.
Progressive Women
Know: Triangle Shirtwaist Company, Muller v. Oregon, Lochner v. New York, Woman's Christian Temperance Union, Frances E. Willard, "Wet" and "Dry"
5. How successful were Progressives in combating social ills?
Pretty successful. They made major improvements against child labor. The landmark case of Muller vs. Oregon showed attorney Louis D. Brandeis persuading the Supreme Court to accept the constitutionality of laws that protected women workers. Anti-liquor organizations like the Woman's Christian Temperance Union, founded by Frances E. Willard, and the Anti-Saloon League were formed. In 1919, the 18th Amendment prohibited the sale and drinking of alcohol.
TR's Square Deal for Labor
Know: Square Deal, Department of Commerce and Labor
6. What were the three C's of the Square Deal?
They were control of the corporations, consumer protection, and the conservation of the United States' natural resources.
TR Corrals the Corporations
Know: Elkins Act, Hepburn Act, Trustbusting, Northern Securities Company
7. Assess the following statement, "Teddy Roosevelt's reputation as a trustbuster is
undeserved."
He got rid of bad, monopoly trusts, but he did not want to punish the good trusts for their economic success. He wanted to prove that the government, not private business, ruled the country. He did not come down on trusts as hard as he could have.
Caring for the Consumer
Know: The Jungle, Meat Inspection Act
8. What was the effect of Upton Sinclair's book, The Jungle?
It revealed to the public the unsanitary food products in the big canning factories.
Earth Control
Know: Forest Reserve Act, Gifford Pinchot, Newlands Act, Conservation, Call of the Wild, Boy Scouts, Sierra Club
9. What factors led Americans to take an active interest in conservation?
Roosevelt was convinced by the actions of conservationists like Pinchot, head of the federal Division of Forestry, and he convinced Congress to pass the Newlands Act. He worked to preserve the nation's shrinking forests by setting aside 125 million acres in federal reserves, saving millions of acres of coal deposits, and he earmarked water resources for irrigation and power.
The "Roosevelt Panic" of 1907
10. What were the results of the Roosevelt Panic of 1907?
The panic made way for long overdue fiscal reforms. Congress passed the Aldrich-Vreeland Act in 1908 in response to the banks being unable to increase the volume of money in circulation.
The Rough Rider Thunders Out
Know: William Howard Taft, Eugene V. Debs
11. What was the legacy of Teddy Roosevelt's presidency?
He was known as the president to tame capitalism, giving it a long adult life with enthusiasm and perpetual youthfulness that sought the middle road between unbridled individualism and paternalistic collectivism, and, most of all, the president that started a conservation crusade.
Taft: A Round Peg in a Square Hole
12."William Howard Taft was less suited for the presidency than he appeared to be." Explain
He had none of the aspects of a dashing political leader, was passive to Congress, did not take criticism well, and he was more interested in keeping the norm than to cause changes.
The Dollar Goes Abroad as a Diplomat
Know: Dollar Diplomacy
13. What was dollar diplomacy and how was it practiced?
A policy that made Wall Street bankers to put their surplus dollars into foreign areas of concern to the U.S., especially in the Far East and in the regions critical to the security of the Panama Canal. Taft had Secretary of State Philander C. Knox propose that a group of American and foreign bankers buy the railroads and turn them over to China. Taft also pumped U.S. dollars into Honduras and Haiti, while in Cuba, Honduras, and the Dominican Republic, American forces were brought in to restore order and protect American investment. It made other nations dependent on American money.
Taft the Trustbuster
Know: Rule of Reason
14. Who deserves the nickname "Trustbuster," Roosevelt or Taft?
Taft, he brought 90 suits against trusts in 4 years. Roosevelt brought 44 suits against trusts in 7 years. In 1911, the Supreme Court ordered the dissolution of the Standard Oil Company. After Taft tried to break apart U.S. Steel despite Roosevelt being personally involved in one of the mergers that prompted the suit, Taft increasingly became Roosevelt's antagonist.
Taft Splits the Republican Party
Know: Payne-Aldrich Tariff, Richard Ballinger, Gifford Pinchot, Joe Cannon
15. Why did the Progressive wing of the Republican Party turn against Taft?
Taft signed the Payne-Aldrich Bill and betrayed his campaign promises which outraged the progressive wing of his party. Taft worsened it by proclaiming it "the best bill that the Republican party ever passed."
The Taft-Roosevelt Rupture
16. How did the Republican Party split at the party's 1912 convention?
In 1911, the National Progressive Republican League was formed, with La Follette as its leader, but in February 1912, Roosevelt began writing to state governors that he was willing to accept the Republic nomination. Roosevelt then seized the Progressive banner pushing La Follette away.
