Introduction to Era of Theodore Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt believed that the Chief Executive should be an aggressive leader in both foreign and domestic affairs. After completing the three and a half years that remained of McKinley's term, Roosevelt was elected President in his own right in 1904.
Early in his administration Roosevelt ordered the government to prosecute a number of trusts, and earned the title of "trust buster." He did not oppose the growth of industrialism, but felt that vigilant government supervision over big business was essential to the public interest. He thus allied himself with the progressive wing of the Republican party.
In 1902 Roosevelt forced the owners of the leading anthracite coal mines to agree to arbitrate wage and other demands of their workers, who were on strike. This was the first time that a President had taken labor's side. Roosevelt believed labor, business, and the public were all entitled to what he called a "square deal."
When Panama revolted in 1903 against Colombia, of which it had been a part, Roosevelt supported the revolution by immediately recognizing the new republic. In return, Panama granted the United States the right to build a canal across the Isthmus of Panama, a concession Colombia had refused to make. In this same period, United States influence over Caribbean nations was greatly extended.
Roosevelt's foreign policy was to "speak softly and carry a big stick"—to avoid starting trouble but to be prepared to use force if trouble occurred. His favorite "big stick"—the U.S. Navy—was displayed in the 1907-09 around-the-world cruise of the Great White Fleet (the ships were painted white).
By this time the United States was an important world power and Roosevelt used his prestige to help settle foreign disputes. He was awarded the 1906 Nobel Peace Prize for his arranging a negotiated settlement of the Russo-Japanese War (1905). He helped ease a crisis among European powers by persuading France to participate in the Algeciras Conference (1906), called to settle differences over Morocco.
Conservation of natural resources became a major government policy during Roosevelt's administration. Millions of acres of government-owned land were withheld from sale to private interests to prevent what Roosevelt termed the "wasteful use" of the nation's forests and minerals. Exposure of insanitary and fraudulent practices in the food and drug industries brought the federal Pure Food and Drug Act in 1906.
The Progressive Party
In 1908 William Howard Taft, Roosevelt's personal choice for the Republican nomination, was elected President. Although Taft continued much of Roosevelt's program, he was basically a conservative. Not adept at the art of politics, he alienated Republican progressives, who prepared to support Robert M. La Follette of Wisconsin against him for the Republican nomination for President in 1912. Roosevelt, instead of supporting La Follette, sought the nomination for himself.
When Taft won the nomination Roosevelt left the party to become the candidate of the newly formed Progressive, or Bull Moose, party. This split in the Republican forces enabled the Democratic candidate, Woodrow Wilson, to win the election.
Wilson's "New Freedom
President Wilson, who served two terms, began a program of reform that was quite similar to that proposed by the progressive Republicans. The phrase "the New Freedom" was used by Wilson to describe his general purpose—to create conditions of greater economic opportunity for labor, farmers, and small business.
Under Wilson's vigorous prodding, Congress for the first time in years substantially reduced tariffs, particularly on necessities. The Underwood-Simmons Tariff Act of 1913 also provided for taxation of incomes—the beginning of the modern federal income tax system, which had been made possible by the 16th Amendment to the Constitution (1913). The national banking system was reformed drastically by passage of the Federal Reserve Act in 1913.
Several measures on behalf of labor were enacted. The Adamson Act established the eight-hour day for railway workers. The La Follette Seamen's Act set minimum standards for food and living quarters on merchant ships subject to regulation by the federal government. The Clayton Act exempted labor unions from antitrust prosecution.The 17th Amendment (1913) provided for election of United States senators by popular vote instead of by the state legislatures. The 18th Amendment (1919) prohibited the manufacture and sale of intoxicating liquors, and began the Prohibition era that lasted until 1933. The 19th Amendment (1920) guaranteed to women in all states of the Union the right to vote.
Suffrage parade. The Progressive Era was marked by widespread demands for reform. Public demonstrations were common tactics among reformers of the era. Women on horseback participated in a suffrage parade in Washington, D.C., in 1914, shown here. Women gained the right to vote in 1920.The Mexican Problem
A series of revolutions in Mexico, beginning in 1910, caused concern because of United States business interests in that country. Relations became especially strained after Victoriano Huerta seized power in 1913 and President Wilson refused to recognize his government because he felt it was an oppressive regime.
In 1914 United States forces temporarily occupied Veracruz, Mexico, following an incident involving the arrests of American citizens there. The dispute was arbitrated and war was averted. In 1916, troops under General John J. Pershing crossed the Mexican can border in an unsuccessful effort to capture Pancho Villa, a revolutionary, whose followers had raided Columbus, New Mexico. Although there was no further military action, relations remained strained until the early 1920's.
World War I, 1914-18
When war began in Europe in 1914, Wilson immediately proclaimed the United States neutral. He urged the nation to be impartial "in thought as well as in action." However, Germany's use of submarines to attack ships the Germans thought to be carrying materials that would be helpful to the Allies created much hostility in the United States. Ill will increased after 114 United States citizens perished when the British liner Lusitania was sunk by a submarine in May, 1915. Wilson vigorously protested the sinking of such ships without provision for saving the lives of noncombatants. He resisted pressure to have the United States enter the war at that time, and obtained Germany's promise not to sink liners without providing protection for the passengers.
In the 1916 election, the Democrats used the slogan "He kept us out of war" to help win Wilson's reelection. However, Wilson had apparently already concluded that the United States would not be able to remain out of the war if it continued much longer. He thus sought to act as peacemaker, urging both sides to accept "peace without victory." His pleas were ignored.\
In January, 1917, Germany announced that unrestricted submarine warfare would be conducted against all ships destined for Allied ports. Several United States vessels were sunk. In March an attempt by German foreign minister Alfred Zimmermann to persuade Mexico to attack the United States, in the event that the United States should declare war on Germany, was revealed. The stage was thus set for Congress, at Wilson's request, to declare war on Germany on April 6, 1917.
United States manpower and material resources tipped the scales against Germany and the other Central Powers. The fighting ended on November 11, 1918, after Germany agreed to an armistice on Allied terms. The armistice was to remain in effect until peace treaties were signed.
The Treaty of Versailles was the most important of several treaties that resulted from the peace conference held in Paris in 1919. On the insistence of Wilson, who attended the conference, this treaty, in addition to ending the war with Germany, provided for creation of the League of Nations. The United States itself never became a member of the League, however, largely because of a growing sentiment for isolationism. The Senate, dominated by Republicans, did not ratify the Treaty of Versailles, because creation of the League was part of the treaty.