Political positions of Theodore Roosevelt

This article is part of a series about Theodore Roosevelt
Political positions Electoral history Early life Family The Naval War of 1812 Rough Riders Battle of San Juan Hill 1886 New York City mayoral election 33rd Governor of New York Governorship "The Strenuous Life" 25th Vice President of the United States 1900 McKinley-Roosevelt campaign "Speak softly and carry a big stick" 26th President of the United States Presidency Timeline First term McKinley assassination 1st inauguration Square Deal West Wing Coal strike Booker T. Washington dinner Venezuela crisis Roosevelt Corollary Second term 1904 campaign Election 2nd inauguration Conservation Antiquities Act Forest Service Pure Food and Drug Act FDA Swift & Co. v. United States Meat Inspection Act Treaty of Portsmouth Nobel Prize FBI Panama Canal Great White Fleet 1912 election Republican Convention Progressive Party Convention New Nationalism Assassination attempt Post Presidency African Expedition River of Doubt Expedition "Citizenship in a Republic" WWI volunteers Legacy Memorials Depictions
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Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919) served as the president of the United States (1901–1909). He also served as the vice president of the United States (1901) and governor of New York (1889–1900). He was defeated in the 1912 United States presidential election. He was a leading spokesman for progressivism after 1890. By 1907 he was denouncing "Malefactors of Great Wealth" (big business) and attacking the courts as too beholden to business. He split with his chosen presidential successor William Howard Taft and in 1912 tried and failed to stop the conservative Republicans from renominating Taft and taking control of the party. Instead he created a new party with a platform that presaged the liberalism of the New Deal Democrats of the 1930s.^[1] In terms of foreign policy, however, Roosevelt appealed to conservatives by promoting nationalism, imperialism (as in the Philippines), using force to obtain control of the Panama Canal, and building a powerful world-class navy.^[2]

In domestic policy Roosevelt called for a "square deal" for the American people, with four major themes issuing from much more powerful national government.^[3] Key aspects of the Square Deal included: Conservation: Roosevelt removed 194 million acres of land from commercial use turning them into national forests and parks. Corporate Regulation: His aggressive efforts To limit the power of giant corporations and trusts earned Roosevelt the nickname "The Trust-Buster". Consumer Protection: The Square Deal led to the passage of major new forms of regulation such as the Pure Food and Drug Act and the Federal Meat Inspection Act in 1906, which aimed to improve food safety and protect consumers. Labor Rights: Roosevelt supported workers' rights to form unions and receive compensation for work-related injuries in federal workplaces.^[4] When President Taft was too conservative Roosevelt broke with him and the Republican Party, allowing the Democrat Woodrow Wilson to win in 1912, Wilson, a champion of liberalism, won reelection in 1916 by winning over many of the Square Deal Roosevelt supporters.^[5][6][7] In March 1918, in one of his last speeches, Roosevelt arguably foreshadowed the New Deal "by advocating aid to farmers, multipurpose river valley developments, public housing projects, reductions in the hours of labor, and sundry social security measures including old age, sickness, and unemployment insurance."^[8]