Chapter #29: Wilsonian Progressivism Abroad – Big Picture Themes
1. Wilson won the presidency mainly because Teddy Roosevelt ran as a third-party candidate and split the Republican vote with Taft.
2. Wilson was an idealist and progressive who sought to clean up problems. He attacked the tariff as too high, banks as corrupt by the rich, and trusts as milking the people.
3. Wilson hated war and wanted American foreign policy to be fair and just to all. Conditions in Latin America, however, forced this peaceful president to take military action. Notably, he ordered the US Army to chase Pancho Villa in Mexico.
4. In Europe, war had begun. In the Atlantic ocean, German subs began to sink sinks carrying Americans, notably the Lusitania. Wilson tried to keep America out of the war, and did, for the time being.
Chapter #29: Identifications
Eugene Debs
He was a labor leader arrested during the Pullman Strike in 1894 and a convert to socialism. He ran for president 5 times from 1900 - 1920. In 1920, he campaigned from prison where he was being held for opposition to American involvement in World War I.
Pancho Villa
A Mexican revolutionary who killed many Americans in Mexico, he was never captured even though the US sent John J Pershing.
John J. Pershing
Wilson ordered him and a force of about 15,000 soldiers into Mexico to capture Francisco "Pancho" Villa dead or alive but they didn’t get Pancho.
Central Powers
It was the World War I alliance between Germany, Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire
Allies
The WWI alliance that included Britain, France, Russia, and later the United States and Italy. They opposed the Central Powers.
Lusitania
It was a British liner that was sunk in 1915 by German U-Boats. This caused Wilson to issue a stern warning to the Germans, telling them not to attack unarmed vessels "without warning".
Sussex Pledge
Germany said they would temporarily stop attacks on unarmed ships unannounced but might have to resume in the future if the British continued to blockade German ports. This was after the passenger ship the Sussex was sunken by a torpedo.
Federal Reserve Act
An act that created a central banking system that consisted of 12 regional banks governed by the Federal Reserve Board. It was an attempt to provide the United States with a sound yet flexible currency.
New Nationalism
It was favored by Roosevelt's progressive political policy; it stated heavy government intervention in order to assure social justice was necessary.
New Freedom
It was Woodrow Wilson's domestic policy that promoted antitrust modification, tariff revision, and reform in banking and currency matters.
Underwood Tariff
It was pushed through Congress by Woodrow Wilson and this 1913 tariff reduced average tariff duties by almost 15% and established a graduated income tax.
Federal Trade Commission
It was passed in 1914 and it was established to preserve competition by preventing unfair business practices and investigate complaints against companies.
Clayton Antitrust Act
It lengthened the Sherman Anti-Trust Act's list of practices. It said labor unions were not trusts and legalized strikes and peaceful picketing by labor union members.
Chapter #29 Identifications
The "Bull Moose" Campaign of 1912
Know: Bull Moose, New Nationalism, New Freedom
1. Explain the difference between Roosevelt's form of progressivism and Wilson's.
Roosevelt campaigned for female suffrage and a range social welfare problems, such as minimum-wage laws and "socialistic" social insurance. Wilson's New Freedom favored small enterprise and desired to break up all trusts.
Woodrow Wilson: A Minority President
2. "The [1912] election results are fascinating." Explain.
The Republicans split so Woodrow Wilson easily won with 435 Electoral votes, while Roosevelt had 88 and Taft only had 8, but the Democrats did not receive the majority of the popular vote. Socialist Eugene V. Debs got over 900,000 popular votes, while the combined popular totals of Roosevelt and Taft exceeded Wilson.
Wilson: The Idealist in Politics
3. How did Wilson's personality and past affect the way he conducted himself as president?
Wilson was a sympathizer with the South, a fine orator, a sincere and morally appealing politician, a very intelligent man, but he was cold personality-wise, austere, intolerant of stupidity, and very idealistic. When he thought he was right, Wilson would break before he would bend, unlike Roosevelt.
Wilson Tackles the Tariff
Know: Underwood Tariff
4. What were the three parts of the "triple wall of privilege?"
The tariffs, banks, and trusts.
Wilson Battles the Bankers
Know: The Federal Reserve Act
5. How was the Federal Reserve System different than the banking system that existed in the U.S. in 1913?
It had a nationwide system of 12 regional reserve districts, each with its own central bank, and had the power to issue paper money. A board controlled it.
