USA → FEDERAL SYSTEM OF GOVERNMENT

The country is divided up into a number of states and each one has its own state capital and
government. Moreover, they share power with the federal (central or national) government.

● Division of power of the federal government:

(a) Congress or Legislative: legislative part. They make the laws.

(b) President: executive part. He carries out the laws.
(c) Judiciary: legal system. Most important part: the Supreme Court.

(a) Congress (federal parliament):

Consist of two houses/chambers whose members are elected by universal suffrage:

➔ The Senate or upper house: 100 members. Senators are elected for six years and
there are two from each state. It is a fixed number, irrespective of the population of
the state.

➔ House of representatives or lower house: 435 members, elected for two years
and are distributed according to population.

NOTE. A member of the House of Representatives = congressmen and

congresswomen (NOT. a deputy).

ALL NEW LAWS HAVE TO BE PASSED BY A SIMPLE MAJORITY IN BOTH HOUSES.

Main job of Congress:

➔ Confirm new appointments (laws). They do this through hearings.

➔ Concern for in affairs. The president might be willing to start a war whenever he
wants but he cannot declare the war by himself. He has to go to congress and deliver
a speech called "the Declaration of War" and then congress has to vote in favor of
this.
➔ To impeach the President, Vicepresident or a member of the Supreme Court
whenever they consider they have made a mistake.
Note. Impeachment goes from Congress to the other two branches. The president
cannot be impeached by the Supreme Court.

The National Constitution powers to government:

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There are two main parties represented in congress:
REPUBLICANS
Founded by Abraham Lincon in 1854 with
the main purpose of erasing slavery.
A lot of support from the North
(businessmen and industrialists).
More conservative (pro-guns, anti abortion,
against unions and immigrants).
Believe in a laissez-faire approach to
government: businessmen run the industry
and believe the government should not
intervene in the market and economy.
Low taxation since it allows businesses to
hire more workers, increasing demand and
growth.
Ethnicity: traditional white people voted
DEMOCRATS
Founded in 1830 by Andrew Jackson. He
believed in the superiority of white men
against the indigenous.
Support from the South and from
immigrants in parts of the North.
More progressive (liberal). NOTE. not
completely happy with immigration either
but more open-minded.
Believed the government should be active
in dealing with social and economic
problems.
Not looking at reducing taxes. Progressive
taxation: the more you earn, the more you
pay.
African-american tend to vote for the
democratic party. It first happened in the
50s when Martin Luther King was arrested
and Kennedy convinced him to tell his
people to vote for him.
In favor of offering more options for
healthcare.
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 (b) The President:

Each party chooses its candidate and the president elect is elected for a four-year term. The
tasks of the president are:

➔ Command the armed forces.

➔ Control civil service.
➔ Run foreign affairs.
➔ Can introduce laws to Congress or veto laws passed by Congress.
➔ Make treaties with foreign states, appoints judges, ambassadors and members of
cabinet.

Note. The President can sign whatever treaties he wants but those treaties have to
be confirmed by the Legislative and of course, the Senate can refuse to rectify those
treaties.

(c) The Judiciary or Supreme Court:

9 judges appointed by the President with the approval of the Senate. They can remain in
office for life. They act as adjudicators in disputes between the President and Congress,
between federal and state governments and between states.

SEPARATION OF POWERS AND INTERACTIONS:

Founding fathers of the USA wanted to make sure none of the three parts of government
became too powerful so they created:

THE SYSTEM OF CHECKS AND BALANCES

A system where the three branches work separately but act as a check on the power of
others.

How are laws made?

1)

➔ A bill is introduced in the representatives (note. it can also start in the Senate). It is
discussed and if it is approved it is reported to the Senate.
➔ Senators take that bill under consideration and can vote for or against it. If the
majority votes in favor, the bill becomes an act of congress.
➔ The act of congress passes to the President and he has to approve or pass it.
Meaning he or she may sign it into law but he can also veto it and send it back to
Congress.
➔ If the act is rejected, the legislature can get together again and with two thirds vote of
each chamber, they can override that veto and confirm that they pass some
legislation.

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What is the role of the judiciary in all this?

Their role is to say whether a new piece of legislation is constitutional or not. Meaning,
Congress can pass as many acts as they want but the final say is in the judiciary.

