Changes

Just as Mussolini “organized each trade or industrial group or professional group into a state supervised trade association” that “operated under state supervision and could plan production, quality, prices, distribution, labor standards, etc.,”<ref>John T. Flynn, ''[http://mises.org/books/rooseveltmyth.pdf The Roosevelt Myth]'' (The Devin-Adair Company, 1948) pp. 42-43</ref> the NRA “forced virtually all American industry, manufacturing, and retail business into cartels possessing the power to set prices and wages, and to dictate the levels of production.”<ref>Richard M. Ebeling, "[http://www.fee.org/pdf/the-freeman/1005RMEColumn.pdf When the Supreme Court Stopped Economic Fascism in America]," ''The Freeman'', Vol. 55, No. 8 (October 2005), p. 3</ref>

Just as Mussolini “organized each trade or industrial group or professional group into a state supervised trade association” that “operated under state supervision and could plan production, quality, prices, distribution, labor standards, etc.,”<ref>John T. Flynn, ''[http://mises.org/books/rooseveltmyth.pdf The Roosevelt Myth]'' (The Devin-Adair Company, 1948) pp. 42-43</ref> the NRA “forced virtually all American industry, manufacturing, and retail business into cartels possessing the power to set prices and wages, and to dictate the levels of production.”<ref>Richard M. Ebeling, "[http://www.fee.org/pdf/the-freeman/1005RMEColumn.pdf When the Supreme Court Stopped Economic Fascism in America]," ''The Freeman'', Vol. 55, No. 8 (October 2005), p. 3</ref>

As head of the NRA and thus “FDR’s leading bureaucrat,”<ref>[http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/hsjohnson.htm Hugh Samuel Johnson], arlingtoncemetary.net</ref> the President appointed<ref>[http://www.condenaststore.com/Politicians/General-Hugh-Johnson/invt/103630 General Hugh Johnson], Condé Nast store</ref> General Hugh Johnson, who was granted “almost unlimited powers over industry.”<ref>Associated Press, "[http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FB0716FC3E5F1A7A93CBA8178ED85F478385F9 Johnson Chosen Industry Chief]," ''The New York Times'', May 19, 1933, p. 1</ref> According to economist Thayer Watkins (who teaches economic history at California’s San José State University,<ref>[http://www.sjsu.edu/depts/economics/faculty/thayer.htm Thayer Watkins, Ph.D.], Faculty & Staff, Economics, San José State University</ref> Johnson was “an admirer of Mussolini’s National Corporatist system in Italy and he drew upon the Italian experience in formulating the New Deal.”<ref>Thayer Watkins, "[http://www.sjsu.edu/faculty/watkins/corporatism.htm The Economic System of Corporatism]," Department of Economics, San José State University</ref> Walker F. Todd, research fellow at the American Institute for Economic Research, agrees that Johnson “did admire greatly what Mussolini appeared to have done,” identifying the NRA as a “thoroughly corporativist” idea.<ref>Walker F. Todd, "[http://www.aei.org/docLib/Todd%20-%20The%20Federal%20Reserve%20Board%20and%20the%20Rise%20of%20the%20Corporate%20State.pdf The Federal Reserve Board and the Rise of the Corporate State, 1931-1934]," ''Economic Education Bulletin'', Vol. XXXV No. 9 (September 1995) pp. 6, 34</ref>

As head of the NRA and thus “FDR’s leading bureaucrat,”<ref>[http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/hsjohnson.htm Hugh Samuel Johnson], arlingtoncemetary.net</ref> the President appointed<ref>[http://www.condenaststore.com/Politicians/General-Hugh-Johnson/invt/103630 General Hugh Johnson], Condé Nast store</ref> General Hugh Johnson, who was granted “almost unlimited powers over industry.”<ref>Associated Press, "[http://select.nytimes.com/gst/abstract.html?res=FB0716FC3E5F1A7A93CBA8178ED85F478385F9 Johnson Chosen Industry Chief]," ''The New York Times'', May 19, 1933, p. 1</ref> According to economist Thayer Watkins (who teaches economic history at California’s San José State University),<ref>[http://www.sjsu.edu/depts/economics/faculty/thayer.htm Thayer Watkins, Ph.D.], Faculty & Staff, Economics, San José State University</ref> Johnson was “an admirer of Mussolini’s National Corporatist system in Italy and he drew upon the Italian experience in formulating the New Deal.”<ref>Thayer Watkins, "[http://www.sjsu.edu/faculty/watkins/corporatism.htm The Economic System of Corporatism]," Department of Economics, San José State University</ref> Walker F. Todd, research fellow at the American Institute for Economic Research, agrees that Johnson “did admire greatly what Mussolini appeared to have done,” identifying the NRA as a “thoroughly corporativist” idea.<ref>Walker F. Todd, "[http://www.aei.org/docLib/Todd%20-%20The%20Federal%20Reserve%20Board%20and%20the%20Rise%20of%20the%20Corporate%20State.pdf The Federal Reserve Board and the Rise of the Corporate State, 1931-1934]," ''Economic Education Bulletin'', Vol. XXXV No. 9 (September 1995) pp. 6, 34</ref>

