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- Some have called him the best president yet. Others have even claimed that he was the
- world's most influential and successful leader of the twentieth century. Those
- claims can be backed up by the overwhelming support that he received from his citizens
- throughout his four terms in office. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt began a new
- era in American history by ending the Great Depression that the country had fallen into in
- 1929. His social reforms gave people a new perspective on government. Government
- was not only expected to protect the people from foreign invaders, but to protect against
- poverty and joblessness. Roosevelt had shown his military and diplomatic skill as the
- Commander in Chief during World War II. This wartime leadership and international
- relations policy won him an award in the hearts of many Americans.
- Roosevelt threw his hat in the ring in 1931 in order to prepare for the
- election of 1932. Democratic Party chairman James A Farley directed his campaign.
- He
- started a nationwide radio address, outlining a program to meet the economic problems
- of the nation. He coined the term forgotten man to mean all of those who had been
- hard hit by the evils of the depression. These radio addresses were the start to what he
- called the fireside chats. Overall, Roosevelt was the most energetic and dynamic
- candidate, and he was nominated by the party on the fourth ballot. Although he
- displayed excellent characteristics, his competition was fairly tough. He was up against
- John Nance Garner of Texas (who would be his Vice Presidential running mate);
- Newton
- D. Baker of Ohio, who was former Secretary of War; and former Governor Alfred E.
- Smith of New York. For three ballots, Roosevelt held a large lead, but lacked the two-
- thirds margin necessary for victory. Farley then promised John Garner the vice
- presidential nomination, which he accepted grudgingly. Then FDR took the presidential
- nomination on the fourth ballot.
- One of the purposes of the national convention is to bring the party together in a
- movement of support behind the nominated candidate. Although there was rough
- competition during the choosing process, most party leaders were happy with the
- Roosevelt choice. It would help pull votes from the urban-Eastern region of the country.
- Also, Roosevelt made a dashing introduction at the Chicago convention by being the first
- nominee to ever write an acceptance speech. In this speech, he brought emotions from
- the audience in his last line, I pledge to you, I pledge to myself, to a new deal for the
- American people.
- During the November campaign against Hoover, Roosevelt suggested a few parts
- of the so called New Deal. He spoke of relief and public works money. He wanted to
- develop a plan to cut agricultural overproduction. He was for public power,
- conservation
- and unemployment insurance. The repeal of prohibition and stock exchange regulation
- were also big items on his platform.
- However, other than the aforementioned items, Roosevelt was quite vague about
- other plans. He mentioned little about his plans for industrial recovery or labor laws. As
- much foreign policy experience as he had, he talked very little of it during the campaign.
- Many believe that he was simply trying to home in on the problems that the American
- public saw most prominent at the time.
- When it came to election day, Roosevelt was the only viable alternative to
- Hoover, who many blamed for the Great Depression, although critics argue that it was
- the presidents preceding the Hoover Administration. The outcome reflected this
- thinking: Roosevelt won 22,821,857 votes compared to Hoover's 15, 761,841.
- Roosevelt
- also won the electoral 472 to 59. The voters had sent large majorities of Democrats to
- both houses as well, which would enable Roosevelt to accomplish more by pushing
- through more bills.
- Roosevelt's second election was in 1936. The Democratic National Convention
- re-nominated him by acclamation-- no vote was even taken. Vice President Garner was
- also nominated. The Republican opponents were Governor Alfred M. Landon of
- Kansas
- and Frank Knox, a newspaper publisher. Republicans, seeing Roosevelt's overwhelming
- popularity, were reaching for a tomato to throw. They claimed that he had not kept his
- promise to the people to balance the budget. Roosevelt replied by pointing to the
- actions
- of fighting the depression and returning the nation to prosperity to precedence over the
- budget.
- As expected, Roosevelt won by a landslide. He received 27,751,491 popular
- votes and carried 46 states with 523 electoral votes. His opponent only received
- 16,679,491 popular votes and 2 states with 8 electorals. This reflected the nation's
- confidence in the man and his leadership ability. However, the nation still had a long
- way to go. He stated in his inauguration address, I see one-third of a nation ill-housed,
- ill-clad, and ill-nourished.
