New Deal CriticsChapter 16, Section 2

***Despite his critics, FDR was a hero to MILLIONS of Americans***

Limitations of the New Deal

• Women– Men received

preferred hiring status in relief jobs

– Many programs permitted lower pay for women

– Social Security did not include domestic work.

Limitations of the New Deal• African Americans

– Reinforced racial segregation

– Excluded blacks from professional or “skilled” labor.

– Did nothing to stop the rising tide of lynching

African Americans cont.• FDR didn’t want to alienate Southern Congressmen• Despite all this, FDR enjoyed wide support from

blacks.

Critics of the New DealThe New Deal goes too

far: – Many critics saw New

Deal Programs as being socialistic

– Critics called most New Deal Programs “un-American” because they “smacked of Bolshevism”, and limited personal freedom.

Critics of the New Deal

• The Social Security System penalized Americans by forcing them to pay into a system that they might not need.

• The rich HATED FDR!

The New Deal doesn’t go far enough:• Many New Deal

critics said that New Deal programs should redistribute the personal wealth of the country. – SOCIALISM!

• Progressive critics complained that The New Deal did not eliminate poverty.

Huey Long • Champion of

rural poor.

• Political critic of FDR.

• Argued for the redistribution of wealth

Father Coughlin • Catholic Priest

who was a flip-flopping critic of FDR.

• Lost support because of Pro-Nazi sentiments

• Both Coughlin and Long used half-truths and scare tactics

Modern Day Critics• Burdened the

economy by creating “make-work” jobs rather allowing the free market to determine the need for jobs and farm products.

• New Deal Programs were financed by heavier taxation that took money out of the pockets of consumers.

Deficit Spending• Spending more money

than is in the annual budget.

The Court Packing Fiasco• Because the

Supreme Court had struck down some of his programs, FDR wanted to put an additional six judges on the court that were friendly to his ideas.

• Critics from all sides condemned this action as an attack on separation of powers.

New deal cutbacks