Chapter 30 - Wilsonian Progressivism at Home and Abroad 1912-1916

 

Major Themes

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• Role of third parties in American politics
• Wilson’s domestic economic and social reform
• Failure of Wilson’s missionary diplomacy

Major Questions

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• Compare and contrast Wilsonian progressivism with Rooseveltian progressivism.

Wilsonian:

• Called the "New Freedom" program
  • Stronger antitrust legislation
  • Banking reform
  • Tariff Reductions
  • Small businesses
  • Laissez-faire
  • No social welfare
    • "Man on the make" (as in Self-made)
  • Crush big industries with antitrust laws

Rooseveltian:

• Called the "New Nationalism"
  • Followed ideas of Herbert Croley (The Promise of American Life, 1910)
    • More trustbusting
    • Grouping labor unions
    • More regulatory agencies
  • Woman Suffrage
  • Social welfare
    • Minimum Wage
    • Social Insurance
• "...activist welfare state..."

Both: They agreed on these things, but differed in strategy:

• More active gov't (in economic/social affairs)
• Trustbusting

• In what ways was Wilson’s “moral” foreign policy a departure from established foreign policies of the Republicans and in what ways was it similar?

Wilson hated aggressive foreign policy imperialism. He didn't like Roosy's big stick (ooohh, that sounds dirty) or Taft's "dollar diplomacy." Although he didn't approve of imperialism, he did take some imperialistic actions. His imperialism was usually forced, though, either by foreign anger or by a wish for complete control of the Caribbean.



SEE NEW DIRECTIONS IN FOREIGN POLICY

• Assess America's neutrality in the early years of the war.

Although America claimed it was neutral, it carried on trade with the Allies but not the Central Powers. This was kosher (or as Farley would say, "organic") because America was open for trade with anyone. Unfortunately for the Centrals (namely Germany), Britain controlled the seas with their Almighty and Dominating Navy (ADN for short.) The ADN refused to let German ships pass to America (or back) and adopted a harrassing policy with American ships, in which the ADN "herded" into British ports to prevent them from going to German ones. America was "neutral" legally, but biased towards the Allies.



 

Outline

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The "Bull Moose" Campaign of 1912

• Democrats nominated (Thomas) Woodrow Wilson in 1912
  • gave him a strong new platform to run on called "new freedom"
    • called for stronger anti-trust legislation, bankiing reform, and tariff reductions
• "Progressive Republican Party" (third party) nominated Roosy
  • Roosy said he felt "as strong as a bull moose" and hence the "Bull Moose" party
• Republicans nominated Fatty Tafty (they have the same letters!!!!!)
  • Republican vote would be split between Roosy and Fatty (see excellent cartoon at top of 688)
• Main question was which type of Progressivism would win (Roosy Vs. Wilson)
  • See Main Question # 1
• Roosy got shot in Milwaukee but finished his speech (I only put this in here because it reminds me of K-Dog'sbonus about McK) Hope you enjoy you're new Nickname Mr. Kanoff (see K-Dog reference)

Woodrow Wilson: a Minority President

• Wilson wins:
  • 435 electoral, 6,296,547 popular
• Roosy had:
  • 88 electoral, 4,118,571 popular
• Fatty had:
  • 8 electoral, 3,486,720 popular
  • Weird how America didn't like the Fatty then, but is all fatty now
• Wilson had only 41% of popular
  • Not very big, hence "minority president"
  • had less votes than his predecessor, Bryan had amassed in any of his defeats
• Eugene V. Debs was nominated by Socialist party
  • Had 900,672 popular, and was excited about it
  • This leads me to conclude the Socialists are (metaphorically) equal to the kids in the Chess Club in HighSchool (no friends)
• Republicans were now the minority in Congress (for 6 yrs.) and no president (for 8 yrs.)
• Fatty stayed happy and became a Supreme Court Justice (1921)

Wilson: The Idealist in Politics

• First president from one of the seceded states since Zachary Taylor, 64 years earlier
• He was greatly influenced by his being from the South
  • Sympathized w/ the Confedracy
    • Inspired his ideal of "self-determination" for people of other countries
  • Believed in Jeffersonian democracy (faith in the well-informed masses)
• Son of a Presbyterian minister, therefore spoke religiously
  • Wasn't all about the arm-waving like Roosy was
• Believed president should be dynamic and lead
  • Felt the President should act as a kind of "Prime Minister"
  • Often appealed directly to the people instead of to Senators
• Suffered personality defects:
  • Could be cold and standoffish in public
  • Very stern
  • Preferred humanity in mass rather than as individuals
  • Somewhat arrogant
  • Hated journalists and stupid senators
  • Stubborn and unwilling to compromise
• He had a strong sense of "moral righteousness"
  • More stubborn than Roosy in the sense that when he felt he was right, he wouldn't compromise
  • Check out chapter 31 with his League of Nations-ized Treaty of Versailles and the whole "my way or the highway" attitude