- After another over-all successful term, Roosevelt ran again in 1940. The
- Democratic Party broke precedent with his re-nomination. There were some party
- members that felt it was unfair to elect him again, so his margins of popularity fell
- slightly. This time, he was not the only one up for the nomination. There was James
- Farley, who received 72 13/30 votes, previous Vice President John Nance Garner,
- receiving 61 votes; Millard Tydings of Maryland, receiving 9 1/2 votes; and Cordell Hull,
- former Secretary of State, who received only 5 2/3 votes. Secretary of Agriculture
- Henry
- A. Wallace was chosen as a Vice Presidential running mate. The Republicans nominated
- Wendell Wilkie of Indiana, a corporation president, to oppose the Roosevelt/Wallace
- team. The two candidates had some similar views. Wilkie supported Roosevelt's
- foreign
- policy and favored many New Deal programs already in effect. However, Wilkie
- opposed the controls that the Democratic Administration had put on business.
- To obtain more Republican support for this campaign, Roosevelt used his
- executive power of appointment to appoint two republicans to his Cabinet in 1940. The
- first was Henry L. Stimson for Secretary of War, who held the office under the Taft
- Administration. He also held the office of Secretary of State under President Hoover.
- Stimson replaced Harry Woodring who was regarded as isolationist. Roosevelt's
- previous
- opponent who ran for as Vice President on the republican side, newspaper publisher
- Frank Knox, was placed as the Secretary of the Navy.
- The Republicans based their campaign on the tradition that no President had ever
- gone for a third term in succession. To counter this, Roosevelt put the spotlight on his
- administration's achievements. Because of the risky situation abroad, many felt that
- Roosevelt's expertise was needed if war occurred.
- The election results were closer this time than the previous two times. Roosevelt
- received 27,243,466 popular votes and 449 electoral votes. Wilkie received
- 22,334,413
- popular votes and 82 electoral votes.
- When it was time for Roosevelt's third term to end, he initially said he wanted to
- retire. However, he later declared that he felt it was his duty to serve if his country called
- on him. Much of this feeling was based on the idea that it would be a bad thing for the
- country to change leadership in the middle of the war. Many of the president's advisors
- felt he would not live through a fourth term, considering his heart disease, hypertension,
- and other cardiac problems. Because of his condition, the Vice President nomination for
- the 1944 election was of utmost importance. Roosevelt was persuaded to drop Henry
- Wallace, whom many regarded as too liberal and emotionally unsuited to be president.
- Harry Truman of Missouri was chosen to fill the spot. Although Roosevelt received
- party
- nomination on the first ballot, there were two other candidates: Harry Byrd (89 votes)
- and James Farley--again-- (1 vote).
- The Republicans nominated Thomas Dewey of New York for President and John
- Bricker of Ohio for Vice President. Again, their argument was term length. No
- President should serve for 16 years, they declared. The opposing argument by the
- Democrats was that no country should change horses in mid-stream. Roosevelt drove
- around the streets of New York City in a rainstorm and then made a speech to show that
- his health was not a major issue.
- The election outcome was even slimmer this time, but Roosevelt still captured a
- hearty vote. Roosevelt received 25,602,505 votes and 432 electoral votes and his
- Republican opponent received 22,013,372 popular votes and 99 electoral votes.
