In 1929, the Stock Market crash inevitably foreshadowed what was coming. Banks failed, farms and factories overproduced, and consumers under consumed. The Smoot-Hawley Tariff placed an extremely high tax on all imports and unintentionally decreased international trade. Farmers in the Dust Bowl were forced to sell farms and were left unable to pay taxes (SparkNotes). At the same time internationally, Germany and Japan were rising. In Germany, Adolf Hitler was appointed Chancellor and Japan withdrew from the League of Nations with vicious intentions. President Herbert Hoover claimed prosperity was around the corner and remained inactive to the pressing economic situation. Americans were left desperate and FDR and his New Deal gave them hope. According to Britannca, “[Americans were] opposed to the traditional American political philosophy of laissez-faire, the New Deal generally embraced the concept of a government-regulated economy aimed at achieving a balance between conflicting economic interests” (Britannica). There were three areas that Roosevelt deemed needed immediate relief: the banking and financial sector, agriculture and resource conservation, and …show more content…
The National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA) was signed into law in June of 1933. This legislation was FDR’s “true vision to pull out of crisis” (Lecture Notes, 4/4). Because of NIRA, the Public Works Association (PWA) and the National Recovery Association (NRA) were developed. These agencies were designed to stimulate job creation and proposed a relationship between the federal government and private business. The Public Works Association was granted $3.3 billion to build roads, buildings, or any project that kept people working (Lecture Notes, 4/4). However, the Supreme Court ruled, in 1935, NIRA unconstitutional because it gave the Executive branch too much power. New Deal critics say that the New Deal may have stimulated the economy for a short period of time, however in the long run it was malicious for the American economy and government. Allowing the Executive power that much control was something many Republicans and Democrats alike, saw unjust and a threat to Democracy itself. Many called him a socialist, and even a