Something To Read About

William Taft was born in 1857 in Ohio to a pair of demanding parents that expected the best from him. William followed his father by attending Yale and graduating second in his class. Taft then went on to study law at the University of Cincinnati. The law student also recieved many law internships and jobs during his years before the Presidency.

Between 1887 and 1900, Taft held a variety of judicial positions that included judge of Cincinnati Superior Court and member of the Sixth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. President McKinley apponted Taft as the president of commission to oversee the newly won Philippine Islands. Taft did want to take the position, but was pushed my many people including his wife whom would later push him into the Presidency. After becoming governor of the islands, Taft used bloody tactics to pacify the rebellious islanders. He successfully held the position for three years and twice turned down President Roosevelt’s offer of a position to the Supreme Court. William Taft did not know his rejection of the position would change not only his life, but the lives of many American’s.

“The busiet, hardest working, most effective Secretary of War that the United Stated Government has had in many years is William Howard Taft, yet he is the most accesible. Any one may go to see him, and he has time to listen to each one, but where the time comes from is a mystery. No one else has so much to so, unless it be Theodore Roosevelt…” (Dunn)

With Taft having been Roosevelt’s Secretary of War for a few years, he thought Taft would be a successor but Roosevelt thought wrong. In 1909, Taft was sworn in as the President of the United States. Taft defeated a three time nominee due to his overwhelming support from Theodore.

“Taft proved a less adroit politician than Roosevelt and seemed to lack the energy and personal magnetism of his mentor, not to mention the publicity devices, the dedicated supporters, and the broad base of public support that made Roosevelt so formidable.(wikipedia)”

Taft ignored the advice of Roosevelt and lowered tariffs, putting producers (manufacturars and farmers) against department stores. He made a bad move by encouraging reformers to fight for lower rates, while on the other hand cutting deals with conservatives to keep the rates high. Then he took credit from Senator Nelson Aldrich for the Payne-Aldrich Tariff Act.

Taft’s reign as President did not go completely to waste. He impossed a 1% tax on all corporate net income over $5000. This caused the fiscal year to grow $13.8 million dollars in two years. He also helped pass the 16th Ammendmant in 1909, which allowed individuals to be taxed. The domestic policy was also strengthened with the “Interstate Commerce Comission.” Through the ‘Dollar Diplomacy’, Taft was able to help strengthen the economics of less fortunate throughout Asian and Latin American countries by enforcing    

When dealing with business, Taft decided it was better to file 90 antitrust suits instead of winning them over with good rhetoric. This was a bad mistake and caused Taft to lose a lot of support from antitrust reformers and even former President Roosevelt. Taft also fired a close ally of Roosevelt, Gifford Pinchot. Taft filed 75 lawsuits for the prosecution of trusts.

Taft did make some big mistakes during his Presidency. His lawyer side came out a little too much with all of the court cases that he performed while in office. Maybe his pushy wife was to blame. She was the one who wanted him to become President in the first place. Perhaps it could have been he did feel he was fully capable of being President. Overall, he did not do a good job but I am not sure if any person could have lived up to the legacy that Roosevelt left behind. 

 ”He had never wanted the job, and did not ry very hard to get it. He dreaded each time he had to speak in front of an audience, and he felt he lacked the personality to be a leader. Yet somehow he had risen to the highest office in the land.” (Benson)

Benson, Michael. William H. Taft.United States:Twenty-First Century Books, 2004.  

Dunn, Robert Lee.William Howard Taft.United States:The Chapple publishing company, 1908.