2)

➔ The President can also be the one that takes a bill to Congress to discuss.
➔ The Congress can vote in favor or reject it as well.
➔ If the bill is rejected but the President wants that particular legislation to be passed,
he can pass an executive order. Even though it is not the ideal way to pass
legislation, sometimes they have to resource to this.
Note. of course, the judiciary takes part because they have to interpret whether that
legislation is constitutional or not.

Executive order: when the President passes a legislation without the intervention of
congress. A lot of executive orders were passed at times of wars or when the pandemic
started and the president needed more resources.

Note. check pictures two and three.

⅗ COMPROMISE

When the US constitution was ratified slavery was still a thing (before civil war). The
constitution had to find a way to talk about slaves w/o actually saying it.

Agreement they reached to count slaves:

-States in the North didn’t want to count all slaves (remember the North didn’t have as many
slaves as the South) → more population = more representatives.

-Slaves in the South wanted to count them for the same reason.

Conclusion they came to:

land owner → 100 slaves
only 60 would be counted as people.

AMENDMENTS

1787 → The American Constitution was first drawn up in Philadelphia. They added 10
amendments at the end of the Constitution known as the bill of rights.

➤ Origin of the amendments → the idea of documents having modifications but

without altering the nature of it.
➤ Principle of the Constitution → reflects the power of government that comes from
the people (those who could vote in the 1780s: white American men owners of land).

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 ➤ Principle of the enlightenment: representatives have their power because they
were given that power by voters.

BILL OF RIGHTS:

1. First amendment: Freedom of speech, press, religion and the right to petition the
Government for a redress of grievances.
2. Second amendment: Well regulated militar security and the right of the people to
keep and bear arms.
3. Fifth amendment: When someone is called to give a statement either as a witness
or accused person, this person can choose not to declare as a way to defend
themselves. Moreover, this amendment states that nobody can be taken to court for
the same offense twice.
4. Sixth amendment: States that nobody can be taken to prison without a fair trial.

Beyond the bill of rights there are other important amendments such as:

5. Thirteenth amendment: abolish slavery

6. Fourteenth amendment: states that former slaves are citizens and that anyone born
in the USA is a citizen and states equal protection for all people. Note. It was made
to protect african-americans but ended up being used for other purposes.
7. Fifteenth amendment: aims at reminding (especially to Southern states) that former
slaves have the right to vote.
8. Eighteenth amendment: ratified in 1919 but then it was repealed. It stated that
nobody in the US could manufacture, distribute or sell alcoholic drinks.
9. Nineteenth amendment: passed in 1920. It was the one who gave women the right
to vote.

As society began to change more amendments were added.

There are now 27 in total.

RACIAL DISCRIMINATION AND THE CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT

● Background of the civil rights movement:

Second half of the 17th century → slaves were forced to go into the USA to work on
tobacco plantations.

CIVIL WAR (1861-5) → between the North and South. The victory of the North brought out
the end of slavery. It left behind deep political and social divisions.

● Postures:
- North → wanted to boost their industries. To do so, they had to have more
consumers. If most of the population weren't free, they couldn’t do that.

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 - South → Wanted to keep slavery. Their whole plantation economy (sugar,
cotton, tobacco) was based on slave labour. However, they were reluctant to
let them be free because they couldn’t recognize them as equals.

● Main causes:
- 1860 → Abraham Lincoln was elected president and was against slavery.
The southern states, not wanting to end slavery, began to break away from
the Union so that they could continue slavery.

This racism led to the beginning of the Civil Rights movement.

Note. it had very little success until the beginning of the 20th century.

What was life like for African-Americans after the 1860s?

Even though after the Civil War the 13th, 14th and 15th amendment of the Constitution was
modified giving all US citizens equal protection and outlawing slavery, African Americans
were still facing discrimination.

➔ The South passed laws known as the ‘Black Codes’. They introduced all
kinds of restrictions such as the right to vote.
➔ They were kidnapped and murdered by the KKK (Ku Klux Klan).
➔ The Federal government ignored what was happening since they didn’t want
to face another war.
➔ Economical aspect: African Americans remained in the South and worked in
land. Needless to say, working conditions weren’t fair and their jobs were
poorly paid.
➔ Sharecropping: system where the landowner allowed African Americans to
work and live on the land and at the end of the season, a portion of the crop
was given to the landowner as a payment.

● Ku Klux Klan (1865)

They began as a secret society whose aim was to prevent blacks from gaining equal
civil rights. They wanted to:

➔ Terrorise blacks so they would be afraid to exercise their votes.