- Many of the advisers who helped Roosevelt during his presidential campaigns
- continued to aid him after he entered the White House. Below are the four cabinets:
- FIRST TERM
- March 4, 1933-January 20, 1937
- POSITION NAME/ STATE DATE OF
- INDUCTION
- Secretary of State: Cordell Hull, TN 3/4/33
- Secretary of Treasury: William Hartman Woodin, NY 3/4/33
- Henry Morganthau, Jr., NY 1/1/34
- Secretary of War: George Henry Dern, UT 3/4/33
- Harry Woodring, KA 9/25/36-5/6/37
- Attorney General: Homer Stille Cummings, CN 3/4/33
- Postmaster General: James A. Farley, NY 3/4/33
- Secretary of the Navy: Claude A. Swanson, VA 3/4/33
- Secretary of Interior: Harold Ickes, IL** 3/4/33
- Secretary of Agriculture Henry A. Wallace, IW 3/4/33
- Secretary of Commerce: Daniel Calhoun Roper, SC 3/4/33
- Secretary of Labor: Frances Perkins, NY* 3/4/33
- * first female to be appointed to the Cabinet
- **previously the leader of the Chicago NAACP
- SECOND TERM
- January 20, 1937-January 20, 1941
- POSITION NAME/STATE DATE OF
- INDUCTION
- Secretary of State Cordell Hull, TN from previous admn.
- Secretary of Treasury: Henry Morgenthau, Jr., NY from previous admn.
- Secretary of War: Harry Woodring from previous-5/6/37
- Henry L. Stimson, NY 7/10/40
- Attorney General: Homer Stille Cummings, CN from
- previous-1/17/40
- Robert Houghwout Jackson, NY 1/18/40
- Postmaster General: James A. Farley, NY from previous-9/1/40
- Frank C. Walker, PA 9/10/40
- Secretary of Navy: Claude Swanson, VA from previous-7/7/39
- Charles Edison, NJ 8/5/39-1/12/40
- Frank Knox, IL 7/10/40
- Secretary of the Interior: Harold Ickes, IL from previous
- Secretary of Agriculture: Henry A. Wallace, IW from previous
- Claude Raymond Wickard, IN 8/27/40
- Secretary of Commerce: Daniel C. Roper, SC from previous
- Harry Hopkins, NY 12/24/38
- Jesse Jones, TX 9/16/40
- Secretary of Labor: Francis Perkins, NY from previous
- THIRD TERM
- January 20, 1941-January 20, 1945
- POSITION NAME/STATE DATE OF
- INDUCTION
- Secretary of State: Cordell Hull, TN from previous
- Edward Stettinius, VA 11/30/44
- Secretary of Treasury: Henry Morgenthau, Jr., NY from previous
- Secretary of War: Henry L. Stimson, NY from previous
- Attorney General: Robert Jackson, NY from previous
- Francis Biddle, PA 9/5/41
- Postmaster General: Frank Walker, PA from previous
- Secretary of the Navy: Frank Knox, IL from previous-4/28/44
- James Vincent Forrestal, NY 6/18/44
- Secretary of the Interior: Harold Ickes, IL from previous
- Secretary of Agriculture: Claude Wickard, IN from previous
- Secretary of Commerce: Jesse Jones, TX from previous
- Secretary of Labor: Francis Perkins, NY from previous
- FOURTH TERM
- January 20, 1945- April 12, 1945
- POSITION NAME/STATE DATE OF
- INDUCTION
- Secretary of State: Edward Stettinius, VA from previous
- Secretary of Treasury: Henry Morganthau, Jr. NY from previous
- Secretary of War: Henry Stimson, NY from previous
- Attorney General: Francis Biddle, PA from previous
- Postmaster General: Frank Walker, PA from previous
- Secretary of the Navy: James Forrestal, NY from previous
- Secretary of the Interior Harold Ickes, IL from previous
- Secretary of Agriculture: Claude Wickard, IN from previous
- Secretary of Commerce: Jesse Jones, TX from previous
- Henry Wallace 3/1/45
- Secretary of Labor: Frances Perkins, NY from previous
- By the time Roosevelt was inagurated on March 4, 1933, the economic situation
- was desperate. Between 13 and 15 million Americans were unemployed. Of these,
- between 1 and 2 million people were wandering about the country looking for jobs.
- Thousands lived in cardboard shacks called hoovervilles. Even more were standing in
- bread lines hoping to get a few crumbs for their family. Panic-stricken people hoping to
- rescue their deposits had forced 38 states to close their banks. The Depression hit all
- levels of the social scale-- heads of corporations and Wall Street bankers were left on
- the
- street begging-- brother, can you spare a dime? became the catch phrase of the era.
