Strong third party challenges gave America its most damaging presidents of the twentieth century. We had two instances of popular, and competent, candidates (Teddy Roosevelt in 1912 and Ross Perot in 1992) running against existing, but flawed, incumbents. In both cases, the incumbent was defeated and their opponents took office with a decided minority of the vote.
The consequences were grave in both cases. In 1912 Woodrow Wilson, an inexperienced governor and perhaps the most damaging president in history, was elected president. While his domestic policies resulted in the firm, and failed, entrenchment of government in every aspect of our lives, it was his foreign policy that doomed the world to the most devastating events in history.
Wilson was narrowly re-elected in 1916 on his claim that he had kept us out of the Great War in Europe. The next year he chose policies that lead to unnecessary clashes with Germany and then pushed through war resolutions to lead the country into this very conflict.
One must remember that what became known as World War I was not the same type of conflict as the later war against Fascism. None of the principal actors (Germany, France, or Great Britain) were evil. They were simply nations fighting over traditional disputes between “great powers” of the day. By 1917 both sides in the conflict were worn down, lacking resources, and had lost the popular will to continue the fight.
By entering the war, Wilson provided the resources to defeat Germany. Had America not entered, the war would have soon ground to an end. The most probable outcome would have been stalemate with little advantage to either side. Germany would have remained in much the same political condition as before the war, yet wary of future battles and perhaps with a weakened imperial leadership. Should the Germans have won, it would have been at best a hollow victory, with some territory taken from France and little permanent damage to Britain.
As the result of America’s unneeded intervention, Germany was soundly defeated. Vindictive allies ignored Wilson’s naïve desires for a gentle peace and imposed humiliating terms on the Germans. These terms soon resulted in the rise of Fascism, Adolph Hitler, and ultimately the Second World War with all its consequences.
Similarly, in 1992 a strong third party candidate caused the defeat of the incumbent and the presidency of Bill Clinton, another weak governor whose legacy we do not yet fully know. We do know that partisanship, fabrication, and personal vindictiveness entered American politics to an extent unknown in the twentieth century.
Unlike Wilson, Clinton’s unwillingness to defend real American interests (he made no meaningful responses to the several terrorist attacks on America during his tenure) resulted in the events that led to our required involvement in the current world-wide war. We are still too close to his reign to fully understand the impact of the Clinton presidency, but are suffering its impact on the American political process.
Third party candidates are often personally appealing, and in the nineteenth century they focused the country on important issues. However, the impacts of their crusading appeals have been unintended and devastating to America’s interests.
