Editing Woodrow Wilson (section)

== Presidency (1913–1921) ==
{{Main|Presidency of Woodrow Wilson}}
{{For timeline|Timeline of the Woodrow Wilson presidency}}
[[File:WILSON, WOODROW. WITH CABINET LCCN2016858384 (restored).jpg|thumb|Wilson and his cabinet in 1916]]
After the election, Wilson chose William Jennings Bryan as Secretary of State, and Bryan offered advice on the remaining members of Wilson's cabinet.<ref>Cooper (2009), p. 185</ref> William Gibbs McAdoo, a prominent Wilson supporter who married Wilson's daughter in 1914, became Secretary of the Treasury, and [[James Clark McReynolds]], who had successfully prosecuted several prominent antitrust cases, was chosen as Attorney General.<ref>Cooper (2009), pp. 190–192</ref> Publisher [[Josephus Daniels]], a party loyalist and prominent white supremacist from North Carolina,<ref>Campbell, W. Joseph (1999). "'One of the Fine Figures of American Journalism': A Closer Look at Josephus Daniels of the Raleigh 'News and Observer'". American Journalism. 16 (4): 37–55. {{doi|10.1080/08821127.1999.10739206}}.</ref> was chosen to be Secretary of the Navy, while young New York attorney [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]] became Assistant Secretary of the Navy.<ref>Berg (2013), pp. 263–264</ref> Wilson's chief of staff ("secretary") was [[Joseph Patrick Tumulty]], who acted as a political buffer and intermediary with the press.<ref>Heckscher (1991), p. 277.</ref> The most important foreign policy adviser and confidant was "Colonel" [[Edward M. House]]; Berg writes that, "in access and influence, [House] outranked everybody in Wilson's Cabinet."<ref>Berg (2013), p. 19</ref>

=== New Freedom domestic agenda ===
[[File:CONGRESS, U.S. OPENING MESSAGE, 63RD CONGRESS.jpg|thumb|Wilson giving his first [[State of the Union]] address in 1913 before a joint session of [[United States Congress|Congress]],<ref>{{cite journal| title=Presidential addresses to congress: Woodrow Wilson and the Jeffersonian tradition| last=Hendrix| first=J. A.| journal=The Southern Speech Journal| volume=31| issue=4| date=Summer 1966| pages=285–294| doi=10.1080/10417946609371831 | issn = 0038-4585}}</ref> which initiated the modern practice of the State of the Union being given in person before all members of Congress<ref name="AppSou">{{cite web|title=State of the Union Addresses and Messages: research notes by Gerhard Peters|url=http://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/sou.php|website=The American Presidency Project (APP)|access-date=January 24, 2017}}</ref>]]

Wilson introduced a comprehensive program of domestic legislation at the outset of his administration, something no president had ever done before.<ref>Cooper (2009), pp. 183–184</ref> He announced four major domestic priorities: the [[Conservation movement|conservation]] of natural resources, banking reform, [[tariffs in United States history|tariff]] reduction, and better access to raw materials for farmers by breaking up Western mining trusts.<ref>Cooper (2009), pp. 186–187</ref> Wilson introduced these proposals in April 1913 in a speech delivered to a joint session of Congress, becoming the first president since [[John Adams]] to address Congress in person.<ref>Berg (2013), pp. 292–293</ref> Wilson's first two years in office largely focused on his domestic agenda. With trouble with Mexico and the outbreak of World War I in 1914, foreign affairs increasingly dominated his presidency.<ref>Cooper (2009), pp. 212–213, 274</ref>

==== Tariff and tax legislation ====
Democrats had long seen high tariff rates as equivalent to unfair taxes on consumers, and tariff reduction was their first priority.<ref name="Clements3637"/> He argued that the system of high tariffs "cuts us off from our proper part in the commerce of the world, violates the just principles of taxation, and makes the government a facile instrument in the hands of private interests."<ref>See [https://avalon.law.yale.edu/20th_century/wilson1.asp "First Inaugural Address of Woodrow Wilson"]</ref> By late May 1913, House Majority Leader [[Oscar Underwood]] had passed a bill in the House that cut the average tariff rate by 10 percent and imposed a tax on personal income above $4,000.<ref name=cooper216218/> Underwood's bill represented the largest downward revision of the tariff since the Civil War. It aggressively cut rates for raw materials, goods deemed to be "necessities", and products produced domestically by trusts, but it retained higher tariff rates for luxury goods.<ref>Weisman (2002), p. 271</ref>

Nevertheless, the passage of the tariff bill in the Senate was a challenge. Some Southern and Western Democrats wanted the continued protection of their wool and sugar industries, and Democrats had a narrower majority in the upper house.<ref name="Clements3637">Clements (1992), pp. 36–37</ref> Wilson met extensively with Democratic senators and appealed directly to the people through the press. After weeks of hearings and debate, Wilson and Secretary of State Bryan managed to unite Senate Democrats behind the bill.<ref name="cooper216218" /> The Senate voted 44 to 37 in favor of the bill, with only one Democrat voting against it and only one Republican voting for it. Wilson signed the [[Revenue Act of 1913]] (called the Underwood Tariff) into law on October 3, 1913.<ref name="cooper216218">Cooper (2009), pp. 216–218</ref> The Revenue Act of 1913 reduced tariffs and replaced the lost revenue with a federal income tax of one percent on incomes above $3,000, affecting the richest three percent of the population.<ref name="weisman230282">Weisman (2002), pp. 230–232, 278–282</ref> The policies of the Wilson administration had a durable impact on the composition of government revenue, which now primarily came from taxation rather than tariffs.<ref>Gould (2003), pp. 175–176</ref>

==== Federal Reserve System ====
{{see also|History of the Federal Reserve System}}
[[File:Federal Reserve Districts Map - Banks & Branches.png|thumb|Map of Federal Reserve Districts with Federal Reserve banks (in black circles), District branches (in black squares), and the Federal Reserve's national headquarters in red]]
Wilson did not wait to complete the Revenue Act of 1913 before proceeding to the next item on his agenda—banking. By the time Wilson took office, countries like Britain and Germany had established government-run [[central bank]]s, but the United States had not had a central bank since the [[Bank War]] of the 1830s.<ref>Cooper (2009), pp. 219–220</ref> In the aftermath of the [[Panic of 1907|nationwide financial crisis in 1907]], there was general agreement to create some sort of central banking system to provide a more elastic currency and to coordinate responses to financial panics. Wilson sought a middle ground between progressives such as Bryan and conservative Republicans like [[Nelson Aldrich]], who, as chairman of the [[National Monetary Commission]], had put forward a plan for a central bank that would give private financial interests a large degree of control over the monetary system.<ref>Clements (1992), pp. 40–42</ref> Wilson declared that the banking system must be "public not private, [and] must be vested in the government itself so that the banks must be the instruments, not the masters, of business."<ref>Heckscher (1991), pp. 316–317</ref>

Democrats crafted a compromise plan in which private banks would control twelve regional [[Federal Reserve Bank]]s, but a controlling interest in the system was placed in a central board filled with presidential appointees. Wilson convinced Democrats on the left that the new plan met their demands.<ref>Link (1954), pp. 43–53</ref> Finally the Senate voted 54–34 to approve the [[Federal Reserve Act]].<ref>Clements (1992), pp. 42–44</ref> The new system began operations in 1915, and it played a key role in financing the Allied and American war efforts in World War I.<ref>Link (1956), pp. 199–240</ref>

