New Deal terms

New Deal

A series of domestic economic, social, and political programs and reforms implemented in the United States between 1933 and 1939 by President Franklin D. Roosevelt (FDR) to combat the Great Depression.

Buying on margin

Borrowing money from a broker to purchase stocks or other securities, using the cash and investments in the brokerage account as collateral for the loan.

Causes of Great Depression

A severe economic downturn (1929–1941) triggered by an uneven distribution of wealth, industrial overproduction, high protective tariffs, a fragile banking system, and a major stock market crash.

Black Tuesday

On October 29, 1929, the stock market crashed in a frantic selling wave, wiping out billions of dollars and signaling the start of the Great Depression.

Farmers & GD

Throughout the 1920s and 1930s, this American group suffered massive financial distress due to post-WWI crop overproduction, plummeting food prices, and heavy debt.

FDR

The 32nd U.S. President (Democrat, 1933–1945), who fundamentally expanded the power of the federal government to combat the depression.

FDR’s 100 days

In his first three months in office, FDR pushed an unprecedented wave of legislation through Congress—including a nationwide Bank Holiday, the creation of Alphabet Agencies (like the PWA and AAA), and emergency relief programs.

Hoover

The 31st U.S. President (Republican, 1929–1933), whose cautious and limited federal response to the initial years of the Great Depression made him highly unpopular.

Hoover Dam

A massive public works project on the Colorado River authorized by Hoover to provide jobs, irrigation, and hydroelectric power, though it was ultimately too small to solve national unemployment.

Inflation

The general increase in prices and fall in the purchasing value of money (note: the Great Depression was actually characterized by deflation—falling prices—which devastated businesses and farmers).

Rugged Individualism

President Hoover’s core belief that individuals, local communities, and private charities—not the federal government—should provide economic relief to citizens.

Dust Bowl

A severe ecological and human disaster in the 1930s where extreme drought and poor dry-farming practices turned the topsoil of the Great Plains into dust, creating massive dust storms and forcing hundreds of thousands of farm families to migrate west.

FDR’s Court Packing

A highly controversial 1937 proposal by FDR to add up to six new justices to the Supreme Court after the conservative Court struck down several New Deal laws; it was widely rejected as an abuse of executive power.

Bonus Army

A group of 15,000–20,000 World War I veterans who marched on Washington, D.C., in 1932 to demand early payment of their military bonuses; Hoover used the U.S. Army to violently clear their camps, destroying his public reputation.

Capitalism

An economic system based on private ownership of property, free markets, and profit; the New Deal heavily regulated Wall Street and banking to save this term from collapsing completely.

GDP

The total value of all goods and services produced within a country in a year; during the Great Depression, U.S. GDP dropped by roughly 30%, and it did not fully recover until the massive industrial buildup of World War II.

African-Americans & FDR

While many New Deal programs permitted local racial discrimination and segregation, FDR’s "Black Cabinet" of advisors and civil rights advocacy from Eleanor Roosevelt prompted a major political shift, leading a majority of Black voters to switch their allegiance from the Republican to the Democratic Party.

Social Security

A landmark 1935 New Deal law that established a permanent federal safety net, providing old-age pensions, unemployment insurance, and financial aid to disabled individuals and dependent families.

Deficit Spending

The government practice of spending more money than it brings in through tax revenue, borrowing the difference to fund emergency public programs (a strategy popularized by the New Deal).