Biography of U.S. President Woodrow Wilson Part 6 Pros

About the United States President Woodrow Wilson, biography and history of the positives of his presidency.

PROFILES OF THE PRESIDENTS

28th President

WOODROW WILSON

PRESIDENCY

His 8 Years as President:

PRO

Wilson pushed through key reform legislation, including a reduction in the tariff; a stronger antitrust law; the establishment of the Federal Trade Commission to regulate unfair competition in business; and the institution of the Federal Reserve System, providing government, rather than private, control of the U.S. banking system.

PRO

Ignoring demands by hysterical interventionists for immediate American entry in the war, Wilson pursued a policy of neutrality that delayed U.S. participation for nearly three years and saved hundreds of thousands of American lives.

PRO

Once the U.S. decided to enter W.W.I, Wilson proved himself an able war leader. His idealistic definition of war aims, including the famous 14 Points, helped to rally international support for the Allied cause. His aggressive action in organizing the home front to ensure victory demonstrated an efficient and imaginative use of the presidential war powers.

PRO

At the peace conference in Paris, Wilson struggled valiantly to defend his ideals. Without his influence, the final settlement would have been even harsher than it was. Most important for the future of the world was the fact that the treaty, at Wilson's insistence, included provisions for a League of Nations, designed to resolve future international conflicts in a peaceful manner. When Wilson returned home, however, he found that Senate Republicans--some of them motivated by partisan political considerations--were ready to block Senate approval of the treaty. Wilson knew he was right and so refused to bargain with his political opponents; instead he boldly took his case directly to the people, in the hope of influencing the Senate decision. In the midst of his exhausting coast-to-coast speaking tour, the President suffered a stroke which left him partially paralyzed, a semi-invalid for the rest of his life. With his health broken, Wilson watched the Senate reject the treaty he had worked so hard to produce. Even more than Lincoln, Wilson was a tragic martyr to his ideals.