Theodore Roosevelt Meat Protection Act Essay

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Theodore Roosevelt, the 26th president of the United States, was a very energetic man who loved the outdoors. He conquered the news with his outdoor accomplishments, soon making himself a national figure. Roosevelt saw the presidency as a giant bully pit or a place where he could sway the news and help to make the laws. Using his federal power, Teddy began to protect the common people through various progressive movements that he supported. These movements, called square deal, helped to morph the modern America into a country with a much stronger National Government. Through this square deal, Roosevelt began to break apart large companies through trustbusting. Theodore looked upon many of these trusts as harmful. The trusts large monopolies …show more content…

He investigated the meatpacking industry and decided to pass the Meat Inspection Act in 1906. This act required meatpackers to pass a federal meat inspection in order to sell meat. This act soon proved ineffective because the government had to pay for the inspections and the companies still did not have to label their goods honestly. Later that year in 1906, congress passed the Pure Food and Drug Act to fix these problems. This act proved much more effective. Companies now had to truthfully label goods and companies could no longer sell contaminated goods. This act was mainly caused by Dr. Harvey Washington. He critiqued the companies’ use of harmful good in products and children’s …show more content…

To do this, Congress passed two important anti-trust measures. First, the Clayton Antitust Act looked to stop corporations from buying the stock of other corporations; thusly creating a monopoly. In the case that the companies did create a monopoly, the members could be sued. This act also allowed farm organizations and labor unions to exist without interference. Allowing the people to gain power, strikes, boycotts, and similar actions also became legal. Secondly, Congress enacted the creation of the Federal Trade Commission. This group was given the power to inspect companies for possible violation of illegal practices. Immediately, almost 400 cases were shown for illegal actions. These two acts helped to break apart corporations to give the power to the