William Howard Taft was the 27th President of the United States, serving from 1909 to 1913. He was the only person to have served as both President and Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court. Taft was born in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1857 to Alphonso Taft and Louise Torrey. He was the oldest of six children and was raised in a devoutly religious family. Taft attended Yale University, where he was a member of the Skull and Bones secret society, and graduated second in his class in 1878. He then attended Cincinnati Law School, where he graduated first in his class in 1880.
Taft began his career in politics in 1882, when he was appointed assistant prosecutor of Hamilton County, Ohio. He was then appointed a judge of the Superior Court of Cincinnati in 1887. In 1890, he was appointed Solicitor General of the United States, and in 1891 he was appointed a judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. In 1900, President William McKinley appointed Taft as the first civilian Governor-General of the Philippines. In 1904, President Theodore Roosevelt appointed Taft as Secretary of War.
In 1908, Taft was nominated as the Republican candidate for President of the United States. He won the election and was inaugurated in 1909. As President, Taft focused on domestic issues, such as tariff reform, antitrust legislation, and conservation. He also sought to strengthen the power of the presidency and expand the executive branch. He was a strong advocate of the gold standard and a supporter of the Payne-Aldrich Tariff Act of 1909.
Taft's presidency was marked by a number of controversies, including the Ballinger-Pinchot Affair and the Payne-Aldrich Tariff Act. He also faced criticism for his handling of the 1910 election, which saw the Republican Party lose control of the House of Representatives. In 1912, Taft was defeated in the Republican primary by former President Theodore Roosevelt, who ran as a third-party candidate. Taft finished third in the general election, behind Roosevelt and the Democratic candidate, Woodrow Wilson.
After leaving office, Taft returned to his alma mater, Yale University, where he served as a professor of constitutional law from 1913 to 1921. In 1921, President Warren G. Harding appointed Taft as Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court, a position he held until his death in 1930.
Throughout his life, Taft was a strong advocate of the rule of law and judicial independence. He was a firm believer in the separation of powers and the importance of judicial review. He was also a strong advocate of civil service reform and sought to reduce the power of political patronage. Taft's legacy as President and Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court is one of dedication to the rule of law and judicial independence. He is remembered as a man of integrity and principle who sought to uphold the Constitution and the rule of law.