
Figure 1, President Theodore Roosevelt and Gifford Pinchot, full-length portrait from behind, standing on deck of steamer Mississippi, during tour of Inland Waterways Commission
Progressivism
is like pornography, hard to define but you know it when you see it. It certainly embraced ideas such as
progress, regulation, democracy, commissions, conservation, opportunity and
modernity but how these would be implemented was not clear. Progressivism, unlike many earlier and
later social movements, attracted such a wide range of supporters, held so many
complementary as well contradictory ideas and crossed so many political
identities that it is not possible to really delineate a prototypical
progressive or write the definitive progressive platform. However, despite this seemingly dubious
foundation progressivism was a long-lived and fundamentally successful
movement, which has left a legacy still felt today. For example, in the 2004 Wisconsin Democratic primary
Republicans were allowed to vote, this is the heritage of Robert M. La Follette
and the progressive concept of the open primary as a means of combating the
excessive power of machine party politics. Also the simple fact that the 2004 Democratic candidate for
president will be chosen primarily by direct primaries, and not by various
political machines is also a inheritance of the progressives. In 2003, for the first time, California
recalled its governor using a progressive reform, the recall election, this
reform measure was passed during the administration of progressive governor
Hiram Johnson. Elected in 1910 his
administration also requested and received legislation granting the Golden
State the referendum and the initiative.
California’s second movie star governor was not only elected by
means of a progressive measure but is using another in an attempt to solve the
state’s budget crisis. He is
campaigning in promotion of a ballot initiative aimed at passing a bond to
refinance the state’s debt, which if successful will neatly by pass the
state legislature and be enacted as a direct result of an appeal to direct
popular support. Calling on an
informed citizenry to correct the failures of the political system is classic
progressivism.

Figure 2, Robert M. La Follette, Progressive Presidential candidate in 1924, Chicago
Daily News negatives collection, Chicago Historical Society
