Was William Taft an Effective President?

Taft foreign policy was more aimed at the expansion of the United States foreign trade than that of President Roosevelt. He spent his time in office pursuing the “dollar diplomacy” program, which was designed to encourage United States investments abroad, specifically in the Far East, South and Central America, and the Caribbean. Taft looked to government officials to further his foreign policy agenda. He had these officials promote the sale of American products overseas.

He is well known for his temperament, interests, and achievements. Although there were no wars at the time, his slogan was reinforced by sending the expanded US Navy and the Great White Fleet on a world tour. “TR negotiated an end to the Russo-Japanese War, for which he won the Nobel Peace Prize. Theodore Roosevelts presidency ended the Gilded Age.” (Solheim, Bruce, 21-22) “Not only had Roosevelt alienated big business, he was also attacking both the judiciary and the deep faith Republicans had in their judges (most of whom had been appointed by McKinley, Roosevelt or Taft.) In the 1910 Congressional elections, Democrats swept to power, and Taft’s reelection in 1912 was increasingly in doubt.” (Blum, John Morton, 252).

William Howard Taft was Americas 27th president. William was born on September 15, 1857. He was born in Cincinnati, Ohio into the Taft family. Taft’s dad, Alphonso Taft was a lawyer and public official; he was Presidents Grant’s secretary of war. Taft’s father was a lawyer. William’s mother Louise Maria Taft was Alphonso’s second wife. William had two half brothers, two brothers and one sister. His ancestry consists of English, Scotch-Irish. William attended a public school in Cincinnati. He went to Woodward High School and then Yale University in 1874. He was quite a smart boy; he graduated second in his whole class of Yale University. Williams’s father also attended Yale and graduated in 1833 to later become a tutor at Yale. Taft, after

There have been forty-four U.S. Presidents over the past two hundred and twenty four years. Some were very successful. Of those few historians, Abraham Lincoln was one of the greatest presidents that ever live. He is responsible for preserving the union, freeing the slaves, and enacting various new policies. Lincoln was a president that never gave up and put his people first. He was strong, confident and believes in his principles. Some of the presidents were least successful. Of those few historians, Herbert Hoover wasn’t very successful while he was in office. He was considered to be a terrible president because an awful thing occurred on his watch. Which was the Great Depression.

William Howard Taft spent the majority of his presidency concerning himself with foreign policy and proving to be even more progressive than Roosevelt in terms of busting trusts. Taft was very interested in involving American politics to areas abroad, a foreign policy critics dubbed "dollar diplomacy". Along with the help of Washington, Taft encouraged Wall Street bankers to invest their superfluous money into foreign areas of strategic concern to the United States, such as the Far East and regions critical to the Panama Canal. Their investments would supposedly "strengthen American defenses and foreign policies, while bringing further prosperity to their homeland- and to themselves" (683). Taft's "dollar diplomacy", although not coinciding with the domestic progressivism norm exemplified by Roosevelt, was progressive nonetheless as it replaced the necessity of the big stick. Not only interested with matters abroad, Taft focused his eyes on the issue that made his predecessor famous, busting the trusts. In all, Taft brought 90 suits against the trusts during his four year term, largely outnumbering Roosevelt's 44 suit total in seven and half years. Taft's most famous and publicized antitrust suit was against the U.S. Steel Corporation. This suit also brought the most criticism, surprisingly by Taft's "creator", Theodore Roosevelt. Under Taft's control, trusts were

When presenting the question of who deserves the title of best President of the United States, one would not be surprised to find Lincoln, Jefferson, Washington, and FDR as the frontrunners. While each of these presidents was undisputedly successful and groundbreaking in their own right, all fall short to America’s first modern president- Theodore Roosevelt. Roosevelt, assuming office at the turn of the century, redefined and reimagined the role of the president and the executive officialdom. By expanding the powers of the presidency, Roosevelt was able to move the country forward in both the international arena and on the home front. Roosevelt’s vast success can greatly be attributed to his charisma, character, and persuasion skills. He understood that the art of governing was truly the power to persuade, and he mastered the trade. Roosevelt not only improved life domestically as he fought against inequality and corrupt business practices, but he also achieved his goal of gaining influence abroad, thus earning the United States a powerful platform on the global stage. Roosevelt’s natural leadership, charm, bravery, and compassion combined with his thorough understanding of the country’s needs, both for the individual and for the long-term well being of the country, made him the most successful president in United States history.

