In 1901, President William McKinley appointed Taft civilian governor of the Philippines. In 1904, Roosevelt made him Secretary of War, and he became Roosevelt's hand-picked successor. Despite his personal ambition to become chief justice, Taft declined repeated offers of appointment to the Supreme Court of the United States, believing his political work to be more important. William Howard Taft was born September 15, 1857 in Cincinnati, Ohio, to Alphonso Taft and Louise Torrey. While in law school, he worked on The Cincinnati Commercial newspaper, edited by Murat Halstead. As President Taft in 1909 went to California to praise Father Junípero Serra as an 'apostle, legislator, [and] builder' who advanced 'the beginning of civilization in California. 'A supporter of free immigration, Taft vetoed a bill passed by Congress and supported by labor unions that would have restricted unskilled laborers by imposing a literacy test.