PRESIDENTIAL APPROACHES TO THE GREAT DEPRESSION HIS 102

PRESIDENTIAL APPROACHES TO THE GREAT DEPRESSION HIS 102 Online Grace Wade Moser

DEFINING GOVERNMENT RESPONSIBILITY 2 different presidents— 2 different approaches to the Great Depression § Herbert Hoover § Franklin D. Roosevelt Would split the nation and reflect modern debates over government action in an economic crisis Problem—government tasked with fixing more than just the economy § Raises the question, what is the government’s responsibility to the people? § Should a government provide support? Jobs? Food? § Would continue to be a debate into present day

HERBERT HOOVER President at start of the depression—elected 1928 Individualism and Self. Reliance § Believed were core American values § Interaction by the government could potentially remove these values from American’s lives

PROGRESSIVE PRESIDENT? “We want to see a nation built of home owners and farm owners. We want to see their savings protected. We want to see them in steady jobs. We want to see more and more of them insured against death and accident, unemployment and old age. We want them all secure. ” —Herbert Hoover Were these progressive policies? What do you think? The problem with this statement: who would provide these things? Corporations? Government? Unclear how these would be accomplished

LIMITED GOVERNMENT INTERVENTION Despite his reputation for failing the American people— Hoover believed and practiced government intervention, although limited to preserve self-reliance and individualism November 1929, Voluntary plan for recovery § Agreement a result of meeting between business and labor leaders at the White House § Businesses promised to maintain production and wages; Labor promised to accept existing wages, hours, and working conditions § Fell apart within months—no enforcement from govt. § The cycle: § § Businesses report a loss in profit Cut wages, increase hours, and cut jobs to maintain profit Workers earning less or unemployed, stop spending money Businesses report a loss in profit, and the cycle begins again

HOOVER’S LIMITED INTERVENTION The Agricultural Marketing Act § Created the Farm Board—bought agricultural surpluses to create price control and guaranteed profit § Failed to raise crop prices Tariffs § Hawley-Smoot Tariff 1930—highest protective tariff to date § Designed to help American businesses § European countries responded with similar tariffs leading to worsening of Depression world-wide Emergency Relief and Construction Act § Congress authorized $420 million to employ Americans on various projects across the Nation § Failed to help large percentage of Americans

HOOVER’S LIMITED INTERVENTION Reconstruction Finance Corporation § Authorized loaning of federal funds to banks and corporations § Trickle Down Economics—belief that helping business would spread aid down to workers through higher wages and more jobs § In reality—almost never reaches ordinary people; called the “millionaire’s dole” at the time § A “dole” is an old fashioned term for charity or a handout § The term is ironic because millionaires wouldn’t need charity Ironically, strikingly similar to FDR’s New Deal § Used the Reconstruction Finance Corporation § Similar programs to Agricultural Marketing Act and Emergency Relief and Construction Act

HOOVER IN CARTOON This cartoon shows Hoover attacking the Depression like a rail splitter. His spikes are different interventions implemented by Hoover to address the depression. Do you think this is a positive or negative portrayal of Hoover?

HOOVER CARTOON This image portrays Hoover as a frazzled mother, attempting to take care of problems from the depression represented as screaming infants. In the background, a donkey, the symbol for the democratic party is leaving, presumably for Hoover to do all the work. Do you think this cartoon is sympathetic or unsympathetic to Hoover? Why?

THE PEOPLE IN CRISIS By 1932— 25% of the American workforce unemployed, more than 12 million Americans § Only source of support private charities and churches § Hoover’s belief in individualism and self-reliance kept government out of direct intervention § 1931, Hoover allowed Red Cross to distribute govt. owned agricultural surpluses § 1932 offered small federal loans to states to help in relief efforts § Viewed as being too little too late The People Respond § Triggered mass protest and reaction by the American public § Blamed Hoover for their hardships— “Hoover-villes, ” “Hoover Hogs, ” and “Hoover Blankets”

SOUP AND BREAD LINES Private charities and churches were tasked with feeding the many disadvantaged Americans. Most could not keep up with the demand, running out of meals early, and before everyone received a meal

HOOVERVILLES Homeless and displaced people often lived in makeshift homes on the edges of cities, commonly called “Hoovervilles” How does the name represent blame for the Depression? Was it Hoover’s fault?

