An instrumental figure in the United States’s transition from an isolated economic power to a world power, Wilson’s legacy as a whole cannot be overlooked. Woodrow Wilson dedicated his political career to spreading America’s democratic ideals and institutions to parts the world over, and advocated on the behalf of a great many people still trapped in the oppressive confines of an obsolete world order. Wilson envisioned a larger role for the United States that went beyond mere economics, and dared the American people to becomes vessels of democracy, liberty, freedom for those lacking it. Throughout his long and remarkable career, Wilson challenged the norms and principles of reactionary and conservative politics, be it at Princeton, where he
