SSUSH18 – Evaluate Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal as a response to the Great Depression and compare how governmental programs aided those in need.
In the first presidential election during the Great Depression, American voters rejected Herbert Hoover and voted in the Democratic candidate Franklin D. Roosevelt. The new President used the name "New Deal" to refer to his series of government-funded programs to end the Depression. Roosevelt promised these programs would help different segments of the economy recover by addressing specific needs and weaknesses. The New Deal did create jobs for the unemployed and provide relief to people struggling during the economic crisis. However, Roosevelt's programs did not end the Great Depression. The outbreak of World War II and the production demand the war brought with it ended the Great Depression. Roosevelt's New Deal provided relief and stalled the downward economic spiral the country faced under Hoover's limited federal response to the economic crisis. Some New Deal programs were more successful than others and some groups in the United States benefitted more than others from Roosevelt's efforts.
SSUSH18 – Evaluate Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal as a response to the Great Depression and compare how governmental programs aided those in need.
a. Describe Roosevelt’s attempts at relief, recovery, and reform reflected in various New Deal programs.
When Franklin Roosevelt took his oath of office in March 1932, the nation was in grave crisis. Five thousand banks had closed. Unemployment hovered at twenty-five percent. Corporate profits had fallen to ninety percent and farm commodity prices had fallen sixty percent. Two million Americans were homeless. As a result of these issues and President Hoover's reluctance to appropriate Federal assistance, the American public had lost confidence in its government. Roosevelt's plan was to immediately provide relief to those struggling the most, recovery for the economic systems damaged by the economic crisis, and reform so that there would not be another Great Depression. His program of relief, reform, and recovery was known as the New Deal.
Roosevelt's first one hundred days in office was a declaration of war on the Great Depression. The new president immediately signed an executive order closing all banks in the United States temporarily until their solvency could be determined. He also called Congress into special session and sent the legislative body a series of bills designed to address the nation's problems. Collectively, these bills became known as the New Deal.
While specific New Deal Programs are not included in this SSUSH18 element, it is important for students to investigate some particular examples of the relief, recovery, and reform efforts Roosevelt implemented. Some of the relief measures teachers might want to introduce include the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA) that granted federal money to state and local governments for operating soup kitchens and meeting the basic needs of the homeless. There were also a number of agencies created during the first few months of Roosevelt's administration that were intended to put people to work on government funded projects. Examples of the First New Deal's work agencies include the Public Works Administration (PWA) that provided money to states for the construction of roads, bridges, and dams. The Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) hired young men to work on land projects. Another large program funded by the Federal government was the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), which hired thousands of workers in the very rural Tennessee Valley to build dams, power plants, and work to control flooding and erosion.
Other significant features of the New Deal were intended to help the financial systems recover from the Great Depression. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) was created to shore up public confidence in the banking system. The FDIC provided insurance on individual bank accounts with deposits up to $5000. Farmers were granted subsidies through the Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA), which would help recover crop prices by cutting production.
One major area of reform dealt with the Stock Market. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was created to regulate the Stock Market. The intent was to prevent another stock market crash by limiting the types of stock speculation that could be transacted.
All of these programs and organizations created significant government involvement in the economic system of the United States. This was quite a departure from the long history of the nation, which had typically followed a laissez-faire approach (other than the trust busting of the Progressives). In evaluating the programs of the New Deal, one has to consider both the immediate and long-term effects. In the short term, programs such as the CCC, PWA, and TVA put thousands of unemployed Americans back to work. However, much of the work available was hard, physical labor that benefitted young men and did not help some groups such as women or the elderly. The emergency banking measures and the creation of the FDIC helped to restore public confidence in America's financial institutions. The long term implications of these programs was not fully realized since America's involvement in World War II lifted the nation out of the economic crisis with the unprecedented production demands that benefitted businesses and ended unemployment.
SSUSH18 – Evaluate Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal as a response to the Great Depression and compare how governmental programs aided those in need.
b. Explain the passage of the Social Security Act as a part of the second New Deal.
Entering his second term as President, Roosevelt believed a Second New Deal was needed. He believed more needed to be done to address the needs of groups who did not directly benefit from the First New Deal. One such group was the nation's senior citizens. Most seniors did not have pensions and those who did saw them wiped out as a result of the Great Depression. The agencies of the First New Deal did not offer the elderly opportunities for work.
