The Approaching Storm: Roosevelt, Wilson, Addams, and Their Clash Over America’s Future

The year 1912 witnessed a three-way presidential race that had wide ranging consequences for the United States and the world. The final campaign was between Democrat Woodrow Wilson, Republican incumbent William Howard Taft, and former President Theodore Roosevelt. Roosevelt felt that Taft and the Republicans had betrayed their constituents. Roosevelt’s campaign had caught on with progressives such as Jane Addams (founder of Hull House). The progressives sought regulation and reform of a corrupt system. Roosevelt’s campaign succeeded in splitting the Republican vote and ensuring a Wilson victory.

The progressives pinned their hopes on Woodrow Wilson, who had overseen reforms as President of Princeton and Governor of New Jersey. However, the progressive era would face a shaky future as the winds of war rattled most of Europe starting in 1914. Woodrow Wilson faced being pulled in different directions by the pugilistic Roosevelt and the dovish Addams.

The Approaching Storm brings the reader on a journey whose destination is preordained. However, the people and circumstances that guide the way form the crux of a brilliantly told history. The heart of the book consists of the three robust personalities caught in the middle of a rapidly escalating situation. Author Neil Lanctot relates the past with elegance and flair.