➔ Drive them from any land which they had been able to obtain.
➔ Intimidate them so that they would give up attempts to win equality.

● PLESSY VS FERGUSON:

1896 → the Supreme Court passed an infamous court ruling called Plessy vs. Ferguson:

Plessy was white but he was considered African American. In the South it was considered
that if you had a drop of African American blood you were one as well. Meaning, if someone
in your family was African American you were not considered white.

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Plessy wanted to travel in the white section of the train. The Fergusson company, however,
told him he had to go to the colour section.

The case reached the Supreme Court and they stated that as long as the company could
assure facilities for both races there was nothing wrong with keeping them separated. They
started a doctrine called:

- Separated but equal: equal but separate accommodations for the white and
coloured races. The segregation that occurred on trains then started to happen on
buses, schools, churchs, shops, swimming pools, etc. African American had to leave
their neighbours and their children had to change schools because they couldn’t
remain in the same places as white people.

IMMIGRATION WAVE (1880-1924)

During the second half of the nineteenth century → huge wave of immigration.

There had been a wave of immigration before but not as big as the second one:

1. Old immigrants (1750-1840):

➔ From Ireland, Germany, Norway and England
➔ Culturally, they were very similar to the native USA citizens: spoke english,
white, etc.
➔ Integrated smoothly to the new land and no one thought about closing the
borders.

2. New immigrants (1880-1924):

➔ From Eastern Europe, Mexico, Asia, Italy etc.
➔ Didn’t speak English nor were they white.
➔ Other religions (E.g. Jews)
➔ No work ethic.
➔ No easy integration.
➔ Chain migration: one person settles and then the family goes there.

→ PUSH FACTORS: the factors that pushed them out of their countries were economic
factors, persecution, war.

→ PULL FACTORS: the factors that attracted them to the US were public education,
availability of labour , the ‘american dream promise of prosperity’, etc.

● LEGISLATIVE OUTCOME:

People in the USA were against letting non-white immigrants into the country because they
believed in preserving the purity of white. During these years there were some attempts to
‘close the door of immigration’

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 ➤ Chinese Exclusion Act (1882): the first significant law restricting immigration into
the United States. They prevented families from settling in and didn’t allow chinese
labourers to enter the country to get citizenship.

➤ The Johnson-Reed Act (1924): introduced annual quotas, limiting the number of
immigrants allowed entry into the US. During the depression years the US
government was strict with this measure since unemployment was high.

● SACCO AND VANZETTI (1927):

➔ Italian workers and supposed socialists/anarchists.

➔ They were accused and convicted of a murder, even though there was not
convincing proof.
➔ They were executed despite international outrage and petitions, most likely because
of biases against them.
➔ Years later, the government of Massachusetts formally apologized to the community
and admitted there had been biases in the investigation and trial.

Remember the USA had the perception that italians were ruthless and criminals. They
saw them as a threat and feared they would overthrow the government.

● CONSEQUENCES OF IMMIGRATION:

➔ Increase in population.
➔ It helped to speed up economic development.
➔ Growth of huge urban areas.
➔ More people working in agriculture. The proportion had been low since more people
were taking jobs in the industry.

INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION:

Began in the 1870s and continued through World War II

1920s → the roaring twenties.

The decade was characterised by economic prosperity and rapid social and cultural changes
after expanding their industrial production.

FACTORS THAT CONTRIBUTED TO THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION:

1. The great industrial expansion was thanks to the war. Countries whose industries
and imports from Europe had been disrupted and bought American goods instead.

2. The republican government’s economic policies (laissez-faire):

a. Fordney-McCumber tariff:
➔ Raised import duties on goods coming, thus protecting American industry.

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 ➔ Encouraged Americans to buy home-produced goods.
b. (1926-1928): income tax was lowered and that left people with more cash to
spend on American goods.

3. Sales, profits and wages reached new heights. This allowed workers to buy the new
consumer luxuries.

4. American industry became way more efficient when mechanisation was introduced.

The expansion of the motor-car industry was thanks to Henry Ford. His motor
company implemented the moving assembly in the automobile manufacturing
process. It allowed for the work to be taken to workers rather than the worker moving
to and around the vehicle.

CONSEQUENCES:
➔ Increased productivity.
➔ Reduced costs.
➔ Made goods more accessible to the population (especially workers).