==== Antitrust legislation ====
{{see also|History of United States antitrust law}}
[[File:Woodrow Wilson Priming the Prosperity Pump, 1914 political cartoon by Berryman.jpg|thumb|A 1913 [[Clifford K. Berryman]] cartoon with Wilson addressing the economy by pumping it full of tariff, currency, and antitrust laws]]
Having passed major legislation lowering the tariff and reforming the banking structure, Wilson next sought antitrust legislation to enhance the [[Sherman Antitrust Act]] of 1890.<ref>Cooper (2009), pp. 226–227</ref> The Sherman Antitrust Act barred any "contract, combination ... or conspiracy, in restraint of trade", but had proved ineffective in preventing the rise of large business combinations known as [[Trust (business)|trust]]s.<ref>Clements (1992), pp. 46–47</ref> An elite group of businessmen dominated the boards of major banks and railroads, and they used their power to prevent competition by new companies.<ref>Berg (2013), pp. 326–327</ref> With Wilson's support, Congressman [[Henry De Lamar Clayton Jr.|Henry Clayton, Jr.]] introduced a bill that would ban several anti-competitive practices such as [[Price discrimination|discriminatory pricing]], [[Tying (commerce)|tying]], [[exclusive dealing]], and [[interlocking directorate]]s.<ref>Clements (1992), pp. 48–49</ref>

As the difficulty of banning all anti-competitive practices via legislation became clear, Wilson came to back legislation that would create a new agency, the [[Federal Trade Commission]] (FTC), to investigate antitrust violations and enforce antitrust laws independently of the Justice Department. With bipartisan support, Congress passed the [[Federal Trade Commission Act of 1914]], which incorporated Wilson's ideas regarding the FTC.<ref>Clements (1992), pp. 49–50</ref> One month after signing the Federal Trade Commission Act of 1914, Wilson signed the [[Clayton Antitrust Act of 1914]], which built on the Sherman Act by defining and banning several anti-competitive practices.<ref>Clements (1992), pp. 50–51</ref>

==== Labor and agriculture ====
{{see also|Labor history of the United States}}
[[File:Presidentwoodrowwilson.jpeg|thumb|Wilson's 1913 official presidential portrait]]
Wilson thought a child labor law would probably be unconstitutional but reversed himself in 1916 with a close election approaching. In 1916, after intense campaigns by the [[National Child Labor Committee]] (NCLC) and the [[National Consumers League]], the Congress passed the [[Keating–Owen Act]], making it illegal to ship goods in interstate commerce if they were made in factories employing children under specified ages. Southern Democrats were opposed but did not filibuster. Wilson endorsed the bill at the last minute under pressure from party leaders who stressed how popular the idea was, especially among the emerging class of women voters. He told Democratic Congressmen they needed to pass this law and also a workman's compensation law to satisfy the national progressive movement and to win the 1916 election against a reunited GOP. It was the first federal child labor law. However, the [[Supreme Court of the United States|U.S. Supreme Court]] struck down the law in ''[[Hammer v. Dagenhart]]'' (1918). Congress then passed a law taxing businesses that used child labor, but that was struck down by the Supreme Court in ''[[Bailey v. Drexel Furniture Co.|Bailey v. Drexel Furniture]]'' (1923). Child labor was finally ended in the 1930s.<ref>Arthur S. Link, ''Wilson: Campaigns for Progressivism and Peace, 1916–1917. Vol. 5'' (1965) pp. 56–59.</ref> He approved the goal of upgrading the harsh working conditions for merchant sailors and signed LaFollette's [[Seamen's Act]] of 1915.<ref>Clements, pp. 44, 81.</ref> 

During his political career, Wilson commissioned members of the [[Fraternal Order of Eagles]] to study old age pension laws overseas to determine whether such laws could be adopted in the United States.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UsFIAAAAIBAJ&dq=President+Wilson+commissioned+members+of+the+Fraternal+Order+of+Eagles+old+age+pension+laws&pg=PA5&article_id=1042,2085282|title=The Meriden Daily Journal|publisher=The Meriden Daily Journal|via=Google Books}}</ref> Pensions for civil servants employed by the federal government were introduced during Wilson's final year in office.<ref>[https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/The_Federal_Civil_Service_System_and_the/Joa6AzdM96MC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=Federal+civil+service+pensions+1920&pg=PA91&printsec=frontcover The Federal Civil Service System and the Problem of Bureaucracy The Economics and Politics of Institutional Change By Ronald N. Johnson, Gary D. Libecap, 2007, P.91]</ref>

Wilson called on the Labor Department to mediate conflicts between labor and management. In 1914, Wilson dispatched soldiers to help bring an end to the [[Colorado Coalfield War]], one of the deadliest labor disputes in American history.<ref>Berg (2013), p. 332</ref> In 1916 he pushed Congress to enact the [[Eight-hour day|eight-hour work day]] for railroad workers, which ended a major strike. It was "the boldest intervention in labor relations that any president had yet attempted."<ref>Cooper (2009), pp. 345–346.</ref>

Wilson disliked the excessive government involvement in the [[Federal Farm Loan Act]], which created twelve regional banks empowered to provide low-interest loans to farmers. Nevertheless, he needed the farm vote to survive the upcoming 1916 election, so he signed it.<ref>Clements (1992), pp. 63–64</ref>

==== Territories and immigration ====
{{see also|History of immigration to the United States}}
Wilson embraced the long-standing Democratic policy against owning colonies, and he worked for the gradual autonomy and ultimate independence of the [[Philippines]], which had been acquired in 1898. Continuing the policy of his predecessors, Wilson increased self-governance on the islands by granting [[Filipinos]] greater control over the Philippine Legislature. The [[Jones Act of 1916]] committed the United States to the eventual independence of the Philippines, and granted Filipinos further autonomy with the establishment of a Filipino [[Philippine Senate|Senate]] and [[House of Representatives of the Philippines|House of Representatives]], replacing the American-run [[Philippine Commission]] and Filipino-run [[Philippine Assembly]], respectively.<ref>Cooper (2009), p. 249</ref> In 1916, Wilson [[Treaty of the Danish West Indies|purchased by treaty]] the [[Danish West Indies]], renamed as the [[United States Virgin Islands]].<ref>{{cite web|last=Ambar|first=Saladin|url=https://millercenter.org/president/wilson/foreign-affairs|title=Woodrow Wilson: Foreign Affairs|website=Miller Center|publisher=University of Virginia|date=October 4, 2016|access-date=August 24, 2022}}</ref>

Immigration from Europe declined significantly once World War I began and Wilson paid little attention to the issue during his presidency.<ref>{{cite book|last=Allerfeldt|first=Saladin|year=2013|chapter=Wilson's Views on Immigration and Ethnicity|editor-last=Kennedy|editor-first=Ross A.|title=A Companion to Woodrow Wilson|edition=1st hardcover|location=Hoboken, New Jersey|publisher=Wiley-Blackwell|pages=152–172|doi=10.1002/9781118445693<!--.ch8-->|isbn=978-1-4443-3737-2}}</ref> However, he looked favorably upon the "new immigrants" from southern and eastern Europe, and twice vetoed laws passed by Congress intended to restrict their entry, though the later veto was overridden.<ref>Cooper (2009), pp. 252–253, 376–377</ref>

