Compare and Contrast the Presidencies of the USA - Essay Example

Compare and contrast the presidencies of William McKinley, Theodore Roosevelt and William Howard Taft Order No.346084 December ‘09 Compare and contrast the presidencies of William McKinley, Theodore Roosevelt and William Howard Taft Introduction The presidencies of William McKinley, Theodore Roosevelt and William Howard Taft were all well defined in their own way but were different from each other in many ways. All these three presidents were accomplished presidents and served their country to the best of their ability. William McKinley was the 25th President of the United States from 1897 to 1901. It can be said that he got the world to know about America and this made him get re-elected for a second term but unfortunately was assassinated before his second term could end. Theodore Roosevelt served as Vice President under McKinley and became the President after the assassination of McKinley in 1901. He was re-elected in 1904 but did not seek re-election for a third time in 1908 and William Howard Taft was nominated as the Republican presidential candidate. Taft was President of the United States from 1909 to 1913. He was somewhat of a disappointment after the aggressiveness of Roosevelt. Taft signed an unpopular law and the public blamed him for it. His presidency ended when Roosevelt turned against him in 1912 and ran for the presidency as a third party candidate. With the votes split Woodrow Wilson was elected President. William McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt When one considers McKinley’s contributions to the office of the President and the precedents he set, one can say he is one of the prominent modern presidents of the present century. During his presidency United States acquired its first overseas possessions and set the path for territorial expansion and for becoming a world power. He was responsible for the concept of international bimetallism which was an agreement made by many countries to use both gold and silver as the basis for their currencies.  He later encouraged the use of the gold standard for maintaining currency that paved the way for the Gold Standard Act of 1900. His views on protective tariff were very clear and in 1890 sponsored a protective tariff bearing his name. His policies were often in favor of the poor. However his domestic achievements were overshadowed by his foreign policy which dominated his administration. During McKinley’s tenure the depression which had started under Grover Cleveland began to decline and affluence came back. Roosevelt continued the good work of McKinley and he too had many accomplishments to his credit. He highlighted the role of United States as a world power by building the Panama Canal. By encouraging coal miners in their strike against mine owners, became the first modern pro-labor President. He brought together management and labor for discussions for the first time. His Sherman Anti-Trust Act of 1890, which limited corporate power forced many big businesses to act responsibly was one of his main accomplishments. Roosevelt was popular with reformers. Like McKinley he was for the common man and wanted to protect the common man from big business corporations. Roosevelt’s "Square Deal" once again saw the government as the overseer of all that happens in American industries. The other main reform of Roosevelt was the Hepburn Railway Act, which gave power to the ICC to fix maximum rates for the railroads. When you compare the presidencies of McKinley and Roosevelt, Roosevelt emerges as a more popular President even though their contributions were almost equal. In fact much of Roosevelt’s success can be attributed to McKinley’s administration. Roosevelts famous reputation often overshadows the major steps taken by his predecessor. All major reforms in international leadership, tariffs, trade, arbitration, labor relations, currency, and trust regulation can be traced to the modest William McKinley. McKinley was probably overshadowed by Roosevelt because McKinley preferred to stay in the background and give others credit for all his accomplishments. He was not interested in adoration and this is proved by the fact that he refused the Armys offer of a Congressional Medal of Honor. His untimely assassination can be considered as another reason. McKinley however today is mostly remembered in a positive light and as a President who ushered in a new era in American politics, both in the domestic front as well as in foreign policies. Roosevelt carried further the growth that was initiated by McKinley. Theodore Roosevelt and William Howard Taft William Howard Taft, who became President after Roosevelt served only one term, ended up most of the time following the steps of Roosevelt as he was hand-picked by Roosevelt as his .successor. Like McKinley and Roosevelt he belonged to the group of modern presidents. Taft like Roosevelt before him went after many trusts and extended the ICC control to telephones, telegraph, cable, and wireless companies by his Mann-Elins Act of 1910. Taft took strong actions against trusts, filing about 90 antitrust suits against several companies. Taft passed the 16th Amendment by which farmers and people with low incomes paid less tax than the rich. Taft did bring in good reforms but he disappointed many when he conceded to popular demand in such issues as tariffs. However Taft succeeded in carrying the progressive movement forward and reform corporate America and prevent them from taking advantage of the people. After the presidencies of William McKinley and Theodore Roosevelt, who had some accomplishments that made people, remember them, Taft’s presidency was such that not many remember him. Historians too seem to have forgotten him and today there are more biographies on Roosevelt than Taft. According to Lewis Gould (2009), Taft, “settled into the middle rank among chief executives and has stayed there in all the polls of historians and political scientists.” In one of his letters to his wife he himself as referred to his administration as “a very humdrum, uninteresting administration.” One reason for this maybe there was no great crisis in foreign affairs to test his executive capability. Whereas McKinley took over America was just coming out of depression and his task was quite difficult, Taft was lucky in that the economic conditions were good during his term. In one of his letters to his wife he himself as referred to his administration as “a very humdrum, uninteresting administration.” Roosevelt and Taft had different personalities. Roosevelt was brash and dreamt big while Taft was affable. Both believed in reforms but Taft was more timid and conservative in his approach. He believed that the courts and not the presidency, should arbitrate economic and social issues. He was far more willing than Roosevelt to allow the Congress to initiate and craft legislations while he sat in the sidelines. This resulted in a number of Roosevelt’s initiatives to be rolled back or diluted by the conservative Republicans. This made Roosevelt challenge his nomination for a second term and ultimately he was defeated in the election. Conclusion Historians have generally viewed Roosevelt more favorably than McKinley or Taft and this makes us wonder why it was so. On the outside all were capable presidents. But McKinley and Taft did not have the aggressive nature of Roosevelt or his charisma or his ability and forcefulness to get things done his way. He might have superseded the powers given to him by the constitution but he always looked forward and believed in leading the way. He succeeded in capturing the imagination of the people. According to him “My view was that every executive officer, and above all every executive officer in high position, was a steward of the people bound actively and affirmatively to do all he could for the people." (Roosevelt) This was what made him more popular than the others. References 1. Gould Lewis (2009), When Was Taft President? Reflections on a One-Term Presidency, http://hnn.us/articles/120001.html 2. Roosevelt Theodore, Quote retrieved from http://www.dlt.ncssm.edu/lmtm/docs/manyfaces/scrpt1.doc on 15/12/09   Read More