Director of Foreign Policy

Taft signed treaties between the United States and other countries.

• The United States and Great Britain signed a treaty
• This was to preserve and protect pelagic fur seals living in the Bering Sea.
• The United States and Nicaragua signed a treaty
• This would have made Nicaragua a U.S. protectorate, but the Senate rejected the treaty.
• The United States, France, and England signed treaties
• They were general arbitration treaties.  Roosevelt and others lead a campaign against these treaties.  These treaties were later accepted by the Senate, but rejected by both France and Britain.
• The Panama Canal Act was signed by Taft, but many thought it to be in violation of the Hay-Pauncefote Treaty of 1901.
• This was to exempt American shipping from paying tolls at the Panama Canal.

(American President: A Reference Resource)

Taft's job as Director of Foreign Policy probably could have gone better.  He signed some treaties, but out of these four only one seemed to be agreed upon by most people.  As president not everyone is going to like what  Taft did, but he could have selected treaties more carefully.  In this part of Taft's job, he did not succeed as much as he could have.