William Howard Taft: An Evening with Walter Stahr

William Howard Taft was perhaps not a great president, although his limited view of the president’s role looks better today than it did at the time. But Taft’s true claim to greatness lies in his work before and after the White House: five decades of selfless public service culminating as one of the most transformational chief justices in American history.

Taft was the only president to have spent much of his career as a judge, first in the state court system in Ohio, then as a federal judge on the Sixth Circuit. He dreamed of serving on the United States Supreme Court and yet, more than once, he declined a seat in order to continue his work as America’s first civilian governor in the Philippines. When he returned to Washington, he took a place in Roosevelt’s cabinet, effectively serving as deputy president before winning the presidency in his own right in 1908.

Tariffs. Immigration. Labor unrest. Colonial possessions. Free trade with Canada. Civil war in Mexico. The national deficit. Government efficiency. These were just some of the issues Taft faced in the White House. After his disastrous defeat in the 1912 election, due in part to Roosevelt’s decision to challenge him for the Republican nomination, Taft returned to private life, although often involved in public causes, such as the fight for the League of Nations. But all this was only a prelude to a second act as the most important chief justice since John Marshall, changing the very way the Court worked by securing it the power to select those cases it wished to decide.

A carefully researched and gracefully written biography, displaying a deep understanding of both political history and human nature, William Howard Taft thoughtfully reassesses what makes a great American public servant worth remembering.

6 pm reception/6:30 pm program
Free & open to the public. Registration required.

Copies of William Howard Taft: A Great American Life will be available for sale & signing courtesy of Joseph-Beth Cincinnati.

About Walter Stahr

Walter Stahr is the New York Times bestselling author of Seward: Lincoln’s Indispensable Man, Stanton: Lincoln’s War Secretary, and John Jay: Founding Father. A two-time winner of the Seward Award for Excellence in Civil War Biography, Stahr practiced law in Washington and Asia for more than two decades. He is an honors graduate of Stanford University and Harvard Law School.