ed his votes from agricultural areas, the South, the West, and from the laboring man. These alliances presaged those that were ultimately to shape the political coalitions of the first half of the 20th century. The Republicans had committed themselves to conservative economics--a stance that they consistently retained thereafter.McKinley's first term was dominated by the 10-week-long Spanish-American War (1898) and the subsequent acquisition of Guam, Puerto Rico, the Philippines, and the annexation of Hawaii. These events increasingly thrust the United States into world politics. The only question regarding the Republican ticket in 1900 was who would replace Vice-President Garret Hobart who had died the previous year. Governor Theodore ROOSEVELT of New York was chosen. McKinley again defeated William Jennings Bryan but was assassinated in 1901. Theodore Roosevelt was sworn in as president, inaugurating a remarkable era in American political history.Theodore Roosevelt and ProgressivismUnder Theodore Roosevelt the country saw reforms in economic, political, and social life. Republicans took the lead in conservation efforts and, to the dismay of some old stalwarts, began implementing Roosevelt's trust-busting ideas. Roosevelt's overwhelming reelection in 1904 inaugurated a new era of regulatory legislation and conservation measures. As he had promised, he chose not to run in 1908 and urged the party to nominate William Howard TAFT of Ohio.Taft defeated Bryan, who was running for the third time; Taft's style, however, and his conservatism alienated the liberals within the Republican party. Those liberals, led by Robert M. La Follote of Wisconsin, organized (1911) the National Progressive Republican League as a means of wresting party control from the conservatives. At the Chicago convention in 1912, Roosevelt challenged Taft for the nomination. Failing to win, Roosevelt bolted the party and ran as the PROGRESSIVE PARTY candidate. Thus split...
