The New Deal Critical Analysis

Before the 1932 election, Roosevelt had promised the people of America a 'New Deal' that would help them to recover the effects of the Great Depression. It had lasted four long years, and had caused suffering for the American people. When Roosevelt had taken office as the President Of The United States in 1933 he put the New Deal into order. The New Deal took action to bring about immediate economic relief in areas such as industry, agriculture, finance, waterpower, labour and housing.

The aims that Roosevelt wanted to achieve with his New Deal was firstly to spend billions of dollars on creating jobs to be of use for the thousands unemployed in America, due to the depression. Another aim of Roosevelt's was to rebuild trade and industry in as many companies and businesses as possible to get the American Economy up and running once again. His final aim was to improve the lives of the ordinary Americans. To help them to acquire a fair and well-paid job to look after their families and to have an overall, better quality of life.

In his first one hundred days of presidency, Roosevelt introduced his first New Deal, and established a host of Alphabet Agencies. They were so named, for their abbreviations. The first of his New Deal programs was the Federal Emergency Relief Act (FERA). This was approved on the 12th May 1933. Although the act extended federal participation in relief for more than two years, it then decided to change the nature of its funding. This was from loans to direct grants for the use of several States. FERA was also supportive of nearly five million households each month and funded thousands of work projects for the unemployed.

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It also provided vaccinations and literacy classes for the millions of poor and uneducated population. The aims that had been achieved by Roosevelt with the FERA was that money had been spent creating jobs, and that many lives had been improved as they had, on some cases learnt to read and write and most men had received a job due to the work projects. The Emergency Banking Act was close to one of first things that Roosevelt introduced. It was responsible for closing down weak banks and paying the strong ones to stay open and carry on with business.

Trade and industry was the only aim achieved by Roosevelt with this alphabet agency. It had rebuilt that banking world which seemed to be the centre of all industries, as money is needed and stored by the bank itself. The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), ran by Harry Hopkins, was introduced as an alphabet agency. This was because of previous years of extensive flooding in the many states surrounding the Tennessee River, which caused all the good and rich soil to be washed away with the river water. This was a major problem, as crops could never be grown for food in such dreadful conditions.

Roosevelt solved this problem by means of hiring unemployed men to build dams and reservoirs, to prevent soil erosion and to encourage irrigation, which helped to moisten the dry and hard soil to be able to grow crops for food. The aims achieved by the TVA were that money was spent on the jobs created to build the dams and reservoirs for the unemployed, and that lives of ordinary Americans were made a lot better as floods would no longer occur, destroying their food. The Civil Works Administration (CWA) was an agency used to build structures that the public would benefit from such as a bridge, road, school, hospital or library.

Roosevelt gave the unemployed the job of doing this. The aims that Roosevelt achieved with the CWA was that money was being spent on creating jobs, again because of the unemployment situation being reduced as men were building things of a public use. This is why the lives of ordinary Americans were improved due to the new buildings available for them to seek medical help or for an educational purpose. The National Recovery Administration (NRA) was completed by major industries that joined the program promising to be fair in their businesses, and not to take advantage of the staff and buyers.

Things such as prices being at a reasonable amount, and wages being of a fair price as well. In exchange for this, Roosevelt allowed the industries the opportunity to display the symbol of the Blue Eagle on the manufactured goods that they produced. Also including posters and vehicles. Anything to do with the industry involved with the NRA. The Blue Eagle symbolized to the American people that they had joined forces with the president to help with the success of the New Deal and to help America achieve a better standard of life.

The aims that Roosevelt had led to success were that trade and industry was rebuilt due to the public buying their products, allowing money to be made by themselves. The quality of the American life had increased as well. The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) was created in 1934 to serve as a federal 'watchdog' administrative agency to protect the public and private investors from stock market fraud, deception and insider manipulation on Wall Street. The SEC is still in existence today, (its reputation was flawed a bit by the Enron collapse in 2001-02)

The aims of this were to improve the lives of Americans by protecting them from things that could potentially damage their lifestyle or business. The CCC, PWA, AAA and the NYA and WPA of the second new deal grew as the agencies pumped increasing amounts of money into the economy. Roosevelt had many opponents to his New Deal programs but not even the angriest of them had much to say against the good work initiated by the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). It was not only one of the first organizations to begin operation, but was also one of the most successful.

Its major role was to pay the town dwellers to move to the country and help the people there. It also provided financial support and helped implement conservation projects. In its nine years of existence, it put twenty five million young men to work planting two hundred million trees, digging drainage ditches, building firebreaks, clearing campgrounds and building reservoirs. This great effort of conservation and reforestation benefited not only the nation, but also the men themselves. The average enlistment for an employee in one of these camps was ten months.

The CCC had many camps in the El Paso area, including those in Fabens, Ascarate, Ysleta and Elephant Butte in New Mexico. CCC workers completed major improvements at Elephant Butte. Including the planting of four thousand, five hundred trees and building a clubhouse. Campsites, cabins and a playground. They also widened and straightened roads around the dam and built several new stretches of roads. The aims achieved by the CCC were that money up to sums of millions of dollars were being spent to get young, healthy men to work with the CCC to be involved in reforestation and conservation of the country.

