Bien, Zachary Apush – Period 3 Mr. Hafter

 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.

 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.

 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.

 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 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 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 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.

 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 3 rd party – The Bull Moose Party

 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

Woodrow Wilson (WINNER) Democrat “New Freedom” Strong government role in economic affairs William Taft Republican Conservative Teddy Roosevelt Bull Moose Party Strong government role in economic affairs

 Panic of 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 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