Chapter 16

1. Chapter 16 The New Deal 1933-1941

2. FDR elected president in 1932 • lame duck-Hoover (moved the beginning of the Pres/VP terms from March 4 to Jan 20) • promised a New Deal to the American people =relief (money), recovery (jobs), and reform (laws). • During his first Hundred Days, he passed more legislation than any president in history. Roosevelt had won the presidency by a large margin and therefore had a popular mandate. He was also facing one of the thoughest financial times and history and had a “try anything” approach.

3. FDR’s Bank Holiday-(moratorium) • Purpose=restore public confidence in the nation’s banks. • 1st action of FDR • Emergency Banking Act-authorized the government to inspect the financial health of all banks • Glass-Steagall Banking Act of 1933-established a Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) to insure bank deposits.

4. The Brain Trust • intellectual advisors to the President Roosevelt • Helped to draft policy

5. Eleanor Roosevelt • Wife of FDR, took on the role of advisor • Became the eyes, ears, and legs of FDR; remember, he had polio that left him in a wheelchair. • Advised FDR on domestic policy issues We have to face the fact that either all of us are going to die together or we are going to learn to live together and if we are to live together we have to talk. Eleanor Roosevelt

6. FDR’s alphabet soup agencies • NIRA- National Industrial Recovery Act –encouraged fair business practices, such as a fair wage, price controls, and working conditions

7. CCC CCC- Civilian Conservation Corps- put young men, ages 18-25, to work in environmental type job

8. TVA- Tennessee Valley Authority- created jobs and cheap electricity by damming rivers to create hydroelectric power; also created many tourism jobs

9. AAA- Agricultural Adjustment Administration- paid farmers not to plant part of their fields and not to breed their animals AND to destroy the crops planted on certain fields that year; criticized by many

10. Francis Perkins • First female cabinet member • Sec. of Labor

11. Mary McLeod Bethune • Appointed director of the Division of Negro Affairs of the National Youth Administration • Pushed for the formation of the unofficial “black cabinet” that advised FDR

12. Supreme Court declares the AAA and the NIRA unconstitutional • AAA taxed one group to fund another • NIRA gave Executive branch legislative powers

13. Second New Deal • More legislative programs launched in 1935 • WPA- Works Progress Administration- built playgrounds, schools, hospitals; also employed artists, teachers, and writers • REA- Rural Electrification Administration- gave loans to electric companies to run power lines to more remote areas; eventually provided 98% of farms with power • Wagner Act- legalized unions and collective bargaining and closed shops, workplace that only employs union members • Social Security Act- paid a pension to the elderly, disabled, children whose parents were deceased, and workers who lost their jobs

14. Section 2 The New Deal Critics

15. Women and African Americans • Critical of New Deal because they were often paid less than white, male workers • The New Deal did not protect domestic workers • African Americans still faced discrimination

16. American Liberty League • Headed opposition to New Deal • Republicans-said the New Deal went too far • New Deal= too socialistic • Said it was not the role of the federal government to assume the responsibility for the welfare of its citizens

17. Socialists and Progressives • Said the New Deal did not go far enough towards protecting its citizens • Robert M. LaFollette, Wisconsin Governor and then Senator, “fighting Bob” said that the government should eliminate poverty

18. Father Coughlin • Demagogue (a political leader who seeks support by appealing to popular desires and prejudices rather than by using rational argument) • critic of FDR • Radio priest who was openly anti-Semitic • Praised Hitler and Mussolini • Roman Catholic officials ordered him to shut up in 1942

19. Huey Long • Louisiana Governor and Senator • Demagogue who criticized FDR for failing to redistribute wealth in the U.S. • Created the “Share Our Wealth” plan-limit individual wealth to $1 million and inheritance to $5 million; confiscate fortunes and give every family a $2,500 annual income

20. Court packing • When Supreme Court declared the AAA and NIRA unconstitutional, FDR attempted to add 6 more Supreme Court justices • Congress and the press were very critical of FDR • Plan to pack court failed

21. Section 3 Last Days of the New Deal

22. Labor Union Membership grew • Wagner Act made membership more popular • Wagner Act made unions legal

23. John L. Lewis • Led United Coal Miners**massive five month strike • First president of CIO (Congress for Industrial Organization) created to unionize unskilled workers

24. General Motors strike 1936 • Union members occupied plant in Flint, Michigan and refused to leave (sit-down strike) • GM turned off heat, blocked entry to prevent workers from receiving food, and called in police • Women outside the plant aided the strikers • GM finally gave in

25. Ford Strike 1937 • Hired thugs to beat up those that attempted to unionize • Unions responded with violence • Called “Battle of the Overpass”

26. Legacy of the New Deal • did not end the Great Depression, but it did change American life (WWII ended Depression) • People relied more heavily on the government to solve their problems • The government assumed a greater responsibility for the welfare of its citizens • Many alphabet soup agencies build internal improvements that exist today= SSA, TVA • The FDIC and Securities Exchange Commission still regulate banking and the stock market