Also the lives of ordinary Americans were being improved by the effort in improving the countryside to make it a better, healthier and more enjoyable area to live. People would be able to use or enjoy the things that had been made or built such as the forest. The Public Works Administration (PWA) was established by the NIRA in 1933. It was intended both for industrial recovery and unemployment relief. Eventually over four billion dollars was spent on thirty four, thousand construction projects including things such as public buildings, highways, bridges or dams for water and power.

The aims that Roosevelt managed to make happen with the PWA were the first one of spending money to create jobs for building, and improving the lives of ordinary Americans as they could make use of the things built. The Agricultural Adjustment Acts (AAA) was an agent whose job it was to pay farmers to produce less by not using their land. This was because of the farmers already producing too much, which was part of the overproduction of the Great Depression. Roosevelt promised to pay the farmers, in exchange for them leaving some of their own fields alone.

This was so that the prices of goods would remain steady. The AAA attempted to raise prices by controlling production of major crops through cash subsidies to farmers. In 1934, the AAA paid the El Paso County Cotton Committee three point five million dollars for their cotton crops, by the AAA. This included over two hundred, thousand dollars in rental payments for land that was taken out of their production. The aim Roosevelt managed to achieve here, was that trade began to rebuild itself. Because the prices remained steady, the businesses were able to get on with their work and make steady progress each day.

By 1935 Roosevelt's New Deal had ran into serious difficulties. It was decided that some of the Alphabet Agencies were unconstitutional and Trade Unions were organizing strikes to complain about low wages. Instead of giving up, Roosevelt introduced new laws to replace the ones that the Supreme Court had ruled illegal. These became known as the Second New Deal. It was aimed at improving the social welfare, such as wages and employees. Compared to the first new deal that was aimed at the local, and ordinary Americans and improving their lives, and the businesses and industries in America.

The Works Progress Administration (WPA) replaced the CWA. By 1935, local residents felt the ever-increasing art collection at Springville High School, needed a larger facility for its' preservation and display. Nebo School District donated a lot, the city if Springville donated approximately twenty-nine, thousand dollars in equipment and materials, the LD's Church donated twenty, thousand dollars or more, and the federal government, through the WPA spent fifty-four, thousand dollars on the project.

Work began on 23rd November 1935, where the WPA was responsible for the manufacturing of the tile for the museum. The work was complete under the direction of Virgil Hafen, a local artist. Although most of the alphabet agencies were organised for temporary solutions to relieve problems, the agencies permanently broadened federal interest and involvement. The aims achieved by the WPA were all of them. The first being money spent on creating jobs, with the same reason as the CWA, jobs were being created in reorganising and moving the art work.

The trade and industry was being rebuilt, as the artwork would be in a much better condition to view and maybe sell. And the lives of Americans were improving due to the wages given so they could afford food and drink to have a better quality of life. The National Youth Administration (NYA) was created under the emergency relief act of 1935. It provided more than four point five million jobs for young people. Therefore, the aim achieved here was the first; millions of jobs were available for young people of America, which meant their life was improving due to the help that their wages could give them.

The Wagner Act replaced the NRA which the Supreme Court had ruled illegal. This new law gave workers the right to join Trade Unions so that they could work together to improve working conditions and pay. Employers were now banned from stopping workers joining Trade Unions and a National Labour Relations Board was set up to make sure the employers obeyed. Unlike it was before 1935, when it was illegal to join a union. The aim achieved here was that lives were improved of Americans.

It gave them the opportunity to have a say in what they are entitled to in regards to the work place, and discuss what a fair wage would be for them to earn. The Social Security Act (SSA) was responsible for allowing workers to pay into a fund to receive benefits at a later date when they were out of work. It also provided the use of a public assistance program for dependant mothers, children and the physically disabled, and an unemployment benefit. The aim achieved by the SSA was the third of Roosevelt's original aims.

Improving American lives due to the benefits they were getting, especially the unemployed, and the sick. The Rural Electrification Administration lent money to farmers so they could electrify their farming equipment and farm itself. The aims fulfilled by this, were that trade was rebuilt, because of the better quality farms. This would mean better products would be made. Ordinary American lives would also have been improved like the farmers. They would be working in better conditions, and probably making more money because of it.

Finally, money was spent to make jobs in the farm. There was also the Farm Security Administration (FSA). This was used to set up temporary housing for 'Okies' and 'Arkies' who were refugees from Oklahoma and Arkansas, who migrated to California in hope of finding work. The aim was to provide a better quality of life for these American people in giving them houses to live in. They were given the opportunity to find a job themselves whilst living a temporary but stable condition. The Fair Labours Act provided the last major piece, of the New Deal legislation in 1938.

This important labour law set minimum wage (twenty five cents an hour) and a maximum standard (establishing the forty hour work week). It also severely curbed the use if child labour. Finally, the aims that Roosevelt achieved with this alphabet agency of the Second New Deal were trade and industry being rebuilt, as a standard for wages was set, leaving all businesses with a fair and economical wage for all their employees. And, lives of the Americans were improved because no one working could be cheated in their job of what wage to get. Everyone would be treated as an equal in the work place.

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