roosevelt did not run for president in 1908, as he had the office for nearly eight years. he wanted his solicitor general, william howard taft to run for president instead. taft was chosen, and roosevelt went to africa to hunt big game. however, when he came back, he thought taft was not doing a good job and taking too little actions against so-called trusts. taft was also more conservative and he did not continue all of roosevelt's progressive policies. he decided to challenge taft for the republican nomination in 1912. he failed, but many republicans preferred roosevelt, and instead he launched his own party, the progressive party. while running for president and holding a speech, he was shot, but lived and even finished his speech. because the republican voters split between roosevelt and taft, they both lost to woodrow wilson. roosevelt also thought wilson was not doing a good job, either, and wanted the u.s. to enter world war i after it broke out. he prepared to run again, for the third time, in 1920. nobody had served more than eight years at the time. roosevelt died, however, on january 6, 1919 of a pulmonary embolism and a heart attack in his sleep. because he was so strong, a newspaper commented that "death had to take roosevelt asleep", because if he had been awake there would have been a fight between him and death.