Wilson Tackles the Tariff

• Few presidents have gone into the White House w/ a clearer vision than Wilson
  • called for an assault on "the triple wall of privelege": tariffs, banks, and trusts
• Tackled the tariff first
  • talked to Congress in person
  • passed the Underwood Tariff bill
    • reduced tariff rates
    • reduced import fees substantially
  • when tons of lobbyists tried to stop thee bill, Wilson gave a message to the people urging them to hold their representatives in line
    • the move worked
  • under the 16th Ammendment, a gratuated income tax was made for those who made more than $3,000 a year (more than most)

Wilson Battles the Bankers

• Attacked banking next, w/ its biggest problem being that the money was not elastic
  • in June 1913, Wilson gave another speech in front of Congress, this time asking for reform in the banking system
    • for a decentralized bank in gov't hands versus a strong private bank like the Reublicans had envisioned
• Victory again as the Federal Reserve Act was passed in 1913
  • Federal Reserve Board (appointed by the pres.) oversaw a system of 12 regional reserve districts, each w/ its own central bank
  • had a good measure of public coontrol
  • could issue paper money- "Federal Reserve Notes"- backed by commercial paper money
  • helped during WWI

The President Tames the Trusts

• Finally, w/ another speech, Wilson went after the trusts
• Another victory as the Federal Trade Commission Act of 1914 was passed
  • it empowered a presidentially appointed commision to investigate industries engaged in interstate commerce
  • the commision was suppossed to stop monopolies at their source
• Clayton act passed
  • helped out labor
    • held labor exempt from anti-trust prosecution
    • legalized strikes and peaceful picketing

Wilsonian Progressivism at High Tide

• After dealing with the triple wall of privilege Wilson made many other reform acts
  • THe Federal Farm Loan Actof 1916-made credit available to farmers at low rates
  • The Warehouse act of 1916 authorized loans on the security of staple crops
  • He passed the La Follette Seamen's Act in 1915 to help sailors
  • He also helped workers with the Workingmen's Compensation Act of 1916 which assisted workers when they were injured
  • passed many other acts to help workers
• did not deal with better treatment of blacks at all
• For the 1916 election he knew he needed to woo the progressive voters

New Directions in Foreign Policy

• Wilson recoiled from aggresive foreign policy- anti imperialism
• He was also anti dollar diplomacy
• He repealed the Panama Canal Tolls act in 1914 and granted the Philipines territorial status
• Wilson also defused a possible crisis with Japan by sending William Jennings Bryan to make California let Japanese have land
• twice Wilson had to send troops to protect American interests once in Haiti and once in the Dominican Republic
• In 1917 Wilson bought the Virgin Islands

Thunder Across the Sea

• In 1914 a serb patriot killed the heir to the throne of Austria Hungary which started a chain reaction of nations being pulled into the war
• the sides were the central powers-Germany Austria-Hungary, Turkey and Bulgaria and the Allies-France Britain Russia Japan and Italy
• American thought themselves safe with the barrier of the sea

A Precarious Neutrality

• Wilson really didn't want to go to war so he told everyone we were staying neutral
• Both sides of the war tried to woo America by both talking crap about each other
• Germans and Austro-Hungarians depended on sympathy from their many countrymen in America
  • lots were, others were just happy to be away from the mess
• most Americans were anti-German from the begining
  • not many were a fan of Kaiser Wilhelm II
  • Gtown struck innocent Belgium
  • G's restorted to violence in American factories and ports
  • USians found a German operative's plans for industrial sabotage
    • this really made Americans angry
• Still the majority of the US wanted to stay neutral

America Earns Blood Money

• US was pulled out of hardtimes by the Brit and French war-orders
• J.P.Morgan advanced the Allies $2.3 billion
• Gtown could trade w/ US but Brits had an air-tight trade blockade against Gtown so we went to Britain's ports instead
• Gtown said "fine, we're going to put a submarine war area around the British Isles"
• Berlin officials said we'll try not to sink you guys but mistakes will occur
  • we said fine but you're fully responsible for your actions
• Uboats sank 90 ships in first months
• Lusitania was a controversial sinking bc it killed 128 Americans
  • this really made Americans angry but Wilson still said NOOO.
• then the Arabic sunk w/ 2 American lives
  • we raised an eyebrow and Berlin said fine we won't sink unarmed and unresisting passenger shipswithout warning
• Then they sunk the Sussex
  • they said we'll stick to our word this time if you tell the allies to modify what we regard as their illegal blockade
  • US couldn't do that

Wilson Wins Reelection in 1916

• 1916: bull moose Progressives and Republicans met in Chicago
• Progressives renominated TR, but he declined, not wanting to split the Repub. party again [with was the death call of the Progressive party]
• Progressives nominated Supreme Court justice Charles Evan Hughes
• The Republican platform vied for the Democratic tariff, assaults on the trusts and Wilson's wishy-washiness in dealing w. Mexico and Germany
• Hughes straddled the line between not taking action against the Kaiser and being isolated
• TR unsurprisingly campaigned for war
• Wilson's campaign slogan "He Kept Us Out of War"
• Hughes swept the East expecting the presidency
• but everyone else voted for wilson
  • 277 to 254
  • 9,127,695 to 8,533,507