Passages History 1302 -Chapter 21

Chapter Outline

 

William Howard Taft faced serious problems as president, including tariff reform, conservation, and, not least, the specter of Theodore Roosevelt.

 

 

A.       Taft believed in a passive role for the president, but even then he had trouble with public relations.

 

B.        The Payne-Aldrich Tariff lowered some tariffs but left others intact, a situation that upset many conservatives.

 

 

C.       The Battle over Conservation:  The battle over conservation pitted Taft against Roosevelt’s policies, and when the ex-president heard about the events in America, he was deeply disappointed.

 

D.       Roosevelt’s Return:  Roosevelt returned from an African safari and set out to re-direct the Republican Party, ready, if necessary, to serve as president again.

 

 

 

Progressive ideas led to numerous reform efforts during the early 1900s.

 

 

A.       Woman Suffrage:  Young women followed the lead of Alice Paul and began to push for a constitutional amendment for woman suffrage.

 

 

 

B.        Prohibition:  Even as some states passed prohibition laws, reformers continued to push for a constitutional amendment on the issue.

 

 

C.       Restriction of Immigration:  More immigrants from southern and eastern Europe arrived each year, and the response in America was a rise in opposition.

 

 

D.       Saving the Children:  Although people worked to improve the lives of children in many areas, child labor was at the forefront of the reform effort.

 

 

 

 

Labor unrest marked the period, as the workplace underwent significant changes.

 

A.       New Rules for the Workplace:  Corporations grew larger and more complex, and factory managers began to apply methods of scientific management to the assembly line.

 

 

B.        The Limits of Paternalism:  Other corporations tried using paternalism, not so much because of a true concern for the workers, but more out of a concern over the resurgence of unionism.

 

 

C.       Varieties of Labor Protest:   Several serious strikes hit America during the pre-war years, with the most serious one culminating in the Ludlow Massacre at a Rockefeller coal company.

 

 

D.       Taft applied “dollar diplomacy” to Latin America and the Far East, in an attempt to support and protect American investments by keeping foreign relations peaceful.

 

 

 

As the Republican Party fell into disarray, the stage seemed set for a Democratic resurgence.

 

 

A.       The Struggle between Roosevelt and Taft:  By early 1912, Theodore Roosevelt had become so upset with Taft’s policies that he decided to run again for president.

 

B.        The Democratic Opportunity:  The convention struggle between Roosevelt and Taft ended with Taft’s renomination and Roosevelt’s promise to fight on.

 

 

C.       Roosevelt created his own party, the Bull Moose Party, also known as the Progressive Party, and campaigned on a platform of “New Nationalism.”

 

 

D.       The Wilson Candidacy:  The Democrats nominated Woodrow Wilson, governor of New Jersey, after forty-six ballots, and they began to look forward eagerly to a November victory.

 

 

E.        The 1912 Contenders:  Socialist ideas posed a challenge to the country in 1912, but more Americans turned to the Progressive party, which advocated a few socialist ideas without labeling those concepts “socialistic.”

 

 

F.        Woodrow Wilson and the New Freedom:  Woodrow Wilson campaigned on the slogan “New Freedom,” which stressed socially responsible progressivism.

 

The Beginning of Wilson’s Presidency

 

 

 

A.        Tariff Reform:  Wilson won the presidency and right away petitioned Congress to move on the tariff, and the Underwood Tariff became law so quickly that it was clear that the new president was providing much needed leadership.

 

B.        The Federal Reserve System:  One of the most significant pieces of legislation passed under Wilson was that establishing the Federal Reserve System, which set up twelve regional banks and also regulated the country’s money supply.

 

 

 

C.        Wilson and the Progressive Agenda:  Wilson also worked to regulate trusts, securing passage of an act to establish the Federal Trade Commission.

 

 

 

Wilson upset many progressives by failing to support many of their efforts, but he held to his belief that the government should remain mum on the debate over social reforms.

 

 

Social and cultural changes accelerated in the first years of the new century, and Americans felt optimistic and excited about the future.

 

 

 

A.       Automobiles for a Mass Market:  In the automobile market, Henry Ford used mass production and a generous pay scale to increase productivity and at the same time fend off unionization.

 

B.        The Growing Use of Electricity:  The use of electricity grew tremendously, and this in turn contributed to the development of many new technologies, including vacuum cleaners and the radio.

 

 

C.       Artistic and Social Ferment:  American art and literature mirrored the social ferment of the period, with writers criticizing the conservative establishment.

 

 

 

D.       Americans at Play:  The pre-war period was one in which Americans used new-found leisure time to attend boxing matches, vaudeville acts, and the new motion pictures.

 

 

 

Political and economic concerns dominated the progressive era, as Americans sought to remain isolated from tense world affairs.

 

 

 

A.       Woodrow Wilson and the World:  Wilson used a hands-on approach in foreign affairs, even though he lacked experience in that area, and he worked to improve relations with countries in South America and in Asia.

 

 

 

B.        The Mexican Involvement and its Consequences:  Tense relations with Mexico during that country’s revolution threatened peace in the region, but Wilson avoided a war, and eventually tensions eased.

 

 

C.       As a result of the Mexican Revolution of 1910, large numbers of Mexican immigrants came to the United States, and their settlement in the Southwest changed the ethnic make-up of that region.

 

 

Tensions continued to increase in Europe, with the German Empire threatening most other countries in the region.

 

 

a.         A regional conflict began after Serb nationalists assassinated the archduke of Austria-Hungary, and by August 1914, the world was at war.

 

b.         Americans were surprised and shocked by the rapid expansion of hostilities in Europe.

 

 Conclusion: World War I ended America’s sense of isolation. President Wilson tried for years to maintain neutrality, but the country would eventually be pulled into the war. Social and political reform had to take a back seat to foreign affairs for the duration of the conflict.