fdr's challengers and the end of the new deal

Public Works Administration (PWA)

A major New Deal program that put people to work on large-scale government projects like roads, highways, bridges, dams, airports, and sewage plants. Its most famous project was the Grand Coulee Dam in Washington State.

National Recovery Administration (NRA)

Allowed large corporations to set industry codes for practices, including prices and work codes like a 40-hour work week and a $13 weekly minimum wage. It authorized worker unionization but favored big business and was ruled unconstitutional by the Supreme Court for usurping congressional authority.

Agricultural Adjustment Administration (AAA)

Attempted to solve farm overproduction by paying farmers subsidies to take land out of production. This involved destroying crops and slaughtering 6 million piglets. While farm income rose 58%, the policy hurt sharecroppers and tenant farmers, particularly African Americans.

Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)

Provided electricity, jobs, soil conservation, flood control, and improved schools/libraries for people in Tennessee and six surrounding states. It transformed the region, giving 1.5 million isolated farmers access to electricity and indoor plumbing for the first time.

FDR's approach to civil rights

Failed to confront Southern racism directly for fear of angering powerful Southern Democrats. Many New Deal programs like the AAA hurt black sharecroppers, and policies like minimum wage and Social Security excluded many black workers. Housing built by CCC and TVA remained strictly segregated.

Why African Americans still supported FDR

Despite discriminatory policies, over 75% of black voters supported FDR because he appointed African Americans to government positions (like Mary McLeod Bethune), and 40% of Blacks received some New Deal benefits, causing a major political shift from Republican to Democrat.

Huey P. Long's "Share Our Wealth" program

The Democratic Senator from Louisiana proposed seizing fortunes over $5 million and giving every poor family $5,000, a 30-hour work week, and college education for qualified students. He had 7 million supporters before his assassination in 1935.

Other major critics of the New Deal

Upton Sinclair ("End Poverty in California"), Frances Townsend ($200 monthly pension for elderly), and Father Charles Coughlin (anti-Semitic radio priest who called the New Deal a "Jew Deal" and supported Hitler).

Works Progress Administration (WPA)

The largest New Deal agency, spending $4.8 billion to hire 2 million people annually building infrastructure. It also employed writers, artists, and musicians, helping 9 million people total before expiring.

Social Security Act of 1935

Created retirement pensions ($10-85/month), unemployment insurance, and welfare for the blind/elderly. Funded by payroll taxes, it excluded many farm laborers and domestic servants, making it incomplete but establishing the foundation of American social welfare.

Revenue Act of 1935

Known as the "Soak the Rich Tax," it significantly increased taxes on wealthy Americans and corporations, drawing criticism from both conservatives and liberals who called it essentially communist.

FDR's Court-packing plan

After Supreme Court rulings against New Deal programs, FDR proposed adding 6 new justices to the Court. This was attacked by both conservatives and liberals as an overreach of executive power and significantly damaged his political support.

1937 Recession

A severe economic downturn where industrial production fell and nearly 1 million people lost jobs, called the "Roosevelt Recession" by critics. FDR eventually asked Congress for renewed spending, reviving the economy but marking the beginning of the end for New Deal expansion.

Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938

Established a $0.40 minimum wage, 40-hour work week, and prohibited employment of children under age 16, creating fundamental workplace protections that still exist today.

The Conservative Manifesto

Drafted by Senator Josiah Bailey, this 10-point document denounced labor strikes, demanded low taxes and balanced budgets, defended states' rights and private enterprise, and warned against creating a dependent welfare class, becoming a founding charter for modern American conservatism.

The Conservative Coalition

An informal alliance between Southern Democrats and Midwestern Republicans that formed in the late 1930s to oppose further New Deal expansion, dominating Congress for the next quarter century and effectively ending the New Deal era.

FDR's legacy and the "Half-way Revolution"

The New Deal failed to end the Great Depression (unemployment fell from 25% to 9%), but raised national spirits, established the modern welfare state, added power to the presidency, and guaranteed a minimum subsistence level while still leaving many groups behind.