The 1932 Election and The New Deal

1. The 1932 Election and The New Deal By: Juan Rodriguez, Jasmine Smith and Sharlene Markham

2. The Hoover Era • Before the election of 1932 Pres. Hoover was very unpopular amongst public. • Most Americans blamed him for the Depression • Hoover brought the blame upon himself by refusing to involve government in the economy and not introducing enough policies to help out the American public. • Why was Hoover so unpopular?

3. Franklin D. Roosevelt • Complete opposite of Hoover. • Believed in an “Active Government” • Planned on spending public money to create jobs and boost economy -something Hoover had strongly resisted. • Many people in Gov., such as factory owners, union leaders and economists; asked them for their opinions and suggestions.

4. Campaign For The Election • Roosevelt went on a train tour throughout nation to give speeches and gain support. • Promised people more action and assured them help was on the way with a ‘New Deal’. • With Hoover losing popularity Roosevelt was confident in winning the election but took no chances and campaigned all throughout the nation.

5. The Election • Roosevelt won by a landslide, with a margin of 7 million votes. • Democrats won majority seats in congress. • Republicans were handed the worst defeat they had ever suffered.

6. The New Deal & Aims • Used the full power of Government to get country back on its feet • The extent of the new deal was unheard of at the time • Getting Americans back to work • Protecting Americans savings and property • Provide relief for elderly, sick and unemployed • Getting Industry and Agriculture running again • What was The New Deal?

7. The Hundred Days • Roosevelt’s first hundred days in office; during this time he implemented many laws that helped bring the publics trust back to the Gov. • On the second day as President, Roosevelt closed down all the banks. • Trustworthy banks were reopened a few days later and were backed by the Gov. • Emergency Banking Act and Securities Exchange Commission regulated banks and aimed to prevent reckless speculation.

8. Continued • Federal Relief Administration spent around 500 million on soup kitchens, blankets, unemployment schemes and nursery schools. • Civilian Conservation Corps gave young unemployed men short term jobs. • Agricultural Adjustment Administration was set up to help farmers modernize and bring food prices up. • National Industrial Recovery Act set up two organizations: The Public Works administration and the National Recovery Administration.

9. Continued • PWA used gov. money to build public works and thus create millions of jobs. • NRA aimed to improve working condition, outlaw child labor and set fair wages and levels of production.

10. Tennessee Valley Authority • Organization which set out to build a series of damns on the Tennessee River in order to revitalize the dried out land. • Provided electricity to the undeveloped area • Created thousands of jobs for an area hit hard by the depression.

11. Second New Deal • Facing much criticism for New Deal Roosevelt decided to form an improved New Deal. • The Wagner Act forced all employers to allow trade unions to form in their companies. • Social Security Act aimed to provide pensions for the elderly and help the sick and disabled. • Works Progress Administration brought together all organizations that created jobs and worked to create more jobs. • Resettlement Administration helped farmers who hadn’t been helped by AAA and gave them better land and housing; was re[laced by Farm Security Administration in 1937. • Why was the Second New Deal formed?

12. New Deal isn’t doing enough • Some argued that despite new measures many americans were still very poor and weren’t receiving enough help. • African Americans and poor farming areas were the most affected. • Senator Huey long highly criticized The New Deal and even proposed his own strategy ‘The Share Our Wealth Plan’. • Dr. Francis Townsend founded Townsend clubs to campaign for higher pensions for people over 60

13. New Deal is doing too much • Some argued it was too complicated • Government shouldn’t support trade unions or petitions for higher wages. • Programs such as TVA created unfair competition for private companies • Economic plans were carried ot in communist manner and were unfit for a democracy. • Wealthy were rich because of their hard work and shouldn’t be taxed so much.

14. Opposition from the Supreme Court • Began after an incident with a poultry company which deemed the NRA unconstitutional. • Roosevelt asked congress to allow him to six more judges who were more sympathetic of New Deal. • Request was denied and the public was appalled by Roosevelt’s request.