New Nationalism was a policy platform first proposed by former President of the United States

Theodore Roosevelt Theodore Roosevelt Jr. (October 27, 1858 – January 6, 1919), also known as Teddy or T.R., was the 26th president of the United States, serving from 1901 to 1909. Roosevelt previously was involved in New York (state), New York politics, incl ...

in a speech in Osawatomie, Kansas on August 31, 1910. The progressive nationalist policies outlined in the speech would form the basis for his campaign for a third term as president in the 1912 election, first as a candidate for the Republican Party nomination and then as a Progressive.

Speech

As noted by one historian, “Theodore Roosevelt’s political views lurched further to the left after his departure from the White House.” This was demonstrated when Roosevelt made the case for what he called "the New Nationalism" in a speech in Osawatomie, Kansas, on August 31, 1910. The central issue he argued was government protection of human welfare and

property rights The right to property, or the right to own property (cf. ownership), is often classified as a human right for natural persons regarding their Possession (law), possessions. A general recognition of a right to private property is found more rarely ...

,"The New Nationalism"
, text of Theodore Roosevelt's August 31, 1910 speech in Osawatomie, Kansas but he also argued that human welfare was more important than property rights. He insisted that only a powerful

federal government A federation (also called a federal state) is an entity characterized by a political union, union of partially federated state, self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a #Federal governments, federal government (federalism) ...

could regulate the economy and guarantee

justice In its broadest sense, justice is the idea that individuals should be treated fairly. According to the ''Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy'', the most plausible candidate for a core definition comes from the ''Institutes (Justinian), Inst ...

, and that a President can succeed in making his economic agenda successful only if he makes the protection of human welfare his highest priority. Roosevelt believed that the concentration in industry was a natural part of the economy. He wanted executive agencies, not courts, to regulate business. The federal government should be used to protect the laboring men, women and children from exploitation. Commenting on the speech, one journal noted that Further adding to this point, the same journal noted In terms of policy, Roosevelt's platform included a broad range of social and political reforms advocated by progressives.

Socioeconomic policy

In the socioeconomic sphere, the platform called for the following: * A

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to include all existing government medical agencies * Social insurance to provide for the elderly, the unemployed, and the disabled. * Limited injunctions in strikes. * A minimum wage law for women. * An eight-hour workday. * A federal

securities commission A securities commission, securities regulator or capital market authority is a government department or agency responsible for financial regulation of securities products within a particular country. Its powers and responsibilities vary greatly ...

. * Farm relief. *

Workers' compensation Workers' compensation or workers' comp is a form of insurance providing wage replacement and medical benefits to employees injured in the course of employment in exchange for mandatory relinquishment of the employee's right to sue his or her emp ...

for work-related injuries. * An

inheritance tax International tax law distinguishes between an estate tax and an inheritance tax. An inheritance tax is a tax paid by a person who inherits money or property of a person who has died, whereas an estate tax is a levy on the estate (money and pro ...

. * A

constitutional amendment A constitutional amendment (or constitutional alteration) is a modification of the constitution of a polity, organization or other type of entity. Amendments are often interwoven into the relevant sections of an existing constitution, directly alt ...

to allow a federal income tax.

Electoral reform

The electoral reforms proposed included *

Women's suffrage Women's suffrage is the women's rights, right of women to Suffrage, vote in elections. Several instances occurred in recent centuries where women were selectively given, then stripped of, the right to vote. In Sweden, conditional women's suffra ...

. * Direct election of Senators. *

Primary elections Primary elections or primaries are elections held to determine which candidates will run in an upcoming general election. In a partisan primary, a political party selects a candidate. Depending on the state and/or party, there may be an "open pri ...

for state and federal nominations.

Anti-corporatocracy proposals

The main theme of the platform was an attack on what he perceived as the domination of politics by business interests, which allegedly controlled both established parties. The platform asserted:

To destroy this invisible Government, to dissolve the unholy alliance between corrupt business and corrupt politics is the first task of the statesmanship of the day.

To that end, the platform called for the following: * Strict limits and disclosure requirements on political campaign contributions. * Registration of lobbyists. * Recording and publication of Congressional committee proceedings.

Influences and comparisons

The Promise of American Life, written in 1909 by Herbert Croly, influenced

to adopt the platform of New Nationalism and was popular with intellectuals and political leaders of the later New Deal.''The Promise of American Life: Updated Edition''
p. 29, Foreword by Franklin Foer New Nationalism was in direct contrast with

Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was the 28th president of the United States, serving from 1913 to 1921. He was the only History of the Democratic Party (United States), Democrat to serve as president during the Prog ...

's policy of The New Freedom, which promoted

antitrust Competition law is the field of law that promotes or seeks to maintain market competition by regulating anti-competitive conduct by companies. Competition law is implemented through public and private enforcement. It is also known as antitrust l ...

modification,

tariff A tariff or import tax is a duty (tax), duty imposed by a national Government, government, customs territory, or supranational union on imports of goods and is paid by the importer. Exceptionally, an export tax may be levied on exports of goods ...

reduction, and banking and currency reform. In terms of policy, Roosevelt's platform included a broad range of social and political reforms advocated by progressives. According to Nathan Miller, in his Osawatomie speech:

Foreshadowing the modern welfare state, he advocated positive action by the national government to advance equality of opportunity, justice, and security for all. Graduated income and inheritance taxes, a revamped financial system, a comprehensive workmen's compensation law, a commission of experts to regulate the tariff, limitations on the political activities of corporations, stringent new conservation laws, and regulation of child labor were all parts of his grab a bag of reforms.

According to Lewis L. Gould, "The Progressive party did not go as far as the New Deal of Franklin D. Roosevelt would, but it represented a long step in that direction." On the other hand, President

William Howard Taft William Howard Taft (September 15, 1857March 8, 1930) served as the 27th president of the United States from 1909 to 1913 and the tenth chief justice of the United States from 1921 to 1930. He is the only person to have held both offices. ...

told his brother, “I think the ‘New Nationalism’ proclaimed in the Osawatomie speech has frightened every lawyer in the Untied States and has greatly stirred up the indignation and fear of the thinking part of New England and the Middle States."Donald F. Anderson, ''William Howard Taft: A Conservative's Conception of the Presidency'' (2019) p. 178.

Quotations

* "I do not ask for overcentralization; but I do ask that we work in a spirit of broad and far-reaching nationalism when we work for what concerns our people as a whole. We are all Americans. Our common interests are as broad as the continent. I speak to you here in Kansas exactly as I would speak in New York or Georgia, for the most vital problems are those which affect us all alike." * "The essence of any struggle for healthy liberty has always been, and must always be, to take from some one man or class of men the right to enjoy power, or wealth, or position, or immunity, which has not been earned by service to his or their fellows. That is what you fought for in the Civil War, and that is what we strive for now." * "We grudge no man a fortune in civil life if it is honorably obtained and well used. It is not even enough that it should have gained without doing damage to the community. We should permit it to be gained only so long as the gaining represents benefit to the community."

Speech

Socioeconomic policy

Electoral reform

Anti-corporatocracy proposals

Influences and comparisons

Quotations

See also

References

Further reading