==== Judicial appointments ====
{{Main|Woodrow Wilson Supreme Court candidates}}
{{Main list|List of federal judges appointed by Woodrow Wilson}}
Wilson nominated three men to the [[United States Supreme Court]], all of whom were confirmed by the U.S. Senate. In 1914, Wilson nominated sitting attorney general [[James Clark McReynolds]]. Despite his credentials as an ardent trust buster,<ref>Fox, John. "James Clark McReynolds", www.pbs.org/wnet/supremecourt/capitalism/robes_mcreynolds.html. ''Capitalism and Conflict: Supreme Court History, Law, Power & Personality, Biographies of the Robes''. Published December 2006. Public Broadcasting System (PBS). Retrieved September 25, 2021.</ref> McReynolds became a staple of the court's conservative bloc until his retirement in 1941.<ref>Cooper (2009), p. 273</ref> According to Berg, Wilson considered appointing McReynolds one of his biggest mistakes in office.<ref>Berg (2013), p. 400</ref> In 1916, Wilson [[Louis Brandeis Supreme Court nomination|nominated Louis Brandeis to the Court]], setting off a major debate in the Senate over Brandeis's progressive ideology and his religion; Brandeis was the first [[Jewish]] nominee to the Supreme Court. Ultimately, Wilson was able to convince Senate Democrats to vote to confirm Brandeis, who served on the court until 1939. In contrast to McReynolds, Brandeis became one of the court's leading progressive voices.<ref>Cooper (2009), pp. 330–332</ref> When a second vacancy arose in 1916, Wilson appointed progressive lawyer [[John Hessin Clarke]]. Clarke was confirmed by the Senate and served on the Court until retiring in 1922.<ref>Cooper (2009), pp. 340, 586</ref>

=== First-term foreign policy ===
{{main|Foreign policy of the Woodrow Wilson administration}}

==== Latin America ====
{{see also|United States involvement in the Mexican Revolution|Banana Wars}}
[[File:VillaUncleSamBerrymanCartoon.png|thumb|A cartoon depicting [[Uncle Sam]] entering [[Mexico]] in 1916 to punish Pancho Villa with Uncle Sam saying, "I've had about enough of this."]]
Wilson sought to move away from the foreign policy of his predecessors, which he viewed as imperialistic, and he rejected Taft's [[Dollar Diplomacy]].<ref>Berg (2013), pp. 289–290</ref> Nonetheless, he frequently intervened in [[Latin America]], saying in 1913, "I am going to teach the [[South America]]n republics to elect good men."<ref>Paul Horgan, ''Great River: the Rio Grande in North American History'' (Middletown, CT: Wesleyan University Press, 1984), p. 913</ref> The 1914 [[Bryan–Chamorro Treaty]] converted [[Nicaragua]] into a ''de facto'' protectorate, and the U.S. [[United States occupation of Nicaragua|stationed soldiers]] there throughout Wilson's presidency. The Wilson administration [[United States occupation of the Dominican Republic (1916–24)|sent troops to occupy]] the [[Dominican Republic]] and [[United States occupation of Haiti|intervene]] in [[Haiti]], and Wilson also authorized military interventions in [[Cuba]], [[Panama]], and [[Honduras]].<ref>Herring (2008), pp. 388–390</ref>

Wilson took office during the [[Mexican Revolution]], which had begun in 1911 after liberals overthrew the military dictatorship of [[Porfirio Díaz]]. Shortly before Wilson took office, conservatives retook power through a coup led by [[Victoriano Huerta]].<ref>Clements (1992), pp. 96–97</ref> Wilson rejected the legitimacy of Huerta's "government of butchers" and demanded Mexico hold democratic elections.<ref>{{Cite journal |jstor = 1007454|title = Woodrow Wilson, Victoriano Huerta, and the Recognition Issue in Mexico|journal = The Americas|volume = 41|issue = 2|pages = 151–176|last1 = Henderson|first1 = Peter V. N.|year = 1984|doi = 10.2307/1007454| s2cid=147620955 }}</ref> After Huerta arrested U.S. Navy personnel who had accidentally landed in a restricted zone near the northern port town of [[Tampico]], Wilson [[United States occupation of Veracruz|dispatched the Navy to occupy]] the Mexican city of [[Veracruz]]. A strong backlash against the American intervention among Mexicans of all political affiliations convinced Wilson to abandon his plans to expand the U.S. military intervention, but the intervention nonetheless helped convince Huerta to flee from the country.<ref>Clements (1992), pp. 98–99</ref> A group led by [[Venustiano Carranza]] established control over a significant proportion of Mexico, and Wilson recognized Carranza's government in October 1915.<ref name="Clements (1992), pp. 99–100">Clements (1992), pp. 99–100</ref>

Carranza continued to face various opponents within Mexico, including [[Pancho Villa]], whom Wilson had earlier described as "a sort of Robin Hood."<ref name="Clements (1992), pp. 99–100"/> In early 1916, Pancho Villa raided the village of [[Columbus, New Mexico]], killing or wounding dozens of Americans and causing an enormous nationwide American demand for his punishment. Wilson ordered General [[John J. Pershing]] and 4,000 troops across the border to capture Villa. By April, Pershing's forces had broken up and dispersed Villa's bands, but Villa remained on the loose and Pershing continued his pursuit deep into Mexico. Carranza then pivoted against the Americans and accused them of a punitive invasion, leading to several incidents that nearly led to war. Tensions subsided after Mexico agreed to release several American prisoners, and bilateral negotiations began under the auspices of the Mexican-American Joint High Commission. Eager to withdraw from Mexico due to tensions in Europe, Wilson ordered Pershing to withdraw, and the last American soldiers left in February 1917.<ref>Link (1964), 194–221, 280–318; Link (1965), 51–54, 328–339</ref>

==== Neutrality in World War I ====
[[File:The American War-Dog by Oscar Cesare 1916.jpg|thumb|A cartoon of Wilson and "Jingo", the American war dog, ridiculing jingoes baying for war]]
[[World War I]] broke out in July 1914, pitting the [[Central Powers]] (Germany, [[Austria-Hungary]], the [[Ottoman Empire]], and later [[Bulgaria]]) against the [[Allies of World War I|Allied Powers]] (Britain, [[France]], [[Russia]], [[Serbia]], and several other countries). The war fell into a long stalemate with very high casualties on the [[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]] in France. Both sides rejected offers by Wilson and the House to mediate an end to the conflict.<ref>Clements (1992), pp. 123–124</ref> From 1914 until early 1917, Wilson's primary foreign policy objectives were to keep the United States out of the war in Europe and to broker a peace agreement.<ref>Heckscher (1991), p. 339.</ref> He insisted that all U.S. government actions be neutral, stating that Americans "must be impartial in thought as well as in action, must put a curb upon our sentiments as well as upon every transaction that might be construed as a preference of one party to the struggle before another."<ref>Link (1960), p. 66.</ref> As a neutral power, the U.S. insisted on its right to trade with both sides. However the powerful British Royal Navy imposed a [[Blockade of Germany (1914–1919)|blockade of Germany]]. To appease Washington, London agreed to continue purchasing certain major American commodities such as cotton at pre-war prices, and in the event an American merchant vessel was caught with contraband, the Royal Navy was under orders to buy the entire cargo and release the vessel.<ref>Lake, 1960.</ref> Wilson passively accepted this situation.<ref>Clements (1992), pp. 119–123</ref>

In response to the British blockade, Germany launched a [[U-boat Campaign (World War I)|submarine campaign]] against merchant vessels in the seas surrounding the British Isles.<ref>Clements (1992), pp. 124–125</ref> In early 1915, the Germans sank three American ships; Wilson took the view, based on some reasonable evidence, that these incidents were accidental, and a settlement of claims could be postponed until the end of the war.<ref>Heckscher (1991), p. 362.</ref> In May 1915, a German submarine torpedoed the British ocean liner [[RMS Lusitania|RMS ''Lusitania'']], killing 1,198 passengers, including 128 American citizens.<ref>Berg (2013), p. 362</ref> Wilson publicly responded by saying, "there is such a thing as a man being too proud to fight. There is such a thing as a nation being so right that it does not need to convince others by force that it is right".<ref>Brands (2003), pp. 60–61</ref> Wilson demanded that the German government "take immediate steps to prevent the recurrence" of incidents like the sinking of the ''Lusitania''. In response, Bryan, who believed that Wilson had placed the defense of American trade rights above neutrality, resigned from the Cabinet.<ref>Clements (1992), pp. 125–127</ref> In March 1916, the [[SS Sussex|SS ''Sussex'']], an unarmed ferry under the French flag, was torpedoed in the English Channel and four Americans were counted among the dead. Wilson extracted from Germany a pledge to constrain submarine warfare to the rules of cruiser warfare, which represented a major diplomatic concession.<ref>Heckscher (1991), pp. 384–387</ref>

