The New Freedom

The New Freedom was Woodrow Wilson's campaign platform in the 1912 presidential election, and also refers to the progressive programs enacted by Wilson during his first term as president from 1913 to 1916 while the Democrats controlled Congress. First expressed in his campaign speeches and promises, Wilson later wrote a 1913 book of the same name. In terms of legislation, wartime policies are generally not considered part of the New Freedom. After the 1918 midterm elections, Republicans took control of Congress and were mostly hostile to the New Freedom. As president, Wilson focused on three types of reform:[1]

  1. Tariff reform: This came through the passage of the Underwood Tariff Act of 1913, which lowered tariffs for the first time since 1857 and went against the protectionist lobby.
  2. Business reform: This was established through the passage of the Federal Trade Commission Act of 1914, which established the Federal Trade Commission to investigate and halt unfair and illegal business practices by issuing "cease and desist" orders, and the Clayton Antitrust Act.
  3. Banking reform: This came in 1913 through the creation of the Federal Reserve System and in 1916 through the passage of the Federal Farm Loan Act, which set up Farm Loan Banks to support farmers.
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Campaign slogan in 1912

Wilson's position in 1912 stood in opposition to Progressive party candidate Theodore Roosevelt's ideas of New Nationalism, particularly on the issue of antitrust modification. According to Wilson, "If America is not to have free enterprise, he can have freedom of no sort whatever." In presenting his policy, Wilson warned that New Nationalism represented collectivism, while New Freedom stood for political and economic liberty from such things as trusts (powerful monopolies). Wilson was strongly influenced by his chief economic advisor Louis D. Brandeis, an enemy of big business and monopoly.[2]

Although Wilson and Roosevelt agreed that economic power was being abused by trusts, Wilson and Roosevelt were split on how the government should handle the restraint of private power as in dismantling corporations that had too much economic power in a large society. Wilson wrote extensively on the meaning of "government" shortly after his election.

Wilson in office

Once elected, Wilson seemed to abandon his "New Freedom" and adopted policies that were more similar to those of Roosevelt's New Nationalism. Wilson appointed Brandeis to the US Supreme Court in 1916. He worked with Congress to give federal employees worker's compensation, outlawed child labor with the Keating–Owen Act (the act was ruled unconstitutional in 1918) and passed the Adamson Act, which secured a maximum eight-hour workday for railroad employees. Most important was the Clayton Act of 1914, which largely put the trust issue to rest by spelling out the specific unfair practices that business were not allowed to engage in.[3]

By the end of the Wilson Administration, a significant amount of progressive legislation had been passed, affecting not only economic and constitutional affairs, but farmers, labor, veterans, the environment, and conservation as well. The reform agenda actually put into legislation by Wilson, however, did not extend as far as what Roosevelt had called for but had never actually passed, such as a standard 40-hour work week, minimum wage laws, and a federal system of social insurance.

This was arguably a reflection of Wilson's own ideological convictions, who according to Elizabeth Warren[4] and Herbert Hoover, was an adherent of Jeffersonian Democracy[5] (although Wilson did champion reforms such as agricultural credits later in his presidency, and championed the right of Americans to earn a living wage and to live and work "in sanitary surroundings" in his 1919 State of the Union Address).[6] While seemingly supportive of benefits for workers such as pensions, injury compensation, and profit-sharing plans (noting in his book "The New Freedom" how various companies had introduced such benefits "in good faith" to their employees),[7] Wilson and his administration never pushed legislation through Congress extending these benefits to the entire workforce, while a national health insurance system of the kind advocated by Roosevelt was never established, despite the fact that Wilson, according to one study, “promoted Roosevelt’s policy of universal health insurance coverage when he was elected president.”[8] Despite this, the New Freedom did much to extend the power of the federal government in social and economic affairs, and arguably paved the way for future reform programs such as the New Deal and the Great Society.

Legislation and programs

Note: This listing contains reforms drawn up by the Wilson Administration as part of its New Freedom program together with wartime reforms and reforms drawn up by individual Congressmen. The latter two have been included because it is arguable that the progressive nature of these reforms was compatible with the liberalism of the New Freedom.

