Woodrow Wilson and the World War | Page 6

talent for making phrases, such
qualities were of great assistance to him. But the real strength of the
President lay rather in his gift of sensing what the common people
wanted and his ability to put it into words for them. Few of his
speeches are great; many of them are marred by tactless phrases, such
as "too proud to fight" and "peace without victory." But nearly all of
them express honestly the desires of the masses. His strength in New
Jersey and the extraordinary effect produced in Europe by his war
speeches might be cited as evidence of this peculiar power. He sought
above everything to catch the trend of inarticulate rather than
vociferous opinion. If one objects that his patience under German
outrages was not truly representative, we must remember that opinion
was slow in crystallizing, that his policy was endorsed by the election
of 1916, and that when he finally advocated war in April, 1917, the
country entered the struggle practically a unit.
But it is obvious that, however much political strength was assured the
President by his instinctive appreciation of popular feeling, this was
largely offset by the gaucherie of his political tactics. He had a genius
for alienating persons who should have supported him and who agreed
in general with the broad lines of his policies. Few men in public life
have so thoroughly aroused the dislike of "the man in the street."
Admitting that much of Wilson's unpopularity resulted from
misunderstanding, from the feeling that he was a different sort, perhaps
a "highbrow," the degree of dislike felt for him becomes almost
inexplicable in the case of a President who, from all the evidence, was
willing to sacrifice everything for what he considered to be the benefit
of the common man. He might almost repeat Robespierre's final bitter
and puzzled phrase: "To die for the people and to be abhorred by
them." So keen was the irritation aroused by Wilson's methods and
personality that many a citizen stated frankly that he preferred to see
Wilsonian policies which he approved meet defeat, rather than see them

carried to success by Wilson. This executive failing of the President
was destined to jeopardize the greatest of his policies and to result in
the personal tragedy of Wilson himself.
Certain large political principles stand out in Wilson's writings and
career as Governor and President. Of these the most striking, perhaps,
is his conviction that the President of the United States must be
something more than a mere executive superintendent. The entire
responsibility for the administration of government, he believed, should
rest upon the President, and in order to meet that responsibility, he must
keep the reins of control in his own hands. In his first essays and in his
later writings Wilson expressed his disgust with the system of
congressional committees which threw enormous power into the hands
of irresponsible professional politicians, and called for a President who
would break that system and exercise greater directive authority. For a
time he seemed, under the influence of Bagehot, to have believed in the
feasibility of introducing something like the parliamentary system into
the government of the United States. To the last he regarded the
President as a sort of Prime Minister, at the head of his party in the
Legislature and able to count absolutely upon its loyalty. More than this,
he believed that the President should take a large share of responsibility
for the legislative programme and ought to push this programme
through by all means at his disposal. Such a creed appeared in his early
writings and was largely carried into operation during his
administration. We find him bringing all possible pressure upon the
New Jersey Legislature in order to redeem his campaign pledges. When
elected President, he went directly to Congress with his message,
instead of sending it to be read. Time and again he intervened to
forward his special legislative interests by direct influence.
Both in his writings and in his actions Wilson has always advocated
government by party. Theoretically and in practice he has been opposed
to coalition government, for, in his belief, it divides responsibility.
Although by no means an advocate of the old-type spoils system,
rewards for party service seem to him essential. Curiously enough,
while insisting that the President is the leader of his party like a Prime
Minister, he has also described him, with an apparent lack of logic, as

the leader of the country. Because Wilson has thus confused party and
people, it is easy to understand why he has at times claimed to
represent the nation when, in reality, he was merely representing
partisan views. Such an attitude is naturally irritating to the Opposition
and explains something of the virulence that characterized the attacks
made upon him in 1918 and