I have chosen to compare and contrast the difference of the democrat party during the great depression and now because the Great Depression was mostly due to stock markets collapsing. Right now stock markets are dropping too. One thing that I noticed with these two comparisons is that they both still seem to be aware of the same thing which is helping the people.
Franklin D. Roosevelt: President during Great Depression
October 29, 1929 the NY Stock Exchange took catastrophic collapses of the stock market prices. The next few years the stock market didn’t bounce back quickly. Next three years stock prices continued to fall. Late 1932 stocks dropped to about 20% of the value they were worth in 1929. The stock drops strained banks and other financial institutions causing 11,000 of the 25,000 banks to fail. The result of production, due to reduced levels of spending, led to a downward spiral. The Great Depression caused Unemployment to rise 12-15 million
workers, which was about 25-30 % of the work force then.[i]
workers, which was about 25-30 % of the work force then.[i]When Roosevelt was elected as president, in 1932, 13,000,000 were unemployed and almost every bank closed. What Roosevelt proposed was a sweeping program to bring recovery to business and agriculture, relief to the unemployed and to those that were close to losing their farms and homes. Roosevelt’s new program of reform was: social security, heavier taxes on the wealthy, new control over banks and a work relief program for those who were unemployed. [ii]
First 100 days of Roosevelt in office, The Emergency Banking Bill, passed during Roosevelts administration, was to strengthen, reorganize and reopen banks; this was passed overwhelmingly by congress. March 12 Roosevelt made an announcement that “soundest banks would reopen.” The next day banks exceeded withdrawals according to Raymond Moley “Capitalism was saved in eight days.”[iii]
Obama: Democratic Candidate
Right now stock markets are fluctuating like the Great Depression. $700 billion was said to be needed as the bailout but it was voted against and didn’t get approved. Soon after DOW Jones plunged around 600 points. It has gone up 485 points now and as of today its gone down again 348 points[iv]
During the Presidential Candidate Debate, of Obama v. McCain, one of the lead questions was, “As president, as a result of whatever financial rescue plan comes about and the billion, $700 billion, whatever it is it’s going to cost, what are you going to have to give up, in terms of the priorities that you would bring as president of the United States, as a result of having to pay for the financial rescue plan?”. Obama responded what he wouldn’t stop, “We have to fix our health care system … make sure that we’re competing in education… make sure that college is affordable for every young person in America… new electricity grid to get the alternative energy to population centers that are using them.”
McCain(left) and Obama (right)
here September 26, 2008 debating
at the presidential candidate debate.
The topic during the presidential was
focused around the $700 billion bailout.
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[i]About the Great Depression." University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign :: Department of English. 30 Sep. 2008
[iii]"THE FIRST 100 DAYS." Tom Huppi. 1 Oct. 2008.
[i]About the Great Depression." University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign :: Department of English. 30 Sep. 2008
[iii]"THE FIRST 100 DAYS." Tom Huppi. 1 Oct. 2008
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