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Referendum--U.S. states

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Letter from Henry N. tum Suden to Theodore Roosevelt

Letter from Henry N. tum Suden to Theodore Roosevelt

Henry N. tum Suden writes to Theodore Roosevelt that Hiram Johnson, governor of California, is stumping for the Initiative Referendum and Recall Amendment. Judson King, field lecturer of the National Referendum League, is speaking with the press. Tum Suden is confident that the lobby will be successful in California, and he hopes they can eventually bring the amendment to the National Constitution.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1911-09-23

Telegram from Frank Harper to Joseph M. Dixon

Telegram from Frank Harper to Joseph M. Dixon

Frank Harper sends instructions to Senator Joseph Dixon regarding logistics for Theodore Roosevelt’s speeches and transportation during his planned campaign tour. Roosevelt dictated a conversation about the ineffectiveness of the Sherman Anti-Trust Law as enacted by President William Howard Taft’s administration. Roosevelt also takes issue with Taft’s inaction over the tariff and wants a commission established to revise it so that it benefits farmers and laborers. He believes in the people’s right to initiative and referendum, not as a replacement for representative government but as a means of ensuring it. President Taft feels that when the people elected him, “their voice was next to the voice of God,” but that in regard to passing judgment on their own laws they are not “entitled to rule.”

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1912-03

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to Charles Dwight Willard

Letter from Theodore Roosevelt to Charles Dwight Willard

Theodore Roosevelt expresses his appreciation for Charles Dwight Willard’s frank and sincere letter, as well as his admiration for Willard’s work. Roosevelt discusses his “genuine sympathy” for the common, hard-working man and outlines his views on democracy as both a form of government and as an ideal. Roosevelt also discusses the pros and cons of initiative, referendum, and recall.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1911-04-28

Letter from Herbert S. Hadley to Theodore Roosevelt

Letter from Herbert S. Hadley to Theodore Roosevelt

Governor Hadley expresses the concerns of Missouri Republican leadership over Theodore Roosevelt’s support for the recall of judges and judicial decisions. While they are in favor of the initiative and referendum, the recall of judges threatens the independence of the judiciary. Hadley interpreted Roosevelt’s recent speeches as a warning that the recall of judges could be a last resort and suggests that Roosevelt clarify his position to lessen the “popular alarm.”

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1912-03-03

Letter from Orin Fletcher Stafford to Theodore Roosevelt

Letter from Orin Fletcher Stafford to Theodore Roosevelt

In light of Theodore Roosevelt’s upcoming trip through Oregon, Orin Fletcher Stafford sends Roosevelt some “first-hand information regarding some of [the state’s] novel political institutions.” The ballot initiative has been frequently used, as well as the referendum. While Stafford feels that the population of the state has usually acted wisely regarding the measures proposed by initiative, the referendum has been used “by a sectional clique,” and has held up funding for the State University.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1911-03-29