5. Advertising through newspapers and magazines became more popular than ever.
6. New roads were built.
7. Mineral resources.
8. Rise in population.

GOVERNMENT:
- Stable political scenario.
- Stable currency.
- Low taxes and government
spending.
- Fostering products (earn profits)

FREE AND EQUAL?

Not everyone was doing well during the roaring twenties since the wealth was not shared
equally. These groups of people were:

1. Farmers: prices of farm produce gradually fell. They were producing too much food
for the home market to absorb. This was at a time when European agriculture was
recovering from the war and when there was strong competition from Canada,
Russia and Argentina on the world market. It meant that not enough of the surplus
food could be exported.

2. Coal mining industry: they were suffering competition from oil and many workers
were laid off.

3. Black population: farmers laid off black labourers, they had the lowest-paid jobs,
worst conditions at work and they even had to deal with the persecutions of the Klu
Klux Klan, an anti-black organization.

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 4. Immigrants: especially those from Eastern Europe were treated with hostility by
descendants of the original white settlers, who came from Britain and the
Netherlands. These included Catholic Irish and Italians, Orthodox and Jewish
Russian, etc. They were perceived as a threat for America’s greatness.

5. Women: they were not treated equally and were paid lower wages than men for the
same jobs. Moreover, education was still slanted towards preparing them to become
wives and mothers.

MORE NEGATIVE CONSEQUENCES:

➔ The freedom of workers to protest was limited.

➔ Widespread poverty in industrial areas and cities due to low wages of industrial
workers.
➔ Bad working conditions.
➔ Crime and violence increased as a result of the banning of the manufacturing, import
and sale of alcohol.

LABOUR UNIONS DURING THE NINETEENTH CENTURY:

During the great industrial expansion workers began to raise labour unions to protect their
interests. The lead was taken mainly by immigrant workers who had come from Europe
(mostly Italians) with socialist ideas and trade unions. They complained about:

1. Working conditions in factories.

- No sick leave, no insurance.
- Unsafe work environment.
- Child labour.

2. Sexism.
- Women were fired for being pregnant or getting married.

➤ The National Labour Union (1872) → first successful strike demanding an 8-hour
working day.
➤ The Socialist Labour Party (1877) → It was formed with the idea of organizing
unions among immigrant workers.
➤ Knights of labour (1880) → non-violent and non-socialist organization. They were
against strikes.
➤ The American Federation of Labour (AFL): more militant though still moderate
organization. Its leader Gomper was in favour of working with employers to get
concessions, but equally he would support strikes.

None of these organizations succeeded. The reasons behind this were:

- Their strikes were brutally repressed by local police.

- Employers, backed by the authorities, began to react against strikes.

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 - There was a division between white and black workers since most unions refused to
allow black to join.
- Each new wave of immigrants weakened the union movement since they were
willing to accept lower wages.
- Penalties for strike leaders were severe.

LABOUR UNIONS DURING THE TWENTIETH CENTURY:

Industrial Workers of the World (IWW): big union which included all workers across the
country, irrespective of race, sex or level of employment. It included socialists, anarchists
and radical trade unionists. They were not in favour of starting violence though they were
prepared to resist. They did believe in strikes even though those weren't their main activity.

Employers and property owners saw them as a thread.

Local authorities banned meetings and speaking in public: gangs of vigilantes were hired to
attack IWW members and leaders were arrested.

However, the IWW didn't feel intimidated by this and carried on strikes. Working conditions
though didn't improve at all.

The importance of the socialist movement was that it publicized the need for reform and
influenced both major parties, which acknowledged that some changes were needed.

PROGRESSIVES DURING INDUSTRIALIZATION:

During Industrialization there was a group who tried to promote certain changes. They were
called the progressives.

PROGRESSIVES (1895-1920):

➔ White upper-middle class people.

➔ Expressed industrialization had been showing certain negative aspects.
➔ Not communists. However, they wanted more government intervention on factories
and business.
➔ Believed in the land of equal opportunities.
➔ They were interested in the white collar workers.

NOTE.
- White collar workers: professionals who went to college. Progressives
focused on them because they could vote.
- Blue collar workers: manufacturers (including african-americans, asians,
etc).

In order to get Congress attention, they started writing articles in newspapers. The pressure
they put on them made Congress stop ignoring them. After that, they even became a
political party.

