The Domestic Policy of Teddy Roosevelt

1
The Domestic Policy of Teddy Roosevelt

• U.S. History 2 AP
• Mr. Melvin
• Unit 2, Lesson 3

2
McKinley Killed.

• September 1901 McKinley assassinated
• Buffalo, NY by Leon Czolgosz (anarchist)
• Died from wounds on September 14, 1901
• 3rd president killed in less than 40 years!

3
T.R.

• Youngest President in history
• Harvard graduate
• Rancher
• Police commissioner
• Ornithologist
• Historian
• Assemblyman
• Civil Service commissioner
• Asst. Secretary of Navy
• Volunteer colonel
• Governor of New York

4
T.R.

• Chose the Republican party because it gave him
  the best chance of success
• Was nominated to be McKinleys Vice President to
  get him out of New York politics
• Thomas Platt feared TRs reform ventures

5
Roosevelts Philosophy

• Saw political office as method of doing whats
  best for the people
• Define great national problems and win people
  over to his solutions
• Infuse presidency with an efficient
  administration and his ability to enforce the
  laws

6
Roosevelts Philosophy

• Surround himself with best possible minds

7
Roosevelts Philosophy

• Did use party patronage to fill lesser offices
• Caused Marc Hanna to lose control of party by
  1904
• Because of this, able to rely on state
  conventions to pass his reforms
• Achieved balance
• Satisfied reformers but didnt offend Old Guard

8
Roosevelts Philosophy

• Focused on the 3 Cs
• Corporation Control
• Consumer Protection
• Conservation

9
Trust Buster

• TR was a gradualist
• Accept advice from Old Guard on tariff and money
  matters
• Would keep them happy
• Was more concerned with industrial consolidation
• Can government control corporations?
• Supreme Court said No in 1895 U.S vs. E.C.
  Knight

10
Trust Buster

• 1902 TR ordered government to sue The Northern
  Securities Company (Violation of the Sherman
  Antitrust Act)
• Was holding company for series of railroads
• Formed to stop Wall Street Panic in 1901
• Consolidation worried farmers
• Less railroad competition high rate prices
• How can they afford to ship their goods to market?

11
Trust Buster

• Main targets of suits were J.P Morgan and James
  J. Hill (Too much power!!)

? NY Banker
RR Tycoon ?
12
Trust Buster

• Morgan was arrogant
• Tried to have lawyer settle issue out of court
  FAILED
• 1903 Federal Court ordered trust dissolved
• Upheld by Supreme Court in 1904
• Symbolized shifting of power to Washington and
  away from strong NYC Bankers

13
Trust Buster

• 44 more during terms
• Beef Trust (1902)
• American Tobacco Co (1906)
• DuPont Corp (1906)
• New Haven RR (1907)
• Standard Oil (1907)

14
Really a Trust Buster??

• Not really true More of a Trust Regulator
• Only break up if misbehavior exists
• TR had no issues with corporations that
  benefitted consumer
• Proved government, not industry in power

15
(No Transcript)
16
(No Transcript)
17
The Square Deal

• Implemented in December 1901
• TR believed
• Expert management rather that popular views
• Reforms that punish bad corporations
• Reforms that still assist in growing industry
• Better the lives of all U.S. citizens

18
Square Deal Legislation

• 1903 law that expedited anti-trust prosecutions
• Elkins Act forbade giving and receiving
  railroad rebates
• Department of Commerce and Labor
• Bureau of Corporations
• Investigated bad business practices
• Gave government the evidence to prosecute
• Original opposition from Nelson Rockefeller
• Passed Congress soon after revelation

19
1902 Coal Miners Strike

• Lasted from May through October
• Workers wanted
• Union recognition
• 8 hour workday
• Pay Increase
• Mine owners refused to negotiate with Labor Union
  (United Mine Workers)

20
1902 Coal Miners Strike

• Winter loomed and coal shortages
• TR wasnt sure if he can legally get involved
• Brought both to White House
• Union agreed to arbitrate Owners refused
• Owners wanted army to take over mines
• TR Threatened to use army against owners!

