⚖️William Howard Taft

27th President · 1909–1913 · Republican

William Howard Taft is the only person to have served as both President and Chief Justice of the United States. He never actually wanted the presidency — his ambition was always the Supreme Court — and he served at the urging of Theodore Roosevelt, who chose him as his hand-picked successor. Their friendship collapsed when Taft proved more conservative than Roosevelt expected, and their 1912 rematch handed the White House to Democrat Woodrow Wilson.

The Reluctant President

Taft was a federal judge, Solicitor General, and then Governor-General of the Philippines. Roosevelt brought him back to Washington as Secretary of War and made him his designated successor in 1908. Taft won the election easily but privately disliked the political side of the presidency. As he once said, "I don't want to be president. I want to be Chief Justice."

Trust-Busting and Split with TR

Taft actually pursued more antitrust prosecutions than Roosevelt had — 90 in four years versus Roosevelt's 44 in seven. But he antagonized progressives by firing conservationist Gifford Pinchot and by siding with House Speaker Joe Cannon's conservatives. Roosevelt returned from safari in 1910 and publicly denounced Taft's policies. In 1912 he broke from the Republican Party to run as the Progressive ("Bull Moose") candidate, splitting the Republican vote and handing the presidency to Woodrow Wilson.

16th and 17th Amendments

Two major constitutional amendments were proposed during Taft's presidency and ratified shortly after he left office. The 16th Amendment (ratified 1913) authorized a federal income tax. The 17th Amendment (ratified 1913) provided for direct election of U.S. senators.

Chief Justice

President Warren Harding appointed Taft Chief Justice of the United States in 1921 — the only time a former president has been appointed to the Court. Taft served for nine years and was a highly effective administrative Chief Justice, lobbying Congress for the Judiciary Act of 1925 that let the Supreme Court control its own docket. He considered his Chief Justice years the happiest of his life.

Taft Trivia

• Taft weighed 340+ pounds in the White House and reportedly got stuck in the bathtub once (the story may be apocryphal; a larger tub was installed).
• He is the only person to have led both the executive and judicial branches.
• He started the tradition of the president throwing out the ceremonial first pitch on Opening Day of baseball season in 1910.
• Taft and his wife Helen are buried at Arlington National Cemetery — one of only two presidents buried there (the other is John F. Kennedy).

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