- Roosevelt's action would be two parted: restore confidence and rebuild the
- economic and social structure. In one of his addresses, he pushed confidence with his
- statement, the only thing we have to fear, is fear itself. It is here where he would push
- his presidential powers farther than almost any other president in history during
- peacetime. He made the bold request to Congress to allow him broad executive power
- to wage a war against the emergency, as great as the power that would be given to me if
- we were invaded by a foreign foe.
- One of his first steps was to take action upon the bank problem. Because of the
- Depression, there were runs to the bank that people were making to pull their deposits
- out in return for paper cash and gold. Many banks were not fit to handle this rush.
- Roosevelt declared a bank holiday that began on March 6, 1933 and lasted for four
- days. All banks in the nation were closed until the Department of Treasury could
- examine each one's fiscal situation. Those that were determined to be in sound financial
- condition were allowed to reopen. Those that were questionable were looked at more
- deeply. Those banks who had been badly operated were not allowed to reopen.
- During
- the FDR administration, 5,504 banks had closed and deposits of nearly $3.5 billion
- dollars were lost.
- Shortly after the President restored confidence in the banks, what is now known
- as the 100 days began on March 9 and ended on June 16, 1933. The President at
- once
- began to submit recovery and reform laws for congressional approval. Congress passed
- nearly all the important bills that he requested, most of them by large majorities. The
- fact that there was a Democratic party majority in both houses helped speed things
- along.
- What emerged from these 100 days was a 3-fold focus,
- RELIEF-RECOVERY-REFORM.
- One of the relief actions was known as the Emergency Relief Act. This
- established the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA) and he pushed an
- appropriation of $500 million to be spent immediately for quick relief. Harry Hopkins
- was appointed to the head of FERA as the Federal Relief Administrator.
- The Reforestation Act of 1933 killed two birds with one stone. First it helped
- stop and repair some of the environmental damage that had occurred as a result of the
- industrial revolution. More importantly, however, it created the Civilian Conservation
- Corps, which eventually employed more than 2 1/2 million men at various camps.
- Projects included reforestation, road construction, soil erosion and flood control as well
- as national park development.
- The Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA) was designed to raise crop prices and
- raise the standard of living for American farmers. Production was cut to increase
- demand, therefore raising the price. Also, various subsides were set up to add to the
- farmers income. It also gave the president the power to inflate the currency by
- devaluating its gold content or the free coinage of silver and issue about $3 billion in
- paper currency. The AAA was later struck down as unconstitutional by the US
- Supreme
- Court-- US vs. Butler.
- The National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA), another recovery measure, was
- designed to balance the interests of business and labor and consumers/workers and to
- reduce unemployment. This act set codes of anti-trust laws and fair competition, as well
- as setting a new standard-- minimum wage. Section 7A of the law guaranteed collective
- bargaining rights to workers. NIRA also established the Public Works Administration
- (PWA), which supervised the building of roads and public buildings at a cost of $3.3
- billion to Uncle Sam.
- A new idea came about in those 100 days, it was known as the federal
- corporation. The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) was the first agency to work much
- like a private enterprise. The goal of the TVA was to reform one of the poorest parts of
- the country, the Tennessee River Valley. The TVA was responsible for the construction
- and management of power plants, dams, electricity, flood control systems and the
- development of navigation systems.
- The Federal Securities Act required the government to register and approve all
- issues of stocks and bonds. This act also created the Securities and Exchange
- Commission (SEC), which regulates exchanges and transactions of securities.
- Other reforms included the Home Owners Refinancing Act, which established
- mortgage money for homeowners to refinance and the Banking Act of 1933, which
- created the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation. It was empowered to guarantee
- individual bank deposits up to $5000.
- After the initial 100 days, reform continued throughout the first part of the
- Roosevelt Administration. In November, 1933, the Civil Works Administration was
- created by executive order, which provided temp jobs during the winter of 1933-34.
