The New Deal

Question 1

What were Roosevelt’s 3 aims in the new deal?

Answer 1

1.Relief- short term help for those in poverty. Relief for the sick, old and unemployed.
2. Recovery- Improve economy in the medium term to end the depression. Get industry back on its feet.
3. Reform- Make long term changes to the American economy so a depression would not happen again. Protect peoples saving and get america back to work.

Question 3

What was meant by the phrase- ‘priming the pump’?

Answer 3

This refers to Roosevelt using government money to kick start the economy- this was seen as very radical after Hoover’s laissez faire style.

Question 4

What is mean by the phrase ‘fire side chat’ and how is it connected to roosevelt?

Answer 4

Roosevelt was known for being very persuasive. He used radio broadcasts to persuade the people his ideas and policies were the best thing for america. These broadcasts were called fire side chats because they made the american people feel like he was in their home talking directly to them.

Question 5

What was Roosevelt’s upward spiral technique to improve the economy?

Answer 5

This is the process
1. Government spends money to employ people in the short term
2. People have money so spend it on goods.
3. Companies emply more people to make the goods
4. This creates more money for more workers to spend.
5. The workers spend more money
6.More workers are employed.

Question 6

Name 5 things Roosevelt achieved in his first 100 days with his ‘NEW DEAL’ ?

Answer 6

RELIEF: 1. Created FERA to help the unemployed (Federal emergency relief administration)- providing soup kitchen and blankets etc..
RELIEF: 2. Tried to restore confidence in the banking system with the EMERGENCY BANKING ACT.
RECOVERY- Helped the unemployed by setting up the CCC (civilian conservation corp)- which was jobs on environmental projects plus the PWA ( Public Works Administration) which was using government money to provide jobs building roads, schools and bridges.

REFORM 4. Helped farmers by creating the AAA (agricultural adjustment administration to reduce production and push up prices.
REFORM: 5 Created the National recovery administration - to improve working conditions

Question 7

Can you name 4 things that were done as a second wave of the new deal?

Answer 7

Due to slow progress of his initial strategies Roosevelt introduced additional measures:
1. The wagner act- forcing businesses to allow workers to join trade unions so they could negotiate better conditions and pay.
2. The social security act- to set up system of unemployment insurance and state pensions for the old.
3. The WPA (works progress administration)- for job schemes creating jobs in office work and the arts.
4. The resettlement act- helping smaller scale farmers who didn’t benefit from the AAA (other agriculture policy to improve conditions)

Question 8

Name 3 examples of people who disagreed with the new deal and said that the new deal wasn’t doing enough

Answer 8

1. Huey Long- he wanted a radical share the wealth scheme - more support for the poor.
2. Father Charles Coughlin- wanted to nationalise banks to stabilise the economy.
3. Dr Frances Townsend- he wanted more support for the old and old age pensions for all of america

Question 9

Give an example of a group of people who disagreed with the new deal because they thought the new deal did too much

Answer 9

Businessmen in the Republican party did not like the high taxes needed to pay for the new deal- they said Roosevelt was acting like a socialist dictator.

Question 10

Why did the supreme court oppose the new deal?

Answer 10

This was the most serious opposition and BIGGEST obstacle for the new deal- they were able to declare the new laws as unconstitutional and they rejected the 11 new deal laws. They said it blurred the lines between the state and central government. They said it interfered with the power / rights of the individual states. So Roosevelt threatened to change the power of the supreme court and they then accepted the Wagner act.

Question 11

Names 5 positives of the new deal

Answer 11

1. It stopped the depression from getting worse.
2. It helped farmers and property owners stay in their homes.
3. It introduced better social security for Americans
4. it provided a strong infrastructure of schools, roads and damns
5. It gave new confidence to the american people.

Question 12

Name 5 negatives of the new deal

Answer 12

1. Roosevelt was inconsistent and kept changing his mind on policies.
2. Although he challenged big business it was still very powerful and was able to challenge roosevelts policies.
   3.The new deal still didn’t reach the poorest such as unskilled workers, immigrants and farm labourers especially black people.
3. It did not reset confidence to the same levels as the 1920s.
4. Unemployment still remained high in the 1930s

Question 13

Give 3 reasons for how WW2 helped america get out of the depression

Answer 13

1. Lend lease: The us sent food, arms and medicine to Britain first and then other countries totalling 50.1 billion $ boosting the economy.
2. Willing industrialists: Those business men who opposed the new deal got behind the war production board- these industrialists made alot of money.
   3: Extra workers: To make these goods around 14 million people worked in factories for the war effort-including afro Americans and women- this all boosted the economy

Question 14

Describe 4 improvement in America at the end of the war?

Answer 14

1. more than half a million new businesses started
2. Reduced unemployment
   farmers could export goods for the first time in 20 years
3. Wages increased. a
4. many Americans purchased war bonds to help fund production and boost economy.