What were the Main features of the new deal

Essay by diegogranziolHigh School, 10th grade February 2008

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The new deal had many different features, but an underlying foundation beneath the entire idea, was the idea that the federal government had and should thus use its power to actively intervene in the economy and do what it could to improve the standard of living in America. It was a break with the past and an end to the previous Republican belief, that if income of tax revenues fell, then expenditure must also be cut to immediately balance the budget. Roosevelt's idea was one very dissimilar, he believed that by spending public money on a huge scale, this would inject demand into the economy, create jobs and put the U.S.A back into work.

In the first 100 days of his presidency, he and his government took special power to deal with the immediate crisis. He introduced the Emergency Banking relief Act, which closed all banks for four days, in order to quieten things down and if they had enough funds to operate, they were allowed to re-open.

Banks were then promptly banned from investing in the stock market, this increased confidence in banks, which is fundamental for a capitalistic economy. He also introduced the F.E.R.A, which provided $500,000,000 immediate relief to the poorest victims of the depression. By introducing these measures in the first 100 days, he showed to the American public, that he unlike the former president Hoover believe in active government to change and improve lives. By introducing these, along with weekly fire-side chats where he used the radio to communicate to the public, he restored confidence to the people.

Over the period of his presidency, he introduced several other acts to further build on the idea of helping the country through government intervention. Among the more successful of the deals, were how he tried to...