THEME 2: d - the Second New Deal Flashcards
How was the second New Deal different from the first?
- reintroduced competition but with regulations on fair play
* Much more radical - some say he clearly favoured the poor at expense of the rich
Why was the second New Deal more radical?
- Responding to the opposition
- Congress demanded more, and Roosevelt didn’t want them to set the agenda
- Increasingly frustrated by the wealthy classes and big business who opposed him
- desire to appeal to the disadvantaged who he felt were often ignored
What did the Emergency Relief Appropriation Act do? 1935
It set up the Works Progress Admin
- largest appropriation for relief
- ERAA allocated it $45.5
What did the WPA do?
- recruited people for public work projects (by 1941, 2 mil employees at any one time)
- wages approx $52 per month - greater than any relief but less than the going rate in the industry
- built 8,000 schools & hospitals
What was the WPA not allowed to do?
- compete for contracts w/ private firms or build private houses
- not supposed to engage in large scale projects - but it did
What did the Resettlement Administration do? 1935
- merged all rural rehabilitation projects into one new agency - the resettlement admin
- aimed to move 500,000 families from overworked land to more promising areas - only resettled 4,441 families
- taught them how to farm effectively using modern machinery & efficient techniques
Why was the Revenue (Wealth Tax) Act established? (1935)
To pay for New Deal reforms - it seemed logical to raise more revenue by taxing those who could afford it
What were the attitudes towards to Revenue (Wealth Tax) Act?
The rich (those affected) saw it be an attack on the fundamental right of Americans to become rich
What did the the Revenue (Wealth Tax) Act do?
- created a graduated tax on corporate income & profits tax on corporations
- max. tax on incomes >$50,000 raised from 59% to 75%
- However, this raised little money due to loopholes in legislation & the fact that only 1% of the pop earnt over $10,000
- set a precedent for higher taxation during WW2
Why was the ‘Wagner Act’ not initiated by Roosevelt?
He was reluctant to get involved in labour relations…why?
- there was a mistrust of labour unions - esp among Southern Democrats, whose support R needed
- supporting unions would further aggravate big businesses
What did the ‘Wagner Act’ do?
- guaranteed workers the rights to collective bargaining through the unions they choose
- they could choose their union through a secret ballot
- created a new 3 man National Labour Relations Board - to ensure fair play
- employers forbidden from unfair practices & dis
What did the Public Utility Holding Company Act do? (1935)
- ordered the breaking up of all companies more than twice removed from the operating company - destroyed the pyramid structure
- did this by making all holding companies register with the SEC (securities exchange commission)
- any company twice removed from utility & couldn’t justify there existence was the be eliminated
What did the Social Securities Act, 1935 do?
- first federal measure of direct help
- provided for old-age pensions (funded my employer & employee, self financing) FEDERAL
- unemployment insurance for up to 16 weeks - paid for by payroll taxes (employer & employee) STATE
What were the limitations of the Social Securities Act?
- inadequate to meet the needs of the poor
- amount on pension ranged from $10 - $85 per month because it relied on employee & employer contributions
- states received the same amount per child but the amounts paid varied widely - some $61 per months others $8
- those who needed the most help: farmers, domestic servants & those working for small scale workers were EXCLUDED from the act - jobs mostly performed by African Americans
Why was the Social Security Act important?
- signified a major break in American tradition
- Never had there been a direct system of national benefits
- transformed the role of the federal government
- sent a loud message that the federal gov cared about it’s people
