The New Deal 1932-1941 Chapter 13. FDR OFFERS RELIEF AND RECOVERY Section 1.

The New Deal 1932-1941Chapter 13

FDR OFFERS RELIEF AND RECOVERYSection 1

Roosevelt Takes Charge• The Great Depression challenged the faith of Americans

that democracy could handle the crisis

• Franklin D. Roosevelt - In July 1932, the unknown governor of New York, accepted the Democratic Party’s nomination for President

Roosevelt Overcame Obstacles• Americans choose a candidate that had never known

economic hardship

• Eleanor Roosevelt – married Franklin in 1905 a distant cousin

• In 1921 FDR was diagnosed with polio, he never fully recovered the use of his legs

Voters Elect a New President• “New Deal” – FDR’s pledge to America on how to

combat the depression (primary source pg. 397)

• The 1932 campaign pitted Roosevelt against President Hoover (Hoover / local and state, Roosevelt federal)

Putting Together a Winning Team• FDR pulled together a divers group of women and men

professionals and academics and gave them the name “Brain Trust”

• Frances Perkins – served as FDR’s Secretary of Labor, the first women Cabinet member in U.S. history

The First Hundred Days Provide Instant Action• 15 bills known as the First New Deal, the three goals were

relief, recovery, and reform

FDR Swiftly Restores the Nation’s Confidence• One day after his inauguration, Roosevelt called

Congress into a special session

• Roosevelt delivered an informal radio speech to the American people called fireside chats

Reforming the Financial System• Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) –

insured bank deposits up to $5,000

• The purpose was to restore confidence in the economy, bank runs in large part ended

Helping Farmers• As output rose prices dropped to the point that farming

was no longer profitable

• Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA) – sought to end overproduction and raise crop prices (HOW)

The TVA Aids Rural Southerners• Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) – built a series of

dams to control flooding and generate power, replanted forests, and built fertilizer plants

Providing Relief and Promoting Industrial Recovery• Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC) – jobs for more than

2 million young men, replanted forests, built trails, dug irrigation ditches, and fought fires

• Roosevelt said this was his favorite New Deal Program

Cont…• National Recovery Administration (NRA) – Roosevelt

worked with business and labor leaders, to develop codes of fair competition to govern industries

• Public Works Administration (PWA) – built bridges, dams, power plants, and government buildings

Opposition to the New Deal Emerges• Roosevelt had little difficulty gaining support from

Congress however some in the public thought the program went to far or not far enough

The Right Says “Too Much”• Chief complaint against the New Deal was that it made

the government too powerful

• Spending, government oversight, lack of free enterprise, socialism

The Left Says “Not Enough”• The Socialist and Communist said the New Deal only

helped the banking system and big business, while not going far enough to help the people

Populist Critics Challenge FDR• Father Charles Coughlin – had a weekly radio show and

accused FDR of not doing enough to fight the depression “the raw deal”

• Huey Long – Long’s solution to the depression was his “Share Our Wealth” program (redistribution of wealth)

(Primary Source pg. 403)

THE SECOND NEW DEALSection 2

Extending Social and Economic Reform• Second New Deal – legislation to promote the general

welfare, and to intervene to protect citizens rights• Elderly• Poor• Unemployed• farmers• workers

New Programs Provided Jobs• Works Progress Administration (WPA) – 5 billion

dollars for the creation of new jobs

• WPA workers improved highways, dredged rivers / harbors, promoted water and soil conservation, and employed artists

• John Maynard Keynes – argued that

deficit spending was needed to end

the depression / pump priming

Social Security Eases the Burden on Older Americans• Social Security Act – established unemployment

insurance for workers, insurance for work-related accidents, aid for poverty-stricken mothers and children, the blind, and disabled

• Flaws in the SSA left out domestic and farmworkers / blacks, widows vs. widowers

More Aid Goes to Farmers• When the depression hit only 10% of farmers

had electricity

• REA (rural electrification administration) – loaned money to electric utilities to build power lines to rural areas

• New Deal programs also provided price supports, or subsidies for agriculture, some argued it undermined free market

Labor Unions Find a New Energy• During the Great Depression there was an upsurge in

union activity, unions enlisted millions of workers from the mining and automobile industries

Granting New Rights to Workers• Wagner Act – recognized the right of employees to join

labor unions

• Collective Bargaining – meant that employers had to negotiate with unions about hours, wages, and conditions

• National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) – looked into workers complaints

• Fair Labor Standards Act – established a minimum wage / maximum of 44 work week, and outlawed child labor

Workers Use Their Newfound Rights• American Federation of Labor (AFL) – represented skilled

workers, plumbers, carpenters, and elections

• Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO) – started campaigns to organize lower paid and ethnically divers workers

• Sit Down Strike – workers refuse to leave the workplace until a settlement is reached

• Flint Michigan

(primary source pg. 409)

Challenges to the New Deal• Roosevelt won an overwhelming victory in 1936, with 61

percent of the vote

• He entered his second term determined to challenge the enemy of the New Deal, the Supreme Court

The Supreme Court Opposes the New Deal• The court, in the case of Schechter Poultry v. United

States, ruled the President has no power to regulate interstate commerce thus the NRA was unconstitutional

FDR Proposes “Packing” the Court• In 1937 in an address to Congress FDR unveiled a plan

that would dilute the power of the sitting Justices

• He wanted to add six new Justices the was termed court packing

Cont.…• With Roosevelt’s popularity he could have convinced

Congress to enact his plan but the tide began to turn in his favor

• The Court upheld the Wagner Act and minimum wage law, and Roosevelt was able to fill a vacancy with a pro New Deal Justice

A New Downturn Spurs Conservative Gains• Unemployment fell 10 percent in four years and the

economy was doing better, Roosevelt looked to reduce spending to reduce the rising deficit

• Less spending and higher interest rates caused a tail spin in the economy, unemployment soared again to 20 percent

EFFECTS OF THE NEW DEALSection 3

Women Help Lead the New Deal• Women had more opportunity and political influence,

Eleanor Roosevelt was the leader among them• The New Deal did not fight to end gender discrimination

• WPA• CCC• SS

African Americans Make Advance and Face Challenges• Eleanor Roosevelt used her position to protest against

racial discrimination (pg. 413)• Black Cabinet – Black leaders invited by the President to

advise him • Roosevelt did not always follow the advice though, “Anti-

lynching law,” southern Democrats “would block every bill I ask Congress to pass”

The New Deal Affects Native Americans• Indian New Deal – program that gave Indians economic

assistance and greater control over their own affairs• Land management changes the 1887 Dawes Act• Not all programs were in the Native Americans favor

(Navajo Livestock Reduction program)

The New Deal Creates a New Political Coalition• By his death Roosevelt had been elected to four terms as

President• New Deal Coalition – united southern whites, blue-collar

workers, Midwest farmers and African Americans• Prior to the New Deal most blacks voted Republican the

party of Lincoln, responding to Eleanor Roosevelt's efforts during the 1930’s African Americans began to vote Democratic

The Role of Government Expands• New Deal programs greatly increased the size and scope

of the federal government / taxes to benefits to the elderly• Though the New Deal did not end the depression it did

help economic growth• Rural Americans benefited greatly from the New Deal

(TVA and REA) pg. 418• Welfare State – a government that assumes responsibility

for providing for the poor, elderly, sick, disabled and unemployed

Cont.• In no area did FDR have a greater impact than on the

office of the President.• Expanding the role of government• More power to the President $• Style of the presidency (radio)• 22nd Amendment