The Presidential Veto - 1913 - 1921
Woodrow Wilson was President from 1913 - 1921. He was elected with only 42% of the popular vote, the smallest tally in our history since Lincoln’s victory in 1860. Wilson ran against Teddy Roosevelt, third-party candidate and former Republican and William Taft, the Republican incumbent. Roosevelt and Taft split the former Republican vote. The Socialist Party received 6% of the vote, the highest ever for a socialist candidate.
Immigration
Immigration had been a long-standing issue in American politics, continuing to this day. Before becoming President, Wilson has problems with immigration. In the early 1900s, then Professor Wilson authored a book, ‘A History of the American People.’ In the book, he contrasted Southern and Eastern European immigrants with earlier immigrants from Northern Europe: “…men of sturdy stocks of the north of Europe had made up the main strain of foreign blood which was every year added to the vital working force of the country.... but now there came multitudes of men of the lowest class from the south of Italy and men of the meaner sort out of Hungary and Poland.” Wilson stated that these immigrants had “neither skill nor energy nor any initiative of quick intelligence.” In light of the large numbers now immigrating, Wilson added, “that it seemed the countries of the south of were disburdening themselves of the more sordid and hapless elements of their population.”
This position hurt his 1912 Presidential campaign. Especially considering the large number of immigrants now able to vote. And he changed his position to be more immigrant-friendly. In a St. Patrick’s Day speech, referring to immigrants, he stated, “The country should be divested of all prejudices.” He denounced the use of hyphenated terms to describe Americans (e.g., Irish-Americans, German-Americans), “We are all Americans when we vote.” In a letter to an Italian group, he commended “racial strength and character which is being added to our population by the immigration out of Italy, Austria, Hungary and the other countries of Europe.”
In 1914, the Democratic majority in Congress once again passed a bill requiring immigrants to pass a literacy test. He vetoed the bill stating it would exclude those “…coming seeking the opportunity of education by requiring that they already have had an education to gain entry.” He also felt that he needed to live up to his campaign statements opposing literacy tests and other stringent restrictions.
The House of Representatives fell two votes short of overriding Wilson’s veto. Congress again passed the literacy requirement in early 1917. Once again, Wilson vetoed the bill, but this time Congress overwhelmingly overrode his veto, and the literacy requirement became law. In early 1921, Wilson vetoed another immigration bill, this time one which set immigration quotas. A similar bill became law after Wilson’s term ended.
Daylight Savings Time
On a lighter note, Wilson was involved in Daylight Savings Time (DST). Germany was the first country to observe DST, initiating it during World War I as a fuel conservation effort. The United States followed in 1918. With the war over, the 1919 Congress abolished DST. Wilson vetoed the repeal. Why? One rumor was that Wilson wanted the extra hour at the end of the day to play golf. Why? According to the Washington Post, Wilson played more golf than any other President. By a significant margin. Congress overrode the veto, and daylight savings went away until Franklin Delano Roosevelt revived it during World War II.
(to be continued – the veto and the Roaring ‘20s)
(Click for Part 1, Part 2, Part 3, Part 4, Part 5, and Part 6 of this series)