Farmers
  • The 1914 Smith–Lever Act tied vocational education in home economics and agriculture to the land-grant college system. It also led to the support of the federal government to support farm cooperatives, bringing about a system of country agents to assist farmers in conducting more efficient and scientific stock-raising and crop-growing.[9]
  • The Cotton Warehouse Act (1914) authorized the federal government to license warehouses. The intention of this legislation was to ensure that the better handling of crops “would make warehouse receipts more readily acceptable by banks as collateral for loans.”[10]
  • The Agricultural Extension Act (1914) authorized federal grants-in-aid to the state agricultural colleges for the purpose of supporting a program of extension work in farm areas.[10]
  • The Federal Farm Loan Act of 1916 provided federal credit to small farmers via cooperatives.[9]
  • The Smith–Hughes Vocational Education Act extended the Smith-Lever provisions of 1914 and supported teacher training and other instruction in industrial occupations, home economics, and agriculture.[9]
  • The Warehouse Act of 1916.
  • The Stock-Raising Homestead Act of 1916.
  • The Grain Standards Act of 1916 mandated the grading and inspection of grains under federal license.[11]

Labor
  • The La Follette–Peters Act (1914) mandated an eight-hour workday for most women workers in the District of Columbia.[12]
  • The Seamen's Act of 1915 aimed to protect merchant seamen. It outlawed their exploitation by officers and ship owners by practices such as indefinite hours, inadequate food, poor wages, and abandonment in overseas ports with back pay owing.[9]
  • The Adamson Act gave railroad workers on interstate runs an eight-hour workday.[9]
  • The Clayton Act strengthened antitrust regulation while exempting agricultural cooperatives and labor unions, thus putting an end to the court's habitual rulings that boycotts and strikes were “in restraint of trade.”[9]
  • A National War Labor Board was established,[13] which improved working conditions in factories by insisting on an eight-hour workday, no child labor, and better safety conditions.[14]
  • A law was passed fixing minimum wages for women and children in the District of Columbia (1918).[15]
  • The Women's Bureau Act of 1920 established a Women's Bureau to “formulate standards and policies which shall promote the welfare of wage-earning women, improve their working conditions, increase their efficiency, and advance their opportunities for profitable employment.”[16]
  • A Child Labor Tax Law (1919) assessed a 10% tax on the net profits of factories and mines employing children "to offset any competitive advantage" employers thereby gained. The legislation introduced a minimum age of 14 for workers in most jobs, and of 16 for mining and night work. The legislation also required documentary proof of age and, like the previous Keating–Owen Act, limited working hours for minors. From 1919 to 1922 (the year when the Supreme Court declared the legislation to be unconstitutional), arguably as a result of, or partly because of, this legislation, the number of working children fell by 50%.[17]
  • The Workingmen's Compensation Act (Kern–McGillicuddy Act).
  • The Keating–Owen Act
  • The Kern Resolution of 1913.
  • The Saboth Act of 1913.
  • The Newlands Labor Act of 1913.
  • The Federal Boiler Inspection Act of 1915.
  • The Occupancy Permits Act of 1915.
  • The Fraudulent Advertising Act of 1916.
  • The Merchant Marine Act of 1920.
  • The Esch–Cummins Act of 1920.[18][19]

Health and welfare
  • The Cutter Service Act of 1914.
  • The Federal Aid Road Act of 1916.
  • The Rural Post "Good" Roads Act of 1916.
  • The Sundry Civil Appropriations Act authorized $200,000 for the newly formed Division of Scientific Research for the United States Public Health Service.[20]
  • An Act was passed (1916) authorizing hospital and medical services to government employees injured at work.[21]
  • An anti-narcotics law was passed (1914).[22]
  • A federal bill setting minimum housing standards in the District of Columbia was passed (1914), the result of efforts by President Wilson's first wife Ellen Wilson.[23]
  • Health benefits and disability insurance were introduced for lighthouse keepers (1916).[24]
  • A cooperative Federal-State program of cash grants for public health services was established (1917).[25]
  • The United States Housing Corporation was established (1918) to build housing projects for wartime workers.[26]
  • A system of life insurance and medical care for federal employees was initiated.[27]
  • The Harrison Narcotic Act (1914) required prescriptions for products exceeding the allowable limit of narcotics and mandated “increased record-keeping for physicians and pharmacists who dispense narcotics.”[28]
  • In 1918, the first Federal grants to States for public health services were made available.[29]
  • A retirement plan for lightkeepers was introduced (1918)[30]
  • In 1918, the first federal loans were offered to shipbuilding companies to house their workers.[31]
  • A federal leprosy hospital was authorized (1917).[22]
  • The Soldiers' and Sailors' Civil Relief Act of 1918.
  • The Civil Service Retirement System was established (1920) to provide pensions to retired civilian federal employees.[32]
  • The Civilian Vocational Rehabilitation Act of 1920 (Smith-Fess Act) authorized a joint federal-state vocational rehabilitation program for handicapped civilians.[33]
  • The Death on the High Seas Act (1920) aimed at compensating the wives of sailors who had lost their lives at sea. The legislation enabled survivors “to recover pecuniary damages, or the lost wages of their relatives on whom they depended upon financially.”[34]
  • Under the Industry Vocational Rehabilitation Act of 1920 (Smith-Bankhead Act), Congress began providing federal funds for cooperation with the states in the vocational rehabilitation of persons disabled in industry.[35]
  • Corporate welfare work was encouraged by the Wilson Administration.[36]
  • On the anniversary of the United States’ entry into the war (the 6th of April 1918), the Children's Bureau, funded with $150,000 from the President's Defense Appropriation, launched a national health education program called “Children’s Year.” This campaign, which was repeated the following year, provided information “on the feeding and care of babies for their mothers and involved the weighing and measuring of some six million infants.” The effects of the campaign were not temporary, as various states set up child hygiene divisions in their public health departments, and the state of California itself established 22 permanent health centres as a result of the bureau's initiative. This program led to the postwar passage of the 1921 Sheppard-Towner Act.[37]