Interventionists, led by Theodore Roosevelt, wanted war with Germany and attacked Wilson's refusal to build up the army in anticipation of war.<ref>Berg (2013), pp. 378, 395</ref> After the sinking of the ''Lusitania'' and the resignation of Bryan, Wilson publicly committed himself to what became known as the "[[Preparedness Movement|preparedness movement]]", and began to build up the army and the navy.<ref>Clements (1992), pp. 128–129</ref> In June 1916, Congress passed the [[National Defense Act of 1916]], which established the [[Reserve Officers' Training Corps]] and expanded the [[United States National Guard|National Guard]].<ref>Berg (2013), p. 394</ref> Later in the year, Congress passed the [[Naval Act of 1916]], which provided for a major expansion of the navy.<ref>Link (1954), p. 179.</ref>

=== Second marriage ===
[[File:Mr. and Mrs. Woodrow Wilson seated outdoors with their three daughters standing behind them-(left to right) Margaret, Eleanor, and Jessie, in Cornish, New Hampshire LCCN2013649731 (restored).jpg|thumb|The Wilson family in 1912]]
The health of Ellen Wilson declined after her husband entered office, and doctors diagnosed her with [[Bright's disease]] in July 1914.<ref>Berg (2013), pp. 332–333</ref> She died on August 6, 1914.<ref>Berg (2013), pp. 334–335</ref> President Wilson was deeply affected by the loss, falling into depression.<ref>Heckscher (1991), pp. 333–335</ref> On March 18, 1915, Wilson met [[Edith Bolling Galt]] at a White House tea.<ref>Haskins (2016), p. 166</ref> Galt was a widow and jeweler who was also from the South. After several meetings, Wilson fell in love with her, and he proposed marriage to her in May 1915. Galt initially rebuffed him, but Wilson was undeterred and continued the courtship.<ref>Heckscher (1991), pp. 348–350.</ref> Edith gradually warmed to the relationship, and they became engaged in September 1915.<ref>Berg (2013), pp. 361, 372–374</ref> They were married on December 18, 1915. Woodrow Wilson joined [[John Tyler]] and Grover Cleveland as the only presidents to marry while in office.<ref>Heckscher (1991), pp. 350, 356.</ref>

=== Presidential election of 1916 ===
{{Main|1916 United States presidential election}}
[[File:Woodrow Wilson, accepting Democratic nomination, 1916.JPG|thumb|Wilson accepts the Democratic Party nomination for president in 1916]]
[[File:ElectoralCollege1916.svg|thumb|The 1916 electoral college map]]
Wilson was renominated at the [[1916 Democratic National Convention]] without opposition.<ref>Berg (2013), pp. 405–406</ref> In an effort to win progressive voters, Wilson called for legislation providing for an eight-hour day and six-day workweek, health and safety measures, the prohibition of child labor, and safeguards for female workers. He also favored a minimum wage for all work performed by and for the federal government.<ref>Cooper (2009), p. 335</ref> The Democrats also campaigned on the slogan "He Kept Us Out of War", and warned that a Republican victory would mean war with Germany.<ref>Cooper (2009) pp. 341–342, 352</ref> Hoping to reunify the progressive and conservative wings of the party, the [[1916 Republican National Convention]] nominated Supreme Court justice [[Charles Evans Hughes]] for president; as a jurist, he had been completely out of politics by 1912. Though Republicans attacked Wilson's foreign policy on various grounds, domestic affairs generally dominated the campaign. Republicans campaigned against Wilson's New Freedom policies, especially tariff reduction, the new income taxes, and the [[Adamson Act]], which they derided as "class legislation".<ref>Cooper (1990), pp. 248–249, 252–253</ref>

The election was close and the outcome was in doubt with Hughes ahead in the East, and Wilson in the South and West. The decision came down to California. On November 10, California certified that Wilson had won the state by 3,806 votes, giving him a majority of the electoral vote. Nationally, Wilson won 277 electoral votes and 49.2 percent of the popular vote, while Hughes won 254 electoral votes and 46.1 percent of the popular vote.<ref>Berg (2013), pp. 415–416</ref> Wilson was able to win by picking up many votes that had gone to Roosevelt or Debs in 1912.<ref>{{Cite journal |jstor = 1900319|title = Woodrow Wilson, Irish Americans, and the Election of 1916|journal = The Journal of American History|volume = 54|issue = 1|pages = 57–72|last1 = Leary|first1 = William M.|year = 1967|doi = 10.2307/1900319|author1-link=William M. Leary}}</ref> He swept the [[Solid South]] and won all but one Western state, while Hughes won most of the Northeastern and Midwestern states.<ref>Cooper (1990), pp. 254–255</ref> Wilson's re-election made him the first Democrat since [[Andrew Jackson]] (in 1832) to win two consecutive terms. The Democrats kept control of Congress.<ref>Cooper (2009), pp. 311–312</ref>

===Entering World War I===
{{main|American entry into World War I}}
{{Further|United States in World War I|Foreign policy of the Woodrow Wilson administration}}
In January 1917, the [[German Empire]] initiated a new policy of [[unrestricted submarine warfare]] against ships in the seas around the British Isles. German leaders knew that the policy would likely provoke U.S. entrance into the war, but they hoped to defeat the Allied Powers before the U.S. could fully mobilize.<ref>Clements (1992), pp. 137–138</ref> In late February, the U.S. public learned of the [[Zimmermann Telegram]], a secret diplomatic communication in which Germany sought to convince Mexico to join it in a war against the United States.<ref>Clements (1992), pp. 138–139</ref> After a series of attacks on American ships, Wilson held a Cabinet meeting on March 20; all Cabinet members agreed that the time had come for the United States to enter the war.<ref>Clements (1992), pp. 139–140</ref> The Cabinet members believed that Germany was engaged in a commercial war against the United States, and that the United States had to respond with a formal declaration of war.<ref>Berg (2013), pp. 430–432</ref>

On April 2, 1917, Wilson addressed the [[United States Congress|U.S. Congress]], asking for a declaration of war against Germany, saying that Germany was engaged in "nothing less than war against the government and people of the United States." He requested a military draft to raise the army, increased taxes to pay for military expenses, loans to Allied governments, and increased industrial and agricultural production.<ref>Clements (1992), pp. 140–141</ref> He stated, "we have no selfish ends to serve. We desire no conquest, no dominion... no material compensation for the sacrifices we shall freely make. We are but one of the champions of the rights of mankind. We shall be satisfied when those rights have been made as secure as the faith and freedom of the nations can make them."<ref>Berg (2013), p. 437</ref> The [[declaration of war by the United States]] [[1917 United States declaration of war on Germany|against Germany]] passed Congress with strong bipartisan majorities on April 6, 1917.<ref>Berg (2013), p. 439</ref> The United States later [[United States declaration of war on Austria-Hungary|declared war]] against Austria-Hungary in December 1917.<ref>Berg (2013), pp. 462–463</ref>

