William Howard Taft: Confident Peacemaker Paperback – Import, 1 October 2004

David Burton has as comprehensive body of work on the Progressive Era as any modern historian, and this work on Taft's peace initiatives brings yet another dimension to Burton's accomplishments on this Era.Here Burton explores what was in its time a highly charged public discussion regarding international law, war, and peace. Taft made arbitration of international disputes a primary goal of his presidency, and while his treaties went unconfirmed by the Senate, his publicity of the issue inspired and advanced the movement.While the outbreak of WWI would seem to belie the "peace" movements that preceded it, the historian should note that international arbitration has a larger history that spans well before and after the Great War, and Taft's contributions to it significantly shaped its 20th century path.Burton's "Confident Peacemaker," explores how Taft brought to his long and varied career an unfailing confidence that international disputes could be resolved short of war. This book is highly recommended.