The Bully Pulpit, the Pulitzer Prize winning book by Doris Kearns Goodwin, is a multiple biography of two former Presidents, their personal sagas and their turbulent times- Theodore Roosevelt and William Howard Taft. It is also a tale of the Progressive Era and its crusades against the trusts, corruption and the rising inequality of income, and for the working people. It is also a tale of the famous muckrakers, the editors and writers who were indispensable allies of progressive politicians, both Republican and Democrats- Sam McClure, Ida Tarbell, Lincoln Steffens, Ray Baker, William White, Upton Sinclair. But the book is much more than this. It is the story how two Presidents used the media they had available to get their message out to the public. Theodore Roosevelt was an impactful speaker: while Taft was not. Teddy was full of himself, full of boundless energy. Taft was not. Yet the two formed a unique alliance in the history of the presidency- until it foundered. The book also provides us with stunning parallels to our own times, and the opportunities to compare and contrast the use of presidential power, the role of political parties, the influence of the media and investigative journalism. This study of a turning point in our history (1880-1912) will illuminate our own times as well: the balance of power between governments and corporations, conservation of natural resources, power of money in politics, concern about powerful banking and corporate interests, the interplay between labor, capitol and government, trade policy, inequitable taxation, the growing gap between rich and poor, the power of the press and the significance of personal relationships.
1) The Robber Barons: The men who built and controlled the all-powerful railroads, banks, and corporations of the late Nineteenth Century.
2) Populists, Socialists and the Political Establishment before the Progressive Era.
3) The backgrounds and personalities of Theodore Roosevelt and William Howard Taft. What strengths did each bring to the presidency? What weaknesses? Assess the friendship between them.
4) What were the salient issues in Congress, and before the Supreme Court in the years leading up to the McKinley/Roosevelt presidency?
5) Newspapers and magazines, the “mass media” of the times.
6) The creation of McClure’s: Its philosophy, personnel, and the impact of its ideas.
7) The interrelationships between Roosevelt and the muckrakers; the significance of the journalistic investigations of Standard Oil, political corruption, and “The Jungle.”
8) Our imperialistic adventures—carrying a big stick; Hawaii and Cuba; Taft and the Philippines; the Canal; and the continuing controversy over tariffs.
9) Trust Busting—“as much a moral issue as it is a financial one.”
10) Government involvement in labor and management disputes and issues; Income inequality, inequitable taxation
11) Conservation and the early conflicts over environmental protections vs economic growth
12) The election of 1908: The hot issues and political jockeying; Which party is the progressive party? The beginnings of the rift between TR and WHT.
13) The election of 1912: The Republican split; Bull Moose; the Debs campaign and the victory of Woodrow Wilson; Taft becomes Chief Justice
14) Aftermath: The Wilson administration; the 20’s (progressivism in decline); the crash of 1929; FDR and the New Deal (the fruition of progressivism?).
Goodwin, Doris Kearns. The Bully Pulpit. Simon and Schuster, 2013.