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Franklin D. Roosevelt Born: January 30, 1882 Died: April 12, 1945 Party: Democratic Terms: In Office from March 4, 1933 – April 12, 1945 (3 full terms, died in 4th) Vice Presidents: John N. Garner (1,2), Henry A. Wallace (3), Harry S. Truman (4)

Theme: American Identity Franklin Roosevelt represents the American people because he was optimistic, hopeful and determined not to give up. Growing up, Roosevelt was very intelligent and looked up to the reputation of his 5th cousin Teddy Roosevelt. Franklin knew that he wanted to join politics and he went to Harvard and Law school and joined the New York Senate and eventually became the governor of New York. Also, when Roosevelt was 39, he was diagnosed with poliomyelitis, which could have left him paralyzed. However, Franklin Roosevelt was determined to walk again and looked on the positive side. He was very courageous and self driven to push through this disease and walk again. Finally, when Roosevelt became the 32nd president of the United States, he was in the wake of the Great Depression. While other may have avoided the issue, Roosevelt helped the people keep faith and get through the devastating times. He brought hope to the people and kept spirits high. One of his most famous quotes is, “The only thing we have to fear is fear itself”. Roosevelt wouldn’t let the terrible situation deteriorate him and instead, he took immediate action and did his best to make things right. Franklin Roosevelt set a great example on how to be optimistic and always look of the bright side, never to give up in bad times, and to try your best to do what is right for the nation.

Analysis: During his many terms as president, Franklin Delano Roosevelt showed that there is no situation to immense to tackle and we cannot give up hope if we want to be successful. In his first hundred days as president, Roosevelt was one of the most effective and efficient presidents in US history with his New Deal policy involving relief, recovery and reform. He created numerous effective organizations to help give people jobs and raise the economy back on its feet. Roosevelt kept the moral of the country high with his refusal to give up and remained neutral and isolated from war until he no longer could. He helped combat the depression and brought the country into a war which it could not avoid and made the most of every situation. For his effective policies, strong beliefs and intentions, and his ability to keep the nation neutral until the very end, Franklin Roosevelt deserves and A for his presidency.

In his first inaugural address, Roosevelt said that in dark times, he needs the support of the people to make it through. This support was shown in his landslide victory in the election. Also, he said that the only thing we can fear is fear itself which meant that there is nothing too big to accomplish if we all work towards a common goal. Most importantly, Roosevelt addressed the depression and the most important thing was to give people jobs. This was supported by the agencies he created that gave jobs to the unemployed that helped them get back on their feet. In addition, Franklin said that the United States has to regulate and the control banks and credit and stabilize the national currency. Finally, Roosevelt spoke of the possibility of a national emergency and that he will be there to attack the issue if he has the support of the people. He would do his best to be courageous and uphold his standards to preserve national unity and improve the quality of living in America. At the end of his address, he says that Americans have not failed; they only have been led in the wrong direction and it was Roosevelt’s job to be the light that guided them to success.

With the amount of activity Roosevelt did in his first hundred days of office with the New Deal, he had to of had a fantastic relationship with his cabinet. With a few acts, Roosevelt put the task in members of Congresses hands and they got the job done every time. During this time, not a single bill was denied and moved through easily setting the record for most bills passed by a president. Without the trust and efficiency of Congress, Roosevelt could not have gotten the amount of bills passed that he did. While being on the same terms with his cabinet, Roosevelt also appointed eight Supreme Court justices during his presidency and had a lot of power. This raised the Democratic power in the government even more and made it easier to pass bills. Roosevelt was very quick to get things done and a lot of that credit goes to his cabinet and Congress and their close relationship. Finally, when communist leaders rose and a world war was soon to occur, Roosevelt and his cabinet again were on the same page and decided to stay neutral until Japan struck at Pearl Harbor. In the end, Roosevelt was always in tune with his cabinet and Congress.

