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The Elec(on of 1932 and its Impact Aubrey Gibson
Transcript of The$Elec(on$of$1932$and$its$ Impact$...OPVL$ •...
The Elec(on of 1932 and its Impact
Aubrey Gibson
1932 Elec(on
• Candidates – Herbert Hoover
• Republican • Incumbent • Didn’t do much for the depression
─ Franklin D. Roosevelt • Democrat • Appealed to lower class
Issues Elec(on Dealt With
• Prohibi(on – 18th Amendment (minor)
• Economy – In poor condi(on
• Taxes – Raised by Hoover
• THE GREAT DEPRESSION
Results
• Roosevelt defeated Hoover in a landslide – Won 57% of popular vote and 42 states
• Who voted for him – Lower class, progressives, Democrats as well as most Republicans
• First Democra(c president since 1921 (Wilson)
Why FDR Won
• People believed in Roosevelt and had a lack of faith in Hoover and blamed him for the depression – Hoover couldn’t reverse the collapse of the economy or deal with prohibi(on
– Hoover supported big businesses – Hoover did liVle for poor and made Great Depression worse
– Lack of op(ons
Poli(cal Impact
• Roosevelt’s victory marked the collapse of the 4th party system and the Progressive era (1896-‐1932) – Development of the 5th party system (beginning with New Deal)
– Allowed the New Deal to take effect
Poli(cal Impact
• Change in poli(cal system – Shi\ from Republican majority to Democrat majority
– Realignment of vo(ng blocs and interest groups (support Democrat)
– Reorienta(on of Democra(c party toward humane, progressive policies • Lower-‐class and middle-‐class base
Poli(cal Impact
• Democrats dominated Congress – Gained 90 seats in the House of Representa(ves and 13 in the Senate – Controlled both houses of Congress • Would hold majority for 8 years
Primary Source: State of the Union Address 1932
• In the provision against distress during this winter, the great private agencies of the country have been mobilized again; the generosity of our people has again come into evidence to a degree in which all America may take great pride. Likewise the local authori(es and the States are engaged everywhere in supplemental measures of relief. The provisions made for loans from the Reconstruc(on Finance Corpora(on, to States that have exhausted their own resources, guarantee that there should be no hunger or suffering from cold in the country. The large majority of States are showing a sturdy coopera(on in the spirit of the Federal aid.
• The unprecedented emergency measures enacted and policies adopted undoubtedly saved the country from economic disaster. A\er serving to defend the na(onal security, these measures began in July to show their weight and influence toward improvement of condi(ons in many parts of the country.
• The measures and policies which have procured this turn toward recovery should be con(nued un(l the depression is passed
• There are three definite direc(ons in which ac(on by the Government at once can contribute to strengthen further the forces of recovery by strengthening of confidence. – The first of these direc(ons of ac(on is the con(nuing reduc(on of all Government expenditures – The second direc(on for ac(on is the complete reorganiza(on at once of our banking system – The third direc(on for immediate ac(on is vigorous and whole souled coopera(on with other
governments in the economic field
OPVL • Origin: State of the Union Address given by Herbert Hoover on
December 6, 1932. in his speech, Hoover discusses how the country is dealing with the Great Depression and how we can improve it. He says that the condi(ons are showing improvement and that the new policies have improved the country.
• Purpose: To inform Congress as well as the people of the United States of the country’s current condi(on and to advise them to con(nue certain policies in order to restore the country from the Depression
• Value: Gives sta(s(cs about the economy and also shows how Hoover viewed the Depression and how he thought it should be fixed. It demonstrates that Hoover thought the country was not in as bad of a condi(on as it actually was.
• Limita(on: Hoover delivered this as a public speech so it may not have contained his true opinions and he may have been trying to reassure the public. Also, he did not believe that the Depression was his fault and might have been trying to make others believe the same.
