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=Theodore Roosevelt =

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Theodore Roosevelt was rushed into the presidential office because President McKinley was shot, and then later died of the effects. The country at the time was in a pretty good position. To make the country even better, Roosevelt constructed the Panama Canal and passed acts like the Meat Inspection Act and the Pure Food and Drug Act. President Roosevelt deserves a B+ because he helped move the country forward with new laws and technologies.======

President Roosevelt had many goals for America when he came into office. One of his main goals was to biuld the Panama Canal. This was made possible by the Hay-Pauncefote Treaty and the Clayton-Bulwer Treaty. These two treaties were made with Britain about them giving the land to America. Under these conditions, America was given the authority to build and operate the canal. The only condition was that all vessels were allowed on the canal, not just American vessels. Also, he wanted to enforce the Monroe Doctrine in Latin America. He installed the Roosevelt Corallary, which said the United States would pay all Latin American debts. The main purpose of this act was to keep Great Britain out of Latin America.

Congress and Roosevelt had a mediocre relationship. It wasn't excellent, and it wasn't horrible. Not many laws were passed; the main ones being the Meat Inspection Act and the Pure Food and Drug act. They had some similar views on bigger issues, for example, the quality of meat production. Many of the cabinet members were the same as when McKinley was in office, and Roosevelt wanted to continue McKinley's policies.

Roosevelt had many actions that had very positive outcomes, but the best action was the creation of the Panama Canal. It is still in use today, and it is used by many people and many countries. Yellow fever and malaria were two diseases that made construction of the canal difficult because many of the workers fell ill with these. By constructing the canal, 90% of disease was wiped out. In addition to this, new health care technologies were introduced into the area. The biggest pro of the canal was that it connected transportation from the east coast to the west coast in the United States. For example, petroleum was now able to be carried across the country. The canal also made trade and travel easier for European countries. Before the canal, they had to travel through South Africa, which was dangerous because of the icebergs. Now, travelers and traders could cut three months off their traveling time due to the Panama Canal.

The decision that had the worst impact on the nation was his antitrust policy. His goal in doing this was to balance power between free enterprise and corporate responsibilty. He believed the trusts were evil, and hurting American welfare. He didn't think they should be prohibited, but controlled by the government. These policies were aimed mainly at helping the middle class, and nobody else. This was later called the square deal, and many smaller acts were passed within the deal. Limits on rebates and railroad were put into effect. This hurt the economy overall, and it led to the Panic of 1907. It led to the Panic because the Knickerbocker Trust Company failed due to policies of the square deal. The panic led to the failure of around a dozen banks and many railroads.

There were two main acts that influenced future presidents. The Meat Inspection Act and the Pure Food and Drug act. The horrible conditions of meat factories were shown to the world in Upton Sinclair's book "The Jungle." This act allowed the government to inspect meat and the conditions that the meat was being prepared in. Until this time, nobody knew how the food they were eating was prepared. Many meat industries were closed down until they improved their working conditions. This affected future presidents and people. Every president after Roosevelt has kept these laws in affect. It affected the people because now they are more aware of what they eat and how it is prepared.

Overall, Teddy was a good president. He constructed one of the most profound canals in American history. It connected not only the United States, but the United States and Europe. Meat Inspection laws helped the country with the quality of the food. In the end, the country was better off with Teddy Roosevelt as president. He deserves a B+ for his actions.

Bibliography:
Websites: [] [] Books: The Complete Book of United States Presidents