Roosevelt signed into law the Social Security Act in 1935. The new law provided for old-age pensions, unemployment insurance, and aid to the disabled. The first version of Social Security excluded many groups including agricultural workers, teachers, domestic help, and children. As a result, the act excluded many Blacks and women. These concerns were addressed in subsequent amendments to the Social Security Act. The program is still in effect today.
SSUSH18 – Evaluate Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal as a response to the Great Depression and compare how governmental programs aided those in need.
c. Analyze political challenges to Roosevelt’s leadership and New Deal programs.
During his twelve-year presidency, Franklin Roosevelt faced many challenges to his leadership and had many critics. Opponents of the New Deal came from all parts of the political spectrum. Some conservatives thought he had made the government too large and too powerful. These conservatives also felt some aspects of the New Deal did not respect the rights of individuals and property. However, some liberals thought Roosevelt had not gone far enough to socialize the economy and eliminate inequality in the United States.
Perhaps Roosevelt's biggest critic was Senator Huey P. Long of Louisiana. Long was planning to challenge Roosevelt for the presidency in 1936 until he was shot and killed by an assassin the year before the election. Senator Long was one of those critics who believed the New Deal had not gone far enough in its efforts to help society. Instead of the New Deal, Long proposed what he called the "Share Our Wealth" program. The plan would guarantee a household income for each family in the United States, which would be paid for by high taxes on the wealthiest Americans. Long in effect was planning to take from the rich to give to the poor.
In addition to the New Deal challenges issued by Huey Long and others, the Supreme Court declared two pieces of the First New Deal unconstitutional in 1936. One was the National Industrial Recovery Act, which attempted to guarantee fair wages and hours for workers. The other was the Agricultural Adjustment Act, which was going to grant farmers subsidies to cut their production in an effort to stabilize crop prices. The Court struck down these two programs because they were perceived as Federal overreach into the operations of private businesses.
Roosevelt grew increasingly frustrated with the Supreme Court, which was composed of nine men, all over 60 years old and conservative. He felt the Court was "thwarting the will of the nation." Roosevelt informed his cabinet at a special meeting that he would send a message to Congress proposing the reorganization of the federal judiciary system. The plan was ostensibly designed to "improve the efficiency of the entire system" by adding judges to all levels of the federal courts and adopting procedures to expedite the appeals process. The actual intent of the plan was obvious. By adding a judge to the Supreme Court for every justice who refused to retire after the age of 70, Roosevelt could appoint enough justices to uphold his New Deal programs.
Franklin Roosevelt was criticized for wanting to "pack the court." His opponents believed he was attacking the independence of the judiciary and subverting the Constitution. Many of Roosevelt's longtime supporters deserted him on this controversial proposal. The opposition Roosevelt received to this proposal began to sour the nation on the New Deal.
SSUSH18 – Evaluate Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal as a response to the Great Depression and compare how governmental programs aided those in need.
d. Examine how Eleanor Roosevelt changed the role of the First Lady including development of New Deal programs to aid those in need.
President Roosevelt's wife, Eleanor, was very influential in her own right. She was the first president's wife to testify before a Congressional committee, the first to hold press conferences, to speak before a national party convention, to write a syndicated newspaper column, to be a radio commentator, and to earn money as a lecturer.
Eleanor Roosevelt was interested in humanitarian causes and social progress. She was very vocal about these issues with her husband during his time in the White House and urged him to create reforms to help minorities and the poor. Eleanor traveled all over the United States to observe social conditions so she could keep the president informed as to the state of the nation. President Roosevelt referred to Eleanor as "his legs," since his mobility was severely limited by the crippling effects of polio.
As a vocal advocate for both women and Blacks, Eleanor Roosevelt was instrumental in ending discriminatory practices associated with New Deal legislation. As a supporter of women's activism, she was also instrumental in convincing President Roosevelt to appoint more women to government positions. Following World War II, Eleanor Roosevelt became known as "First Lady of the World" due to her service with the United Nations. Some historians credit Eleanor's actions with changing Black voters from supporting Republican candidates to supporting Democrats. She is also credited with changing the role of First Ladies from that of passive spouses to women who use their position of influence to address societal issues. Eleanor Roosevelt took action as a First Lady and that tradition has continued.