The Senate refused the veterans’ request to redeem the certificates. Many veterans went home, but approximately 2,000 stayed in Washington, D.C., setting up a tent city called “Hooverville.”
President Hoover ordered General MacArthur and the military to disperse the veterans. General MacArthur did more than that. He went in with tanks and burned down Hooverville. The assault lead to the death of a baby.
The public was incensed. Hoover’s career was finished. With elections only months away, Hoover was likely to lose, and lose he did. In the 1932 elections, Hoover won only 59 electoral votes. His Democratic opponent, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, received 472 electoral votes. Roosevelt also won seven million more votes in the popular election than Hoover.
Beginnings of the Great Depression
The Great Depression was caused by more than one event, including
An abundance of agricultural goods, which drove farmers’ prices down
Worldwide high tariffs that stifled international trade and reduced U.S. exports
Big profits were not passed from corporations to workers, causing the buying power of the average person to decrease
The stock market crash of October 1929
The 1920s were a prosperous decade for most U.S. citizens. The stock market had increased dramatically in value, and many citizens speculated widely with stocks. U.S. citizens mortgaged their homes to buy stock and even bought stock on margin, which allowed them to put up only 3 percent of the stock value in cash, while borrowing the rest from stockbrokers. As a result, many U.S. citizens were in debt over their heads, owing brokerage firms billions.
In September 1929, stock prices began to fall as a response to a slowing economy. People panicked and started selling off their stocks, further decreasing stock prices. By October 1929, panic broke out, and more and more people started to sell their stocks. Stock prices collapsed. Many people lost their life savings; people who mortgaged their homes to buy stocks ended up losing them; and people who bought stocks on margin couldn’t repay the brokerage firms. The brokerage firms collapsed, and then banks went under. The Great Depression had begun.
Staying active in retirement
Hoover retired in 1933. He went back to California and became active in charitable organizations. He started the Hoover Library on War and then donated the 200,000 books he acquired to Stanford University.
Later, Hoover toured Europe. He met Hitler and warned the United States of German aggression. In 1939, Hoover went back to the United States to organize relief funds. He provided relief to Finland after it came under attack by the Soviet Union.
After World War II, President Truman asked Hoover to analyze the need for relief in Europe and then provide whatever relief was necessary. Hoover traveled to 38 countries in Europe and again did a superb job.
Truman was impressed with Hoover’s performance, so he asked him to streamline government operations. The Hoover commission completed the job successfully. In 1953, President Eisenhower asked Hoover to start a second commission for the same purpose. Again, Hoover succeeded.
In 1955, Hoover retired at age 81. He died at the age of 90 in 1964.
One of Hoover’s last statements concerned the people who blamed him for the Great Depression. Hoover said of them: “I outlived the b - - - - - - -.”
Part V
Instituting the Imperial Presidency: Franklin Roosevelt to Richard Nixon
In this part . . .
Istart out by looking at a great president — Franklin Delano Roosevelt. He pulled the country out of the Great Depression, started long-lasting programs such as Social Security, and preserved democracy in Europe by entering World War II. His successor, Harry Truman, then saved Western Europe from the expanding Soviet empire, with programs such as the Truman Doctrine, the Marshall Plan, and later NATO. Back home, Truman desegregates the U.S. military.
With Truman unable to end the war in Korea, the war hero General Dwight D. Eisenhower comes to power. Often overlooked, he was a great president who contained the Soviet Union without sacrificing one American life. Eisenhower also ended the war in Korea, desegregated U.S. public schools, and initiated the present interstate highway system.
Who doesn’t know about John F. Kennedy and his attempts to establish better relations with the Soviet Union and to bring civil rights to the forefront? Kennedy didn’t live to see his efforts completed, but his successor Lyndon Johnson finished the job. His legacy includes the Civil Rights and the Voting Rights Acts, as well as Medicare and Medicaid. Johnson would have been a great one, but there was Vietnam, which undermined his presidency.
Richard Nixon concludes the part. You may be amazed at how such a successful foreign policy president was brought down by the worst presidential scandal in U.S. history, Watergate.
Chapter 16
Boosting the Country and Bringing Back Beer: Franklin D. Roosevelt
In This Chapter
Beginning a career in politics
Saving the country’s economy
Winning a world war
Getting elected to a fourth term
F ranklin Delano Roosevelt, or FDR as he is referred to, is one of the best-known and most successful presidents in U.S. history. He became president at a time when the country faced a massive economic crisis — the Great Depression started in 1929, three years before he was elected. By then, the average citizen had lost faith in the ability of the capitalist system to overcome the economic crisis.
His programs restored hope, helped the economy out of a recession, and, later on, helped win a world war. Roosevelt set the foundation for modern day government interference in the economy. He is the father of the U.S. welfare state and the large federal bureaucracy that administers it.
He guided the country through World War II (WWII) and turned the United States into a superpower by 1945. For these accomplishments, he deserves to be listed among the top five presidents of the United States.
