Franklin Delano Roosevelt and the "New Deal"

QUESTION FROM INSTRUCTOR: Reform movements and impulses had had a long, albeit sometimes checkered, history in the United States by the time Franklin Delano Roosevelt promised Americans a "new deal" during the 1932 election campaign. This essay focuses on the effectiveness and realism of the New Deal as domestic reform policy. First, what were FDR's beliefs about the role of American government in domestic affairs? As the federal government's highest elected official, what did he believe …

…general, these reforms increased the existing regulatory activities of the federal government. After Roosevelt's administrations the government was involved in regulating many more areas of economic activity. Out of Roosevelt's disappointment with the failure of the U.S. economy came few specific promises, but Americans probably felt more comfortable under the leadership of a man pledged to experiment. At least the prospect of change offered hope to the millions of people trapped in the depression.