Oklahoma's Governors, 1907-1929: Turbulent Politics Page: 41
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Turbulent Politics/41
Constitutional Convention, and Roosevelt apparently hoped to
destroy Haskell's promising political career. Haskell countered
every Roosevelt maneuver, and finally published affidavits
showing Roosevelt had violated the prohibition laws while on a
hunting trip to Indian Territory in 1905.58
Haskell was also the subject of a legislative investigation
initiated by Jim Harris, the Republican state party chairman.
During the investigation, Haskell opened his office and told his
staff to cooperate completely with the investigators. The
charges that Haskell had misappropriated funds and acted
without the consent of the legislature were not proven.59
Of all the investigations and accusations leveled at Haskell,
none were ever proven. About all that these efforts
accomplished was to absorb much of the governor's time and
energy. He later gained the friendship and respect of Roosevelt,
who wrote him a formal letter of apology. As he left office, he
stated, "Nobody ever called me a fool or a coward."60
When his term ended in January of 1911, Haskell returned to
private business. He made a brief bid for the United States
Senate in 1912, but could not muster enough support to
seriously challenge Senator Thomas P. Gore. A few Haskell-
for-President clubs were organized also in 1912, but nothing
materialized from these efforts. He remained active in
Oklahoma promoting railroad and communication services,
and undertook an unsuccessful project to construct a dam on
the Grand River in northeastern Oklahoma.61
Haskell opened an office in New York City in 1917 from
which he directed the organization of several oil companies. He
acquired a vast fortune and purchased a mansion on Long
Island. His Middle State Oil Company and its subsidiaries were
growing at an unprecedented rate until the federal
government, at the urging of Secretary of the Treasury
Andrew Mellon, filed a tax lien against the company. Haskell's
New York City office was located in the same building as
Theodore Roosevelt's, and the two became close friends.62
Haskell had once been invited by President Alvaro Obregon
of Mexico to write oil laws for that country. While in Mexico,
after the failure of his Middle State Oil Company, Haskell
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Oklahoma's Governors, 1907-1929: Turbulent Politics (Book)
Book discussing the history of individual governors of Oklahoma from 1907 to 1929; each chapter is a biographical sketch of a different governor and their actions in office. Index begins on page 195.
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Fischer, LeRoy Henry, 1917-. Oklahoma's Governors, 1907-1929: Turbulent Politics, book, 1981; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. (https://gateway.okhistory.org/ark:/67531/metadc862886/m1/53/: accessed April 23, 2024), The Gateway to Oklahoma History, https://gateway.okhistory.org; .