The 1912 Presidential Election - Essay Example

The 1912 Presidential Election Introduction The United States (USA) Presidential Election of 1912 is widely heralded as an event that changed the nation. The contest involved four prominent candidates – Woodrow Wilson, Theodore Roosevelt, William Taft and Eugene Debs – who engaged in an intense and sustained debate over the future of American growth. While William Taft was the incumbent president of the USA, Theodore Roosevelt had just moved over from the Republican Party to Progressives. Eugene Debs was the candidate of the Socialist Party who hailed from the state of Indiana while Woodrow Wilson, who emerged as the eventual winner, was previously the governor of the state of New Jersey and hailed from the Democratic Party (Eisenstark 95). All candidates were aware of the massive changes sweeping across the American society and made dedicated efforts to answer the reforms necessary to maintain the Progressive order. Progressivism also necessitated the strategy of each candidate towards fighting corruption, modernizing every element of state machinery and reforming the economy in every possible way. Progressivism and the 1912 Presidential Election Israel says that the fact that the 1912 US Presidential election brought forth a significant reform in the American political system is simple enough to highlight the crucial role played by the Progressive Party (78). The Progressive Party not only succeeded in rising to prominence against the two main parties (the Democrats and the Republicans), but also succeeded in wielding significant influence over the next four years on issues on national importance. This is evident since the progressive party gained over 30% of the vote and had a strong contender – Theodore Roosevelt – as its presidential candidate (Berkin 34). The role of the Progressive Party is not limited to its emergence as a strong third party, but also noteworthy for the rise of new social initiatives that called for a governance system based on referendum and collective decision-making. In the run-up to the election, Theodore Roosevelt left the Republicans after being ignored by the party in favor of William Taft for the presidential nomination. He and a few of his supporters formed the Progressive Party in 1912 (Isaac 42). The Progressive Party strongly favored support for labor unions and wanted to maintain a tight grip on business enterprises in an effort to regulate American industry. Milkis says that these reformist beliefs stem from the very life of Roosevelt, who spent his early years growing up in a working class neighborhood in New York (63). One of the primary persons responsible for the departure of Roosevelt was the incumbent president – William Taft. Taft had previously served under Roosevelt’s administration as the ‘Secretary of War’ until 1908, when he was finally chosen as Roosevelt’s successor to be president. However, Taft’s policies grew increasingly conservative in nature and began to create a rift within the party leading to a split in 1912 (Morrisey 25). Unlike Roosevelt, Taft favored lesser regulatory oversight on businesses and more freedom in the hands of business leaders. Taft reasoned that such freedom was essential for sustaining innovation and productivity in the American economy and that he favored to refrain from any external control on American enterprises unless absolutely necessary (Eisenstark 52). Against the backdrop of these two warring parties, the Democrats fielded Woodrow Wilson as their presidential candidate. The in-fighting between the two factions of the Republican Party proved favorable for Wilson as he had to contend with a disorganized opposition. In fact, these trends helped the Democrats resolve their internal differences and helped them evolve into a significant political force. Thus, although the concept of progressivism was conceived and popularized by Roosevelt and his followers, the required change was put in place by Wilson’s administration (Israel 72). Democrats continued to enact pro-labor reforms unlike the Republicans who favored a free market economy with the least oversight (Berkin 142). This trend between continues to this day and has come to bear a distinctive identity for both parties. Eisenstark notes that unlike any other leader, Roosevelt was instrumental in coalescing both social and political reforms and galvanizing a favorable public opinion that vouched for reforms in all areas of society and governance (86). Israel notes that it was during his term as President (1901 – 1908) that the concept of Progressivism began to take shape (168). By popularizing progressive goals and aspirations, Roosevelt cast the office of the Presidency as an institution for public welfare and development. In fact, Roosevelt’s belief in collective engagement with the American public in matters on national importance is widely regarded as a prominent reason for his widespread popularity during the early 20th Century (Milkis 105). On the other hand, the Democrats were headed by Woodrow Wilson, who depended on Louis Brandeis for feedback and advice. Brandeis convinced Wilson to adopt the new vision of ‘Progressivism’ that was based on ‘New Freedom’ rather than ‘New Nationalism’. Their manifesto was based on government regulation and antitrust policies as measures to curb excessive corporate power and monopolistic trends from dominating the economy. While the Democrats technically were in disagreement with the Progressives over the course towards Progressiveness, both nevertheless agreed on the need to instill a sense of direct democracy. As the coming years demonstrate, the new Democrat government under Wilson was successful in implementing a direct system of governance on a national scale. One of the examples suggesting this scenario is the use of schools as local administrative headquarters for political debates and initiatives (Morrisey 126). In comparison, the Socialist Party headed by Eugene Debs was a delicate coalition formed out of various ethnic communities. The Socialist Party had very little influence on labor unions and was criticized for their support for immigration by every other Party. As such, Debs’ role during the 1912 Presidential election pales in comparison to the influence wielded by candidates belonging to the other three major parties (Milkis 68). The Republicans under Taft were vehemently against these interest-driven policies and stressed that political parties were responsible for upholding constitutional principles. Unlike the Progressive Party’s disagreement with corporate institutions, Taft based his arguments on the need to strengthen property rights rather than vouch for more political liberty. He further opined that the foundations of the Republican Party were based on conservative principles of defending the constitutional framework against all internal and external vulnerabilities (Berkin 178). Despite the illogical belief that this progressive attitude would decimate Roosevelt and allegations by Taft that progressivism stood to destroy to the US Constitution, the Progressive Party has had a lasting impression on American politics. This is reflected in the humiliating defeat suffered by the Republicans during the 1912 elections whereas the Progressives succeeded in changing the course of American democracy towards prosperity (Isaac 28). Conclusion Berkin terms Progressivism as a radical movement that was aimed at transforming American Individualism from a mere reliance on the US Constitution to one of self-perception and aspiration (42). Isaac views Progressivism as an attempt to thwart concerns over the notion of a centralized state (37). The Progressives claimed that strengthening national governance would enable citizens to be in command. Roosevelt was convinced that a welfare state could not be created in the United States by simply following the capitalist models of Great Britain and Europe. He also believed that such a state could be devised through socialist ideals. Instead, Milkis says that he projected Progressivism as a transparent bridge between the government and the society and sought to invoke people’s power and participation into the administrative system (163). Thus, it can be said that amongst all presidential candidates of the 1912 US Presidential election, Theodore Roosevelt was best aligned to the tenets of Progressivism. His resolve towards Progressivism was so steadfast that it forced him to split from the Republican Party as he was not ready to compromise on its ideals (Morrisey 57). References 1. Berkin, Carol. Making America: A History of the United States: Since 1865. London: Cengage Learning, 2010. 2. Eisenstark, Reyna. Progressivism. New York: Infobase Publishing, 2005. 3. Isaac, Jeffrey. The poverty of progressivism: the future of American democracy in a time of liberal decline. Chicago: Rowman & Littlefield, 2003. 4. Israel, Jerry. Progressivism and the Open Door: America and China, 1905-1921. University of Pitsburgh, 2007. 5. Milkis, Sidney. Progressivism and the new democracy. University of Massachusetts, 1999. 6. Morrisey, Will.The dilemma of Progressivism: how Roosevelt, Taft, and Wilson reshaped the American regime of self-government. Chicago: Rowman & Littlefield, 2009. Read More