After much thought of the shared themes that TR, Debs, Addams, and Carnegie had in common, it stuck me that they all gave something back to our society. Each person left their mark on society via their contributions to it. Therefore, my theme of this paper is an analysis of each of their contributions that they gave our country. I hope to show how each of these individuals related to the circumstances of society during their lives. How Theodore Roosevelt (10/27/1858-1/6/1919) related to the circumstances of society during his life.TR served as a public official on a local, state and federal level. He served as a New York State Assemblyman. In the 1890s he served on the Civil Service Commission. He was on the New York Police Commission. He was elected Governor of New York. President McKinley made him Assistant Secretary of the Navy. He later became McKinley's vice president. In 1901, he unexpectedly became the 26th president of the United States after the assassination of William McKinley. .
As president he addressed many circumstances of the society's needs and used many unconventional methods to meet those needs as he may have exceeded his presidential authority. TR's first major legislative achievement was the irrigation projects in the West called the National Reclamation Act. He broke-up a coal strike by threatening to have the Army called in. He was responsible for having Congress enact laws to control food inspection. He took control of the Railroads via the Interstate Commerce Commission. His "Square Deal" went after trusts, which threatened to restrain trade. He not only got the land for the Panama Canal but had the canal built and he even got the rules for football changed. .
One of his biggest contributions was his foreign policy of "speak softly and carry a big stick" which created the United States' diplomatic standing in the world. He used his negotiation skills numerous times to avoid serious conflicts.
