Roosevelt
Theodore Roosevelt, 26th President of the United states Was the youngest
President in the nations history. he took office at the age of 42. Roosevelt had
been vice President for only six months when president William McKinley was
assassinated. He vigorously led Congress and the American public toward
progressive reforms and a strong foreign policy. He took The view that the
president as a “steward of the people” should take whatever action
necessary for the public good unless expressly forbidden by law or the
constitution. “I did not usurp power, ” he wrote, “but i did
greatly broaden the use of executive power.” Roosevelt’s youth differed
sharply from that of the log cabin Presidents. he was born in New York city on
October 27,1858 into a wealthy family, but he too struggled–against ill
health. When Theodore was about 12, his father told him that he would need a
strong body to give his mind a chance to develop fully. The next year, while on
a trip to Maine, Theodore was tormented by two mischievous boys. He felt ashamed
because he was not strong enough to fight back. Roosevelt’s father built a
gymnasium in the family home, and Theodore exercised there regularly. He
overcame his asthma and built up unusual physical strength. Roosevelt studied
under tutors until he entered Harvard University in 1876 at the age of 18. He
earned good grades in college. Roosevelt graduated from
Harvard in 1880. In October 1879, Roosevelt met Alice Hathaway Lee. Roosevelt
courted Alice during his senior year at Harvard. They married on his 22nd
birthday. A double tragedy struck on Feb. 14, 1884. Alice Roosevelt died two
days after the birth of a daughter. On the same day, Roosevelt’s mother died if
typhoid fever. Roosevelt spent much of the next two years on his ranch in the
badlands of Dakota Territory. There he mastered his sorrow as he lived in the
saddle, driving cattle, hunting big game–he even captured an outlaw. On a visit
to London, he married Edith Kermit Carow in December 1886. During the
Spanish-American War, Roosevelt recruited men for a cavalry regiment. This unit
became the First Volunteer Cavalry Regiment. Under Roosevelt s command, it won
fame as the Rough Riders. He led the Rough Riders on a charge at the Battle of
San Juan. Roosevelt was one of the most conspicuous heroes of the war. Twenty
years later he declared:”San Juan was the great day of my life. Thomas C.
Platt, needing a hero to draw attention away from scandals in New York State,
accepted Roosevelt as the Republican candidate for governor in 1898. Roosevelt
won and served with distinction. As president, Roosevelt held the ideal that
the Government should be the great arbiter of the conflicting economic forces in
the nation, especially between capital and labor, guaranteeing justice to each
and dispensing favors to none. Roosevelt emerged spectacurlarly as a “trust
buster” by forcing the dissolution of a great railroad combination in the
northwest. During Roosevelt’s presidency, the government filed suits against 43
other corporations. In major cases, the government ended John D. Rockerfeller’s
oil trust and James B. Duke’s tobacco trust. Roosevelt steered the united States
more actively into world politics. He liked to quote a favorite proverb ,
“Speak softly and carry a big stick, you will go far. Aware of the
strategic need for a shortcut between the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean, Roosevelt
ensured the construction of the Panama Canal. His corollary to the monroe
Doctrine prevented the establishment of foreign bases in the Caribbean and
arrogated the sole right of intervention in Latin America to the United States.
Roosevelt won the Nobel Peace Prize for mediating the Russo-Japanese War. He was
the first American to win a Nobel Prize. He reached a Gentleman’s agreement on
immigration with Japan. In 1907, Roosevelt decided to display American naval
power. He sent 16 new battleships on a good-will tour of the world. These ships
became known as the Great White Fleet because they were painted white. Roosevelt
viewed the tour as a part of “big stick” diplomacy. Some of Theodore
Roosevelt’s most effective achievements were in conservation. He added about 150
million acres to the national forests and in 1905 established the United States
Forest Service. he also set up five new national parks. By executive order, he
created the first 51 federal bird reservations and the first four national game
preserves. The Roosevelt children and their friends became known as the
“White House Gang.” The President sometimes joined in the children’s
games. One day, he heard thet the gang was preparing an “attack” on
the White House. he sent a message to the children through the War Department,
ordering them to call off the “attack.” Leaving the Presidency in
1909, Roosevelt went on an African safari, then jumped back into politics. In
1912 he ran for president on a Progressive ticket. To reporters he once remarked
that he felt as fit as a bull moose, the name of his new party. While
campaigning in Milwaukee, he was shot in the chest by a fanatic. Roosevelt soon
recovered, but his words at that time would have been applicable at the time of
his death in 1919: “No man has had a happier life then I have led; a
happier life in every way.”
