Modern Presidents and their Policies - Essay Example

As great a plan the New Deal seems to be, its' constitutionality was challenged in the Supreme Court. Initially, it was deemed unconstitutional. The role of the government is limited, to prevent it from becoming a totalitarian or dictatorship. Part of the limited powers includes that government's interference in businesses be as minimal as possible. However, the New Deal was a plan proposed in need to combat the Great Depression. It was when Roosevelt threatened to increase the number of Judges on the Supreme Court that the Supreme Court reversed its' decision and granted the New Deal constitutional.

The New Deal had three components: direct relief, economic recovery, and financial reform (Keith, et al 289). The direct relief component was aimed toward the approximately one-third of the population that was hardest hit by the Great Depression. The economic recovery component was designed to restore and stabilize the economy overall. Lastly, the reform component was to bring about changes that would correct the instability of the market that was caused by the Depression. As part of the direct relief, many programs were created. . Many of the major economists praised these work relief programs, calling them, "appropriate responses to the critical situation" (Keith, et al 658).

The economic recovery can in part be seen in almost all aspects of the programs. The financial reform, however, was specific in programs such as the National Recovery Administration, the regulation of Wall Street, the Agricultural Adjustment Act farm programs, the insurance of bank deposits (Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation 1933) and the Wagner Act which encouraged labor unions (Keith, et al 658). Overall, the New Deal had successes and failures. For example, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation reestablished the American faith in banks.

The CWA, Civil Works Administration, had about four million workers, which of course was a great success. Some of the programs were even designed for minorities, like the Indian Reorganization Act which proved to have a positive outcome for the Native Americans. One of the best programs was probably the one designed for decreasing unemployment, known as the Works Progress Administration (WPA) (Keith, et al 709). The WPA provided work for approximately eight million Americans. Their projects included mostly construction and repairing of schools, hospitals, and the like.

Aside from achieving programs dedicated to economic reforms, the New Deal passed a law, Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 that banned child labor and set a minimum wage (Keith, et al 708). The New Deal did indeed have a lot of successes. However, there were a few limited failures as well. For instance, the Social Security Act was established to provide pensions for workers in old age, benefits to victims of industrial accident, unemployment