State of the Depression UNITED STATES • At the (me Roosevelt was elected, the United States was in the worst condi(on it had been in since the Depression began – The Economy con(nued to collapse
• The unemployment rate was 23.6%, more than 13,000,000 Americans lost their jobs • Stocks lost 80% of their value • GNP dropped 13.4% and interna(onal trade decreased by two thirds • Tax was the highest it had ever been (63%)
State of the Depression
UNITED STATES – Banks were going under
• Many bankers admiVed to embezzlement. This caused the public’s faith in banking to decline and the business plummeted • 10,000 banks had failed since the start of the Depression • Hoover tried to help with the RFC and the Glass-‐ Steagall Act (failed) • Surge of “bank holidays” where they closed all banks to prevent further withdrawals
State of the Depression UNITED STATES – Congress was in bad shape
• 30% of members were not reelected • Therefore, the members were insufficient • President didn’t want any legisla(on from Congress at this (me • Government officials hated and distrusted the government
– Farmers couldn’t support themselves • Value of crops decreased (90%) • Farmers faced huge debt and foreclosure • Increased fear of revolu(on
State of the Depression
UNITED STATES – People resorted to living in Hoovervilles
• Hoovervilles were shanty towns or camps built at the edge of ci(es to house people who lost their homes • Named a\er Hoover because he was blamed • Lived in shacks and had very poor condi(ons (lack of food and very liVle living space)
State of the Depression
UNITED STATES – Minori(es perhaps had it the hardest
• Whites got the first pick of what liVle jobs there were • Lower pay for blacks and immigrants • Laid off by farmers who couldn’t support land • Couldn’t apply for relief • Unemployment for minori(es was higher than 50% • Faced with violence since whites competed for jobs • Blamed for taking jobs and people tried to remove them from the country
State of the Depression
UNITED STATES – Social condi(ons decreased
• Some families were separated • Less marriage and more abandonment • People moved from their homes together in mass migra(ons • Crime rates, suicide rates, alcoholism, and disease all increased
State of the Depression WORLD • The Great Depression not only affected the U.S. but also the rest of the World – In 1932 a total of 30,000,000 people were unemployed
– Interna(onal trade decreased 30% – Raw material and commodity prices decreased and tax increased
– Countries had to resort to alternate forms of government • Militarism (Japan) , fascism (Germany, Italy), communism (Soviet Union), and welfare capitalism (Britain, France, Canada)
Policies of Hoover vs. FDR
DIFFERENCES • Hoover – Believed in a limited government and thought Depression would resolve itself
– Didn’t want excessive federal interven(on
– Thought assistance should be local and voluntary
– Believed in individualism
• FDR ─ Believed
government interven(on and legisla(on was the only way to repair the Depression
Policies of Hoover vs. FDR
• Hoover – Put in recovery programs a\er the 1929 crash
– Increased tariffs on imported items with the Smoot-‐Hawley Tariff Act • Raised top tax from 25% to 63%
– Tried to limit ac(vity of certain agencies • banks and judicial interven(on
– Rejected federal relief payments to individuals
– Urged businesses not to lay off workers or cut pay
• FDR ─ Provided relief for workers
and farmers ─ Created jobs for
unemployed • Decreased unemployment
─ Made reforms to the financial system and regulated the stock market • SEC, FDIC
─ Established Social Security ─ Increased taxes on large
corpora(ons and wealthy
DIFFERENCES
Policies of Hoover vs. FDR SIMILARITIES • Hoover and FDR made aVempts to s(mulate the
economy and provide relief • Neither president focused much on prohibi(on although
FDR passed the 21st amendment • Developed programs to regulate finance, grant loans and
lower unemployment • FDR con(nued some of Hoovers policies
– Federal Emergency Relief Administra(on, Reconstruc(on Finance Corpora(on
• Both promoted industrial coopera(on and supported banks
• The New Deal is said to have origins in some of Hoover’s policies
Cita(ons • CITE THE BOOK!!!!!!! • "Elec/on of 1932." American Government. ABC-‐CLIO, 2015. Web. 9 Jan. 2015. • Horwitz, Steven. "Hoover's Economic Policies." : The Concise Encyclopedia of Economics.
N.p., n.d. Web. 9 Jan. 2015. <hVp://www.econlib.org/library/Enc/HooversEconomicPolicies.html>.
• "Hoovervilles." Hoovervilles. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Jan. 2015. <hVp://www.u-‐s-‐ history.com/pages/h1642.html>.
• "Digital History." Digital History. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Jan. 2015.<hVp://www.digitalhistory.uh.edu/disp_textbook.cfm?smtID=2&psid=3447>.
• "Minority Groups and the Great Depression." Great Depression and the New Deal Reference Library. Ed. Allison McNeill, Richard C. Hanes, and Sharon M. Hanes. Vol. 1: Almanac. Detroit: UXL, 2003. 172-‐186.U.S. History in Context. Web. 17 Jan. 2015.
• Kangas, Steve. "Timeline of the Great Depression." Timeline of the Great Depression. N.p., n.d. Web. 17 Jan. 2015. <hVp://www.hyperhistory.com/online_n2/connec(ons_n2/great_depression.html>.
• "Herbert Clark Hoover vs. Franklin D. Roosevelt." FindTheBest. Miller Center, PBS Presiden(al Biographies, Federal Register, The Roper Center, and OnTheIssues, n.d. Web. 9 Jan. 2015. <hVp://us-‐presidents.findthebest.com/compare/17-‐25/Herbert-‐Clark-‐Hoover-‐vs-‐Franklin-‐D-‐Roosevelt>.
• Herbert Hoover: "Annual Message to the Congress on the State of the Union.," December 6, 1932. Online by Gerhard Peters and John T. Woolley, The American Presidency Project. hVp://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/ws/?pid=23376
