Taft was a better vice president than president. He came to the presidency as the custodian of THEODORE ROOSEVELT's legacy. Lacking a political agenda of his own, he fared best when he followed a road map. Congress seized the initiative. Taft was a moderate progressive. He was in step with the country. Perhaps he was too literal-minded to appreciate the symbolic value of the presidency. Taft never really aspired to be president. Better than his sponsors, he knew he was not presidential timber.
Government Leadership
Taft was not an effective executive. He reorganized the State Department. He separated the management of the Commerce and Labor departments. But Taft was overly cautious in deferring to Congress. The legislators simply overrode his efforts to reduce waste in the federal government.
Political Leadership
Taft was a Republican. He inherited a strong party. But he was not a strong political leader. He could not hold his party together. Before he left office, his party split. The Democrats won the White House.
The Economy, Taxes, Regulation, and International Trade
Taft's economic record was mixed. He increased the federal regulatory role in the economy. But he was a follower rather than a leader. Taft fought for low import duties. Then he heaped lavish praise on the high tariff bill passed by Congress. He followed THEODORE ROOSEVELT's trust-busting slavishly. In the end, he embarrassed both Roosevelt and himself. Still, the economy hummed along.
Environmental Protection
Taft was a successful "conservation" president. He permitted Congress to develop its own conservation policies. And a broad constituency for conservation emerged in Congress.
Foreign Affairs
Taft was a diplomat before he was president. But he was not a successful foreign-policy president. He became overly infatuated with international arbitration. The Senate had to rescue him from his own arbitration treaties. In addition, Taft's "dollar diplomacy" was just short of disastrous. He exaggerated the benefits of U.S. foreign investments. Then he had to dispatch troops abroad to protect them. Moreover, the Europeans and Japanese read his "imperialistic" intentions in China. They blocked U.S. expansion in the Far East.
The Historical Legacy
Taft was not a particularly inspired president. But he did leave a positive legacy. His administration filed several important antimonopoly cases. The antitrust opinions issued by the Supreme Court made competition a permanent feature of the U.S. economy. Taft also formalized the federal government's role in conservation. After he left office, Congress regularly protected some public resources from private commercial exploitation.