21
1902 Coal Miners Strike

• The Solution
• No Union recognition
• Owners can raise coal prices 10
• Workers 10 pay increase and 9 hour workday
• 1st president to threaten to nationalize private
  industry
• 1st to have labor and management accept
  commission arbitration

22
Election of 1904

• TR and Charles Fairbanks elected by large margin
• Stole reform banner from Democrats
• Beat Alton Parker
• Electoral Votes 336-140

23
Other Square Deal Legislation

• Hepburn Act (1906) - gave Interstate Commerce
  Commission power to prescribe substitute railroad
  rates upon complaint
• Employer Liability Act (1908) protects and
  compensated RR workers injured on job

24
Other Square Deal Legislation

• 1906 Pure Food and Drug Act
• Federal prevention of altering, mislabeling, and
  selling bad foods
• 1906 Meat Inspection Act
• Because of Sinclairs The Jungle
• Now subject to federal regulations and
  inspections for sanitary conditions

25
Conservation

• TR believed it very important to protect natural
  resources for future generations
• 1902 Newlands Act funded irrigation projects
  for 17 Western States
• Laws limiting miner entry into certain coal mines
• Laws limiting amount that cattlemen can use
  prairie land
• Angered many Western Senators and Representatives

26
Conservation

• Product of Newlands Act is the Roosevelt Dam in
  Arizona

27
Conservation

• Roosevelt and Pinchot also assisted in creating
  many National Parks and Monuments

Crater Lake National Park
Devils Tower National Monument
28
Who Can Forget about the Grand Canyon? (1908)
29
Opposition over Conservation

• 1907 Western Reps. attached a rider to
  appropriations bill to create new reserves
• Rider limited amount of reserves
• TR signed it needed anyway
• Attached more acres to reserves to compensate

30
Opposition to Conservation

• 1908 TR and Pinchot formed the National
  Conservation Congress
• Composed of governors and conservation experts
• Congress hostile to it ignored all
  recommendations
• TR continued to battle Congress over conservation
  for remainder of presidency

31
Panic of 1907

• Businessmen blamed Roosevelt Too much
  meddling!
• Causes
• Industrial production expanded beyond consumption
• Bankers engaged in speculative behaviors
• Giving out easy and bad loans

32
Panic of 1907

• Solution
• TR was forced to rely on J.P. Morgan and other
  bankers
• Morgan would use his money to create trust to
  stabilize market
• Would need approval from TR that he wouldnt get
  busted for forming monopoly
• TR secretly agreed
• Panic soon subsided

33
Panic Aftermath

• TR called for financial reforms (1908)
• Federal incorporation and regulation of all
  interstate business
• Federal regulation of stock market
• Limitation of labor injunctions
• Investigation of labor disputes
• 8 hour work days for all employees
• Income and inheritance taxes

• Created Aldrich/Vreeland Act (1908)
• National Bank can issue emergency currency backed
  by collateral in cases of financial panic
• Established National Monetary Commission
• Studied European Banks
• How can US Banks become more efficient?
• Studies eventually used for Federal Reserve Act
  of 1913

34
He Must Have Done Something Good, right? Thats
not too shabby of company!
35
Image Citations

• http//www.math.buffalo.edu/sww/0history/mckinley
  -assassination2.jpg
• http//content.artofmanliness.com/uploads/2008/11/
  a_teddy_roosevelt.jpg
• http//www.nndb.com/people/457/000059280/elihu_roo
  t.jpg
• http//www.americaslibrary.gov/assets/jb/reform/jb
  _reform_taft_1_e.jpg
• http//bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/tdn.co
  m/content/tncms/assets/editorial/3/1a/4f9/31a4f9a7
  -0de3-5628-a1dd-483deba46a24.image.jpg
• http//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thum
  b/3/35/JRGarfield.jpg/225px-JRGarfield.jpg
• http//muson.info/images/h_jp_morgan_062300_03.jpg
  
• http//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7f
  /James_J._Hill_at_35.jpg
• http//www.danablankenhorn.com/images/teddy_roosev
  elt_trustbuster.jpg
• http//faculty.umf.maine.edu/walter.sargent/public
  .www/web20104/TR20trust20buster.jpeg
• http//www.radford.edu/wkovarik/class/law/trustbu
  ster.roosevelt.gif
• http//www.kirkwood.k12.mo.us/parent_student/KHS/p
  lattes/topics17and18/topics17and183.jpg
• http//upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thum
  b/0/06/Hazelton_coal_miners.jpg/350px-Hazelton_coa
  l_miners.jpg
• http//www.teachersparadise.com/ency/en/media/4/48
  /electoralcollege1904_large.png
• http//museum.nist.gov/images/exhibits/45.jpg
• http//media-2.web.britannica.com/eb-media/02/9430
  2-004-9909DA36.jpg
• http//www.destination360.com/north-america/us/wyo
  ming/devils-tower-national-monument
• http//www.dailyhistory.net/images/grand-canyon-na
  tional-park.jpg
• http//i.bnet.com/blogs/teddy-roosevelt.jpg