Essay On How Did Roosevelt's Use Of Social Security

After the Great Depression, many Americans were left disheveled. They needed some form of financial assistance to help them get their lives back to normal. Many government officials such as Hurbert Hoover and Franklin D. Roosevelt helped to enact bills and programs that would assist Americans in rehabilitating their lives. The amount of unemployed workers, the economic relief for retired workers, and the creation of legislature directed towards financial stability all illustrate that the most important effects that the New Deal legislation had on the American government was a liberal one..

Herbert Hoover, the president in office when the Great Depression hit the country, did very little to ameliorate the devastating situation. Hoover underestimated the seriousness of the crisis, misdiagnosed the causes of the problems, and clung to his beliefs in individual achievement and self-help. His corrective measures, aimed at inflation and the federal budget, were thus damaging themselves. Furthermore, he hesitated to mobilize government resources to aid Americans and instead appealed to private groups to lend a hand (Encarta). Thus Hoover’s administration did little to mitigate the impact of the Depression.

A plundering devastation into the heart of America left thousands of American dreams and beings crushed by an invisible malefactor engendered no other than ourselves. The steps Herbert Hoover took during the Great Depression were not adequate to dig America out of the economy downfall. Programs that were created to put people back to work and avail state and local charities with aid didn’t benefit the majority of the population, compared to those who genuinely needed it. American citizens decreed Hoover’s presidency as the situation crescendo; not even all the way into the depression the public's ratings of Hoover were ostensibly low. In 1931, he pledged federal aid in case of starvation in the country; however he still had yet to witness the devastating starvation of Americans from all social stances and ages. He was rooted so deeply in his American philosophy that he could be viewed as neither intentionally ignorant nor merciless. Hoover grasped tight onto his political stance that hinder the efficient help he needed to provide while the Great Depression started to make a home in America; leading to the frustration and exasperation of American citizens.

(6) Sixth, FDR himself was constrained by the belief that the “dole,” as unemployment insurance was called in Great Britain, would destroy the American spirit (Hansan, XXXX). “He believed that people wanted to work for remuneration, little though the paycheck might be, and believed that the “dole” would rob people in financial need of their dignity” (Atkinson, 2006). He felt that Americans supported his viewpoint and ultimately uniquely American take on unemployment. He saw the crash as irrefutable proof that many individuals would not save systematically unless they were forced to, and that no matter how much they saved, a person

Roosevelt proposed a “new deal” for the people, which would provide aid to the public during the depression (it was meant to provide “Recovery, Relief and Reform”). According to Document 6, the political cartoon illustrates Franklin D Roosevelt with a bag labeled “New Deal Remedies” which pretty much shows the action plan that he had in mind in order to help the United States recover from the economic downfall. To add on, many public offices or churches also contributed in helping many homeless and unemployed people as they would serve soup or bread (Document 4). However, some people also felt kind of left out and thus the Bonus Army (World War 1 veterans) went protesting in Washington D.C. Thus, in this times of despair many people and groups reacted in different

Imagine all of a sudden being out of a job and becoming bankrupt, and your country going into a depression. In 1929 until the late 1930's the Great Depression took place and many countries were affected by it, the Great Depression was an economic depression. The cause of the Great depression was the crash of the Stock Market in 1929. The Great Depression affected the US in a way that increased unemployment by 25% and increased the amount of homeless people. In this essay I will be analyzing the responses of President Franklin Roosevelt’s administration to the problems of the Great Depression. I will also be talking about how effective these responses were, and how they changed the role of the federal government. I believe that the responses to the Great Depression were very effective in bringing the country out of the Great Depression.

During the difficult time in America’s history, several different leaders suggested a multitude of solutions to the growing crisis; Herbert Hoover wanted decentralized federal government, Franklin Roosevelt experimented with federal relief and regulation policies, and Huey Long opted for a socialistic “Share the Wealth” solution. These three leaders differed with one another in perspective, purpose, and opinion over the best anticipated outcome of the United States.

