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A Brief Biography of Franklin Delano Roosevelt

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Franklin Delano Roosevelt
Franklin Delano Roosevelt, FDR, was born in 1882 and attended both Harvard University and Columbia Law School (White House). Serving from March 1933-April 1945, FDR became America’s longest serving president (Miller Center). He entered office in the midst of the Great Depression, America’s major financial crisis. Everyone was investing in the stock market, and when it crashed, America came close to bankruptcy. The crash of the stock market left people without money, jobs, homes, food, and hope. The previous president, Herbert Hoover, made quite a mess out of the Depression. Hoover simply ignored the fact that the country was in depression because he did not know how to deal with it. Hoover left FDR with a big …show more content…

Finally, what made FDR such an effective leader was his “New Deal”. The “New Deal” was a series of economic and social reforms that he made to help the country out of depression. Not only did these reforms help the current issues with the Depression but they also helped make America a more stable nation for the future. Within only a few weeks of FDR taking office did the nation start seeing great change happen. In this short period of time he stabilized the banks by shutting them down. He didn’t open back up the banks unless he felt they were stable; this was known as the FDIC. He also set a budget for government spending which helped him achieve his policies. FDR established the Civilian Conservation Corps “CCC”. The CCC provided work for 2.5 million unmarried men while also conserving the environment (Time). Another notable reform made by FDR was the National Industrial Recovery Act; also know as the NIRA. This set a minimum wage and helped the industrial workers and businesses (the industrial business was declining at the time) (Time). One of the biggest parts of the NRA was the Public Works Association “PWA”. The PWA put many to work and accomplished huge projects. The Works Progress Association, WPA, this brought work to 8 million Americans and decreased the unemployment rate (Time). Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act in 1933 (Time). It continues

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