Author: Richard Samans
Orginal article is here.
Excerpt:
The seeds of the revolution in American economic policy we need to combat inequality and insecurity while strengthening growth can be found in the legacy of Theodore Roosevelt. A progressive Republican, independent and self-willed man of action, Roosevelt recast the American political landscape and set in motion a transformational process of reform across decades that, at root, made the economy work better for working people and reduced the excesses of the go-go financial capitalism and inequality of the early 20th century.
The themes in Roosevelt’s 1905 “Square Deal” speech and other aspects of his legacy are relevant to circumstances today. He was avowedly pro-worker and pro-industry and an advocate of balanced regulation in respect of both. He abhorred extreme inequality and unfair competition, which he viewed as stifling economic opportunity and basic human dignity.