With the U.S. entrance into the war, Wilson and Secretary of War [[Newton D. Baker]] launched an expansion of the army, with the goal of creating a 300,000-member [[Regular Army (United States)|Regular Army]], a 440,000-member [[Army National Guard|National Guard]], and a 500,000-member conscripted force known as the "[[Army of the United States|National Army]]". Despite some resistance to conscription and to the commitment of American soldiers abroad, large majorities of both houses of Congress voted to impose conscription with the [[Selective Service Act of 1917]]. Seeking to avoid the draft riots of the Civil War, the bill established local draft boards that were charged with determining who should be drafted. By the end of the war, nearly 3&nbsp;million men had been drafted.<ref>Clements (1992), pp. 143–146</ref> The navy also saw tremendous expansion, and Allied shipping losses dropped substantially due to U.S. contributions and a new emphasis on the [[Convoys in World War I|convoy system]].<ref>Clements (1992), pp. 147–149</ref>
[[File:World 1914 empires colonies territory.PNG|thumb|right|upright=2.3|Map of the [[great power]]s and their empires in 1914]]

==== Fourteen Points ====
{{Main|Fourteen Points}}
Wilson sought the establishment of "an organized common peace" that would help prevent future conflicts. In this goal, he was opposed not just by the Central Powers, but also the other Allied Powers, who, to various degrees, sought to win concessions and to impose a punitive peace agreement on the Central Powers.<ref>Clements (1992), pp. 164–165</ref> On January 8, 1918, Wilson delivered a speech, known as the Fourteen Points, wherein he articulated his administration's long term war objectives. Wilson called for the establishment of an association of nations to guarantee the independence and territorial integrity of all nations—a [[League of Nations]].<ref>Heckscher (1991), p. 471.</ref> Other points included the evacuation of occupied territory, the establishment of an independent [[Poland]], and [[self-determination]] for the peoples of Austria-Hungary and the Ottoman Empire.<ref>Berg (2013), pp. 469–471</ref>

==== Course of the war ====
{{Main|World War I}}
Under the command of General Pershing, the [[American Expeditionary Forces]] first arrived in France in mid-1917.<ref>Clements (1992), p. 144</ref> Wilson and Pershing rejected the British and French proposal that American soldiers integrate into existing Allied units, giving the United States more freedom of action but requiring for the creation of new organizations and supply chains.<ref>Clements (1992), p. 150</ref> Russia exited the war after signing the [[Treaty of Brest-Litovsk]] in March 1918, allowing Germany to shift soldiers from the [[Eastern Front (World War I)|Eastern Front]] of the war.<ref name="clements149151">Clements (1992), pp. 149–151</ref> Hoping to break Allied lines before American soldiers could arrive in full force, the Germans launched the [[German spring offensive|Spring Offensive]] on the [[Western Front (World War I)|Western Front]]. Both sides suffered hundreds of thousands of casualties as the Germans forced back the British and French, but Germany was unable to capture the French capital of [[Paris]].<ref>Berg (2013), p. 474</ref> There were only 175,000 American soldiers in Europe at the end of 1917, but by mid-1918 10,000 Americans were arriving in Europe per day.<ref name="clements149151"/> With American forces having joined in the fight, the Allies defeated Germany in the [[Battle of Belleau Wood]] and the [[Battle of Château-Thierry (1918)|Battle of Château-Thierry]]. Beginning in August, the Allies launched the [[Hundred Days Offensive]], pushing back the exhausted German army.<ref>Berg (2013), pp. 479–481</ref> Meanwhile, French and British leaders convinced Wilson to send a few thousand American soldiers to join the [[Allied intervention in the Russian Civil War|Allied intervention]] in Russia, which was in the midst of a [[Russian Civil War|civil war]] between the Communist [[Bolsheviks]] and the [[White movement]].<ref>Berg (2013), pp. 498–500</ref>

By the end of September 1918, the German leadership no longer believed it could win the war, and Kaiser [[Wilhelm II, German Emperor|Wilhelm II]] appointed a new government led by [[Prince Maximilian of Baden]].<ref>Clements (1992), pp. 165–166</ref> Baden immediately sought an armistice with Wilson, with the Fourteen Points to serve as the basis of the German surrender.<ref>Berg (2013), p. 503</ref> [[Edward M. House|House]] procured agreement to the armistice from France and Britain, but only after threatening to conclude a unilateral armistice without them.<ref>Heckscher (1991), pp. 479–488.</ref> Germany and the Allied Powers brought an end to the fighting with the signing of the [[Armistice of 11 November 1918]].<ref>Berg (2013), pp. 511–512</ref> Austria-Hungary had signed the [[Armistice of Villa Giusti]] eight days earlier, while the Ottoman Empire had signed the [[Armistice of Mudros]] in October. By the end of the war, 116,000 American servicemen had died, and another 200,000 had been wounded.<ref>Berg (2013), p. 20</ref>

==== Home front ====
{{main|United States home front during World War I}}
[[File:FoodWillWinTheGreatWarNOLA.jpg|thumb|A banner reading, "Food will win the war—don't waste it", in front of city hall in [[New Orleans]] in October 1918]]
[[File:Women workers in ordnance shops, Midvale Steel and Ordnance Company, Nicetown, Pennsylvania. Hand chipping with pneumati - NARA - 530774.jpg|thumb|Women workers in an ordnance shop in [[Pennsylvania]], in 1918]]
With the American entrance into World War I in April 1917, Wilson became a war-time president. The [[War Industries Board]], headed by [[Bernard Baruch]], was established to set U.S. war manufacturing policies and goals. Future President [[Herbert Hoover]] led the [[United States Food Administration|Food Administration]]; the [[Federal Fuel Administration]], run by [[Harry Augustus Garfield]], introduced [[daylight saving time]] and rationed fuel supplies; William McAdoo was in charge of war bond efforts; [[Vance C. McCormick]] headed the War Trade Board. These men, known collectively as the "war cabinet", met weekly with Wilson.<ref>Heckscher (1991), p. 469.</ref> Because he was heavily focused on foreign policy during World War I, Wilson delegated a large degree of authority over the home front to his subordinates.<ref>Cooper (1990), pp. 296–297</ref> In the midst of the war, the federal budget soared from $1&nbsp;billion in [[fiscal year]] 1916 to $19&nbsp;billion in fiscal year 1919.<ref name="clements156157"/> In addition to spending on its own military build-up, Wall Street in 1914–1916 and the Treasury in 1917–1918 provided large loans to the Allied countries, thus financing the war effort of Britain and France.<ref>Cooper (1990), pp. 276, 319</ref>

Seeking to avoid the high levels of inflation that had accompanied the heavy borrowing of the [[American Civil War]], the Wilson administration raised taxes during the war.<ref>Weisman (2002), pp. 320</ref> The [[War Revenue Act of 1917]] and the [[Revenue Act of 1918]] raised the top tax rate to 77 percent, greatly increased the number of Americans paying the income tax, and levied an [[excess profits tax]] on businesses and individuals.<ref>Weisman (2002), pp. 325–329, 345</ref> Despite these tax acts, the United States was forced to borrow heavily to finance the war effort. Treasury Secretary McAdoo authorized the issuing of low-interest war bonds and, to attract investors, made interest on the bonds tax-free. The bonds proved so popular among investors that many borrowed money in order to buy more bonds. The purchase of bonds, along with other war-time pressures, resulted in rising inflation, though this inflation was partly matched by rising wages and profits.<ref name="clements156157">Clements (1992), pp. 156–157</ref>

