1. Chapter 18
The New Deal
Democratic candidate
Franklin D. Roosevelt easily
defeated Hoover in the
election of 1932. FDR
promised a “ New Deal”

2. “First of all, let
me assert my
firm belief that
the only thing we
have to fear is
fear itself”

3. • http://video.pbs.org/video/2155196119

4. The New Deal
• The New Deal was not based on a clear
strategy shaped by a single philosophy. He was
not an intellectual—he was just a practical
politician. FDR was willing to try a variety of
approaches to see what worked.
• But the New Deal did change the role of
government. It made the government
responsible for managing the economy.
• This was the beginning of Big Government

5. First Hundred Days
• He pushed through Congress
legislation in his first hundred
days that would try and solve
the depression--setting a
precedent for all other
presidents to follow.

6. Fire-side Chats
• Within the first week of being in office he
called for a Bank Holiday—closed all banks. He
then ordered the National Treasury
Department print millions of dollars to be sent
to the banks. He spoke to the American
people via the radio and assured them that it
was now safe to put their money back into the
banks. When the banks opened the day after
the speech, deposits far out weighed
withdrawals. The banking crisis was over.

8. The New Deal can be classified into 3
categories:
• Relief—short term action to help people right
immediately
• Recovery—measures designed to restore the
economy
• Reform—measures aimed at remedying or
fixing defects

9. Relief
• Works Progress Administration (WPA)—paid
men to build highways, public building, parks,
bridges and airports. Also, artist, musicians
and actors were hired.
• Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA)—built dams
in the Tennessee Valley to control flooding and
provide electric power

10. Civil Conservation Corps (CCC)—paid
young men to plant trees, build roads,
clear forests.

12. Recovery
• National Recovery Act (NRA) –asked
businesses to set prices, production limits and
wages.

13. • Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA)-passed to
help farmers, raised prices, the government
bought surplus crops.

14. Reform
• Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)-
insured bank deposits—restored confidence

15. • Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)-
created to oversee the stock market and
prevent another collapse

16. • Social Security Act—provided workers
unemployment insurance, old age pensions,
and death benefits. It was the most important
act of the New Deal.