The President Tames the Trusts
Know: Federal Trade Commission Act, Clayton Anti-Trust Act
6. How did Wilson curb the trusts?
In 1914, Congress passed the Federal Trade Commission Act, which created a president appointed position to investigate the activities of trusts and stop unfair trade practices like as unlawful competition, false advertising, mislabeling, adulteration, and bribery. The 1914 Clayton Anti-Trust Act lengthened the Sherman Anti-Trust Act's list of practices that were objectionable, exempted labor unions from being called trusts, and legalized strikes and peaceful picketing by labor union members.
Wilsonian Progressivism at High Tide
Know: The Federal Farm Loan Act, Warehouse Act, La Follette Seamen's Act, Workingmen's Compensation Act, Adamson Act, Louis D. Brandeis
7. Describe some of the positive and negative outcomes of Wilson’s progressive legislation and actions.
The Federal Farm Loan Act of 1916, which made credit available to farmers at low rates of interest, and the Warehouse Act of 1916, which allowed loans on the security of staple crops. The La Follette Seamen's Act of 1915 required good treatment of America's sailors, but it sent merchant freight rates soaring as a result of the cost to maintain sailor health. The Workingmen's Compensation Act of 1916 granted assistance of federal civil-service employees during periods of instability but was invalidated by the Supreme Court. The 1916 Adamson Act established an eight-hour workday with overtime pay. Wilson appeased the business by appointing a few conservatives to the Federal Reserve Board and the Federal Trade Commission, but he used most of his energies for progressive support.
New Directions in Foreign Policy
Know: Haiti
8. Contrast Wilson's ideas of foreign policy with those of Roosevelt and Taft.
Wilson, unlike Taft and TR, didn't pursue an aggressive foreign policy. He stopped "dollar diplomacy", persuaded Congress to repeal the Panama Canal Tolls Act of 1912, and even led to American bankers' pulling out of a six-nation.
Moralistic Diplomacy in Mexico
Know: Victoriano Huerta, Venustiano Carranza, Francisco ("Pancho") Villa, ABC Powers, John J. ("Black Jack") Pershing
9. Why did Mexico give such trouble to the Wilson administration?
Mexico had been exploited by U.S. investors for decades in oil, railroads, and mines, but the Mexican people were still super poor, so in 1913, they revolted. They made full-blooded Indian General Victoriano Huerta the president. The rebels were very violent and threatened Americans living in Mexico, but Woodrow Wilson would not intervene to protect American lives. But after a small party of American sailors were arrested in Tampico, Mexico, in 1914, Wilson threatened to use force, and even ordered the navy to take over Vera Cruz, drawing protest from Huerta and Carranza
Thunder Across the Sea
Know: Central Powers, Allied Powers
10. What caused Europe to plunge into WWI in 1914?
In 1914, a Serbian nationalist killed Archduke Franz Ferdinand. The domino-effect happened and Austria declared war on Serbia, which was supported by Russia, who declared war on Austria-Hungary and Germany, which declared war on Russia and France, then invaded neutral Belgium, and pulled Britain into the war and igniting World War I.
A Precarious Neutrality
Know: Kaiser Wilhelm II
11. What caused an officially neutral America to turn against the Central Powers?
German and Austro-Hungarian agents in America destroyed the Central Powers' image when they resorted to violence in American factories and ports, and when one agent left his briefcase in a New York elevator, the contents of which were found to contain plans for sabotage.
America Earns Blood Money
Know: Submarine, Lusitania, Arabic, Sussex
12. How did Germany's use of submarines lead to tense relations with the U.S.?
Germany announced its use of submarine warfare around the British Isles, warning the U.S. that it would try not to attack neutral ships, but that mistakes would probably occur. German subs, or U-boats, sank many ships, including the Lusitania, a British passenger liner that was carrying arms and munitions as well. The attack killed 1,198 lives, including 128 Americans.
Wilson Wins Reelection in 1916
Know: Charles Evans Hughes, "He Kept Us Out of War"
13. What were the keys to Wilson's electoral victory in 1916?
The democrats went with the slogan "He kept us out of war" for Wilson and warned that electing Hughes would be leading America into World War I. Even though Wilson didn't specifically promise to keep America out of war, enough people felt that he did to vote for him.
Varying Viewpoints: Who Were the Progressives?
Know: Richard Hofstadter, New Left Historians
14. Which answer to the question above seems correct to you? Why?
I think the "New Left" historians are right. The Progressives wanted reform. They would not fight for reform if the corruption did not directly affect them in any way. The Progressives were the people who were affected by the corruption of trusts and wanted to do something about it.