Feb 12 2009
Why all the new spin on the “New Deal”?
I’ve been hearin’ lots of BS lately about how FDR’s “New Deal” was unsuccessful at reviving the economy after Harding, Coolidge and Hoover, the great GOP gurus, took our country into the greatest depression in our history.
I’ll admit that my fellow Oklahoma native, Will Rogers, probably said it best with “Well, all I know is what I read in the papers.” I wasn’t around when the “Great Depression” hit and I sure hope this’ll not become the “Greater Depression.”
At least one of them there republicans tried to blame the “Great Depression” on FDR. Rep. Steve Austria (R, OH) just the other day when voicing his reasonin’ for voting ixnay on the house stimulus plan said in such a learned and factual manner -
“When (President Franklin) Roosevelt did this, he put our country into a Great Depression, he tried to borrow and spend, he tried to use the Keynesian approach, and our country ended up in a Great Depression. That’s just history.”
HISTORY??? Well I sure missed that lesson in school, I was taught(1) that complete lack of regulation on Wall Street practices and the “anything goes” business antics of the “Roaring Twenties” lead to this on October 24, 1929, now and forever known as “Black Tuesday”. FDR was the Governor of New York at the time not President of these United States, that belonged to the republican’s Herbert Hoover. The GOP was in the eighth year of twelve consecutive years in the White House.
- Warren G. Harding(2) (March 4, 1921-August 2, 1923)
- Calvin Coolidge(2) (August 2, 1923-March 4, 1929)
- Herbert Hoover (March 4, 1929-March 4, 1933)
There’s little doubt that FDR had no effect on the U.S.A. falling into the Great Depression but there’s been a lot of supposedly fact-backed commentary considering whether the “New Deal” helped the economic recovery or was it caused by WWII.
I found the following charts in a great article called “The ‘FDR Failed’ Myth” by Charles McMillion
Now, I’m no economist but I do like lookin’ at stuff that’s pretty straight forward and to the point and this seems to meet my limited criteria pretty well. It sure seems that both of those pretty blue lines started headin’ upward as soon as the “New Deal” was launched and continued the growth, with a couple of drops, until WWII started.
That’s proof enough for me. The tried an tired “win at all cost” business practices didn’t work in the 1920’s nor the past eight years so what’s to say that a new “New Deal” won’t work. Tell me what you’re thinkin’ on this subject by leavin’ a comment.
(1) Of course I was born and raised in this greatly liberal state of Oklahoma, so our history books might have been edited to reflect this bias…. Wait a minute, Oklahoma is the “reddist of the red states”, Nevermind.
(2) Vice President Calvin Coolidge became President upon the death of President Warren G. Harding from a heart attack on August 2, 1923
It’s the new fad of the red team, trying to make everyone think FDR was a terrible president. That must be why he was elected to four terms.
Hey, uncajoe, wanna have a talk with Morning Joe? He can’t seem to get it and is still going on and on about how the New Deal extended the Depression and we’re getting ready to do it again. I like your place - mind if I bring my coffee and set a spell?
When the facts are against you, you need to change the facts. These are the same people who try to paint Ronald Reagan as a saint. These people would pimp their own mothers if it helped their cause, which at this point appears to be doing whatever they can to finish killing off any kind of middle class in this country.
http://obamacomics.today.com
Well, I’m glad I didn’t hear the Rep. Austria quote until now, because in context with the article, it’s only slightly less frustrating.
Otherwise, I may have finally popped that blood vessel in my head, and the stroke would have commenced. These guys are unbelievable.
Great post. As one child of a red state to another, I’m glad to see there’s a chance we didn’t ALL turn out deluded.
Why not give a new “New Deal” a try? I’m relatively certain we can’t make things worse. No wait…I take that back. They (and I mean those are are still complaining and not acting) would find a way to sink it even further.
http://foreverfamily.today.com
I think FDR was heavily connected with private bankers who saw the crash as a chance to secure more power to those banks that survived… but the Federal Reserve already admitted to creating the great depression anyways so…
My comment has been sitting in moderation since yesterday. I’m starting to get a complex here.
I apologize for the delay in approving the comments, my email provider (no names but it’s initials are G. Mail) seems to have buffered about 100 emails and dumped them on me all at once.
Want me to send Action Obama after them?
I appreciate the offer but I think my mini email crisis is way down the list of “Action Obama’s” priorities. It’s probably slightly below “Should I get Nancy Pelosi flowers or chocolates for St. V’s day?”
Action Obama got Nancy Pelosi a giant black dildo for V-day. Perhaps if she took care of her womanly needs a little bit better she wouldn’t be such a pain in everybody’s ass.
So after Action Obama kicks some right wing blogger ass, he’ll go over to google and pimp slap his way through the top offices until he gets better email service for bloggers he likes, and worse service for those he doesn’t.