Overview of Teddy Roosevelts Bull Moose Party Beliefs

Overview of Teddy Roosevelt's Bull Moose Party Beliefs The Bull Moose Party was the unofficial name of President Teddy Roosevelts Progressive Party of 1912. The nickname is said to have arisen from a quote by Theodore Roosevelt. When asked whether he was fit to be president, he responded that he was as fit as a bull moose. Origin of the Bull Moose Party Theodore Roosevelts term as president of the United States ran from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt was originally elected vice president on the same ticket as  William McKinley in 1900, but in September of 1901, McKinley was assassinated and Roosevelt finished out McKinleys term. He then ran and won the presidency in 1904. By 1908, Roosevelt had decided not to run again, and he urged his personal friend and ally William Howard Taft to run in his place. Taft was chosen and then won the presidency for the Republican Party. Roosevelt became unhappy with Taft, primarily because he wasnt following what Roosevelt considered progressive policies. In 1912, Roosevelt put his name forward to become the Republican Partys nominee again, but the Taft machine pressured Roosevelts supporters to vote for Taft or lose their jobs, and the party chose to stick with Taft. This angered Roosevelt who walked out of the convention and then formed his own party, the Progressive Party, in protest. Hiram Johnson of California was chosen as his running mate. The Platform of the Bull Moose Party The Progressive Party was built on the strength of Roosevelts ideas. Roosevelt portrayed himself as an advocate for the average citizen, whom he said should play a larger role in government. His running mate Johnson was a progressive governor of his state, who had a record of successfully implementing social reforms. True to Roosevelts progressive beliefs, the platform of the party called for major reforms including womens suffrage, social welfare assistance for women and children, farm relief, revisions in banking, health insurance in industries, and workers compensation. The party also wanted an easier method to amend the constitution. Many prominent social reformers were drawn to the Progressives, including Jane Addams of Hull House, Survey magazine editor Paul Kellogg, Florence Kelley of Henry Street Settlement, Owen Lovejoy of the National Child Labor Committee, and Margaret Dreier Robins of the National Womens Trade Union. Election of 1912 In 1912, voters chose between Taft, Roosevelt, and  Woodrow Wilson, the Democratic candidate. Roosevelt shared many of the progressive policies of Wilson, yet his core support came from ex-Republicans who defected from the party. Taft was defeated, getting 3.5 million votes compared to Roosevelts 4.1 million. Together Taft and Roosevelt earned a combined 50% of the popular vote to Wilsons 43%. The two former allies split the vote, however, opening the door for Wilsons victory. Midterm Elections of 1914 While the Bull Moose Party lost at the national level in 1912, they were energized by the force of their support. Continuing to be bolstered by Roosevelts Rough Rider persona, the party named candidates on the ballot at several state and local elections. They were convinced that the Republican party would be swept away, leaving U.S. politics to the Progressives and Democrats. However, after the 1912 campaign, Roosevelt went on a geographic and natural history expedition to the Amazon River in Brazil. The expedition, which began in 1913, was a disaster and Roosevelt returned in 1914, sick, lethargic, and frail. Even though he publicly renewed his pledge to fight for his Progressive party to the end, he was no longer a robust figure. Without the energetic support of Roosevelt, the 1914  election results were disappointing for the Bull Moose Party as many voters returned to the Republican Party.   End of the Bull Moose Party By 1916, the Bull Moose Party had changed: A prominent leader, Perkins, was convinced that the best route was to unite with Republicans against the Democrats. While the Republicans were interested in uniting with the Progressives, they were not interested in Roosevelt. In any case, Roosevelt refused the nomination after the Bull Moose party chose him to be its standard-bearer in the presidential election. The party tried next to give the nomination to Charles Evan Hughes, a sitting justice on the Supreme Court. Hughes also refused. The Progressives held their last executive committee meeting in New York on May 24, 1916, two weeks before the Republican National Convention. But they were unable to come up with a reasonable alternative to Roosevelt. Without its Bull Moose leading the way, the party dissolved shortly thereafter. Roosevelt himself died of stomach cancer in 1919. Sources Dalton, Kathleen. Finding Theodore Roosevelt: A Personal and Political Story. The Journal of the Gilded Age and Progressive Era, vol. 6, no. 4, 2007, pp. 363–83.Davis, Allen F. The Social Workers and the Progressive Party, 1912–1916. The American Historical Review, vol. 69, no. 3, 1964, pp. 671–88.Green, G. N. Republicans, Bull Moose, and Negroes in Florida, 1912. The Florida Historical Quarterly, vol. 43 no. 2, 1964, pp. 153–64.Ickes, Harold L. Who Killed the Progressive Party? The American Historical Review, vol. 46, no. 2, 1941, pp. 306–37.Pavord, Andrew C. The Gamble for Power: Theodore Roosevelts Decision to Run for the Presidency in 1912. Presidential Studies Quarterly, vol. 26, no. 3, 1996, pp. 633–47.