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Kara Funk

Herbert Hoover Born: August 10, 1874 Death: October 20, 1964 Term: 1929-1933 Theme: American Identity Vice President: Charles Curtis Party: Republican Grade: D Theme: The thirties in America were the start of the breakdown of the country. New inventions and technology had changed the American way of life, and President Hoover completely agreed with progression of the twenties. He stated that the direction that America was going in was “the American character”. Once Hoover was brought into office, America headed straight into a downfall. The so called “character” as Hoover would put it, had sunken right into the biggest depression and economic crisis in American history. This was also the worst possible time for Americans to experience a depression due to the war ending only a few years before. At the beginning of Hoover’s presidency, many Americans were forced to quit their jobs because of banking failures. This then caused a rise in the unemployment rate and some people abandoned their homes and lived in shelters that could not withstand weather. There seemed to be more poor Americans with each passing day. Although the Great Depression left countless Americans unemployed, the United States would not have changed over time into what we know it as today without the depression. Thesis: From the beginning of Hoover’s life, he had been given great occupations and chances. He had graduated from Stanford, had been in charge of the Food Administration, and war-time advisor to President Wilson. When he started off his presidency, the country was already beginning to slip into a depression. Hoover didn’t have much time to solve this problem before it got even worse. However, Hoover’s ideas about economy led him to “Volunterism”. This was put in place to potentially create a higher growth in economy. When this was not premised on governmental cruelty, Hoover was left to blame. Due to Hoover’s personal beliefs of creating a solution to every problem tied into how he handled economic calamities. As seen in the eyes of the public, Hoover was considered uncaring, and stubborn in not seeming to see the failures that effected him and the country. He may have been thinking about what was best for the country but, his ideas and actions during his presidency hurt the country more than it helped it. This is why Hoover should earn a D for his time as president. Goals: Once president Coolidge stated that he wasn’t going to run for another term, Hoover claimed that he would follow some of the ideals of Coolidge because citizens seemed to have been better off when he was president than they had before he came into office. Hoover didn’t agree with the established prohibition law and in his inaugural address he claimed that he wanted to fix this problem. To do so, Hoover passed the twenty-first Amendment which later ended up repealing the eighteenth Amendment. Also, Hoover pledged to lower taxes for the public and industries. Although determined, Hoover really didn’t live up to the expectations that the United States had of him. Hoover wanted to create new levels of prosperity for the country but never seemed to focus on the problems that poorer Americans were facing. During the Great Depression, Hoover created the Reconstruction Finance Corporation which used federal money to unsuccessfully create a more stabilized national bank. Another goal that Hoover had set for himself but never established was the balancing of business and the formed Unions. He had attempted to create a better, more stable workforce but, the depression caused this plan to prove unsuccessful. Most of the other goals that Hoover wanted to achieve were not met due to the low economy ratings and worsening unemployment. Relations With Congress: During Hoover’s presidency, Congress was built up of mostly republicans. This was good for Hoover because of his stance in political parties. One could tell that Hoover had a pretty relationship with Congress because there had been several bills and acts that were passed through Congress while Hoover was president. Some of the acts that were passed include Agriculture Marketing Act, The Revenue Act of 1932, and plenty more. The way things worked out for Hoover Congressional wise, was good compared to his dealings with the depression. Positives: Being in support of the progressive age, Hoover was caught up in doing what is best for production, economy, and the people. He was truly dedicated to his country but, his ideas and impacts on the country didn’t turn out that way. However, there were some accomplishments he made during his presidency. Hoover was interested in protecting wildlife reserves and keeping the country beautiful, much like Teddy Roosevelt did while he was in office. He was also concerned about crime rates during the time and one of the most famous was Al Capone. Hoover had been part of the prosecution of Al Capone and many citizens were thankful afterwards. The newer Justice Department was a big reason behind the persecution. Overall, Hoover had completed only smaller goals and positive outcomes during his presidency. Negatives: Hoover had been against the relying on the government to solve every problem. Being an engineer, Hoover had a different thinking process than regular political minds of lawyers and professors. Hoover may not have been the direct cause of the Great Depression but, the choices that he made while in office reflected the worsening of the depression. Hoover really sat back and watched the depression happen and didn’t follow through with any thought on how to stop it. He was going against what he had said about relying on the government. Just waiting for an idea to come up would not solve anything. Hoover really put any time or effort into helping the American people. Rather, he may have thought of what solutions could work but never present any of them to Congress. Also with Europe demanding a higher tariff on America, the economy plummeted even more. Impact: Hoover may not have been the direct cause of the Great Depression but, his choices and handling of the economic crisis didn’t help the American people through the depression. He left a powerful impact on American history and was an example to future presidents about what works and what doesn’t work in a economic crisis. Others learned from Hoover’s mistakes and America was probably better off with him being president. Conclusion: Hoover had high expectations for himself going into office but, being president was probably not the best pathway to peruse. Hoover was no the right person for the position and his ideas didn’t work out for the country the way that he had planned. He may have been thinking of what was best for America but, his actions for turning the country around in the 1930s were not the right ones, which is why he deserves a D for his presidency. Works Cited:

Ruth, Babe. "Herbert Hoover." //United States American History//. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Nov. 2011. [].
 * Miller Center. "American President: Herbert Clark Hoover: A Life in Brief." //Miller Center//. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Nov. 2011. [].**