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Theodore Roosevelt, 1858-1919
If ever an American became president on the strength of his personality, it was Theodore Roosevelt, a dynamo by the standards of any age. "I always believe in going hard at everything," he declared. Roosevelt's energy was seemingly limitless, and he channeled it in a wide variety of interests and activities: he was a political maverick, civic reformer, Rough Rider (as depicted here), governor, sportsman, naturalist, historian, and man of letters. In 1900, the Republican Party nominated him to run as William McKinley's vice president, and together they easily won the election. As Roosevelt feared, his official duty of presiding over the Senate did not occupy his time and energy, and he complained privately that the office of the vice president should be abolished. Yet McKinley's assassination changed everything. As Mark Hanna, a staunch McKinley adviser lamented, "that damned cowboy is president now."
Charles Dana Gibson, 1898 |