- The
- Gold Reserve Act helped fix some of the problems of the economy at the roots. First all
- gold was transferred from the Federal Reserve to the National Treasury. FDR was also
- empowered to fix the values of the dollar by weighing its value in gold. He later set the
- price of gold at $35 per ounce, which in turn stabilized markets. The Silver Purchase
- Act
- followed, allowing the government to have not only gold in the Treasury, but Silver as
- well-- valued at 1/3 the price of gold. The Communications Act of 1934 established one
- of the most active federal agencies today, the Federal Communications Commission
- (FCC). It general purpose was to monitor radio, telegraph, and telephone
- communications.
- In Roosevelt's Annual Address to Congress on January 4, 1935, he outlined phase
- two of the New Deal, whose main component would be the establishment of the modern
- welfare system. The federal government would withdraw from the direct relief, leaving
- it up to state and local governments. A program of social reforms would also be
- included
- in the second half of the New Deal. This would include social security for the aged,
- unemployed and ill, as well as slum clearance and better housing.
- One of the first acts of the New Deal, Phase II was the Emergency Relief Act. By
- Executive Order, Roosevelt created three new relief agencies in 1935. The first would
- be
- the Work Progress Administration (WPA), which would spend $11 billion on temporary
- construction jobs. Schools, theaters, museums, airfields, parks and post offices were
- constructed as a result. This increased the national purchasing power.
- Another part of the Emergency Relief Act was the Resettlement Administration
- (RA). Its goals were to improve the condition of farm families not already benefiting
- from AAA, prevent waste by unprofitable farming operations or improper land use and
- projects such as flood control and reforestation. This agency also resettled poor families
- in subsistence homestead communities. These were basic suburbs constructed for the
- city's poor workers. Many times, these communities were known as greenbelt towns
- because of their proximity to open space. Two model suburbs were set up-- Greenbelt
- in
- Washington DC and Greenhills in Cincinnati. Another aid to the farmer was the Rural
- Electrification Administration (REA). Its goals were to provide electricity to isolated
- areas where private utility companies did not see it profitable to run lines and set up
- service.
- The year of 1935 brought with it numerous reform efforts. These were the final
- efforts of the New Deal before the nation geared up for war. Included in this was the
- National Labor Relations Act, whose most important function was to set up the National
- Labor Relations Board (NLRB), which monitored corporations to ensure worker rights
- and safety. The National Housing Act created the US Housing Authority (USHA) to
- administer low-interest 60-year loans to small communities for slum clearance and
- construction projects. This agency also gave subsidies to those landlords willing to offer
- low-income housing. A Revenue Act of 1935 capped off the New Deal with a tax on
- the
- rich, and a tax break on the middle classmen.
- One of the most important and lasting effects of the Roosevelt Administration
- was his into push for the Social Security Act of 1935. This was an innovative plan that
- was supposed to lead to a nation-wide retirement system. It also established a
- cooperative federal-state welfare system/unemployment system. A tax was levied on the
- employee, which was met dollar for dollar by the employer. This tax went into a special
- fund operated by the Social Security Administration. Later in life, when a person
- reached retirement, they could draw the money out of this account that they had placed
- in
- for the last few decades.
- The Supreme Court was fairly conservative, and attempted to shoot holes in
- many of Roosevelt's New Deal Programs. It felt that Roosevelt had taken his legislative
- presidential power to recommend legislation too far, and that Congress was equally
- responsible for allowing him to usurp the powers for reasons of what Roosevelt claimed
- was a national emergency. In a statement made in May of 1935, one of the Supreme
- Court Justices announced that Congress had delegated virtually unfettered powers to
- the
- [Roosevelt] Administration.-- something truly inconsistent with the constitutional
- prerogatives and duties of Congress. The Supreme Court even went as far as to strike
- the entire AAA program down, claiming that it violated state's rights.