HOOVERVILLE This image is of a Hooverville community on the outskirts of an American city. Many Americans, upon losing their jobs, lost their homes as well. Many sought refuge in shanty towns located on the outskirts of the cities. These were often viewed as a blight on the city and many sought to get rid of the squatters in the camps.

CHILDREN IN THE DEPRESSIO N Caption: “Hoover’s Poor Farm Tobacco Fund” and “Hard times are still Hoovering over us” These children are begging for money for their homeless family. According to the signs, who is to blame for their continued suffering?

This image is famous from the Great Depression for its irony. At the same time a billboard praises America’s prosperity in the background, a line of unemployed Americans stand in line for aid.

HOOVER’S FAILURE By the 1930 s, most Americans at a point of desperation § Some veterans petition for aid with early pensions § WWI veterans granted bonus in 1924 --$1 per day served and extra for serving overseas § “Tombstone Bonus”: would be paid in promissory notes rather than cash—unredeemable until 1945 The Bonus Marchers § Veterans formed to march on Washington DC in June and July of 1932 § Pressured government to pay out early

OCCUPY WASHINGTON DC Bonus Marchers: Thousands of veterans marched on DC setting up shanty-towns on the grounds of public memorials § Hoped number and poverty of the marchers would influence Congress to release the pensions § House of Reps agreed to pay the bonus of $2. 4 million, but Senate opposed Hoover’s Opposition § Opposition based on fact it would indebt the nation § Press secretary called the marchers “communists” and “bums” § Hoover feared occupiers would spark uprisings throughout the country—ordered Gen. Douglas Mac. Arthur to evict the marchers from the city, but not to invade the camp

EXCESSIVE FORCE July 28: Mac. Arthur led 5 tanks and 500 armed soldiers on unarmed protestors § Pushed marchers back to their camps and torched the shantytowns Public response—Hoover blamed for Mac. Arthur’s action § Viewed as excessive and cruel § Killed what little support Hoover had left

Attack on Bonus Marcher camp made public in the newspapers. In the image the police attack veterans, and an American flag is caught in the middle.

The shantytown of the marchers burns, the US Capitol is framed in the distance. How do you think Americans felt about this treatment towards veterans?

FRANKLIN D. ROOSEVELT FDR basically unchallenged in 1932 election Inauguration: “The only thing we have to fear, is fear itself” § What is the significance of this statement? Would become a figurehead for recovery—believed in direct govt. intervention to improve American’s lives

A NEW DEAL Democrats get a chance! § Hoover’s unpopularity gave Democrats a historic opportunity to get the White House § 75% of presidents since Lincoln were Republican Promised a “New Deal” for Americans—would become the name associated with FDR’s legislation designed to help Americans § Purposefully vague term, but guaranteed work opportunities and what FDR called a “reasonable measure of security” § Vowed to help “the forgotten man at the bottom of the pyramid with bold, persistent experimentation” § Experimentation was key to New Deal legislation—tried everything, and some reforms hurt rather than helped economy’s recovery

THE NEW DEAL COALITION Definition: FDR’s support base; consisted of farmers, factory workers, city inhabitants, immigrants, African Americans, women, and progressive individuals § Would launch a realignment of the nation’s political loyalties § What kind of people support the Democrats today? Republicans? § Coalition would dominate American politics throughout FDR’s presidency and would be powerful long after his death in 1945 § Believed that FDR’s government would somehow change things for the better—still unknown whether the New Deal could revive the nation's economy Any similarities to modern presidents and their supporters?

