Panic-Struck Senators, Businessmen, and Everybody Else

Chapter 3 explores TR’s decision in late 1903 to encourage and support Panama’s secession from Colombia, in order to secure a site for the future Panama Canal, and the subsequent debate regarding the Hay-Bunau-Varilla Treaty. It examines how he and his allies overcame substantial criticism to harness public support for the treaty, and the extent to which concerns about domestic political implications influenced his handling of relations with Bogotá. The intervention occurred against the backdrop of the upcoming 1904 election, with TR facing dissent from anti-imperialists, conservative Republicans, including the influential Ohio senator Mark Hanna, and Democrats who hoped that the controversy would damage the president’s political standing.

The Stern, Unflinching Performance of Duty

Chapter 7 analyzes Roosevelt’s career after leaving the White House, with a focus on World War I. It considers his relationship with Woodrow Wilson and argues that, although TR disagreed with Wilson on key policies and regarding Wilson’s leadership style, his attacks on the president were personal and often so extreme that they were counterproductive. The chapter argues that though Roosevelt’s advocacy of two themes, preparedness and Americanism, initially attracted limited support, by 1916 he had begun to play a key role in shaping public discussions about the war. Though Roosevelt’s rhetoric was sometimes incendiary and contributed to discrimination against German-Americans and antiwar figures such as Senator Robert La Follette, by 1918 he emerged as a leading candidate for president in 1920. Only TR’s death, in early 1919, prevented his return to the pinnacle of US politics.

A Subject of Such Weight

Chapter 2 examines how TR handled the politics of European interventions in Latin America from 1901 to 1903, especially a blockade of Venezuela spearheaded by Britain and Germany. It argues that TR’s reading of public opinion was a central factor in the evolution of his thinking about the Monroe Doctrine, in that he initially overestimated the willingness of Americans to tolerate European interventions in Latin America. The chapter documents how fierce criticism of the Venezuela blockade, most of which was directed at Germany and which caused problems for Roosevelt with the nation’s large German-American community—a constituency whose support he would need in the 1904 election—played a crucial role in the formulation of the Roosevelt Corollary.

The Education of TR

Chapter 1 focuses on the origins of TR’s statecraft. It argues that the formative years of his political career played a key role in shaping his foreign policy. Before becoming president, he honed his ability to garner publicity for himself and his agenda. The most important means for this objective was the press, and this chapter traces the salient elements of TR’s relationship with journalists and editors. The first chapter also examines TR’s political worldview and argues that, in spite of an independent streak, he became a staunch and highly partisan member of the Republican Party and resisted the temptation to become a mugwump, like some other reformist Republicans. All of this had a crucial impact on his career, as TR’s foreign policy was linked to his ambitions for his career and party. The first chapter also examines the origins of TR’s thinking about two crucial great power nations, Britain and Germany, which figured prominently in US domestic politics during his career.

Foolish Offensiveness

Chapter 6 considers US-Japanese relations from 1905 to 1909. It examines several sources of tension, including an anti-Japanese movement that was particularly strong among organized labor in San Francisco, sensationalist newspapers in both countries, and concerns that Japan would attack the Philippines or Hawaii. The chapter argues that Roosevelt sought to strike a delicate balance in relations with Tokyo by protecting Japanese already in the United States, but also reducing the inflow of immigrants to mollify anti-Japanese sentiment. In an effort to upgrade US capabilities in the event of war, the president also convinced Congress to build additional battleships and sent the navy on a cruise around the world. TR also viewed the cruise as a way to increase public support for naval expansion.

Introduction

The introduction highlights the paradox that confronts modern US presidents, in that they enjoy considerable power in the realm of foreign policy but also face many potential constraints, such as partisanship and powerful lobby groups. It observes that though there are many books on the subject, there are few studies of how individual presidents have dealt with this aspect of statecraft. The introduction explains that Roosevelt presents an ideal case study for this subject and offers a preview of the book’s principal arguments. It also explains the book’s methodology, which entails a series of case studies, placing particular emphasis on public opinion and the role of the press, and describes original aspects of the book such as Roosevelt’s use of public diplomacy. The introduction also offers a preview of the book’s structure and the content of each chapter.

Behaving Righteously

Chapter 5 offers a fresh perspective on the Chinese boycott of US goods in 1905–1906. It argues that Roosevelt, who previously supported the exclusion of Chinese immigrants, came to view aspects of the exclusion regime as detrimental to US interests in China. The chapter documents the president’s attempts to convince Congress to implement reforms by harnessing support among the business community, missionaries, and educators. These groups, others who opposed reform, such as organized labor—led by Samuel Gompers—and Chinese-Americans sought to influence Roosevelt as well as public opinion. The chapter explains how TR’s concern that the boycott was transforming into an antiforeigner movement, and his belief that Beijing was unwilling to suppress it, led the president to begin planning for a military intervention. In the end this was unnecessary, as the boycott dwindled, but TR suffered a rare foreign policy setback when he failed to convince Congress to embrace reforms.

Conclusion

The conclusion considers the argument that, due in large part to the nature of the US political system, TR’s foreign policy was unsuccessful. It acknowledges the numerous challenges Roosevelt faced. However it maintains that, rather than failing, he achieved most of his objectives and, in doing so, served as an example of how to conduct an effective foreign policy. The chapter highlights TR’s vision for the United States, his political skill, faith in the US system and its people, and the emphasis he placed on political leadership. The conclusion contends that a good way of encapsulating Roosevelt’s success is that he understood and took advantage of the ways in which the international and domestic aspects of foreign policy overlap in the US system.

Triumphs and Setbacks

Chapter 4 examines TR’s attempt to implement the Roosevelt Corollary in the Dominican Republic. Roosevelt avoided acting in 1904 in order to avoid any controversy that might harm his prospects in the upcoming election, and his actions after the election continued to be affected by resistance in Congress and the press. Many Republicans and Democrats were critical of an accord that arranged for the United States to take control of Dominican custom houses, the Dillingham-Morales agreement, and opposed efforts by the Roosevelt administration to secure ratification by the Senate. This confrontation occurred amid tension between TR and conservative, Republicans as well as growing concerns about TR’s expansion of the powers of the presidency. The chapter argues that this episode reinforced the president’s belief that the public could be a vital counterweight to elite opinion and Congress and that skilled political leadership was essential for an effective foreign policy.