Progressive Era Packet Questions (continued)

4) Was Taft a true "Progressive"? Make a list of points for and against...

     >FOR: Taft made, and followed through with, a pledge to cut rates on the tariff. He supported insurgents who were trying to, and succeeded in, liberalizing procedures in the House. Prosecuted more trusts than Roosevelt. Signed off on the Mann-Elkins Act which improved the regulatory powers of the ICC and supported labor reforms. 17th Amendment (direct election of US senators) passed during his presidency.

     >AGAINST: Taft's bill which cut rates failed, and he signed off on a bill that restored many of the cuts. He abandoned the insurgents whom he had earlier supported. Fired Gifford Pinchot who protested Richard A. Ballinger's plan to lessen federal supervision of western waterpower sites. 16th Amendment (allowing income tax) passed during his presidency.

5) Who were the main contenders in the 1912 election? What were the election returns?

     The three main contenders in the election were Wilson (democrat), Roosevelt (progressive), and Taft (republican). Taft got 1.5% of the electoral votes and 23% of the popular votes. Roosevelt got 16.5% of the electoral votes and 27% of the popular votes. Wilson, the winner, got 82% of the electoral votes and 42% of the popular votes.

6) Define Wilson's "New Freedom" platform.

     Concentrated economic power threatened individual liberty and monopolies had to be broken up so the marketplace would be generally open. He did not believe in cooperation between business and government.

7) What reforms were passed during Wilson's presidency?

     His administration passed the Clayton Antitrust Act which helped to prevent corporate abuses and corrected problems that the Sherman Antitrust Act had. He also passed a bill which created the FTC which investigated companies and gave orders against unfair trade practices. Also, the Federal Reserve Act established the first national bank since the expiration of the second national bank in 1836. He set the Underwood Tariff to restore competition by encouraging imports. Finally, the Adamson Act, which mandated an 8 hour work day and set overtime pay for railroad workers, was passed.

Progressive Era Packet Questions

1) What role did President Roosevelt want the federal government to serve?

     President Roosevelt wanted the federal government to involve itself more in business affairs and national concerns such as the progressives and their goal of eliminating harsh working conditions and giving more power to the workers instead of letting the big business owners control society.

2) What reforms were achieved during Roosevelt's presidency?

     Roosevelt used antitrust laws to eliminate the abuse of the public through trusts occurring in the railroad, meatpacking, and oil companies. He also helped to get the Hepburn Act passed, which gave the ICC more authority to set railroad freight and storage rates. However, it also gave courts the authority to overrule the set rates. Roosevelt supported the Meat Inspection Act which required that government agents monitor the quality of processed meat. Finally, he also supported the Pure Food and Drug Act that prohibited dangerously adulterated foods and addressed abuses in the patent medicine industry.

3) How did Roosevelt handle the 1902 United Mine Workers' Strike? How did this illustrate his stance toward unions?

     He forced the mining company to recognize the union and accept arbitration of the dispute by a special commission. This illustrated the side of Roosevelt's belief that there are legitimate labor demands that should be recognized and met by the employer. However, this does not show the other side of his belief which is that there are also illegitimate/inappropriate labor demands that the President and/or federal government should put down.

Triangle Factory Fire Response

     My reaction to these events would be frustration, outrage, and sadness. Sadness/mourning obviously because of the workers who died due to shortcuts taken by the owners to save themselves a few bucks. Frustration because this isn't the first time that workers have been injured and/or killed in their workplace. Finally, outraged because there isn't one big-business owner out there who is actually putting worker safety where it should be, ahead of money. I think that these business owners should be put in prison for indirect murder of their employees by purposefully ignoring any sort of common-sense safety measures.

     The events during and after the Triangle Factory Fire tie into the Progressive Era because people after the fire began pushing for changes in workplace safety measures. They began saying that it's not right to let your workers die for the sole purpose of saving some money. This push for progression in workplace safety measures is very similar to the other pushes for workplace progression during the Progressive Era.

Response to Prompt

Respond to the prompt:

"Explain why unions had little success during the period 1871-1900 in improving the economic and social position of U.S. workers."

 

      Unions had little success in improving the positions of U.S. workers because the Big Businesses were becoming too big and too powerful for the unions to take on. Strikes were the only true way to make a change to the treatment of workers; and therefore, going on strike was the most effective tactic of the Union Workers. However, this soon became one of the worst things to do because there were so many immigrants and cheap-laborers that once the normal workers had gone on strike, they were fired completely and the business gave their position to one of the immigrants. With their main tactic useless, the unions had little other choice but to go at the businesses politically. This was even more pointless than going on strike because many if not all of the most powerful people that the unions could turn to were being bribed by the businesses to give nothing to the unions. With political corruption and immigrants waiting to take the jobs of strikers, there was nothing that the unions could do for their members, making them ineffective during this time period.