INTRODUCING ELEANOR Became the New Deal’s unofficial ambassador § Often considered a turbulent marriage by the American public § When New Deal ended in the light of WWII, Eleanor expressed feeling betrayed by her husband’s policies Admired and respected by many ordinary Americans § Outgoing personality—many letters addressed to her rather than the president for aid Politicized the position of First Lady—first woman to take an active role in president’s policies and stump for FDR around the country

THE 3 R’S AND THE HUNDRED DAYS FDR’s first 100 days in office fulfilled his promise for immediate action by the government—launched the New Deal 3 interconnected objectives: Relief, Recovery, and Reform § Relief to ordinary Americans, primarily through new employment opportunities § Recovery of the economy primarily through farms and businesses also creating jobs and reducing need for relief § Reform of government and economy that would reduce risk of economic slumps in the future § All of the legislation and organizations passed under the New Deal had at least one of these objectives as a goal His experimental legislation never fully fixed the problems caused by the Depression, but expanded dramatically the power of the president and the government’s role in ordinary Americans’ lives

DESIGNING THE NEW DEAL The “Brains Trust”—economists and other leaders to offer suggestions and advice about the nation’s problems § Frances Perkins, Harry Hopkins, Eleanor Roosevelt Action, experiment, and improvise § No clear idea of how to attain the 3 R’s; implemented policy as quickly as possible § Capitalist solutions to the economic crisis § Restore balance between consumption and production § Counterbalance big economic institutions with government programs focused on protecting individuals and public interest § Government moderation of balance of wealth

BANK AND FINANCE REFORM Immediately declared a 4 day “bank holiday” to come up with a plan to fix the banking system § Emergency Banking Act—invested power in the secretary of treasury to open banks and release government funds to bolster banks’ assets § Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC)—allowed govt. funds to be given to banks in need of funds to stay afloat § Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)—govt. guaranteed deposits if bank failed

THE FAILURE OF THE BANKING INDUSTRY This image shows a squirrel, a creature who stores food for the winter, asking a man why he did not do the same with his money. The man replies he did, but the banking system failed him. At this time in American history, when banks failed, you lost all your money. This explains why so many depression survivors continued to distrust banks after the depression ended.

RELIEF PROGRAMS “We work, ten hours a day for six days. In the grime and dirt of a nation [for]…low pay [making us]…slaves—slaves of the depression. ” –letter written to FDR by a citizen in New York Unprecedented need for government to step in and provide relief § Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA) § Provided 4 -5 million households with $20 -30 per month § Created jobs on public works projects § Civil Works Administration (CWA) § Employed thousands of unemployed with $800 million in government jobs § Earned wages of 40 -60 cents an hour renovating schools, digging sewers, rebuilding roads and bridges

CIVILIAN CONSERVATION CORPS (CCC) Most popular relief program, established March 1933 Employed young men with conservation jobs across the country § By end of 1942, had checked soil erosion (a cause of the Dust Bowl), tamed rivers, and planted more than 2 billion trees § Created new recreation areas in national parks and made them accessible to millions of Americans Provided jobs, not charity— replaced the stigma of welfare

CONTROVERSIAL PROGRAMS Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) § Created in May 1933 to build dams along the Tennessee River and provide electricity to rural residents § Developed model towns with electric power and tried to sell idea of benefits to citizens § Criticism of program pushing farmers and residents off land that would be flooded for hydro-electric power Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA) § Problem of needing to cut agricultural production to raise crop prices, put more money and therefore more buying power in the hands of American farmers § “Domestic allotment plan” paid farmers not to grow crops § To fix immediate problem of over production, millions of cattle, hogs, sheep, and other livestock slaughtered and millions of acres of crops destroyed. § Allotment failed to help southern tenant farmers and sharecroppers— often pushed them off their land

NEW DEAL FAILURE Difficult to reform industrial production—cycle of unemployment, low demand, and decreased production National Recovery Act (NRA) § Encouraged industrialists to agree on rules, or codes, to define fair working conditions, set prices, and minimize competition § Government agreed to relax antitrust regulation in exchange for businesses promising to allow unions and engage in collective bargaining § Instead codes strengthened bad business practices § Government had no body to enforce the codes—they were voluntary § Considered a failure—did little to improve unemployment, raise consumption, or relieve the depression § Failed to align businesses with FDR or the New Deal

