The Election of 1912

The election of 1912 was between Woodrow Wilson, Theodore Roosevelt and William Howard Taft (three presidents, incidently). Theodore Roosevelt had given up the presidency, chosing not to run again in 1908, instead handpicking his successor (Taft). Roosevelt was not pleased with Taft's performance as president and wanted his "bully pulpit" back. So Roosevelt ran under the "Bull Moose" party in 1912 and split the Republican vote, allowing Democrat Wilson to win.

Something I always ask my students to do is compare Roosevelt, Taft and Wilson after listening to them speak. Roosevelt is a person that I feel must be heard and seen to truly understand. So now I'm putting you in my students' places...what do you think?

Theodore Roosevelt (audio)

Theodore Roosevelt (video)

Woodrow Wilson (audio)

William Howard Taft (audio)