Switching Ideaologies during the Great Depression

The United States entered one of the most devastating economic periods in its history after the stock market crash of 1929. The massive damage done to the quality of life of the average American during this time, known as the Great Depression, prompted a fundamental change in the attitude of the nation. The most notable change was a shift in public belief about what type of President would best serve the struggling nation. The election of Franklin D. Roosevelt completely reversed the trend of Presidents that pursued policies focused around benefitting businesses and the wealthy. Whereas leaders before him held fast in their support of big businesses, even to the point of ignoring the harm they had brought to the country, Roosevelt focused his

President Herbert Hoover, a Republican, had control of the United States from 1929 to 1933, the beginning of the economic downfall. Hoover created a laissez-faire government; the government was not involved in everyday business, instead it was a very hands off approach and daily life just took its path. When Franklin D. Roosevelt became president in 1933 the economy was now deep in a huge downward spiral, and he raised a new Democratic approach to run the government and United States. The United States was in for a lot of reform movements being that a Democrat was president, and something needed to be done to prevent the status of the United States to fail even more. Franklin D. Roosevelt responded to the problems of the Great Depression

President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the thirty-second president of the United States, was a central figure for the United States in the 20th Century. While leading his country out of The Great Depression, he also led the nation through World War II. Herbert Hoover, the thirty-first President, led the country during the Great Depression and his policies enforced at that time eventually led to his downfall because of their inability to end the downward economic spiral. Both of these Presidents greatly contributed to the nation by using different policies and tactics that classified them as either liberal or conservative. Although there are some exceptions because of the acts passed by Hoover, the characterizations of President D.

The Great Depression quickly altered America's view of liberalism and therefore, Roosevelt can be considered a liberal and Hoover a conservative, despite the fact that they did occasionally support very similar policies. The United States experienced political shifts during the Great Depression, which are described by Arthur Schlesinger’s analysis of eras in which public objectives were placed before personal concerns. It seems that the public view of what constitutes as liberal beliefs versus what is thought to be conservative beliefs shifts in a similar way.

When President Hoover entered office in 1929, stock market prices were at all time highs and the American economy prospered. Suddenly, in October of 1929, the stock market crashed and thousands of Americans lost their entire life savings. The crash sparked the most horrific and devastating economic crisis of all time. In the tedious years to follow, records suggest that stock prices fell “about 80% from their highs in the late 1920s” (Stock Market Crash). Soon after Black Tuesday, the United States economy crumbled to pieces. Many people became unemployed and homeless. Through the course of a decade, Presidents Herbert Hoover and Franklin Roosevelt tried and failed to bring an end to the Great Depression with their own domestic policies and political ideals. Before Hoover’s election, federal administrators praised his humanitarian spirit. When Hoover became president, he fell short of his glowing reputation and failed to recognize the severity of the situation America was facing. The nation felt out of touch with their commander-in-chief and in the presidential election of 1932, Hoover was squarely defeated by his popular Democratic opponent, Franklin Delano Roosevelt who promised a “New Deal” to the suffering American people. The Great Depression was a long and difficult time for many Americans ended only by the beginning of World War II. Two utterly different presidents guided America through the worst financial crisis ever seen with two different policies, two

Compare and contrast Hoover and Roosevelt’s actions in the aftermath of the Crash of 1929. How did both administrations attempt to deal with the economic stagnation, social hardship and psychological impact of the depression? What needed to be fixed and which approach proved more successful? In your essay you should address not only the underlying economic and social problems that both administrations had to deal with and the various corrective measures they adopted, but also the underlying philosophical approaches of Hoover and Roosevelt and their supporters.

Thesis: Because the Great Depression quickly changed America's view of liberalism, Roosevelt can be considered a liberal and Hoover a conservative, despite occasionally supporting similar policies.

President Franklin D. Roosevelt is commonly identified as a liberal and President Herbert C. Hoover as a conservative. The validity of these characterizations, however, is conditional upon the definition of these labels. If one adopts the most conventional contemporary definitions of the terms “liberal” and “conversative,” then the characterizations of Roosevelt as a liberal and Hoover as a conservative are valid, but the definitions of liberal and conservative vary and change over time and place.

In 1932, when the American public voted President Herbert Hoover out of office, they were searching for an end to the economic troubles and high unemployment rates that had smothered the nation U.S. for two years. [ (Civilian Conservation Corps CCC) ] They turned to Franklin D. Roosevelt, a man who promised better life than the one many people were now

The Great Depression drastically changed America's definition of Liberalism. Prior to the onset of the depression, in the roaring twenties, policies of laissez-faire were considered liberal, radical, revolutionary, and even democratic. This was due to the fact that revolution was a horrifying notion and not until after the laissez-faire and the system of free market fails in the 1920's do people begin to look about for alternatives. The time when people starting to seek alternatives was at the onset of the depression when America's political views drastically change. As the Great Depression, started in 1929, America began to view conservatives as following the policies of social Darwinism, laissez-faire, and having

The late 1930s were a time of great suffering and uncertainty in the United States. The country was crippled by effects of the Great Depression; the result was a massive decline in jobs and economic stability that dramatically impacted both rural and urban communities. Millions of Americans were out of work, unable to support their families. State organizations and charities were unable to meet the growing needs of the people and many were left to fend for themselves. The Great Depression brought with it a legitimate, tangible fear about the future of America and its citizens. Upon the outcry of the American people a “New Deal” was struck giving the citizens of America a lifeline of hope in the ever-growing State. The New Deal was a succession of programs, organizations and laws, enacted by President Franklin D. Roosevelt, directly addressing the issues of jobs, welfare and uncertainty through direct federal involvement. The creators of the New Deal worked across party lines to reshape the norms of state involvement whilst making a great legislative effort to turn the declining economy around. The New Deal reshaped the federal government’s relationship with its citizens in a time of economic uncertainty helping to grow the State in a time of peace.

Herbert Hoover and Franklin Roosevelt were both presidents during one of the most difficult times in American history, the Great Depression. To try and ease the hardships that many Americans were facing, each President developed many different programs. The different actions that each took to lessen the blow of the depression classified them as either a liberal or conservative. If their actions focused on helping the economy, they would be considered a conservative. If they were more focused on helping the lives of the American people, they would be classified as a liberal. Neither President can be labeled as strictly one. Although Franklin Roosevelt was

Cecchetti, Stephen G. "Understanding the Great Depression: Lessons for Current Policy ." Monetary Economics (1997): 1-26.

After the Depression Hoover had some strategies he used to try and fix the economy, but they did not play out as smoothly as he would have liked them too. Roosevelt 's approach to fix the economy was more uplifting to the people in almost every aspect. Even their campaign songs, Roosevelt’s was about Happy Days coming again, and Hoover’s was about the depression. Roosevelt proposed a “New Deal” to the people and manny clung to it. His deal was that he was going to start experimenting with government roles. WHat he means by this is that he promises to increase government help and use the power of the government to address the people’s issues. Although, he did not explain how he was going to fix things such as unemployment and and improving the stock market in

The legacy that President Hoover passed to his successor was disastrous. The country experienced an unprecedented economic depression. However, in his speech during the presidential campaign in 1936, he expressed a deep concern that the New Deal is directed against the interests of ?poor Americans?[footnoteRef:2]. He also blamed the Roosevelt policy in violation of ?fundamental American ideals and liberties?[footnoteRef:3]. While Roosevelt was rebuilding America, Hoover attacked