AN AMERICAN WELFARE STATE By 1935, 8 million Americans were jobless—FDR believed straight charity would stunt individualism and self-reliance Many called the New Deal the beginning of a modern welfare system § What we currently identify as modern welfare—the food stamp program, Medicare, Medicaid—is a product of 1960 s legislation under LBJ § So was the New Deal welfare? What is welfare? § Definition: the state of well-being, happiness, or prosperity of a people; social action on the part of a group to ensure the basic wellbeing of people in need. How is this a redefinition of the role of government in ordinary people’s lives? What should the government be responsible in providing for its citizens?

JOBS AND RIGHT TO ORGANIZE Works Progress Administration (WPA) § Government-funded jobs on publics works projects § Employed actors, journalists, librarians, nurses, poets, musicians, and novelists § By 1936, WPA employed 7% of nation’s workforce; employed over 13 million people and paid out over $10 billion by its end in 1943 Wagner Act and the National Labor Relations Board § Passed 1935, guaranteed industrial workers the right to organize unions as backed by the federal govt. § If the majority of workers voted for a union at a particular company, then the union became the sole bargaining agent for the entire workplace—employers forced to negotiate with the union

CONGRESS FOR INDUSTRIAL ORGANIZATION Wagner Act created opportunity for a new union to compete with AFL § Committee [later Congress] for Industrial Organization (CIO) § Accepted skilled and unskilled factory workers § Mobilized drives in major industries with the aid of the Wagner Act § Some success in auto industry—Flint Sit-down Strike § Limited success in steel and textile industries

SOCIAL SECURITY Social Security Administration § Would provide a modest income to relieve the poverty of elderly people § Funded by tax contributions from workers and their employers § When eligible workers reached a retirement age, they automatically received their earned benefits § Not viewed as welfare because paying into the system § Excluded domestic and agricultural workers—making many African Americans and women ineligible for social security Resisted by economic conservatives and the Republican party § Argued the govt. would ruin private property, destroy initiative and reduce Americans to constant dependents § Similarities to arguments today?

EXPANSION OF PRESIDENTIAL POWER FDR faced opposition in Election of 1936—fact economy hadn ’t recovered with New Deal legislation made some argue American people ready for a change § New Deal Coalition elected him with 60. 8% of the popular vote § Promised to devote his second term to helping Americans Court Packing § Conservatives still blocking his legislation, FDR went after the Supreme Court who were targeting the New Deal as unconstitutional § Proposed a court packing plan—would add one new justice for each existing judge who had served for ten years and was over the age of 70 § Would add up to 6 new justices who would support New Deal legislation § Failed to pass, but Supreme Court got the message § How did this challenge presidential power?

FDR CRITICISM This image shows FDR dressed as a king. He is holding the Constitution with a note written across it saying “Canceled, FDR”. What does this cartoon suggest about FDR’s actions as President?

FAIR LABOR STANDARDS ACT Last major piece of New Deal legislation, passed 1938 Pledged to aid the American worker § Set a national minimum wage 25 cents an hour § 8 hour workday, 40 hours work week § Ended child labor Failed to aid most African Americans as exempted domestic and farm workers Congressional intervention on behalf of workers—a long fought for reform by the labor movement

THE END OF THE DEPRESSION The increasing tensions in Europe would eventual distract the president and the country from its own economic woes § FDR would eventually withdraw funding from most New Deal programs in exchange for funding the war Summarizing both presidential approaches § Both Hoover and FDR sought to preserve self-reliance and individualism § FDR tried anything and everything to fulfill his 3 missions of relief, reform, and recovery § Hoover was much more cautious, putting the nation’s economic recovery over providing relief to ordinary Americans Ultimately, both failed to restore the economy—Only WWII and its economic stimulation ended the depression But created a question we are still asking today—which comes first, the people or the economic recovery?