• As the Depression set in after the stock market crash of 1929, many people blamed the president, Herbert Hoover, and the Republican Party for not taking strong enough measures to stimulate the economy, or at the least, to help alleviate the widespread unemployment and suffering.
• As a result, the election of 1932, held at one the very lowest points in the
Depression, was a landslide victory for the Democratic Party candidate,
Franklin D. Roosevelt.
• In his acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention,
Roosevelt promised to initiate a “New Deal” for the American people.
• After taking office in March 1933, Roosevelt immediately began passing legislation to prevent a further deterioration of the economy, stabilizing the banking system and other key economic sectors, such as agriculture.
Additionally, Roosevelt created numerous government agencies designed to relieve unemployment by getting people back to work. The jobs created by agencies such as the PWA (Public Works Administration) , the CCC
(Civilian Conservation Corps), provided temporary relief to millions of unemployed men across the country.

18.a-
Describe the creation of the Tennessee Valley Authority as a works program and as an effort to control the environment
• Among the numerous “alphabet agencies” created in the early days of the first Roosevelt administration was the TVA (Tennessee Valley
Authority). Through the 1930s and 1940s, the TVA built over two dozen dams and hydroelectric power plants along the rivers of the
Tennessee Valley watershed.
• The goal of TVA was three-fold: 1) Provide work relief in one of the hardest hit areas of the nation, 2) prevent the frequent flooding that periodically wreaked havoc along these rivers, and 3) along with the REA (Rural Electrification Administration) provide inexpensive electricity to the mostly rural regions through the
Tennessee River Valley.
• The TVA is often considered one of the most successful of
Roosevelt’s New Deal agencies, but at the time it was one of the most controversial New Deal programs because some saw it too near to socialism.

• As the Depression took hold, unemployment soared, banks and businesses failed, and many who were able to keep jobs faced falling wages and markedly decreased spending power. Labor unrest was reaching critical mass, and many pushed for industrial unionism as the answer.
• Unlike trade unionism, which promoted the interest of skilled labor, industrial unions sought to represent the interests of entire industries- auto makers or steelworkers for example.
• Most industries had strongly resisted this type of unionism as a detriment to sound business, but as labor grew more unsettled, it became a political liability that demanded Roosevelt’s attention as the election of 1936 approached.
• FDR’s answer was the National Labor Relations Act, also known as the Wagner Act, which guaranteed all workers the right to unionize and collectively bargain with employers for wages and working conditions. The act also established the
National Labor Relations Board, which mediated disputes between labor and business.
• The Wagner Act inspired a flurry of unionism in the years to follow. The Committee for Industrial Organization was formed in 1935 to coordinate broad based efforts to unionize un-organized industries. Many workers conducted sit-down strikes and other tactics to force companies to concede. Union membership soared through the late 1930s-1950s, and FDR cemented the broad support of labor interests for the Democrat Party.

• One of the most important of Roosevelt’s Depression-era reforms was the
Social Security Act. Passed in 1935, the law established the Social Security
Administration, whose goal was to provide a safety net for the retired and unemployed.
• Essentially a nationwide insurance program, all workers and employers, through payroll taxes, contributed to the system. Benefits were to be paid at retirement, or in the event of unavoidable unemployment. Benefits were also paid to the indigent, disabled, or otherwise impoverished individuals who could not work through no fault of their own. The quasisocialist philosophy behind Social Security marked a major shift in
American political and legislative history and continues to be a controversial point of debate.
• Both the Social Security Act and the Wagner Act were part of another flurry of legislation called the Second New Deal. Some of Roosevelt’s legislation, like the National Recovery Act , had been struck down by the courts. FDR wanted new and more focused reforms to shore up his
Democratic coalition leading up to the election of 1936, which turned out to be a much closer race than in 1932.

• FDR’s wife, First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt took a very active role in promoting her husband’s policies, as well as pursuing her own issues and agenda of social progress. More than any First Lady preceding her, Eleanor Roosevelt was a visible and vocal activist for a variety of issues.
• Some of the issues she advocated, such as racial inequalities and unionization of coal miners, would have been a political liability for
FDR to address directly. Eleanor, however, could raise awareness of these issues without too much political repercussion for her husband.
• For example, when the DAR (Daughters of the American Revolution refused to have a black singer (Marion Anderson) perform at their conference, Mrs. Roosevelt arranged for Anderson to perform at the Lincoln Memorial. This and other efforts on her part to address racial inequalities, helped to solidify Black support of the Democrat
Party.

18.e-
Identify the political challenges to Roosevelt’s domestic and international leadership; include the role of Huey Long, the “court packing bill,” and the Neutrality Act
• Through FDR’s first two administrations he faced some serious political challenges, both to his Democratic coalition, and to specific policies.
• One of the most serious political threats came from the populist senator, and former governor of Louisiana, Huey Long. Long argued that FDR had not gone far enough in his reforms, and he built a substantial nationwide “Share Our Wealth” movement that blamed the greed of the wealthy for the continued suffering of the working poor.
Some historians speculate that had he not been assassinated, he may have been able to credibly challenge FDR in the 1936 election.
• Although Long hurt FDR’s political coalition, perhaps the most politically damaging episode during the FDR years was his scheme to change the rules for Supreme Court service. FDR was bitter that the “Nine Old Men” of the Court had struck down some of his New Deal agencies, and he urged Congress to change the rules, which would allow him to appoint more justices and force the retirement of others. The plan was received with near universal scorn- many saw it as a power grab for the executive branch that offended the most basic premise of our constitutional system- separation of powers.
• Finally, on the international front, FDR faced challenges from isolationists who were determined to keep the U.S. out of world affairs. As the 1930s progressed and as militant fascist regimes arose in Germany, Italy, and Spain- many saw war looming on the horizon. To prevent the U.S from getting involved, Congress passed a series of laws, beginning with the Neutrality Act of 1935, that prevented the U.S. from selling arms to any country at war. The Neutrality Act was renewed and expanded in 1937adding a cash-and-carry provision to even non-military supplies.