- FDR was infuriated at the actions of the Court. He thought of them as nine old
- men who were living in days gone by-- far too conservative to see the economic and
- social needs of today. He soon began to plan retribution, however in secrecy. Two
- days
- after inviting the Justices to a formal social function at the White House, he called upon
- his staff to write up the Judicial Reform Act of 1937. Essentially, this document alleged
- that the Judicial Branch of the federal government was overwhelmed. The Act described
- a desperate situation in which reform and recovery issues were not flowing through
- government on a timely basis--simply because the Supreme Court was backed up. His
- answer to solve the dilemma was to use his executive power of appointment and place
- more Justices on the Court. Another section of the Act suggested that at age 70 (most
- of
- the Justices were above this age), each Justice would be supplemented with an additional
- Justice. This meant up to 15 Supreme Court Justices serving at one time. Roosevelt
- hoped to load the Court with social liberal Democrats who would not oppose his New
- Deal Programs. This became known as his Court Packing Scheme.
- The President can appoint Justices, however, they must be approved by Congress.
- After a long period of embarrassing debate, the Senate rejected Roosevelt's proposal.
- This, in turn, caused Roosevelt to reject the Senate. He set out on a mission to purge the
- Democratic party of the moderate type thinker, replacing him with the ultra-liberal.
- Roosevelt used his diplomatic and military powers in the later part of his
- Administration nearly as much as he used his executive and legislative powers in the first
- half. At the time Roosevelt took office, the nation was suprisingly isolationistic. This
- started in the late nineteenth century, and continued up to the Roosevelt Administration.
- When the Great Depression hit in the 1930's, America became even more concerned
- with
- its own problems. However, seeing the importance of a global view and seeing the
- possible impact of World War II, Roosevelt directed the country toward nations abroad.
- Roosevelt described his foreign policy as that of a good neighbor. The phrase
- came to be used to describe the US attitude toward the countries of Latin America.
- Under the policy, the United States took a stronger lead in promoting good will among
- these nations. The Platt Amendment of 1901 gave the US the right to intervene in the
- affairs of Cuba. In May of 1934, the government repealed this amendment. It also
- withdrew American occupation forces from some Caribbean republics, and settled long-
- standing oil disputes with Mexico. Roosevelt was the first to sign reciprocal trade
- agreements with the Latin American countries, including Brazil, Columbia, Costa Rica,
- Cuba, El Salvador, Guatemala, Haiti and Nicaragua. In 1935, the US signed treaties of
- non-aggression and conciliation with six Latin American nations. This desire to spread
- ties across the Western Hemispheres led to reciprocal trade agreements with Canada.
- Roosevelt also used personal diplomacy by taking trips to various Latin American
- nations. In July, 1934, he became the first American president to visit South American in
- his trip to Columbia. In 1936, he attended the Inter-American Conference for the
- Maintenance of Peace, in Buenos Aires.
- Roosevelt used his diplomatic power of recognition to resume trading between
- the Soviet Union and the US The recognition was given to the Soviet government in
- November of 1933. This was the first attempt at civil relations since the Russian
- Revolution in 1917. In 1933, for the first time in 16 years, the two nations exchanged
- representatives.
- In 1937, Japan, at war with China, attacked a US river gunboat, the USS Panay,
- on the Yangtze River, killing two US citizens. This event infuriated the American public
- as well as the Roosevelt Administration. However, the US protested the Japanese
- action
- rather than demanding action taken against them. Roosevelt used his diplomatic power
- and refused to recognize the Japanese puppet state of Manchukuo in Northern China
- until
- there was an official apology. Shortly after Roosevelt's statement, Japan made an official
- apology to the US and offend to pay for the damages in full.
- Although Roosevelt set his sights upon a global society, many Americans
- disagreed. This school of thought led to the Neutrality Acts of the 1930's. These acts,
- passed by Congress, prohibited the US from furnishing weapons or supplies to any
- nation
- at war. President Roosevelt hoped that any more of these laws that would be enacted in
- the future would allow more flexibility. He disliked the fact that these Acts treated all
- nations the same, whether a country had attacked another or not.
- World War II began on September 1, 1939, when Germany invaded Poland. Still,
- many Americans did not agree that the situation was as dangerou
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