AMERICA
: THE LAST BEST HOPE
CHAPTER 13
The American DynamoShadowed By War
(1897-1914)
Presidential Terms
William McKinley
1897-1901
Theodore Roosevelt
1901-1909
William Howard Taft
1909-1913
Woodrow Wilson
1913-1921
TEACHER
The dominant figure in the final chapter of volume one is, of course,
Theodore Roosevelt. Teachers should encourage students to think deeply
about TR’s strengths and weaknesses, as detailed by Bennett. An interesting
discussion might center on whether Roosevelt merits inclusion on Mount
Rushmore with Washington, Jefferson, and Lincoln.
Roosevelt’s rise began in the McKinley administration as Assistant Secretary
of the Navy. He is a key player in Bennett’s account of the Spanish
American War. Bennett relates engaging stories from the conflict and
teachers can use those stories to explore deeper themes. One theme might
be the role of the “yellow press” to move the government and nation toward
war. Is the modern media even more influential on public opinion? Or
are Americans today, with so many sources of information, more able to
draw their own conclusions? Another theme is McKinley’s hesitation to
declare war, largely because he had seen war personally. TR had not. How
important is such combat experience for our Commanders in Chief?
The Spanish American War was a turning point in U.S. history. As Bennett
points out, the nation now entered the international stage as a world power.
Students need to see this in the context of a globe dominated by European
imperialism. This led to some deep questions for Americans. As we had
crossed the continent, all new territories added to the nation were made full
and equal partners in our republic. What about the new lands acquired in
the war? Those included Cuba, the Philippines, Guam, Puerto Rico and
soon afterwards, Hawaii. Would we make them equal partners, or establish
colonies like Europe had around the globe? Bennett notes that we liberated
Cuba from Spanish rule, but students will want to investigate the Platt
Amendment that the U.S. required Cuba to include in its constitution. They
remained very much a protectorate of the U.S. The other possessions were
not treated as future states, thus sparking a fierce debate between Americans
who wanted to maintain a presence overseas and anti-imperialists who
believed this violated sacred American principles of self-government. That
debate can be replicated by students and also viewed in the context of our
global role today.
Bennett points out that if we had not kept the Philippines, another nation
would have surely seized them. And, the U.S. did grant them independence
after World War II. But to understand the complexity of the decision to
AMERICA
: THE LAST BEST HOPE
TEACHER
keep them in 1898, students need to be reminded that the Filipinos had
been fighting for their independence against Spain before the war. Bennett
mentions that Emilio Aguinaldo led Filipino fighters in an uprising against
U.S. rule. This American-Filipino conflict took three years for American
troops to put down and cost an estimated 10,000 U.S. casualties. But this
war that was longer and much more costly than the Spanish American War
is only briefly mentioned in this, and almost any other work on American
history. Students might explore the tendency of all nations to remember
their own stories in certain ways using this as an illustration.
Photo 1: Booker T. Washington and
Theodore Roosevelt
TR’s rapid rise from war hero to governor, to vice-president and then to
president upon McKinley’s assassination is remarkable. He is the youngest
person ever to serve as our chief executive. Students need to see Roosevelt’s
rise in the midst of the Progressive Era, a time when Americans from all
walks of life were looking for ways to address difficult political, social, and
economic conditions brought on by the dramatic rise of industrialism and
urbanism. Such conditions were highlighted by great writers of the day
– people TR labeled “muckrakers.” Students would benefit from reading
selections of the works of Jacob Riis, Upton Sinclair, Lincoln Steffens,
Ida Tarbell, and others. Roosevelt certainly took progressive actions as
president in the areas of conservation, railroad regulation (the Elkins Act),
trust litigation (the Northern Securities Company case), and the protection
of consumers from tainted food and medicine (the Pure Food and Drug
Act). The debate Americans had then about the proper role of government
in a free market continues to this day. It tends to be what separates liberals
from conservatives. Teachers can easily compare the debates over progressive
reforms then with debates over government programs and policies today.
Americans largely accept a role for government in our lives, but how much
governmental involvement is too much?
