Theodore & Franklin

Almost, but not quite, running out of topics for Friday blogs.  But these two Presidents (#26 and #32) captured my attention.

First off, here are the other two pairs:  John Adams (#2) and his son John Quincy Adams (#6).  The father survived to July 4 1826, literally 50 years to the date of the famous date, dying on the same day as Thomas Jefferson.   #2 is also the cousin of Samuel Adams, after whom the beer is named.  Paul Giamatti did a good job of portraying him in a recent miniseries, with Stephen Dillane, aka Stannis Baratheon from Game of Thrones, playing his rival/nemesis Thomas Jefferson.   I picture them having the same kind of deal as Seinfeld and Newman:  “Adams….” (icy)  “Jefferson” (equally icy).

And George H.W. Bush (#41) and his son George W. Bush (#43).   I actually voted for GHWB in 1988 (my first election – and the only election in which the candidate I voted for actually won) and 1992.  In 2000 and 2004 I voted for the LPA candidates, Browne and Badnarik.   Not much love or hate for either of them.  Note that GHWB was Director of the CIA in the 1970s – in an SNL sketch with Dan Aykroyd – Garrett Morris is trying to get his background file – his portrait is on the wall.   And Lloyd Bentsen, Michael Dukakis’ running mate in 1988, was the guy who beat Bush in 1970 for his Senate seat in Texas.

ANYHOW.

Theodore Roosevelt.  The first of the two, born in 1859, died in 1919.  As a child he was weak and sickly, suffering from asthma.  He attended Harvard University for college, and immediately thereafter got elected – with only a college diploma – to the New York State Legislature in Albany.  With such thin credentials he was not taken seriously, and being an obnoxious loudmouth didn’t help win him any friends.

In 1884, much to Roosevelt’s dismay, the Republican Party nominated James G. Blaine, former secretary of state under presidents Garfield and Arthur, as its presidential candidate, whereas the Democratic candidate was Grover Cleveland, former mayor of Buffalo and governor of New York, a man Roosevelt got to know from being in the NY state legislature and who he much preferred.  In fact, Blaine was considered so corrupt that a branch of the Republican Party, the “Mugwumps”, formed to oppose him.  Rather than cross party lines, Roosevelt retreated to the Dakotas, where he toughened up considerably. 

Roosevelt returned, became Assistant Secretary of the Navy under McKinley, but resigned to lead the Rough Riders in Cuba in the Spanish-American War in 1898.  He came back and got elected governor of New York.  McKinley’s VP, Garrett Hobart, died in 1899, Roosevelt took over from him, and continued as VP in the next term.  McKinley was assassinated at the Pan-American Exhibition in Buffalo, by anarchist Leon Czolgoz, putting Roosevelt into the Presidency.  He campaigned for President in 1904 and won, letting Taft take over in 1908. 

His administration was marked by the Panama Canal, his opposition to trusts (monopolies), and the establishment of the FDA.   Upton Sinclair’s book The Jungle profiled the meat industry’s corruption and adulteration of the meat from Chicago.  Roosevelt initially accused Sinclair of slandering the meatpackers, until Sinclair provided proof of bribes paid to inspectors to look the other way.  At this point Roosevelt switched over and hammered down on the meat industry in support of Sinclair.

Roosevelt was also given the Nobel Peace Prize for mediating the end of the Russo-Japanese War in 1906 – the Treaty of Portsmouth.  He found himself favoring the Japanese somewhat, the Russians being corrupt and arrogant. 

We talk about Mitt Romney opposing Donald Trump, and Trump’s highly laughable promise to “clean the swamp”.  US politics has been corrupt for a long time, Blaine in particular being a major advocate of corruption as a matter of principle.  Roosevelt was dead set against it, cleaning up the bureaucracy during his term.  With his trustbusting, he also opposed what he saw as bad faith and corruption in business as well as government.  Sadly, our current president is the exact opposite of this, and sadly, too many Republicans are clearly not following Theodore Roosevelt’s example. 

If I were in the Oval Office, I wouldn’t be asking myself, “what would Jesus do?”  Jesus was never President – and even rejected suggestions that he run for King of Israel.  The better question would be:  what would Theodore Roosevelt do?

Franklin Roosevelt.   The second of the two, born in 1882, died in 1945.

Like Theodore, he attended Harvard for college.  He briefly went to Columbia Law School but dropped out to practice with a prestigious firm, then got elected – like Theodore – to the NY State legislature (in 1910).  In the 1912 election he supported Wilson over Theodore, though cousin Theodore wasn’t particularly offended.  This earned him the slot of Assistant Secretary of the Navy (!!!) in 1913. 

He became Governor of New York in 1929, taking over from Al Smith.  In 1932 he ran – successfully – for President, and continued on for a record four terms before dying in April 1945, during WWII. 

Unlike Theodore, he had a major Depression to steer America through, with his New Deal legislation throughout the 1930s.  He also had to deal with World War II, whereas Theodore’s terms saw the US at peace.  Politically, he was a Democrat whereas Theodore was a Republican.  Even as far back as 1912 the two did not agree on issues but respected each other not merely as cousins but also for having sincere beliefs. 

Did they meet?  Yes, at Franklin’s wedding to Eleanor in March 1905.   She was the daughter of Theodore’s younger brother Elliott, meaning she was Theodore’s niece and a Roosevelt by birth, not merely marriage.

How are they related?   Fifth cousins, Claes Maartenszen van Rosenvelt being the common ancestor from the mid seventeenth century.  TR’s family lived at Oyster Bay on Long Island, FDR’s at Hyde Park in upstate New York.  Likewise, I have relatives on Long Island and Glens Falls, the origin being Brooklyn, NYC.  I’m proud to say my father’s side of the family originates from New York.