Veterans
  • The War Risk Insurance Act of 1914.
  • The War Risk Insurance Act of 1917.[38]
  • The Rehabilitation Law of 1919 provided disabled veterans with tuition, books, and a monthly subsistence allowance of between $90 and $145.[39]
  • The Public Health Service was made directly responsible for the hospitalization of veterans under the War Risk Insurance Act (1919).[40]
  • The Smith-Sears Vocational Rehabilitation Act (1918) supported programs to help veterans with disabilities return to civilian employment following the end of the First World War.[41]
  • The Bureau of War Risk Insurance was set up to provide direct assistance to the families of soldiers. By the end of the First World War, the bureau was sending regular checks to 2.1 million families.[26]

Constitutional

Environment and public works

Conservation

Books

In 1913 Woodrow Wilson's book The New Freedom was published, detailing his thoughts about the concepts and program.[45] He had previously written two other books, Congressional Government published in 1900, followed in 1901 by When a Man Comes to Himself.

See also

Notes
  1. Woodrow Wilson, The Progressive. Socialstudieshelp.com. Retrieved on 2013-07-15.
  2. By: Strum, Philippa Strum, "Louis D. Brandeis, the New Freedom and the State," Mid America, 1987, Vol. 69#3 pp 105-124
  3. Link,Woodrow Wilson and the Progressive Era pp. 69–72
  4. Warren, Elizabeth (2 June 2011). Prosperity, Peace and Respect: How Presidents Manage the People'S Agenda. Xlibris Corporation. ISBN 9781462884049 – via Google Books.
  5. Hoover, Herbert (1 October 1992). The Ordeal of Woodrow Wilson. Woodrow Wilson Center Press. ISBN 9780943875415 – via Google Books.
  6. "Woodrow Wilson: 7th Annual Message".
  7. "From Woodrow Wilson".
  8. Wilson, Woodrow (29 May 2013). The New Freedom. Cricket House Books LLC. ISBN 9781625001207 – via Google Books.
  9. Progressivism by Walter Nugent
  10. Encyclopedia of South Carolina By Somerset Publishers, Staff, Editorial
  11. Roots of reform: farmers, workers, and the American state, 1877–1917 by Elizabeth Sanders
  12. McGerr, Michael E. (1 January 2005). A Fierce Discontent: The Rise and Fall of the Progressive Movement in America, 1870-1920. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780195183658 – via Google Books.
  13. The Institutionalist Tradition In Labor Economics by Dell P. Champlin and Janet T. Knoedler
  14. The Pendulum of Politics: Today's Politics from Yesterday's History by Craig Parkinson
  15. Epstein, Lee; Walker, Thomas G. (2 October 2014). Constitutional Law for a Changing America: A Short Course. CQ Press. ISBN 9781483323930 – via Google Books.
  16. WB - Our History (An Overview 1920 - 2012). Dol.gov. Retrieved on 2013-07-15.
  17. Working in America by Catherine Reef
  18. Woodrow Wilson: His Life and Work – William Dunseath Eaton, Harry C. Read – Google Books. Books.google.co.uk. Retrieved on 2013-07-15.
  19. Work in America: A–M. – Google Books. Books.google.co.uk. Retrieved on 2013-07-15.
  20. The Mosquito Crusades: A History Of The American Anti-Mosquito Movement From The Reed Commission To The First Earth Day by Gordon Patterson
  21. Public health reports United States. Public Health Service, United States. Marine Hospital Service, 1926
  22. The National government and public health by James Alner Tobey
  23. "Ellen Wilson - American first lady".
  24. Berger, Daniel E. Dempster, Todd R. (1 January 2002). Lighthouses of the Great Lakes. Voyageur Press. ISBN 9781610604376 – via Google Books.
