The Legacy Of Theodore Roosevelt's Legacy

Lizzy Brunn
Pellegrino
Honors Humanity 9
26 October 2016
Theodore Roosevelt’s Legacy The turn of the 20th century sparked change throughout the United States. Theodore Roosevelt’s life was among those drastically changed. Following the assassination of President William Mckinley, Roosevelt was forced to take his position under unsavory conditions, to say the least (“Theodore Roosevelt”). Roosevelt inherited an unfinished job and a country in an uproar over Mckinley’s death. Despite the odds, Roosevelt emerged from his two terms a successful and favored president. While presidents like Abraham Lincoln, a man known for his actions, Roosevelt established a legacy through his personality and likeness. Roosevelt found success through his popularity,

These accomplishments were not without trials, however, and Roosevelt knew that in order to uphold his reputation of being willing to take action he would have to compromise. His presidency begun as a compromise, with Roosevelt promising to uphold Mckinley’s policies after his assassination. Roosevelt brought about a new set of progressive beliefs, wanting to restore democracy and end corruption. Roosevelt oftentimes valued relationships over action, frequently trying to please the Republicans but still stay true to his beliefs. He made balanced decisions, trying to regulate big business but not outright challenging the status of big business. (Milkis, Impact). Doing so kept him on the good side of republicans, which won the second term nomination for him (Jaycox). His decisions to please everyone were not in vain, and did give him some major benefits. It became apparent that these efforts paid off, as Americans started calling him “Steward of the Whole People” (Jaycox) due to his constant balance in pleasing everyone. Roosevelt understood that alienating groups of people would be to his detriment, and prioritized opinions over pushing his

He knew that being in the public’s eye could turn sour quickly if negative press spread, and manipulated the media to make sure this didn’t happen. Roosevelt understood the media and how he could manipulate it to his benefit. Roosevelt appealed to the public through the power of the media. He knew that millions of eyes watched him at all times, and essentially thought, hey, might as well make sure those eyes love me. The media had never been seen as a tool to use, but rather as a nuisance to deal with. Roosevelt changed all that, using the media as a “bully pulpit”, as he put it, to influence public opinions (Milkis, Domestic). He saw it as a good a good way to reach out to people and bypass political parties in doing so. Roosevelt’s forceful personality, many opinions, and rambunctious family made good