To shape public opinion, Wilson in 1917 established the first modern propaganda office, the [[Committee on Public Information]] (CPI), headed by [[George Creel]].<ref>Berg (2013), pp. 449–450</ref> Wilson called on voters in [[1918 United States elections|the 1918 off-year elections]] to elect Democrats as an endorsement of his policies. However the Republicans won over alienated [[German-Americans]] and took control.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Livermore |first=Seward W. |date=1948 |title=The Sectional Issue in the 1918 Congressional Elections |journal=The Mississippi Valley Historical Review |volume=35 |issue=1 |pages=29–60 |doi=10.2307/1895138 |jstor=1895138}}</ref> Wilson refused to coordinate or compromise with the new leaders of House and Senate—Senator [[Henry Cabot Lodge]] became his nemesis.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Parsons |first=Edward B. |date=1989 |title=Some International Implications of the 1918 Roosevelt-Lodge Campaign Against Wilson and a Democratic Congress |journal=Presidential Studies Quarterly |volume=19 |issue=1 |pages=141–157 |jstor=40574571}}</ref> In November 1919, Wilson's attorney general, [[A. Mitchell Palmer]], began to target anarchists, [[Industrial Workers of the World]] members, and other antiwar groups in what became known as the [[Palmer Raids]]. Thousands were arrested for incitement to violence, espionage, or sedition. Wilson by that point was incapacitated and was not told what was happening.<ref name="cooper201209">Cooper (2008), pp. 201, 209</ref>

=== Aftermath of World War I ===
{{Further|Foreign policy of the Woodrow Wilson administration}}
[[File:Map Europe 1923-en.svg|thumb|Several new European states were established at the [[Paris Peace Conference (1919–1920)|Paris Peace Conference]].]]

==== Paris Peace Conference ====
{{main|Aftermath of World War I|Paris Peace Conference (1919–1920)}}
[[File:Big four.jpg|thumb|The "Big Four" at the [[Paris Peace Conference]] on May 27, 1919, following the end of [[World War I]] with Wilson standing next to [[Georges Clemenceau]] on the right]]
[[File:Review of reviews and world's work (1890) (14586729460).jpg|thumb|Vast throngs of Italians in [[Milan]] gather to welcome Wilson.]] 
After the signing of the armistice, Wilson traveled to Europe to lead the American delegation to the Paris Peace Conference, thereby becoming the first incumbent president to travel to Europe.<ref>Heckscher (1991), p. 458.</ref> Although Republicans now controlled Congress, Wilson shut them out. Senate Republicans and even some Senate Democrats complained about their lack of representation in the delegation. It consisted of Wilson, Colonel House,{{efn|House and Wilson fell out during the Paris Peace Conference, and House no longer played a role in the administration after June 1919.<ref>Berg (2013), pp. 570–572, 601</ref>}} Secretary of State [[Robert Lansing]], General [[Tasker H. Bliss]], and diplomat [[Henry White (diplomat)|Henry White]], who was the only Republican, and he was not an active partisan.<ref>Berg (2013), pp. 516–518</ref> Save for a two-week return to the United States, Wilson remained in Europe for six months, where he focused on reaching a peace treaty to formally end the war. Wilson, British Prime Minister [[David Lloyd George]], French Prime Minister [[Georges Clemenceau]], and Italian Prime Minister [[Vittorio Emanuele Orlando]] made up the "[[The Big Four (World War I)|Big Four]]", the Allied leaders with the most influence at the Paris Peace Conference.<ref>Herring (2008), pp. 417–420</ref> Wilson had an illness during the conference, and some experts believe the [[Spanish flu]] was the cause.<ref name=spanish>{{cite news|last=Baker|first=Peter|date=October 2, 2020|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2020/10/02/us/politics/trump-covid.html|title=Trump Tests Positive for the Coronavirus|work=The New York Times|access-date=August 24, 2022|quote=Woodrow Wilson became sick during Paris peace talks after World War I with what some specialists and historians believe was the influenza that ravaged the world from 1918 through 1920.}}</ref>

Unlike other Allied leaders, Wilson did not seek territorial gains or material concessions from the Central Powers. His chief goal was the establishment of the League of Nations, which he saw as the "keystone of the whole programme".<ref>Berg (2013), pp. 533–535</ref> Wilson himself presided over the committee that drafted the [[Covenant of the League of Nations]].<ref>Clements (1992), pp. 177–178</ref> The covenant bound members to respect [[freedom of religion]], treat racial minorities fairly, and peacefully settle disputes through organizations like the [[Permanent Court of International Justice]]. Article X of the League Covenant required all nations to defend League members against external aggression.<ref>Berg (2013), pp. 538–539</ref> Japan proposed that the conference endorse a [[Racial Equality Proposal]]; The chairman, Woodrow Wilson, overturned it by saying that although the proposal had been approved by a clear majority, the particular matter had strong opposition manifest itself (despite the lack of any actual votes against the proposal) and that on this issue, a unanimous vote would be required. French delegate Ferdinand Larnaude [la; sv] immediately stated that "a majority had voted for the amendment." Meanwhile, the Japanese delegation wanted the transcript to show that a clear majority had been voted for the amendment.<ref>{{cite book|first=Naoko|last=Shimazu|year=1998|title=Japan, Race, and Equality: The Racial Equality Proposal of 1919|edition=1st pbk.|location=New York|publisher=Routledge|pages=[https://books.google.com/books?id=YwHbgnSi_sQC&pg=PA154 154] ff|isbn=978-0-415-49735-0}}</ref> The Covenant of the League of Nations was incorporated into the conference's [[Treaty of Versailles]], which ended the war with Germany, and into other peace treaties.<ref>Clements (1992), pp. 180–185</ref>

Aside from the establishment the League of Nations and solidifying a lasting world peace, Wilson's other main goal at the Paris Peace Conference was that self-determination be the primary basis used for drawing new international borders.<ref name="Berg 2013, pp. 534, 563">Berg (2013), pp. 534, 563</ref> However, in pursuit of his League of Nations, Wilson conceded several points to the other powers present at the conference. Germany was required to permanently cede territory, pay war reparations, relinquish all of her overseas colonies and dependencies and submit to [[Allied occupation of the Rhineland|military occupation in the Rhineland]]. Additionally, a [[Article 231 of the Treaty of Versailles|clause]] in the treaty specifically named Germany as responsible for the war. Wilson agreed to allowing the Allied European powers and Japan to essentially expand their empires by establishing ''de facto'' colonies in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia out the former German and Ottoman Empires; these territorial awards to the victorious countries were thinly disguised as "[[League of Nations mandates]]". The Japanese acquisition of German interests in the [[Shandong Peninsula]] of China proved especially [[Shandong Problem|unpopular]], as it undercut Wilson's promise of self-government. Wilson's hopes for achieving self-determination saw some success when the conference recognized multiple new and independent states created in Eastern Europe, including [[Principality of Albania|Albania]], [[First Czechoslovak Republic|Czechoslovakia]], [[Second Polish Republic|Poland]], and [[Kingdom of Yugoslavia|Yugoslavia]].<ref name="Berg 2013, pp. 534, 563"/><ref>Herring (2008), pp. 421–423</ref><ref>Chun 2011, p. 94</ref>

The conference finished negotiations in May 1919, at which point the new leaders of [[republican Germany]] viewed the treaty for the first time. Some German leaders favored repudiating the peace due to the harshness of the terms, though ultimately Germany signed the treaty on June 28, 1919.<ref>Clements (1992), pp. 185–186</ref> Wilson was unable to convince the other Allied powers, France in particular, to temper the harshness of the settlement being leveled at the defeated Central Powers, especially Germany.{{citation needed|date=August 2022}} For his efforts towards creating a lasting world peace, Wilson was awarded the 1919 [[Nobel Peace Prize]].<ref>{{cite news|last=Glass|first=Andrew|date=December 10, 2012|url=https://www.politico.com/story/2012/12/woodrow-wilson-nobel-peace-prize-dec-10-1920-084809|title=Woodrow Wilson receives Nobel Peace Price, Dec. 10, 1920|work=Politico|access-date=August 24, 2022}}</ref>