As for the positive things during his presidency, the list could go on and on with all of the useful and crucial economic agencies and acts passed under the New Deal. On his first day in office, Roosevelt passed the Emergency Banking Act. This aloud banks to open up again and the Glass-Steagall Act gave people confidence in the banks. Through the Federal Emergency Relief Act and the Civilian Conservation Corps, millions of jobs were given out and billions of dollars were distributed to those workers. The Agricultural Adjustment Act encouraged farmers to grow less crops, therefore decreasing overproduction, and the Tennessee Valley Authority helped the Tennessee Valley people recover and provided them with jobs, power and modernized agriculture. Later, the Works Progress Administration gave more jobs to families in need and the Wagner Act let workers organize unions and go on strikes. All of these agencies had positive immediate impacts and many survived for many years and help depreciate the depression. In later terms, Roosevelt passed the National Recovery Act which gave the president powers over legislation and the Reorganization Act that established the Execute Office of the President. All of these New Deal and economic policies helped give the unemployed jobs so they could support their families and helped the nation get economic relief and look to recover.

For Roosevelt’s foreign policies, he started with the Good Neighbor policy over Latin America. He withdrew troops and came to a peaceful agreement with Mexico after they seized their oil companies. With the Reciprocal Trade Agreements Act, the United States lowered their tariff if the country they were trading with did too. This increased their foreign trade and took them into World War 2. With all of the communist leaders like Stalin, Mussolini, and Hitler allying themselves and exerting their control, the United States could have stepped in and prevented conflict, but they remained neutral. This was positive because the Neutrality Acts in the mid 1930’s kept the United States out of war and let us focus more on fixing the economic depression. While the German and Japanese threatened to show their dominance in Europe and Asia, the US was supporting the Allies and Britain and supplying them with ships and navel equipment. However, the United States could not remain neutral forever because of the Pearl Harbor attacks by Japan. Once Roosevelt and Congress declared war, Roosevelt proved to be an excellent war leader and led the allies against the German and Japanese. Even though he died before the treaties were signed, Roosevelt showed one of the best war strategies and was calm and courageous until his last day.

To find a negative thing in Franklin Roosevelt’s presidency, you have to be very picky. Roosevelt was so productive and efficient, and did more than any other president in the past. However, you could say that all of the policies and legislature passed was not enough to end the Great Depression and it went on until the start of World War 2. Still, the agencies were very productive and helped give many people jobs so they could survive. In addition, Roosevelt called for more Supreme Court justices which received and lot of negative feedback from the people. Also, Franklin was said to have tried to break down the government checks and balances system and use too much control over the judiciary. However, all of the positive praise and foreign policies that Roosevelt accomplished completely counter-act the negative ideas. Despite a few minor errors, Franklin Roosevelt did way more good to the country than harm.

Once Roosevelt died, he left behind one of the greatest legacies that any president has ever done. He led the country through the worst economic disaster in its history, a second world war, and was so popular among the people that they allowed him to break the two term rule and re-re-elected him back in office for a third and fourth term. To have that much of an impact on the people and have them trust your policies and go with your every move is truly amazing. After the war, the United States emerged as the most dominate military force in the world. Franklin Roosevelt set a precedent so high by never giving up or backing away from a challenge he thought was too big. He dealt with two of the most devastating and intimidating events in the 20th century and led the United States through dark times. Among rankings, Franklin Roosevelt has been listed as the second or third greatest president in our history. Without his courage and determination to make the most of everything, the United States would not be at the same spot today. The nation was thousands of times better off after Roosevelt was done his presidency because he took the nation through so much. Franklin Roosevelt’s leadership and ability to look on everything in the best way possible set the nation up for success.

In the end, President Franklin D. Roosevelt deserves and A for his presidency because he left behind a legacy so great and set a president for every president and American to follow. He had tremendous economic policies with the New Deal and was neutral until the start of the war with his foreign affairs. The United States were in one of the biggest holes in our history when Roosevelt took over with the depression and communists threats around. But, at the end, the United States was the strongest nation in the world because of the courage, determination, and “never say never” mentality of Franklin Roosevelt.

Works Cited

"Franklin D. Roosevelt." //American President//. Miller Center. Web. 8 Dec. 2011. . "Franklin D. Roosevelt: Biography from Answers.com." //Answers.com: Wiki Q&A Combined with Free Online Dictionary, Thesaurus, and Encyclopedias//. Web. 08 Dec. 2011. . "Franklin D. Roosevelt: Inaugural Address." //The American Presidency Project//. Web. 08 Dec. 2011. . "Franklin D. Roosevelt." //The White House//. Web. 08 Dec. 2011. . "Franklin D. Roosevelt." //Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia//. Web. 08 Dec. 2011. .