Debs ran twice for president against the man who put the "Teddy" in "Teddy Bear," in 1904 and again in 1912 when Roosevelt ran on the Bull Moose Party ticket. (Good party name or best party name?)

In most ways, the two men are a study in opposites: Debs was from humble beginnings and Roosevelt from the lap of luxury. Roosevelt was very well educated and Debs was a high school dropout. Debs emphasized what an everyman he was ("not one bit better than the meanest on earth" (1)) whereas Theodore Roosevelt was one of history's greatest egomaniacs. (Roosevelt's own daughter said that he "wanted to be the bride at every wedding and the corpse at every funeral.")

And this juxtaposition continues.

Debs was a pacifist and Roosevelt was a war hawk to the max. While Debs was talking about why workers should refuse to be cannon fodder, Roosevelt was leading preparedness rallies, drilling soldiers, and trying to enlist, even though he was way too old. Roosevelt believed that war made men masculine and was super proud to be remembered as the hero of the Spanish American War. Roosevelt insisted that all of his four sons volunteer for World War I service; his favorite son, Quentin, was killed in battle.

On the other hand, Roosevelt supported a bunch of the labor reforms that Debs was calling for. His Square Deal platform emphasized better conditions for workers, and President Roosevelt several times intervened on the side of labor during strikes.

In fact, during the campaign of 1912 when Roosevelt broke with the Republican nominee, Taft, and ran as an independent, his platform so much mirrored things that Debs was saying that a cartoonist created a cartoon accusing Roosevelt of stealing Debs' clothes.

Guess it's true: opposites do attract.