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Thanks to the Progressive Party certain changes were made at political, labour and moral
levels:

1. Political reforms:
a. 17th amendment: an amendment to the US Constitution that states that
senators will be elected to six-year terms by popular vote.
b. 19 amendment: the right of women to vote.
c. Income tax (impuesto a las ganancias).

2. Labour reforms:
a. Prohibition of child labour.
b. National system of social insurance
c. Women worked shortened hours after pregnancy.

3. Moral reforms:
a. FDA (food and drugs administration): the opening of an administration which
made companies that produce food and drugs have to undergo inspections.
They even went to factories to supervise the manufacturing process.
b. 18th amendment: prohibited the manufacture, sale, or transportation of
intoxicating liquors.

The progressives’ reforms set a precedent for the wealthcare state of the 1930s.

1913 → elections:

● Progressive candidate Theodoro Roosevelt: leader of the Progressive Party. He

was interested in keeping national parties and passed the idea of conservation when
nobody had political awareness.
● Democrat candidate Woodrow Wilson: reformer who called his programme the
“New Freedom”. He was also very important at the end of WWI since he drafted the
version of a peace treaty.

Wilson became President (1913-21) and his presidency was considered a success
because of all the reforms that were introduced regarding working conditions and
women’s right to vote.

THE GREAT DEPRESSION (1929)

A huge economic crisis that affected the entire world. It involved the Wall Street crash and a
crisis in the farming sector.

a. WALL STREET CRASH (1929)

➤ 1928 → Republican Hoover won the presidential elections.

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 - Like every republican he believed the government should reduce taxation and
the market should regulate itself (laissez faire).

- Hoover followed his Party principles. By reducing the presence of the

government in the market you don’t need the funding to pay for those
programs. Eg. Programs for unemployed people.

- Hoover had a strong work ethic. He believed the government should not offer
direct relief to the needy because people didn’t want charity. People wanted
self respect and by offering a welfare state he would be undermining that
self-respect.

- A large welfare e state would create bureaucracy, meaning a lot of public

spending which would eventually lead to more taxation.

- Encouraged people to help one another. E.g. If you know someone who is
starving, give them some food.

➤ September 1929 → buying of shares on the stock exchange in Wall Street began to
slow down.
➤ ‘Black Tuesday in October 1929 → companies rushed to sell their shares before
prices fell down. People started speculating something was off and also began to sell
their shares until they were worth nothing.
➤ 1931 → Hoover tried to help the agricultural sector with a program to keep prices at a
competitive level. He also helped another sector, the banks.

NOTE. The Wall Street Crash did not cause the depression. The real causes were much
deeper.

b. CAUSES OF THE GREAT DEPRESSION

1. Domestic overproduction → encouraged by high profits, industrialists began to

produce too many goods for the market to absorb. The stocks of goods began to
build up and manufacturers produced less. As a consequence, fewer workers were
required
2. Unequal distribution of income → Profits weren’t being distributed equally among
the workers and so people didn't have enough money to consume the goods that
industrialization has brought them. Moreover, big corporations weren't prepared to
reduce prices or increase wages.
3. Falling demand for exports → When the US put up tariff barriers, foreign countries
were reluctant to buy their goods. The Fordney-McCumber tariff did keep foreign
goods out but it also prevented foreign states from making trade with the USA.
4. Speculation → buying shares in companies to make quick profits by selling them for
more. When people started suspecting about the crisis they rushed to sell shares, but
fewer people wanted to buy them.

c. EFFECTS OF THE GREAT DEPRESSION:

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 1. Stock market crash ruined millions of investors who had paid high prices for their
shares.
2. As people rushed to draw out their savings, banks didn’t have enough money to pay
everybody and closed down for good. Moreover, this was the reason people who
didn't take part in speculation lost all their savings.
3. Demand for goods fell, workers were laid off and factories closed.
4. Unemployment rose, changing people’s living standards. Some couldn’t afford rent or
food. They started queuing for bread in charity soup kitchens.
5. Other countries (e.g. Germany) were extremely affected since they depended on
loans from the USA.

1932 → Hoover ran for election and lost. Franklin Roosevelt won by landslide.