==== Ratification debate and defeat====
[[File:President Woodrow Wilson - NH 18.jpeg|upright|thumb|Wilson returning from the [[Versailles Peace Conference]] on [[USS George Washington|USS ''George Washington'']], as she steamed up [[New York Harbor]] on July 8, 1919; the [[Weimar National Assembly]] in Germany formally ratified the treaty the following day in a vote of 209 to 116.<ref name=pinson>{{cite book|author=Koppel S. Pinson|title=Modern Germany: Its History and Civilization| edition= 13th printing|year=1964|publisher=Macmillan|location=New York|page=397 f|isbn=0-88133-434-0}}</ref>]]
Ratification of the Treaty of Versailles required the support of two-thirds of the Senate, a difficult proposition given that Republicans held a narrow majority in the Senate after the [[1918 U.S. elections]].<ref name="Clements (1992), pp. 190–191">Clements (1992), pp. 190–191</ref> Republicans were outraged by Wilson's failure to discuss the war or its aftermath with them, and an intensely partisan battle developed in the Senate. Republican Senator [[Henry Cabot Lodge]] supported a version of the treaty that required Wilson to compromise. Wilson refused.<ref name="Clements (1992), pp. 190–191"/> Some Republicans, including former President Taft and former Secretary of State [[Elihu Root]], favored ratification of the treaty with some modifications, and their public support gave Wilson some chance of winning the treaty's ratification.<ref name="Clements (1992), pp. 190–191"/>

The debate over the treaty centered around a debate over the American role in the world community in the post-war era, and senators fell into three main groups. The first group, consisting of most Democrats, favored the treaty.<ref name="Clements (1992), pp. 190–191"/> Fourteen senators, mostly Republicans, were known as the "[[irreconcilables]]" as they completely opposed U.S. entrance into the League of Nations. Some of these irreconcilables opposed the treaty for its failure to emphasize decolonization and disarmament, while others feared surrendering American freedom of action to an international organization.<ref name="herring427430">Herring (2008), pp. 427–430</ref> The remaining group of senators, known as "reservationists", accepted the idea of the League but sought varying degrees of change to ensure the protection of American sovereignty and the right of Congress to decide on going to war.<ref name="herring427430"/>

Article X of the League Covenant, which sought to create a system of [[collective security]] by requiring League members to protect one another against external aggression, seemed to force the U.S. to join in any war the League decided upon.<ref>Berg (2013), pp. 652–653</ref> Wilson consistently refused to compromise, partly due to concerns about having to re-open negotiations with the other treaty signatories.<ref>Clements (1992), pp. 191–192, 200</ref> When Lodge was on the verge of building a two-thirds majority to ratify the Treaty with ten reservations, Wilson forced his supporters to vote Nay on March 19, 1920, thereby closing the issue. Cooper says that "nearly every League advocate" went along with Lodge, but their efforts "failed solely because Wilson admittedly rejected all reservations proposed in the Senate."<ref>{{cite book|last=Cooper|first=John Milton Jr.|year=2001|title=Breaking the Heart of the World: Woodrow Wilson and the Fight for the League of Nations|title-link=Breaking the Heart of the World|location=Cambridge|publisher=Cambridge University Press|page=283|isbn=0-521-80786-7}}</ref> [[Thomas A. Bailey]] calls Wilson's action "the supreme act of infanticide".<ref>{{cite book|last=Bailey|first=Thomas A.|year=1945|title=Woodrow Wilson and the Great Betrayal|location=New York|publisher=Macmillan|page=[https://archive.org/details/woodrowwilsongre00bailrich 277]}}</ref> He adds: "The treaty was slain in the house of its friends rather than in the house of its enemies. In the final analysis it was not the two-thirds rule, or the 'irreconcilables,' or Lodge, or the 'strong' and 'mild' reservationists, but Wilson and his docile following who delivered the fatal stab."<ref>{{cite journal|last=Ambrosius|first=Lloyd E.|date=February 1987|title=Woodrow Wilson's Health and the Treaty Fight, 1919–1920|journal=The International History Review|publisher=Taylor & Francis|volume=9|issue=1|pages=73–84|doi=10.1080/07075332.1987.9640434 |jstor=40105699}}</ref>

==== Health collapses====
To bolster public support for ratification, Wilson barnstormed the Western states, but he returned to the White House in late September due to health problems.<ref>Berg (2013), pp. 619, 628–638</ref> On October 2, 1919, Wilson suffered a serious stroke, leaving him paralyzed on his left side, and with only partial vision in the right eye.<ref>Heckscher (1991), pp. 615–622.</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Ober |first=William B. |year=1983 |title=Woodrow Wilson: A Medical and Psychological Biography |journal=Bulletin of the New York Academy of Medicine |volume=59 |issue=4 |pages=410–414 |pmc=1911642}}</ref> He was confined to bed for weeks and sequestered from everyone except his wife and his physician, [[Cary Grayson]].<ref>Heckscher (1991), pp. 197–198.</ref> Bert E. Park, a neurosurgeon who examined Wilson's medical records after his death, writes that Wilson's illness affected his personality in various ways, making him prone to "disorders of emotion, impaired impulse control, and defective judgment."<ref>Clements (1992), p. 198</ref> Anxious to help the president recover, Tumulty, Grayson, and the First Lady determined what documents the president read and who was allowed to communicate with him. For her influence in the administration, some have described Edith Wilson as "the first female President of the United States."<ref>Berg (2013), pp. 643–644, 648–650</ref> Link states that by November 1919, Wilson's "recovery was only partial at best. His mind remained relatively clear; but he was physically enfeebled, and the disease had wrecked his emotional constitution and aggravated all his more unfortunate personal traits.<ref>Arthur Link, '' Woodrow Wilson: Revolution, War, and Peace'' (1979) p. 121.</ref>

Throughout late 1919, Wilson's inner circle concealed the severity of his health issues.<ref>Berg (2013), pp. 659–661, 668–669</ref> By February 1920, the president's true condition was publicly known. Many expressed qualms about Wilson's fitness for the presidency at a time when the League fight was reaching a climax, and domestic issues such as strikes, unemployment, inflation and the threat of Communism were ablaze. In mid-March 1920, Lodge and his Republicans formed a coalition with the pro-treaty Democrats to pass a treaty with reservations, but Wilson rejected this compromise and enough Democrats followed his lead to defeat ratification.<ref>Cooper (2009), pp. 544, 557–560</ref> No one close to Wilson was willing to certify, as required by the Constitution, his "inability to discharge the powers and duties of the said office."<ref>Cooper (2009), p. 555</ref> Though some members of Congress encouraged Vice President Marshall to assert his claim to the presidency, Marshall never attempted to replace Wilson.<ref name="marshallsen">{{cite web|title=Thomas R. Marshall, 28th Vice President (1913–1921)|url=https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/common/generic/VP_Thomas_Marshall.htm|website=United States Senate|access-date=August 29, 2016}}</ref> Wilson's lengthy period of incapacity while serving as president was nearly unprecedented; of the previous presidents, only [[James Garfield]] had been in a similar situation, but Garfield retained greater control of his mental faculties and faced relatively few pressing issues.<ref>Cooper (2009), p. 535</ref>

==== Demobilization ====
When the war ended the Wilson Administration dismantled the wartime boards and regulatory agencies.<ref>David M. Kennedy, ''Over Here: The First World War and American Society'' (2004) pp. 249–250</ref> Demobilization was chaotic and at times violent; four million soldiers were sent home with little money and few benefits. In 1919, strikes in major industries broke out, disrupting the economy.<ref>Leonard Williams Levy and Louis Fisher, eds. ''Encyclopedia of the American Presidency'' (1994) p. 494.</ref> The country experienced further turbulence as a [[Red Summer of 1919|series of race riots]] broke out in the summer of 1919.<ref>Berg (2013), pp. 609–610, 626</ref> In 1920, the economy plunged into a [[Depression of 1920–21|severe economic depression]],<ref>Cooper (1990), pp. 321–322</ref> unemployment rose to 12 percent, and the price of agricultural products sharply declined.<ref>Clements (1992), pp. 207, 217–218</ref>