  25. Social Security History. Ssa.gov (1923-03-05). Retrieved on 2013-07-15.
  26. The Enduring Vision: A History of the American People, Since 1865: Volume 2 by Paul S. Boyer, Joseph F. Kett, Clifford Clark, Sandra Hawley, and Andrew Rieser
  27. Ayers, Edward; Gould, Lewis; Oshinsky, David; Soderlund, Jean (22 October 2008). American Passages: A History of the United States, Volume II: Since 1865. Cengage Learning. ISBN 978-0547166353 – via Google Books.
  28. "Milestones in U.S. Food and Drug Law History - Significant Dates in U.S. Food and Drug Law History".
  29. Social Security Online History Pages. Ssa.gov (2005-11-26). Retrieved on 2013-07-15.
  30. Wire, Daniel E. Dempster, Elinor De. Lighthouses of the South. Voyageur Press. p. 90 – via Internet Archive. woodrow wilson postwar pensions.
  31. Oberlander, H. Peter; Newbrun, Eva M. (1 November 2011). Houser: The Life and Work of Catherine Bauer, 1905-64. UBC Press. ISBN 9780774842006 – via Google Books.
  32. https://fas.org/sgp/crs/misc/R40428.pdf
  33. Vision and aging: crossroads for service delivery Alberta L. Orr
  34. History of Nova Scotia, 2000 April 15-30. Newscotland1398.ca. Retrieved on 2013-07-15.
  35. The politics of American Federalism by Daniel Judah Elazar
  36. Dubofsky, Melvyn (1 January 2013). The Oxford Encyclopedia of American Business, Labor, and Economic History. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780199738816 – via Google Books.
  37. From Progressivism to Prosperity: World War I and American Society by Neil A. Wynn
  38. Hamowy, Ronald (1 January 2008). Government and Public Health in America. Edward Elgar Publishing. ISBN 9781847204257 – via Google Books.
  39. The greatest generation comes home: the veteran in American society by Michael D. Gambone
  40. Federal health administration in the United States by Robert Devore Leigh
  41. Encyclopedia of Multiculturalism: Slavery-Zoot-suit riots by Susan Auerbach
  42. Time-Life Books, Library of Nations: United States, Sixth European English language printing, 1989
  43. How to draw the life and times of Woodrow Wilson by Melody S. Mis
  44. Mothers Day and Other Family Days, Volume 37 by Reagan Miller
  45. Wilson, Woodrow (1913). The New Freedom. New York, New York: Doubleday, Page & Company. Retrieved 30 January 2015.

Further reading
  • Chace, James. 1912: Wilson, Roosevelt, Taft and Debs--The Election that Changed the Country (2005) excerpt and text search
  • Flehinger, Brett, ed. The 1912 Election and the Power of Progressivism: A Brief History with Documents (2002)
  • Gould, Lewis L. Four Hats in the Ring: The 1912 Election and the Birth of Modern American Politics (2008) excerpt and text search
  • Grantham, Dewey W. "Southern congressional leaders and the new freedom, 1913-1917." The Journal of Southern History (1947) 13#4 pp: 439-459. in JSTOR
  • Link, Arthur S. Woodrow Wilson and the progressive era, 1910-1917 (1954)
  • Link, Arthur S. "The South and the" New Freedom": An Interpretation." The American Scholar (1951): 314-324. in JSTOR
  • Link, Arthur Stanley. Wilson: The Road to the White House (1947); Wilson: The New Freedom (1956); Wilson: Campaigns for progressivism and peace, 1916-1917 (1965)
  • Walworth, Arthur. Woodrow Wilson 2 Vol. (1958), Pulitzer prize winning biography.
  • Wilson, Woodrow. The New Freedom, A Call For the Emancipation of the Generous Energies of a People, (1913).
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