This
week I've decided to continue with my reading of Morris's three-part
series chronicling the life of Theodore Roosevelt. Theodore
Rex focuses exclusively on
Theodore Roosevelt's time as president from the death of William
McKinley in September of 1901 to his succession by William Howard
Taft in March of 1909. These seven and a half years are some of the
most influential in creating the modern presidency and shifting the
balance of power in Washington away from the legislative to the
executive branch. Of course Roosevelt had plenty of challenges put
forth by a sometimes obstinate Congress, but in many ways his sheer
force of personality reshaped the presidency to the center of
national politicial affairs. I will say that this particular book is
a very good grounding in the basic history of Roosevelt's
administration, but it is in no way exhaustive.
From a mechanical
viewpoint I did have some serious concerns regarding the focus of
attention in the book. My hardcover edition clocks in at five hundred
and fifty-five pages, yet nearly two-thirds of the book is focused
exclusively on his first administration. Roosevelt's second term, one
which was certainly equally significant, is crammed into the last
third of the book and feels definitely more rushed by comparison. I
feel like there certainly was enough material to talk about his
second term at length, especially the wide range of reform
legislation including the landmark Pure Food and Drug Act, his
negotiation of the peace settlement between Japan and Russia in 1905,
and other economic, ecological, and diplomatic efforts.
Morris definitely
seems to pick specific incidents of historic note in his biography
that tell an interesting story and develop over time. Specifically
anti-trust reform, economic policies, the Panama Canal, race
relations, and diplomatic negotiations take up a significant portion
of the text, often unfolding as a sort of narrative. However many
stories abruptly disappear from the narrative, such as the Panama
Canal. Once the treaty for construction of the canal has been
approved by a freshly independent Panama, it fades entirely from the
narrative. There is a brief mention of Roosevelt's visit to the
construction site of the canal and his investigation of the poor
conditions, but nothing is said about the actions (if any) taken by
Roosevelt to improve the working conditions in Panama. Granted, the
construction of such a massive structure is a heroic tale in and of
itself, but for it to disappear so suddenly after considerable
attention had been paid to it is certainly jarring to say the least.
I will say from a
policy standpoint I have certainly become far more mixed on my
opinions of Theodore Roosevelt. Although his federal regulation and
reform of big business, as well as conservation efforts are
definitely ground-breaking during their era and setting a tone for a
whole new approach to government, his foreign and racial policy
certainly leave a lot to be desired. Roosevelt begins his presidency
as fairly progressive, inviting the great educator Booker T.
Washington to a White House dinner. However there was an incredibly
negative reaction, especially in the still racially segregated South,
which caused Roosevelt to begin an almost frantic backpedaling on his
policies. He certainly makes a few other forays to try and advance
the cause of racial equality, but they are very few and very early on
in his administration. By his second term he seems to have almost
regressed when he dismisses an entire regiment of black troops for
alleged wrongdoing, despite an incredible lack of any evidence that
they were guilty of anything. Foreign policy wise, Roosevelt is a
very typical late nineteenth, early twentieth century Imperialist,
determined to expand American influence, both military, political,
and economic across the globe but most especially in the Western
Hemisphere. His statement that it is the duty of the United States to
“spank” any misbehaving Latin American republics is discouraging
to say the least. These shortcomings are understandable, considering
the time period, but still frustrating to say the least.
I will also say
that this book has continued making me interested in reading more
about other historical figures. As the last book made me curious
about Grover Cleveland and his policies, which seemed to be fairly
reform minded, I was also made curious about William Howard Taft who
very much did not wish to become president and was forced to do so by
his wife, Helen. I'm also a little curious now about J.P. Morgan as
well, who is described in this book as a brilliant economic mind bu
also painfully shy and socially awkward. Of course this doesn't mean
that J.P. Morgan wasn't an asshole, he certainly seems to have been
one, but it definitely makes me interested in reading more.
Overall
I think this book is pretty good, although it has some definite
faults. The biggest of course is the lack of focus on Roosevelt's
second term, which included the historic Treaty of Portsmouth and
Pure Food and Drug Act, both of which were major achievements of his
presidency and could be the center of their own monographs, if they
haven't been already. As a basic grounding of Roosevelt's presidency
and his policies, it's a fairly good book for just that. The lack of
exhaustive detail is certainly disappointing and leaves me wondering
about finding other books that are far more detail-oriented. I will
hopefully be reading the final book in Morris's series, Colonel
Roosevelt, provided, of course,
that I can find a copy in the first place. Believe it or not, I can
never see to find one whenever I go to Half Price Books. Oh well,
back to good old science-fiction next week.
- Kalpar
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