Another fascinating moment involving TR related by Bennett is the story
of the president inviting Booker T. Washington to the White House for
dinner. In earlier chapters students read of the tragic implementation of
Jim Crow laws in the South. Bennett also relates the shocking patterns of
lynching that took place in the region. And Plessy v. Ferguson was the law
of the land, with the Supreme Court accepting segregation as legitimate
and just social policy. Students need to see Washington’s invitation in
this context. Bennett goes on to relate the conflict between Washington
and his contemporary rival, W.E.B. DuBois. Students would benefit from
researching the biographies of these two leaders. Do their different life
stories account for their very different approaches to seeking full civil rights
for African-Americans? Whose leadership was more relevant for AfricanAmericans at that time?
AMERICA
: THE LAST BEST HOPE
TEACHER
Roosevelt’s foreign policy should also lead to excellent class discussion.
Bennett details the story of the acquisition of the Panama Canal Zone in a
way that leaves the reader torn about the justice of TR’s actions. Would the
canal have been built without his “big stick?” Did Colombia have legitimate
grievances over this episode? Is TR to be admired for this action? If not,
are we unfairly applying our own standards of justice to that time? The
building of the canal itself was an extraordinary feat of engineering students
might explore more deeply. And the history of this incident is critical for a
discussion of the decision of the United States in 1977 to sign a treaty giving
Panamanians control of the canal in 2000. This caused a fierce debate in the
1970s. Was the treaty a good foreign policy decision? And the “Roosevelt
Corollary” also impacted U.S. relations with Latin America. Students can
discuss if it was indeed a legitimate extension of the Monroe Doctrine.
Photo 2: The Great Titanic Disaster
(Library of Congress)
Bennett calls the William Howard Taft administration an “interlude”
between two notable presidents. Students might evaluate whether Taft
deserves more recognition in our memory. Bennett points out that Taft
actually “busted” more trusts than did the original “trust buster” himself.
Why then, do we hold TR in such higher regard?
At this point of the narrative, Bennett tells the story of the Titanic. Students
likely know this story well, but will certainly find its retelling captivating.
Besides the human drama, Bennett puts his account in the context of the
Progressive Era, a time in which reformers attacked the colossal fortunes
of a few corporate giants, which they argued were gained at the expense of
the working masses. Students will see how stories coming from the tragedy
reinforced these perceptions of class and injustice.
Divisions within the Republican Party and disputes between TR and Taft
led to an attempt of the former president to replace his old friend and regain
power. The election of 1912 was one of the most dramatic in our history and
former allies became bitter enemies. Taft, Roosevelt, and Wilson all claimed
to be true progressives. Republican Taft ran on his record of reform, TR
called for more government action in his “New Nationalism” and with his
Progressive (Bull Moose) Party, and Democrat Woodrow Wilson called for
a “New Freedom.” Students will find it fascinating that a Socialist Party
candidate (Eugene V. Debs) garnered over a million votes. What does that
say about the challenging conditions facing workers in America at that
time? With the Republicans split between Taft and TR, Wilson won the
presidency. Bennett argues that a strong third party candidate led to the
election of a president who only a minority of Americans supported. Does
this make the definitive case for a two-party system?
Wilson’s New Freedom program did take progressive reforms to new levels.
AMERICA
: THE LAST BEST HOPE
TEACHER
The Federal Reserve System still plays a key role in our economy, one
that students can explore. The Underwood Tariff lowered rates that had
damaged U.S. trade. And the Clayton Anti-Trust Act corrected features
of the Sherman Act that had been used against unions. Bennett quotes
Samuel Gompers as calling this act a “charter of freedom” for workers.
Students should consider how critical the right to strike and picket has been
for workers struggling for higher wages and humane working conditions.
But Wilson, who was a southerner, is also remembered for his praise of the
clearly racist film Birth of a Nation, and for reintroducing segregation to the
federal work force in Washington D.C. These incidents remind students
that even progressive idealists of the period were sometimes hampered by the
prevailing prejudices that existed not just in the South, but also across the
nation.
This final chapter of volume one of America: The Last Best Hope concludes
with incidents in distant Europe that would spiral into a world conflict.
Entangling alliances caused the “powder keg” that was the Balkans to erupt
in a war that Americans initially believed was not their concern. But as
seen earlier in the chapter, America was by 1914 a world power in its own
right. As much as they might hope otherwise, Americans in uniform would
ultimately end up “over there.”