President William Howard Taft

Bien, ZacharyApush – Period 3Mr. Hafter

William Taft – Political Life Secretary of War under Theodore

Roosevelt Roosevelt’s most trusted lieutenant and

his hand picked successor. Progressive reformers believed Taft

would follow the ideals of his predecessor Roosevelt.

Served as Chief Justice on the Supreme Court following his presidency.

William Taft – The President Assumed the presidency in 1909

after easily defeating William Jennings Bryan in the 1908 election.

Quickly it became evident that Taft would not be able to follow the Progressive mindset of Roosevelt due to his lack of aggression.

In the opening months of his presidency Taft called Congress into a special session.

The Special Session

Taft called Congress to discuss lowering tariff rates and this meeting resulted in the Payne – Aldrich Tariff. Payne – Aldrich Tariff ---- reduced tariff

rates scarcely at all and in some areas even raised tariffs.

Another Blunder Taft’s popularity among the American people

became shattered when Taft replaced his Secretary of the Interior, James A. Garfield, with Richard A. Ballinger. Suspicion of Ballinger grew when he attempted to

invalidate Roosevelt’s removal of nearly 1 million acres of forests and mineral reserves from private development.

Taft responded to the growing criticism of Ballinger by supporting his appointed Secretary of the Interior despite the actions of Louis Glavis (an Interior Department investigator)

The Ballinger – Pinchot Affair The Ballinger-Pinchot scandal erupted when Colliers magazine

accused the Secretary of the Interior Richard Ballinger of shady dealings in Alaskan coal lands. It was, in essence, a conflict rooted in contrasting ideas about how to best use and conserve western natural resources.

Ballinger was an appointee of President William Taft, the man who had succeeded the committed conservationist President Theodore Roosevelt. Roosevelt had developed most of his environmentally friendly policies with the assistance of his chief forester, Gifford Pinchot. By 1909, Roosevelt, Pinchot, and other conservationists feared that Taft, though a fellow Republican, and Ballinger were systematically undermining the accomplishments of the previous administration by reopening exploitation of public lands that had been closed.

The Ballinger – Pinchot Affair The Colliers article stated that Ballinger improperly used his office

to help the Guggenheims and other powerful interests illegally gain access to Alaskan coal fields, confirming the worst fears of Pinchot and Roosevelt. Despite the fact that he had stayed on as chief forester in the Taft administration, Pinchot began to criticize openly both Ballinger and Taft, claiming they were violating the fundamental principles of both conservation and democracy. Livid with anger, Taft immediately fired Pinchot, inspiring yet another round of scandalous headlines.

In truth, subsequent scholarship have shown that Ballinger had not technically misused the power of his office and the charges of corruption were unjustified. However, the Ballinger-Pinchot scandal reflected the ongoing tension between those who emphasized the immediate use of natural resources and those who wanted them conserved for the future, a discussion that remains active today

The Ballinger – Pinchot Affair The affair alienated the supporters of

Roosevelt completely and the remaining supporters of Roosevelt.

These controversies angered Theodore Roosevelt and he became convinced that he would be able to reunite the dividing Republican party.

The Bull Mouse Party

1912 – Roosevelt returns home and decides to run for president.

The Republicans re-nominated Taft. In order to gain recognition for a

presidential bid in the election of 1912 Roosevelt created a 3rd party – The Bull Moose Party

The Bull Mouse Party cont. Called for direct election of senators Advocated woman’s suffrage (unlike any

political party prior to it) Advocated national workmen’s

compensation 8 hour work day Minimum wage for women Laws against child labor Federal trade commission to regulate

business

The Election of 1912

Woodrow Wilson (WINNER)Democrat“New Freedom” Strong government role in economic affairs

William TaftRepublican

ConservativeTeddy Roosevelt

Bull Moose PartyStrong government role in economic affairs

Questions Panic of 1907

--Tariff reform--conservative vs. progressive vision regarding regulation

Taft's Background --Held many high position jobs, such as secretary of war

--leaned toward the conservative side of his party (conservative wing) Tariff Reform Under Taft --republicans openly split on tariff issue

--Taft attacked by progressives like Robert LaFollette --Payne-Aldrige Tariff Act (1909)--The unpopular Payne-Aldrige Act hurt Taft's standings

Payne-Aldrige Act (1909)

--lowered some rates from Dingley Tariff of 1897, though still generally protectionist--800 amendments to bill specifying what did and didn't have tariffs

The Ballinger-Pinchot Affair --conservation issue furthered split between Taft and TR

--Richard Ballinger tried to put up 1 million acres to public land in West for waterpower sites (Pinchot had withdrawn the land from sale)--Gifford Pinchot (still chief forester) protested that Ballinger had sold Alaskan lands rich w/coal to a JP Morgan syndicate in order to discredit Ballinger--Taft fires Pinchot b/c insubordination--firing hurt Taft's standings, overshadowed Taft's important conservation actions