Roosevelt’s Early Political Career
In 1910, the Democratic Party approached Roosevelt and asked him to run for the New York state senate. He had great name recognition, sharing a last name with the recent two-term president, plus he had the money to pay for his own campaign. Roosevelt narrowly won the seat.
In the New York state senate, Roosevelt turned out to be a crusader, pushing for social and economic reforms. He refused to submit to party pressure, acting more like an independent than a Democrat. Before he won reelection in 1912, Roosevelt started to support Woodrow Wilson — another Democratic reformer — which turned out to be a good political move when Wilson gave him a job.
Born wealthy and well connected
Franklin Delano Roosevelt was born in Hyde Park, New York in 1882, into one of the most prominent families in the United States. He was related to 11 former presidents: Theodore Roosevelt, George Washington, John and John Quincy Adams, James Madison, Martin Van Buren, Benjamin and William Henry Harrison, Zachary Taylor, Ulysses Grant, and William Howard Taft. In addition, British Prime Minister Winston Churchill was a distant cousin.
Roosevelt’s father was a businessman and a conservative Democrat. Young Franklin grew up living the good life. His family took him on trips to Europe, and whatever Franklin wanted, Franklin got, including a pony when he was 4 and a sailboat when he was 16.
Private tutors gave Roosevelt a superior education. He learned to speak both German and French. His parents sent him to an elite private school when he was 14, to prepare him for Harvard, which he entered in 1899 and graduated from in 1903. His favorite subjects were political economy and history. His knowledge of economics proved especially helpful later in life.
In 1904, Roosevelt embarked on his law school career. He finished his class work at Columbia Law School, but the law bored him, so he turned to politics instead. That same year, Roosevelt, a life-long Democrat, voted for the Republican candidate for the presidency. The Republican nominee was his cousin Theodore Roosevelt.
In 1905, Roosevelt
married Eleanor Roosevelt, a distant cousin. At the wedding, she was given away by her uncle, President Theodore Roosevelt.
Serving in the executive branch
After Wilson became president in 1913, he rewarded Roosevelt for his loyalty by naming him assistant secretary of the navy. Roosevelt held this position for the next seven years.
When the United States entered World War I (WWI) in 1917, Roosevelt’s job acquired more importance. As assistant secretary, he recruited people into the navy and planned military strategy. This experience came in handy 24 years later, during World War II.
In 1918, the Democratic Party approached Roosevelt and asked him to run for governor of New York. He turned them down and instead sought active duty in France. President Wilson refused to let him join the military, because he considered Roosevelt too valuable as assistant secretary, but he did allow him to tour Europe to gain firsthand knowledge of the war.
In 1920, the Democrats needed a young, energetic vice-presidential candidate to balance their fairly bland candidate for the presidency, James Cox. They picked Roosevelt. Roosevelt campaigned his heart out, but the Democratic ticket lost badly to the Republican candidate, Warren G. Harding. However, Roosevelt’s energetic style of campaigning paid off. The Democratic Party took notice of the young vice-presidential candidate.
Overcoming polio
In 1921, when he was 29 years old, Roosevelt went on vacation at his family’s retreat at Campobello in New Brunswick, Canada. He suddenly started to feel weak, with a fever and chills. Doctors diagnosed polio. The disease crippled him for life. For the next six years, Roosevelt underwent extensive rehabilitation in an effort to walk again. But it was all to no avail.
Roosevelt retired from politics and didn’t expect to return. Being in a wheelchair and unable to walk without crutches seemed to make a political career impossible. But with the encouragement of his wife Eleanor, Roosevelt returned to politics in 1924 when he gave the nominating speech for governor Al Smith of New York at the Democratic presidential convention. Smith lost in 1924, but he received the nomination in 1928.
Governing New York
When Al Smith received the Democratic presidential nomination in 1928, he gave up the governorship of New York state. Smith asked his friend Roosevelt to run for the position. Roosevelt was reluctant, but his wife and friends finally convinced him to become a candidate. He barely won the governorship, and he was back in public life.
FDR ordered a custom-made car, which allowed him to drive without having to use his feet, so that he could campaign throughout the state.
As governor, Roosevelt dealt with a Republican-controlled legislature that slowed him down when he tried to implement reforms. Despite this limitation, Roosevelt provided tax cuts to farmers.
When the Great Depression hit, Roosevelt put policies in place that previewed the New Deal policies he would champion as president. For example, he established the Temporary Emergency Relief Administration, which provided help to the unemployed in New York.
It was during his term as governor that Roosevelt developed his radio skills, addressing the citizens of New York frequently. He shied away from public appearances because of his handicap, but the radio allowed him to speak directly to the people and persuade them of the merits of his policies. During his presidency, the radio addresses evolved into his famous fireside chats.
Preparing for the presidency
By 1930, the Great Depression was in full swing. The people blamed President Hoover and the Republicans for the dismal economy. As a Democrat, Roosevelt had an easy time getting reelected as governor of New York.
