What was the significance of President Roosevelt for the USA? - A* History Essay
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Course
Unit 4c - International History, 1945–1991
Institution
CIE
This essay is graded A* IGCSE Level as the Coursework component for History. It gives arguments for and against Roosevelt's positive impact on the US economy, political agenda and American spirit and provides detailed points regarding the New Deal (including all the programmes such as PWA, FERA, CC...
What was the significance of President Roosevelt for the USA?
President Roosevelt was an enormous asset for the USA given that he restored hope
at one of the country's lowest points in history and helped millions. At his first inau-
guration, FDR quoted: "If I prove a bad president, I will also likely to prove the last
president", showing that he was fully aware of the importance of his role and the
degree of uncertainty pervading the times. He is most likely best known for instigat-
ing the New Deal, which helped the USA survive the Great Depression. This pro-
gramme aimed to improve the problems of different groups of society as well as
bringing about reforms in industry, agriculture, finance, labour, housing and water-
power for the country. Roosevelt's unfaltering popularity is reinforced by his being
re-elected three times, only to be stopped when he died in office.
Part of the brilliance of FDR's presidency was his dynamic approach. This contrasts
with previous presidents whose "laissez-faire" approach often failed to address
problems; his predecessor Hoover proves this point, who pertinaciously denied the
reality of the Great Depression stating that "prosperity was just around the corner".
Roosevelt realised that decisive action was required and responded immediately to
the desire for change he heard rumbling amongst the citizens who were tired of
awaiting “prosperity” passively. Thanks to Roosevelt’s interventionist strategy with
the New Deal, he ameliorated the lives of millions of farmers, unemployed and poor
people. Overall, FDR was a notable president who kept the USA afloat during its big-
gest challenge, the Great Depression.
Another factor contributing to his success and significance was the speed and effi-
ciency with which he launched the New Deal. In the first 100 days of his presidency,
he tackled many problematic areas. The swiftness of action following his election is
crucial because it proved to the people that he would keep his promises.
Roosevelt’s significance is extensive due to his successful - as historians refer to
them - “3Rs” designed to fix the floundering economy: relief for the poor and unem-
ployed, recovery of the economy back to normal levels, and reform of the financial
system to prevent a repeat depression. Unemployment was a considerable issue in
the USA and when Roosevelt came to power in 1933, nearly 13 million people were
out of work. Seven years down the line, he had created four million jobs and unem-
ployment had dropped by 10%. FDR achieved this extraordinary feat by introducing
the Civilian Conservation Corps and the Public Works Administration: the former
provided conservation work for young men in the countryside and although wages
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