====Red Scare and Palmer Raids====
[[File:June 3 1919 Newspapers of the 1919 United States anarchist bombings.png|thumb|Newspaper headlines on June 3, 1919, covering the [[1919 United States anarchist bombings|bombings]]]]
Following the [[October Revolution|Bolshevik Revolution]] in [[Russia]] and similar revolutionary attempts in [[Germany]] and [[Hungary]], many Americans feared the possibility of terrorism in the United States. Such concerns were inflamed by the [[1919 United States anarchist bombings|bombings]] in April 1919 when anarchists mailed 38 bombs to prominent Americans; one person was killed but most packages were intercepted. Nine more mail bombs were sent in June, injuring several people.<ref>Avrich (1991), pp. 140–143, 147, 149–156</ref> Fresh fears combined with a patriotic national mood sparking the "[[First Red Scare]]" in 1919. Attorney General Palmer from November 1919 to January 1920 launched the [[Palmer Raids]] to suppress radical organizations. Over 10,000 people were arrested and 556 aliens were deported, including [[Emma Goldman]].<ref>Stanley Coben, ''A. Mitchell Palmer: Politician'' (Columbia UP, 1963) pp. 217–245.</ref> Palmer's activities met resistance from the courts and some senior administration officials. No one told Wilson what Palmer was doing.<ref>Cooper (1990), p. 329</ref><ref>Harlan Grant Cohen, "The (un) favorable judgment of history: Deportation hearings, the Palmer raids, and the meaning of history". ''New York University Law Review'' 78 (2003): 1431–1474. [http://digitalcommons.law.uga.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1846&context=fac_artchop online]</ref> Later in 1920, the [[Wall Street bombing]] on September 16 killed 40 and injured hundreds in the deadliest terrorist attack on American soil up to that point. Anarchists took credit and promised more violence; they escaped capture.<ref name="bgage1">{{cite book|last1=Gage|first1=Beverly|title=The Day Wall Street Exploded: A Story of America in its First Age of Terror|date=2009|publisher=Oxford University Press|pages=[https://archive.org/details/daywallstreetexp0000gage/page/179 179–182]}}</ref>

==== Prohibition and women's suffrage ====
[[Prohibition in the United States|Prohibition]] developed as an unstoppable reform during World War I, but the [[Presidency of Woodrow Wilson|Wilson administration]] played only a minor role.<ref>James H. Timberlake, ''Prohibition and the progressive movement, 1900–1920'' (Harvard UP, 2013).</ref> The [[Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Eighteenth Amendment]] passed Congress and was ratified by the states in 1919. In October 1919, Wilson vetoed the [[Volstead Act]], legislation designed to enforce Prohibition, but his veto was overridden by Congress.<ref>Berg (2013), p. 648</ref><ref>"The Senate Overrides the President's Veto of the Volstead Act" (U.S. Senate) [https://www.senate.gov/artandhistory/history/minute/Volstead_Act.htm online]</ref>

Wilson opposed [[Women's suffrage in the United States|women's suffrage]] in 1911 because he believed women lacked the public experience needed to be good voters. The actual evidence of how women voters behaved in the western states changed his mind, and he came to feel they could indeed be good voters. He did not speak publicly on the issue except to echo the Democratic Party position that suffrage was a state matter, primarily because of strong opposition in the white South to black voting rights.<ref>Barbara J. Steinson, "Wilson and Woman Suffrage" in Ross A. Kennedy, ed., ''A Companion to Woodrow Wilson'' (2013): 343–365. [https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Priscilla_Roberts/publication/295211242_Wilson_Europe's_Colonial_Empires_and_the_Issue_of_Imperialism_In_A_Companion_to_Woodrow_Wilson_ed_Ross_A_Kennedy_Wiley-Blackwell_2013_pp_492-517/links/5be818fa92851c6b27b732d5/Wilson-Europes-Colonial-Empires-and-the-Issue-of-Imperialism-In-A-Companion-to-Woodrow-Wilson-ed-Ross-A-Kennedy-Wiley-Blackwell-2013-pp-492-517.pdf#page=345 online].</ref>

In a 1918 speech before Congress, Wilson for the first time backed a national right to vote: "We have made partners of the women in this war....Shall we admit them only to a partnership of suffering and sacrifice and toil and not to a partnership of privilege and right?"<ref name="WWWSM">{{cite web|url=https://www.wilsoncenter.org/article/woodrow-wilson-and-the-womens-suffrage-movement-reflection|title=Woodrow Wilson and the Women's Suffrage Movement: A Reflection|date=June 4, 2013|publisher=Global Women's Leadership Initiative Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars|location=Washington, D.C.|access-date=March 4, 2017}}</ref> The House passed a constitutional amendment providing for women's suffrage nationwide, but this stalled in the Senate. Wilson continually pressured the Senate to vote for the amendment, telling senators that its ratification was vital to winning the war.<ref>Berg (2013), pp. 492–494</ref> The Senate finally approved it in June 1919, and the requisite number of states ratified the [[Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Nineteenth Amendment]] in August 1920.<ref>Clements (1992), p. 159</ref>

==== 1920 election ====
{{further|1920 United States presidential election}}
[[File:ElectoralCollege1920.svg|thumb|[[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] presidential nominee [[Warren G. Harding]] defeated Democratic nominee James Cox in the [[1920 United States presidential election]].]]
Despite his medical incapacity, Wilson wanted to run for a third term. While the [[1920 Democratic National Convention]] strongly endorsed Wilson's policies, Democratic leaders refused, nominating instead a ticket consisting of Governor [[James M. Cox]] and Assistant Secretary of the Navy Franklin D. Roosevelt.<ref name="cooper565569">Cooper (2009), pp. 565–569.</ref> The Republicans centered their campaign around opposition to Wilson's policies, with Senator Warren G. Harding promising a "[[return to normalcy]]". Wilson largely stayed out of the campaign, although he endorsed Cox and continued to advocate for U.S. membership in the League of Nations. Harding won the election in a landslide, capturing over 60% of the popular vote and winning every state [[solid South|outside of the South]].<ref>Cooper (2009), pp. 569–572.</ref> Wilson met with Harding for tea on his last day in office, March 3, 1921. Due to his health, Wilson was unable to attend [[Inauguration of Warren G. Harding|the inauguration]].<ref>Berg (2013), pp. 700–701.</ref>

On December 10, 1920, Wilson was awarded the 1919 Nobel Peace Prize "for his role as founder of the League of Nations".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/1919/summary/|title=The Nobel Peace Prize 1919|website=Nobel Prize|publisher=The Nobel Prize Institute|access-date=March 17, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nobelprize.org/prizes/peace/1919/wilson/facts/|title=Woodrow Wilson Facts|website=Nobel Prize|publisher=The Nobel Prize Institute|access-date=March 17, 2021}}</ref> Wilson became the [[List of heads of state and government Nobel laureates|second sitting United States president]] after Theodore Roosevelt to become a [[Nobel Peace Laureates|Nobel Peace Laureate]].<ref>{{cite web|<!--author=History.com Editors|-->date=November 16, 2009|url=https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/wilson-awarded-nobel-peace-prize|title=Woodrow Wilson awarded Nobel Peace Prize|website=History|publisher=A&E Television Networks|access-date=March 17, 2021}}</ref>
{{clear}}