Developments Initiated by Woodrow Wilson and Theodore Roosevelt Essay

Presidents

The United States of America is a strong proponent of democracy and a renowned democracy. Democracy in this sense implies periodic free and fair elections as well as participation. Since the attainment of independence in 1776, the country has conducted numerous successful elections for a president. The 1912 presidential elections appear in the history books as the most progressive as the two front-runners Woodrow Wilson and Theodore Roosevelt espoused progressive philosophies. This paper endeavors to compare and contrast their principles based on their writings.

The progressive politics era occurred between the 1890s and the 1920s and advocated social and political reforms. From Roosevelt's perspective, progressives were people who possessed serious transformational ideologies for the American citizenry (Bowles, 2011). Therefore, liberal politics revolved around the notion of progress, which asserts that advances in technology, science, and economic development can advance the human condition. As such, progressives sought to eliminate corruption and regulate monopolistic trust corporations by enacting antitrust laws. Such was achieved through concerted efforts aimed at reforming the local government, medicine, public education. Roosevelt and Wilson are among the most celebrated American presidents due to their great contributions. Their presidencies have numerous similarities and differences.

Theodore Roosevelt became the 26th and youngest American president in 1901 (aged 42) following the assassination of President William McKinley. He was also the Republican Party leader and founder of the Progressive Party. Roosevelt believed that the federal government had the power to initiate reforms. He further believed that large corporations were not intrinsically evil and formed part of the twentieth-century economic life. As such, he insisted that the government had to regulate in order to ensure that they used their corporate power appropriately.

Wilson is credited for various legislations like the Clayton Antitrust Act that prohibited price fixing and the Federal Reserve Act. Wilson believed that large corporations wielded much influence to the extent that trying to regulate them would not work. In his proposal, breaking up the monopolies, promoting small businesses through anti-trust laws, and allowing workers to form unions were the reasonable solutions in alleviating the economic problems facing the nation. It is important to note that Wilson helped in shaping the role of the American state in the international sphere by leading the country to the First World War in 1917.

Comparisons

Both Roosevelt's and Wilson's terms in office contributed to the increase of working class Americans. The progressive movement propagated a person-centered approach, which aimed at improving people's living conditions. Both leaders advocated the control of large corporations in the public interest as well as curbing the abuse of corporate power. Both leaders advocated individual plans, which challenged the status quo (laissez-faire government). For instance, Wilson advocated New Freedom while Roosevelt supported New Nationalism. New Nationalism called for broad reforms in all aspects of American life with exemption of race relations. Roosevelt believed that the needed social and political reforms could only be…