Episode 4: Public Interest
Impact! The trolley crashes into the President’s carriage - TR and Cortelyou are injured, and a Secret Service agent is killed—the first to die in service. TR gives the scheduled speech an hour later.
NEW YORK HARBOR
JP Morgan, one of the richest men in America, leans on the rail of his private yacht, Corsair, drifting off the coast of New York, brooding. Roosevelt’s latest speech - laced with populist thunder critizing big business - signals the administration’s intent to take on the Northern Securities Company, Morgan’s massive railroad trust/monopoly/cartel. A showdown is coming.
Back in Washington, Attorney General Philander Knox begins drafting the arguments that will soon echo in the marble chambers of the Supreme Court. Roosevelt does his part too - he befriends Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. and then appoints him to the Supreme Court.
Meanwhile, the White House transforms under Edith Roosevelt’s watchful eye. A huge construction project, the house is remodeled, including the addition of the West Wing. White House offices are moved to Sagamore Hill, Roosevelt’s home on Long Island. Amid the activity, Edith consults Lilly Cortelyou, and together they navigate the subtle but meaningful power wielded by cabinet wives in shaping the culture of Washington.
SUPREME COURT CHAMBERS
When the Northern Securities case it is argued, it becomes a national spectacle. Justices stare down the attorneys. Knox is methodical and sharp: “No business, no matter how powerful, is above the law.” Roosevelt’s challenge to Morgan’s trust becomes a moral tonic for a skeptical public. Roosevelt wins, Morgan loses. But Justice Holmes unexpectedly sides with the trusts, infuriating TR.
Later that month, a dinner ball is hosted by the Vanderbilts in New York City. Cortelyou and Lilly attend. Roosevelt is absent. JP Morgan, watching the guests swirl under chandeliers, remarks, 'You can’t regulate ambition.' But a quiet nod from across the room to Cortelyou displays respect for talent, even if its on the opposing side.
Roosevelt now appoints Cortelyou as the first Secretary of Commerce and Labor - an agency to regulate big business - which he builds from from scratch. The details are left to the imagination as all we see of the task is an empty floor of a Washington DC building, and a single desk.
YOSEMITE NATIONAL PARK, CA
Meanwhile, President Roosevelt spends several days camping in the wild with famed conservationist John Muir. Amid the grandeur of granite cliffs, monstrous sequoia trees, and cascading waterfalls, the two men discuss the vital role government must play in protecting the natural world. Roosevelt listens intently, then tells Muir, “I am with you with all my heart, and I will do something, but first I need to win in November.”
The quiet and sublime moment of the campfire fades into the chanting crowd of a campaign rally for Roosevelt’s opponent.