FDR's Bank Holiday and the Emergency Banking Act of 1933

FDR's Bank Holiday and the Emergency Banking Act of 1933

In March 1933, Franklin D. Roosevelt took office amid a banking panic that had shuttered banks across the country. This episode explores the dramatic first days of the New Deal: Roosevelt's decision to declare a national bank holiday, the emergency passage of the Emergency Banking Act, and the fireside chat that reassured millions. We talk about the role of William H. Woodin, the Reconstruction Finance Corporation under Jesse Jones, the distinction between sound and unsound banks, and how the crisis was used to push through the Glass-Steagall Act and create the FDIC. We also touch on the human cost—families who lost their life savings—and the political gamble that paid off, restoring faith in the banking system within a week. #FDR #NewDeal #BankHoliday #EmergencyBankingAct #GreatDepression #FDIC #GlassSteagall #FiresideChat #WilliamHWoodin #JesseJones #ReconstructionFinanceCorporation #BankingCrisis #1933 #NorthAmerica #AmericanHistory #EconomicHistory #FexingoHistory #History Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

FDR's Social Security: The Fight for Old-Age Pensions

In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the creation of the Social Security Act of 1935, a landmark of the New Deal. They discuss the fight over old-age pensions, the role of Frances Perkins—the first female cabinet secretary—and the political compromises that shaped the program. Learn about the Townsend Plan, which pressured FDR into action, the exclusion of agricultural and domestic workers, and the lasting impact of Social Security on American life. The conversation also touches on the Supreme Court case Helvering v. Davis, which upheld the program's constitutionality. A deep dive into one of the most enduring legacies of the Roosevelt administration. #SocialSecurity #FranklinDRoosevelt #NewDeal #FrancesPerkins #TownsendPlan #OldAgePensions #HelveringvDavis #SocialSecurityAct #1935 #GreatDepression #AmericanHistory #NLRB #WagnerAct #FDR #FexingoHistory #History #Podcast #NorthAmerica Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

FDR's 'Black Thursday' and the Supreme Court Showdown of 1937

In this episode of Franklin Roosevelt and the New Deal Explained, Lucas and Luna dive into the untold story of FDR's 1937 economic misstep known as 'Roosevelt's Recession' and the dramatic Supreme Court shift that followed. After years of New Deal recovery, FDR slashed federal spending in 1937, plunging the nation back into depression. Industrial production fell by a third, unemployment spiked, and the administration scrambled to reverse course. Lucas explains the roles of Treasury Secretary Henry Morgenthau Jr., the flawed 'balanced budget' ideology, and the Keynesian revolt led by Marriner Eccles. Then the conversation turns to the 'switch in time that saved nine'—Justice Owen Roberts's pivotal vote in West Coast Hotel Co. v. Parrish, which upheld a minimum wage law and signaled the Court's acceptance of the New Deal. Lucas unpacks the internal court dynamics, Justice Hughes's savvy maneuvering, and how FDR's failed court-packing plan still achieved its goal. Special attention to Justice Louis Brandeis's behind-the-scenes role. A story of hubris, recovery, and the unwritten rules of constitutional law. #RooseveltsRecession #HenryMorgenthauJr #MarrinerEccles #OwenRoberts #WestCoastHotel #CourtPacking #SupremeCourt #NewDeal #FranklinDRoosevelt #1937Recession #KeynesianEconomics #LouisBrandeis #CharlesEvansHughes #BalancedBudget #GreatDepression #History #FexingoHistory #NorthAmericanHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

FDR's Federal One: The WPA's Arts Programs and American Culture

In Episode 139, Lucas and Luna dive into Federal One, the umbrella project within the Works Progress Administration that gave birth to the Federal Art Project, Federal Writers' Project, Federal Music Project, and Federal Theatre Project. They explore how these programs put thousands of artists, writers, musicians, and actors to work during the Great Depression, creating enduring cultural legacies like the American Guide Series, the Index of American Design, and the Living Newspaper. The conversation touches on key figures like Holger Cahill, Hallie Flanagan, and Henry Alsberg, and examines controversies, including the backlash against the Federal Theatre Project for its leftist themes and the eventual defunding of the program by Congress. Lucas and Luna discuss how Federal One redefined the relationship between government and the arts, and whether its spirit lives on today. Tune in for a rich look at how the New Deal built not just roads and bridges, but a national cultural infrastructure. #FDR #NewDeal #FederalOne #WPA #FederalArtProject #FederalWritersProject #FederalMusicProject #FederalTheatreProject #HolgerCahill #HallieFlanagan #HenryAlsberg #AmericanGuideSeries #IndexofAmericanDesign #LivingNewspaper #GreatDepression #ArtandCulture #History #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

FDR's Dust Bowl: The Great Plains and the New Deal Response

In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal response to the Dust Bowl, the worst environmental disaster in American history. They focus on the Shelterbelt Project, a massive tree-planting program initiated in 1934 to combat soil erosion and wind on the Great Plains. Learn about the vision of foresters like Raphael Zon and the practical challenges of planting 220 million trees across the Plains from Canada to Texas. The episode also covers the creation of the Soil Conservation Service under Hugh Hammond Bennett, the passage of the Soil Conservation and Domestic Allotment Act of 1936, and the controversial Resettlement Administration's efforts to buy out failing farms and relocate families, including the creation of the Woodlake project in Texas. Lucas and Luna discuss how the New Deal attempted to heal both the land and its people, the limitations of these programs, and the legacy of environmental conservation in federal policy. The conversation touches on the politics of conservation, the role of state and local resistance, and the long-term ecological changes that reshaped the Plains. #DustBowl #NewDeal #FDR #ShelterbeltProject #SoilConservationService #HughHammondBennett #RaphaelZon #GreatPlains #ResettlementAdministration #Woodlake #EnvironmentalHistory #SoilConservation #1930s #Farmers #Drought #History #FexingoHistory #NorthAmerica Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]