Theodore Roosevelt: The Steward Of Public Welfare

Theodore Roosevelt, who was perhaps the most Progressive president of all, was considered so due to his belief that the president is “the steward of public welfare” (Foner 706). This means that Roosevelt believed that the president was responsible for the overall well-being of the public—of American citizens. He did so by supporting a government regulation of the economy, which would help prevent our country being overrun by large corporations. In his Square Deal, Roosevelt “…attempted to confront the problems caused by economic consolidation” (Foner 706), and aimed to take down bad trusts that had no interest in the public and existed only for profit. Roosevelt also believed in conservation of land, which “…reflected the Progressive thrust toward
Wilson was considered more of a Progressive than Taft, due to his belief that “…government action [was] necessary to preserve individual freedom” (Foner 709), meaning that government regulation was needed in order for American citizens to keep their liberty. As someone who believed that corporate control of the government must be eliminated, Wilson supported small businesses, the rights of workers to unionize, and the reinforcement of antitrust laws, as seen in his program titled “The New Freedom”. Wilson’s most important pieces of legislation were the Clayton Act, which “…exempted labor unions from antitrust laws” (Foner 711), the Keating-Owen Act, that banned child labor, specifically in “…the manufacturing of goods sold in interstate commerce” (Foner 711), and the Adamson Act, which imposed an eight-hour workday on our nation’s railroads. Wilson expanded the meaning of freedom in America by making sure that our government was doing all that it could to protect individuals from a loss of freedom that would be expected from a corporate-controlled government. By enabling the working class and general population, Wilson gave the “little people” a