THE NEW DEAL (1933-1940)

a. FRANKLIN ROOSEVELT:

➔ Democrat.
➔ He tried to reorganize capitalism and help the needy.
➔ He had an active role in the depression:
- Executive in his power.
- Majority in Congress.
➔ Created organizations to deal with specific problems.
➔ Sent bills to Congress and then his program became known as the ‘New Deal’.
➔ His programs had limitations. For example, he left aside African American (mostly
because he wanted the South to vote for them and he didn’t want to upset them).

b. AIMS OF THE NEW DEAL:

● Relief: help the poor and homeless without food or a roof to live in.
● Recovery: reduce unemployment, stimulate the demand for goods and get the
economy moving.
● Reform: take whatever measures to prevent a new economic crisis.

The New Deal programs were influenced by Keynesian Politics (because they came from
an economist called John Kenyes).

This means that whenever the economy is in such a dramatic state, it is the role of the
government to intervene in the market and create jobs. By creating jobs, people would have
a salary and consumption would be fostered again.

How did Roosevelt find the money to fund all these programs?

- Resourced to higher levels of taxation.

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- Used deficit spending, thus Roosevelt’s government spent more than what they
actually collected in taxes and he had the federal reserve to back him up.

c. IMPORTANT ACTS:

1. Emergency banking relief act (EBR)

➔ To get banking and financial systems working properly again, he encouraged
people to deposit their savings (by telling them their money was safer with
them) and take loans from them.

2. Federal Security Act (FDA)

➔ Required corporations to provide information on stock offerings. In 1929 Wall
Street collapsed because a lot of people had invested in stocks that were not
safe or funded on anything.

3. Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA):

➜ Raised crop prices by lowering production.

➜ Government paid farmers to produce less.
➜ This was controversial since people were starving.

4. Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC)

➔ In order to create jobs, men between 18-25 lived in camps (where they were racially
segregated) to build roads and bridges.
➔ Planted trees developing over 800 state parks.
➔ They focused on young people to keep them away from the mafia business.

5. National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA):

➔ Regulated prices for many products.

➔ Established working hours.
➔ Banned child labour.
➔ Gave workers the right to bargain collectively, which upset the Republican
Party.

Note. For the first time ever the working class sector was being heard. In return,
Roosevelt wanted their vote.

6. Social Security Act (1935):

➔ Monthly payments to certain groups of people if you were unemployed.

➔ Old-age insurance for retirees 65 or older.
➔ Aid to families with dependent children and the disabled
➔ NOTE. Some jobs were excluded: waiters, farmworkers, domestic servants
and hospital workers. These jobs were usually done by women and African
Americans.

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 7. Works Progress Administration (WPA):

➔ It employed millions of people.

➔ Created jobs for infrastructure (created roads, bridges, buildings)
➔ Projects for actors, painters, writers.
➔ Offered classes for people in the evenings (americanization).
➔ Women could get jobs as teachers or nurses, for example.

d. OPPOSITION TO THE NEW DEAL (and Roosevelt)

● Businessmen weren’t pleased about the rights and fair working conditions the
working class were receiving. They claimed it would encourage socialists and
communists to start a revolution.
● The states government wasn't happy about the intervention of the Federal
Government in their internal state affairs.
● Socialists believed the New Deal wasn’t drastic enough and left too much power in
the hands of the big business.
● In 1936, even right-wing members of his own party were discontent. They were
upset because the trade unions had the right to strike.

To cap it all, Roosevelt was being criticized by both sides:

1. The conservative side of society was upset about the deficit-spending. They also
compared the federal government to a totalitarian government because “they were
trying to control many things and interfering with areas that belonged to the private
sectors”.
2. The liberal side of society, on the other hand, complained because there wasn’t
enough intervention. They pointed out African Americans and immigrants were being
excluded and that the poor weren’t getting enough relief.

e. CONSEQUENCES OF THE OPPOSITION:

The New Deal faced so much opposition it reached the Supreme Court (w the republican
party behind it). Two years later, in 1935, the AAA and the NIRA were declared
unconstitutional.

● How did FDR react when the Supreme Court declared two New Deal programs
unconstitutional?

Court packing bill → Roosevelt threatened to expand the Supreme Court to fifteen
members so that the new justices would vote in favour of his policies. This caused protests
in the Congress since it would mean the modification of the system of checks and balances
and the intervention in the division of powers.

f. NEW DEAL AFTER THE WWII

● NEW DEAL → weakened and most programs stopped by the 50s.

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● Roosevelt leant to the liberal side of the economy. But after WWII the economy leant
to the most conservative side.
● The only program that remains is the Social Security Act.

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