Roosevelt's Presidency

Today we learned more about President Roosevelt. We learned that Roosevelt viewed the presidency as a “bully pulpit” to promote progressive reforms. He directed the Justice Department to prosecute a number of unpopular monopolies. These actions won him the title the sobriquet “trustbuster.” Roosevelt favored the passing of regulatory laws including: the Hepburn Act, which strengthened the Interstate Commerce Commission and the Pure Food and Drug Act, which required that companies to accurately label the ingredients contained in processed food items. The Pure Food and Drug Act also made many drugs illegal to include heroin and cocaine. President Roosevelt wanted stricter regulations that would push smaller businesses out of the market. The American meatpacking industry could now compete with the federal stamp of approval required under the Meat Inspection Act. During Roosevelt’s presidency he founded Forest Service and supported conservation efforts of John Muir, the founder of the modern environmental movement. In his second term Roosevelt announced his Square Deal program as a way to stave off radicalism through progressive reform. In the election of 1912, Woodrow Wilson, a Democrat, promoted his New Freedom platform and ended up winning the election. He beat Roosevelt, Taft, and Eugene Debs in this election.

http://www.theodoreroosevelt.org/



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