Description
The 1912 Presidential Election was easily one of the most dynamic if not consequential elections in the 20th century. While incumbent Republican President William Howard Taft faced opposition from the Democratic Party nominee Woodrow Wilson, he also faced arguably the greatest third party challenge in the Progressive candidate, former President Theodore Roosevelt. If that wasn’t interesting enough, the Socialist Party of America ran Eugene V. Debs who received over 900,000 popular votes. The race very quickly evolved into a contest between Theodore Roosevelt (“New Nationalism”) and Woodrow Wilson (“New Freedom”) who both espoused progressive values but articulated fundamentally different approaches to leading the country and government’s role in a modern democracy.
Answer the following three (3) questions in an essay.
1. What are the major arguments contained within these two political platforms? Be specific.
2. Which platform (New Nationalism or New Freedom) do you agree with most and why? Be specific.
3. Are there modern day parallels regarding debates about the role of government in our society today? In what specific ways?
Use specific evidence from “The New Nationalism vs. The New Freedom” document to support your arguments.
