In the beginning of the 20th Century, the diverse American people were convulsed by a reform movement. They were known as "progressives," and they waged war on many evils including monopolies, corruption, inefficiency, and social injustice. The progressives had two primary goals, to use state power to control the trusts; and to stem the socialist threat by generally improving the common person's conditions of life and labor. Progressives wanted to regain the power that had slipped from the hands of the people into those of the "interests." Progressives supported direct primary elections and favored "initiative" so that voters could directly propose legislation themselves, thus bypassing the boss-sought state legislatures. Progressives also supported "referendum" and "recall." Referendum would place laws on ballots for final approval by the people, and recall would enable the voters to remove faithless corrupt officials. President Theodore Roosevelt would be the first of the Next three presidents who followed progressivism, the other two being Howard Taft and Woodrow Wilson. Though diverse and unique in their own ways all three ran the United States with progressive ideals.
             President Roosevelt believed in the progressive reform. He enacted a "Square Deal" program. The program basis where control of the corporations, consumer protection, and conservation of natural resources. In 1902 Pennsylvania coal miners went on strike and demanded a 20% raise in pay and a workday decrease from 10 hours to 9 hours. The mine spokesman, George F. Baer refused to negotiate, and President Roosevelt stepped in a threatened to operate the mines with federal troops. Thus a deal was struck in which the miners received a 10% pay raise and an hour workday reduction. By doing this "Teddy" had established his control and the importance, and will to negotiate at all cost, which was a new progressive thought. In 1902, President Roosevelt challenged the ...