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Line 38: − + − On April 12, 1945, Franklin D. Roosevelt died of a cerebral hemorrhage, due partly to the crippling [[disease]], [[polio]]myelitis, which physically disabled him during his presidency.<ref>http://www.whitehouse.gov/history/presidents/fr32.html</ref>+ − Although Mr. Roosevelt was very popular, it has been argued by scholars and analysts then and now that many [[New Deal]] relief efforts actually helped to prolong the [[Great Depression]]. Mr. Roosevelt started the second wave of the massive expansion of the Federal Government and greatly increased American foreign aid. Some of these policies were coupled with a persistent high level of unemployment in the 1930s.<ref>http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/presidents/32_f_roosevelt/printable.html</ref>+ − However, the Depression ended when government spending increased during [[World War II]] as military spending pumped money into the economy. Programs such as FDIC were created to increase financial stability and reduce the risk of another [[Great Depression]]. − In 1937, Roosevelt proposed "packing" the [[U.S. Supreme Court]] so that he could enact more government controls over the economy. But even [[Democrats]] were outraged at his power grab, and Roosevelt never enjoyed his past political power again. However, the Court's subsequent ''Wickard'' decision increased the President's powers under the [[Commerce Clause]].+ − + + + − From his second term the people were told that Roosevelt was the only man who could keep the US out of war. Later, it was asserted that he was the only man who could successfully fight the war that which he alone could keep the US out of. Then it was said that he was the only man who was capable of facing [[Josef Stalin]] on equal terms. Finally, he was said to be the only man who could guarantee against the ruthlessness of Stalin in the post-war era. However, Roosevelt died on April 12, 1945, which was four months before the war ended with Japan's surrender on August 15, 1945.
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'''Franklin Delano Roosevelt''' was the 32nd [[President of the United States of America]], and is most often recalled in association with his [[socialist]] [[New Deal]] economic policies and his leadership during most of the [[Second World War]]. He was the first and only President to be elected four times, exceeding the traditional two-term-limit precedent established by [[George Washington]]. A [[Democrat]], Roosevelt was first elected due to the crisis of the [[Great Depression]], a severe economic depression that continued throughout the 1930's. A [[Republican]] Congress subsequently passed the [[22nd Amendment]] to prevent anyone from serving more than two full terms, as Roosevelt had.
'''Franklin Delano Roosevelt''' was the 32nd [[President of the United States of America]], 1933-45, leading the U.S. from the darkest days of the [[Great Depression]] to victory over Germany and Japan; he built the '''New Deal Coalition''' which dominated American politics into the 1960s, and is still fondly remembered by liberals. His [[New Deal]] was a very large, complex interlocking set of programs designed to produce relief (which meant jobs for the unemployed), recovery (of the GDP), and reform (by which he meant regulation of Wall Street and the economy), as well as reelection (in 1936, 1940 and 1944) and realignment of the political system. Conservatives strongly opposed many, but not all, of the New Deal programs. Conservatives abolished most of the relief programs when unemployment ended in the 1940s. Most of the regulations on business were ended about 1975-85, except for the regulation of Wall Street by the [[Securities and Exchange Commission]], which still exists. The major surviving program is [[Social Security]], which Roosevelt passed in 1935.
Conservatives at the time denounced his bids for presidential power, including building a national political machine through the [[WPA]] (it lasted 1935-43), taking control of the Supreme Court by adding new liberal judges (it failed, 1937), and purging the Democratic party of conservative congressman (it failed in 1938).
After 1938 FDR turned his attention to [[World War II]]. he was a strong advocate of support for China against Japan; most conservatives agreed. He also was a strong supporter of military aid to Britain. Conservatives split on that, with the "isolationists" opposed, and others like [Henry Stimson]] in favor. Once Pearl Harbor brought the U.S. into the war, conservatives strongly supported the war effort and generally approved his military leadership, although highly critical of his close cooperation with [[Stalin]] and the Societ Union.
He was the first and only President to be elected four times, breaking the traditional two-term-limit precedent established by [[George Washington]].<ref> Tradition was restored by the 22ndAmendment in 1947.</ref>
Roosevelt's [[Lend-Lease Act]] authorized arming Britain and the Soviet Union even before [[Pearl Harbor]] was attacked by [[Japan]]. It was the Pearl Harbor attack that ended anti-war isolationism in the U. S. The result was island hopping attacks against Japan, followed by war against fascists in North Africa, and then victory in [[Europe]] after a D-Day ([[Operation Overlord]]) attack on Germany from France in conjunction with Red Army attacks on Germany from the East.
Roosevelt's health failed rapidly in 1944-45, even as he ran for reelection. He died On April 12, 1945. Despite polio which crioppled him starting in the early 1920s, he exuded a sense of confidence and hope for the future that made for a charismatic personality.
Conservative scholars have argued that some relief efforts actually helped to prolong the [[Great Depression]].
==Early life==
==Early life==