The Bryan Campaign.

As the campaign got under way, Bryan ran in his usual style. He attacked the Republicans for stealing many of his platform ideas from previous years. He argued that he was the rightful successor to Roosevelt because he was more progressive than Taft and could carry out better reforms than his Republican opponent. The Panic of 1907 left the Republicans unable to promote themselves as the party of prosperity, but Bryan did not capitalize on the issue. He campaigned on so many issues that his message failed to reach the public in an effective manner, and he unsettled many middle-class voters by adopting as his campaign slogan, "Shall the People Rule?" — a question whose strong socialist undertones were repellent to many middle- and upper-class Americans. The Democrats also remained outside mainstream political feelings by adhering to their support for states'...