After being reelected, Roosevelt became a viable candidate for the 1932 Democratic presidential nomination. Not only was he a great speaker who was well known to the electorate, but, as governor of New York, he also could deliver the largest state in the United States at the time.
In 1931, Roosevelt started campaigning by sending supporters out to travel the country and make a case for him. By 1932, he was the clear frontrunner. At the Democratic convention, Roosevelt was nominated on the fourth ballot. He chose John Nance Garner of Texas for his vice-presidential nominee to help shore up southern support.
Traditionally, the presidential nominees didn’t speak at their party’s convention. Instead, they sent out an acceptance letter weeks after the convention finished. Roosevelt broke with tradition: He flew to Chicago, while the convention was still going on, to make his acceptance speech to the delegates in person.
He gave an unforgettable speech in which he described a new deal for the U.S. public, saying, “I pledge you, I pledge myself, to a new deal for the American people.” He promised to repeal the 18th Amendment, which prohibited the sale or distribution of alcoholic beverages, and to initiate federal public works to hire the unemployed.
Winning in 1932
After receiving his party’s nod in 1932, Roosevelt knew that he would win the presidency, because the public blamed Hoover and the Republican Party for the Great Depression. Despite the favorable situation, Roosevelt campaigned hard for a couple of reasons:
He wanted majorities in both houses of Congress to support his policies.
He wanted to prove to the public and himself that, despite his handicap, he could campaign effectively.
Using the campaign songs “Happy Days Are Here Again” and “Kick Out The Depression with a Democratic Vote,” Roosevelt traveled the country — mostly by train. Thousands listened to his speeches. By the time the election came around, Roosevelt won big. He won 42 of the 48 states and took the electoral vote, 472 to 59.
Roosevelt almost didn’t become president. He won the presidency in November 1932. The swearing-in ceremony wasn’t scheduled until March 1933, so Roosevelt took a vacation. He traveled to the Bahamas and Florida in February 1933. He was giving a speech in Florida on February 15, when suddenly a man took a shot at him. The man missed Roosevelt but killed the mayor of Chicago, Anton Cermak, who was standing next to Roosevelt.
President Franklin Delano Roosevelt (1933–1945)
As president, Roosevelt (shown in Figure 16-1) hit the ground running. In his inaugural address, covered live on radio, he reassured the public and told people what he was about to do. He promised help for farmers and the unemployed, and, most importantly, proposed to regulate banks, brokerage firms, and the stock exchange. He declared a four-day bank holiday, when all banks nationwide were shut down, to allow the federal government to study which banks were still sound enough to reopen.
Figure 16-1: Franklin Delano Roosevelt, 32nd president of the United States.
Courtesy of the Library of Congress
To reassure the public and help banks, Roosevelt instituted the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) in 1933. Today, the FDIC insures bank deposits by guaranteeing individual depositor’s funds up to $100,000. Even if a bank collapses, the federal government guarantees individual depositor’s funds.
President Roosevelt appointed the first woman in U.S. history to serve in a presidential cabinet. Frances Perkins served as secretary of labor throughout Roosevelt’s administration.
Rescuing the economy
Roosevelt came to power at the worst possible time. In March 1933, millions of U.S. citizens were unemployed, thousands of businesses had collapsed, and the U.S. banking industry was in shambles. Not surprisingly, Roosevelt’s first order of business was to restore the public’s trust in the economic structure.
In his first inaugural address, Roosevelt uttered these unforgettable words: “Let me assert my firm belief that the only thing we have to fear is fear itself — nameless, unreasoning, unjustified terror which paralyzes needed efforts to convert retreat into advance.”
Roosevelt right away called for a special session of Congress to propose programs designed to provide rapid help to the unemployed and restore faith in the U.S. economy. His most famous New Deal programs include
The Emergency Banking Act (1933): This act allowed for the fede
ral government to regulate banks and restore public faith in the banking structure.
The Beer and Wine Revenue Act (1933): This act allowed for the sale and taxation of low-alcohol beer and wine (3.2 percent or less), counter to the 18th Amendment, which banned the sale of all alcoholic beverages.
The Economy Act (1933): This act cut the salaries of federal employees to help save the federal government money.
The Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA) (1933): This administration provided federal money for states and localities to fund programs to help the poor.
The Civilian Conservation Corps (1933): Through this program, more than 3 million young unemployed and unmarried men constructed public works projects, such as national parks and dams. These young men had to give more than 80 percent of their salary, $30 a month, to their families.
The National Industrial Recovery Act (1933): This act created the National Recovery Administration (NRA). The NRA suspended anti-trust laws temporarily and allowed price-fixing, where companies get together to set the same price for the same goods they produce, to help industry. More importantly, the act set a minimum wage, standardized working hours, and allowed workers to engage in collective bargaining.
US Presidents For Dummies Page 28