According to Jonah Goldberg, Johnson displayed a portrait of ''Il Duce'' in his NRA office and actually “distributed a memo at the Democratic Convention proposing that FDR become a Mussolini-like dictator.”<ref>Jonah Goldberg, [http://corner.nationalreview.com/post/?q=Mjc0ZmFlMDFiNDJkODdjYjE3NDY5OGVlY2JiZWRmNjM= Hendrick Hertzberg & The F-Word], The Corner (National Review Online), March 5, 2009</ref> In his retirement speech, Johnson invoked what he called the “shining name” of Mussolini.<ref>Arthur Meier Schlesinger, ''[http://books.google.com/books?id=mj3VmJ38tHIC The Coming of the New Deal, 1933-1935]'' (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2003) ISBN 0618340866, p. 153</ref> Johnson was said to carry around with him a copy of Raffaello Viglione’s pro-Mussolini book,<ref>Sheldon Richman, "[http://www.econlib.org/library/Enc/Fascism.html Fascism]," ''The Concise Encyclopedia of Economics'', econlib.org</ref> ''[http://books.google.com/books?id=vIJQHAAACAAJ The Corporate State]'', even presenting a copy to Secretary of Labor Frances Perkins.<ref>Frances Perkins, ''[http://books.google.com/books?id=AIEhAAAAMAAJ The Roosevelt I Knew]'' (The Viking press, 1946) p. 206. Socialist (Kent Worcester, ''[http://books.google.com/books?id=TwTTArAPWswC C.L.R. James: A Political Biography]'' [SUNY Press, 1995] ISBN 079142751X, p. 175) George Rawich wrote that Perkins told him Johnson gave each member of the Cabinet a book by [http://www.marxists.org/archive/rawick/1969/xx/self.html Fascist theoretician Giovanni Gentile], “and we all read it with great care.” Schivelbusch suggests the book was actually [http://www.lewrockwell.com/dilorenzo/dilorenzo172.html Mussolini advisor] Fausto Pitigliani’s ''The Italian Corporativist State.'' (Wolfgang Schivelbusch, ''[http://books.google.com/books?id=Z3GV5_n1h04C Three New Deals: Reflections on Roosevelt's America, Mussolini's Italy, and Hitler's Germany, 1933-1939]'' [Macmillan, 2006] ISBN 080507452X, p. 203, n. 28)</ref> Perkins commented that the NRA, "[c]ombined with the relief program and with public works... constituted an effective demonstration of the theories which John Maynard Keynes had been preaching and urging upon the English government," adding:

According to Jonah Goldberg, Johnson displayed a portrait of ''Il Duce'' in his NRA office and actually “distributed a memo at the Democratic Convention proposing that FDR become a Mussolini-like dictator.”<ref>Jonah Goldberg, [http://corner.nationalreview.com/post/?q=Mjc0ZmFlMDFiNDJkODdjYjE3NDY5OGVlY2JiZWRmNjM= Hendrick Hertzberg & The F-Word], The Corner (National Review Online), March 5, 2009</ref> In his retirement speech, Johnson invoked what he called the “shining name” of Mussolini.<ref>Arthur Meier Schlesinger, ''[http://books.google.com/books?id=mj3VmJ38tHIC The Coming of the New Deal, 1933-1935]'' (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 2003) ISBN 0618340866, p. 153</ref> Johnson was said to carry around with him a copy of Raffaello Viglione’s pro-Mussolini book,<ref>Sheldon Richman, "[http://www.econlib.org/library/Enc/Fascism.html Fascism]," ''The Concise Encyclopedia of Economics'', econlib.org</ref> ''[http://books.google.com/books?id=vIJQHAAACAAJ The Corporate State]'', even presenting a copy to Secretary of Labor Frances Perkins.<ref>Frances Perkins, ''[http://books.google.com/books?id=AIEhAAAAMAAJ The Roosevelt I Knew]'' (The Viking press, 1946) p. 206. Socialist (Kent Worcester, ''[http://books.google.com/books?id=TwTTArAPWswC C.L.R. James: A Political Biography]'' [SUNY Press, 1995] ISBN 079142751X, p. 175) George Rawich wrote that Perkins told him Johnson gave each member of the Cabinet a book by [http://www.marxists.org/archive/rawick/1969/xx/self.html Fascist theoretician Giovanni Gentile], “and we all read it with great care.” Schivelbusch suggests the book was actually [http://www.lewrockwell.com/dilorenzo/dilorenzo172.html Mussolini advisor] Fausto Pitigliani’s ''The Italian Corporativist State.'' (Wolfgang Schivelbusch, ''[http://books.google.com/books?id=Z3GV5_n1h04C Three New Deals: Reflections on Roosevelt's America, Mussolini's Italy, and Hitler's Germany, 1933-1939]'' [Macmillan, 2006] ISBN 080507452X, p. 203, n. 28)</ref> Perkins commented that the NRA, "[c]ombined with the relief program and with public works... constituted an effective demonstration of the theories which John Maynard Keynes had been preaching and urging upon the English government," adding: