1932 Election: Roosevelt ( D) v. Hoover ( R )
F.D.R. - Deep concern for the plight of the " Forgotten Man "
Eleanor Roosevelt - "Champion of the Dispossessed"
Democratic platform called for the repeal of prohibition and a balanced budget
F.D.R. promised to experiment with bold new programs for economic and social programs
Following his Election, Roosevelt called congress into special session (The so-called " Hundred Days") and introduced his New Deal program aimed at the three R's: Relief, Recovery, and Reform
New Deal Program Included:
Glass-Steagall Act which created the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (F.D.I.C.)
Civilians Conservation Corps which created jobs for young men in government wilderness camps
Federal Emergency Relief Act (Headed by Harry Hopkins) granted about $3 Billion for direct dole payments
Works Progress Administration (Headed by Harry Hopkins) spent $11 Billion on public buildings, bridges, and roads
National Recovery Act (Most Complex Act) attempted to work out codes of "fair competition" between industry and labor
Public Works Administration (Headed by Harold Ickes) spent $4 billion on long range projects (Grand Coulee Dam)
Social Security created Federal-State Unemployment Insurance and pensions for retired workers
Tennessee Valley Authority was the most radical idea as it provided for government ownership of an electrical power plan at Muscle Shoals on the Tennessee River - proposed by Senator Norris of Nebraska - Socialism?
New Deal Critics Included:
Father Coughlin who called for "social justice" for all Americans but became anti-Semitic and fascistic
Huey Long who proposed a "share our wealth" program which would make "every man a king"
Francis Townshend who called for every American over 60 years of age to receive $200 a month
New Deal Amendment Included:
20th Amendment - Moved up the presidential inauguration from March 4th to January 20th
21st Amendment - Repealed Prohibition
Labor Reforms included:
Wagner-National Labor Relations Act which asserted the right of labor to bargain collectively and created a National Labor Relation Board which encouraged unskilled workers to organize themselves
> Formation of the Committee for Industrial Organization (CIO) which organized all workers within an industry
Fair Labor Standards Act created a minimum wage of $.40 an hour and a maximum work week of 40 hours
1936 Election: Roosevelt (D) v. Landon ( R)
"As Maine goes, so goes Vermont!"
Roosevelt's most controversial idea: his court-packing scheme in 1937 which reflected his desire to make the Supreme Court more sympathetic to his New Deal programs
But by 1938 the new deal had lost its momentum as our attention turned to world affairs leading up to W.W. II
New Deal Evaluation: PP. 767 - 770
*Saved the American system of free enterprise from socialism
*Provided reform without a bloody revolution
*Saved democracy at a time when democracies aboard were disappearing