William Howard Taft once said “Action for which I become responsible, or for which my administration becomes responsible, shall be within the law” (Brainyquote.com). Taft was the first U.S President to throw a first pitch at a baseball game. President Taft was easy going even with the nickname of Big Lub (because of his weight). After his Presidency, Taft lost about 70 pounds within a few years of leaving the White House. Taft attended Yale university and came in second in his class. In college, he stayed away from sports to focus on his studies. Taft was the twenty-seventh president of the United states of America. He served from 1909-1913. In 1921 President Warren Harding made Taft Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court,

Theodore “Teddy” Roosevelt was the president of the United States during the time of 1901 to 1909. He was vice president during William McKinley’s term. When McKinley was assassinated in 1901 by Leon Czolgosz, Roosevelt had to step up. He was a Republican, but his foundations were more progressive. This plays a part in why he did not get the Republican nomination in the year 1912. He lost the nomination to his handpicked successor Taft, who had run as president in the previous term (1909-1913). When he did not get the nomination, Roosevelt decided to run as a third party which he called the bull moose party. By doing this, it splits the Republican vote between Taft and Roosevelt. This has a large effect on the election, causing the Democrat Woodrow Wilson to become president. Woodrow Wilson was president from 1913 to 1921 with World War I happening in 1914. Wilson declared neutrality. Because of this, some people ask, “What if Theodore Roosevelt has been president during World War I?” In the article, “The Election of Theodore Roosevelt, 1912” by John Lukacs, he writes about an alternate universe of sorts where Roosevelt wins the Republican nomination and the presidential election of 1912. In this report, the following questions will be answered: Was Roosevelt a productive president? How do Roosevelt and Taft compare and contrast, as well as Roosevelt and Wilson? Would Roosevelt be an efficient president if he won the 1912 election? My thoughts are weaved throughout the

John Adams was the second U.S. president. He had a political record before presidency as well. He also served as vice president. He only served one term but was a “good” president. In this report I think that John Adams will be a good president and have a good reputation.

	Coolidge was the first in his family to attend college. His years in Amherst gave Coolidge "an understanding of culture, strengthened his bent toward civic service and also persuaded him of the necessity of stability and harmony in the affairs of men." ("American Presidency"). He later graduated with honors and became an scholar with an interest in law.

Coolidge was a good student, making high grades and applying himself diligently. He often took long walks just to think and ponder things he had learned (Sobel, 25, 26, 28, 32, 33). In 1890, Coolidge proudly graduated from Black River Academy. He had no idea what his future had for him (Lawerence). He entered Amherst University in September of 1891 around the time his father married his stepmother (Sobel, 31). He learned many languages such as Greek, Latin, French, and German (Greenburg, 18). He eventually graduated from Amherst University unsure of what to do next.

When thinking about the numerous, dynamic leaders that America has had over the course of the nation’s history, it can become troublesome to fairly compare these respective heads of state. Though each American president has unquestionably left their own unique legacy from their time in office, when comparing leaders from similar times, certain consistencies can present themselves. While the Presidency is of course beholden to constructs of political normativity subjective to the era they presided in, by choosing two POTUS’ from the same era, we can more adequately synthesize comparable actions and philosophies between the two. To this end, we will analyze the terms of Theodore Roosevelt and William Howard Taft, cutting through narratives of their tenures to truly delineate their comparability. Through a comprehensive analysis of these two leaders on the subjects of foreign policy, we begin to parse out many similarities and differences between these two early 20th century leaders.

“No man ever entered the Presidency so profoundly and widely distrusted, and no one ever retired … more generally respected.” -Alexander K. McClure, newspaper editor and publisher. Chester Alan Arthur, also known as “The Gentleman Boss”, was the best president in US history. President Arthur was not expected to become president and wasn’t trusted, yet still lead this country very profoundly. President Chester Alan Arthur was also not only known as “The Gentleman Boss”, but as “Elegant Arthur” as well. He was called these names because of his elegant taste in clothing and his transformation of the Executive Mansion. President Chester Alan Arthur was a great man who did many things that helped benefit our country. He also was very dedicated to

The 27th President of the United States was born William Howard Taft on the 15th day of September, in the year 1857 to Alphonso and Louise Taft, of Cincinnati, Ohio. As he was the first of their sons to survive past infancy, his mother did not mind that he had outgrown all the baby clothes she had sown for him when he was only seven weeks old. Due to his large size he was given the nickname of “Lub” or “Lubber” which only fueled his desire to succeed in school and on the playing field. He later became to be known as the largest president in the history of United States, weighing in at 320 pounds. Although it was rumored that due to his large size he actually got stuck in the White House bath tub. It took six aides and a gallon of butter to

What made Theodore Roosevelt such a great president and person? Many people aspire to be like him, but he sets a high bar for humanity. He is in many people's opinions one of the greatest presidents of the United States, so incredible that his face is set in stone and will be for hundreds of years in the future.