This left Hoover and the American people, local, and state governments with no choice, but to stand together to balance unemployment through the use of public works, volunteerism, and a laissez-faire government. Although the depression was a devastating time, it also helped to shape Hoovers’ dream of “American Individualism” by allowing him to establish new agencies and his vision of a laissez-faire government. As the American Economy continued to collapse, the people looked to Hoover and the Seventy-Second Congress for help. Hoover had already established himself in his pre-presidency days as a man who “[m]ore than any single American, had encouraged organizations, principally trade association and farm organizations to introduce orderly, rational, and bureaucratic procedures to entire industries” (Fausold 113) and now was the time to put “American Individualism” to work with congress’s help, or so he thought. Hoovers’ first order of business was established new agencies so that American businesses could stimulate the economy. In Hoovers’ Presidency and political life, he was able to establish the Farm Board, Federal Drought Committee, President’s Organization on Unemployment Relief, Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC), and Home

The most pressing problem facing Roosevelt, once the banking crisis had passed, was that of providing relief for the unemployed and their families. Private charities had long since run out of money, and few states could still provide any assistance. Under President Hoover the Reconstruction Finance

The time between the writing of the U.S. Constitution in 1787 and the financial depression, beginning in 1837, saw poverty as the most significant social pressure in the United States. There were many unanswered questions regarding society’s role in helping the poor and underprivileged during this time in the early Republic. It was debated whether or not society was responsible for helping find jobs for the unemployed, providing food and substance for starving families, and creating homes for those who were homeless. As the Republic matured, these circumstances brought about frequent discussions about what constitutes poverty and how to

The Social Security Administration is a great government administration that provides retirement and disability benefits to a large portion of the U.S. population. It was created by Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR). He created many new administration during the great depression to combat poverty such as the Works Progress Administration. Unlike the Works Progress Administration, on the Social Security Administration fights poverty through planning for the future rather than the now. The Administration themselves views themselves high as well, on their website they stated that the Social Security Administration is “one of the most successful anti-poverty programs in our nation's history”. The SSA could not have come at a better time than when it did during the great depression. It was crucial to the nation's future as to whether it would fall back down to its knees right as it got back up. The SSA protected us with retirement benefits which allow and help us plan for our retirement safely ensuring that we will have money when we can no longer work. This need for a retirement plan is exemplified by FDR’s speech to the N.Y. state legislature where he states “No greater tragedy exists in modern civilization than the aged, worn-out worker who after a life of ceaseless effort and useful productivity must look forward to his declining years to a poorhouse.” This is arguably the most useful part of the SSA.

When banks began asking for payments from the people who had been loaned money, many “…farmers and business men who could not repay declared bankruptcy…” (Foner 366) “The depression lingered for two years. It was the first of several severe downturns that would tarnish America 's otherwise vigorous economy throughout the 19th century.” (Reynolds)

After its passage on August 14, 1935, Franklin Delano Roosevelt regarded the Social Security Act as “a cornerstone in a structure which is being built but is by no means completed” but whose purpose is to “take care of human needs and at the same time provide for the United States an economic structure of vastly greater soundness.” The very opposite of soundness, however, was achieved. Today, looming deficits and abuse of the program have left it the focus of many debates. At their conclusion, the discussions generally only point toward making it more difficult to receive the money you put in, back, and raising taxes drastically on those still working to provide benefits for the disproportionate amount of retirees. Its problems are vast, but a permanent solution has yet to be decided. Far less discussed, however, is if the program itself is worth saving. Because of

The Social Security act was signed into law by President Franklin D. Roosevelt on August 14, 1935 (Traditional Sources of Economic Security, n.d.). The Social Security Act was put in place to not only help with general welfare, but also created a social insurance program designed to pay retired workers that were age 65 or older continued income after retirement (Traditional Sources of Economic Security, n.d.). The Social Security program is a program that so many people depend on not only after they retire, but also if they become disabled and are not able to work. The Social Security Act and laws that are related to it were established for the following purposes: to provide for the material needs of individuals and families, to protect aged and disabled persons against the expenses of illnesses that may use up their savings, to keep families together, and to give children the chance to grow up healthy and secure (Intro to Social Security, n.d.). All of the purposes listed allow individuals to be able to live their lives and not be a poverty level, while still having access to other benefits that will help them. Under the Social Security Act there are many different programs available to assist those that qualify for social security, which is what I will discuss next.

A little over 60 years ago the nation struggled through what was, up to then, the most dramatic crisis since the Civil War. The economy was uprooted after the crash of the stock market and the country's financial stability destroyed. One of the many steps taken to alleviate the burden on the American people was that of the passing of Social Security Act of 1935 and its amendments by Congress and the President, Franklin D. Roosevelt. Under the provisions of the Act, the government would take on the responsibility of taxing the income of all working Americans and returning the money through numerous public benefits and programs. Now the nation faces an economic and political problem with the program