FDR's Social Security Act: The Battle for Old-Age Insurance

FDR's Social Security Act: The Battle for Old-Age Insurance

In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the origins of Social Security, the most enduring legacy of Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal. They trace the fight from the Townsend Plan's radical pension proposal to the creation of the Social Security Act of 1935. Lucas explains how FDR navigated opposition from both left and right, the role of the Committee on Economic Security chaired by Frances Perkins, and the compromise that excluded farm and domestic workers—a decision with lasting racial implications. The conversation covers the regressive payroll tax structure, the winning of Supreme Court approval in Helvering v. Davis, and the first beneficiary Ida May Fuller. They also discuss the political maneuverings of the American Association for Old Age Security and the influence of economist Abraham Epstein. A concise look at how the American welfare state was born, and what its architects fought over. #SocialSecurity #NewDeal #FDR #FrancesPerkins #TownsendPlan #AbrahamEpstein #HelveringvDavis #IdaMayFuller #OldAgeInsurance #PayrollTax #CommitteeOnEconomicSecurity #AmericanAssociationForOldAgeSecurity #WelfareState #1935 #GreatDepression #History #FexingoHistory #NorthAmerica Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

FDR's Federal Art Project: Art, Work, and the New Deal

While the New Deal is often remembered for dams, bridges, and bank reforms, it also funded tens of thousands of paintings, sculptures, and posters. This episode explores the Federal Art Project, part of the Works Progress Administration, which employed over 10,000 artists during the Great Depression. Lucas and Luna discuss how the project aimed to make art accessible to all Americans, sparking both creativity and controversy. They delve into the work of artists like Jackson Pollock, who got his start on the FAP payroll, and explore the project's impact on American culture, from community art centers to the Index of American Design. The episode also touches on the political backlash, with charges of communist infiltration and 'boondoggling' that eventually led to the project's end in 1943. It's a story of how the government became a patron of the arts, and what that meant for a nation in crisis. #FDR #NewDeal #FederalArtProject #WPA #GreatDepression #PublicArt #JacksonPollock #HolgerCahill #AmericanArt #IndexOfAmericanDesign #CommunityArtCenter #1930s #ArtHistory #CulturalPolicy #FranklinRoosevelt #DepressionEra #History #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

FDR's Rural Electrification Administration: Power to the Countryside

Before the New Deal, most American farms had no electricity. In 1935, FDR created the Rural Electrification Administration (REA) to bring power to the countryside. This episode explores how the REA overcame resistance from private utilities, helped farmers form cooperatives, and transformed rural life. We follow the story of Morris Llewellyn Cooke, the REA's first administrator, and John M. Carmody, who expanded the program. We'll look at the legal battle with Alabama Power, the impact on farm productivity and daily life, and how the REA's cooperative model shaped rural America for decades. Along the way, we discuss the political maneuvers and the quiet revolution that lit up the dark corners of the nation. #RuralElectrificationAdministration #REA #MorrisLlewellynCooke #JohnCarmody #NewDeal #FranklinDRoosevelt #ElectricCooperatives #AlabamaPower #Farmers #RuralAmerica #1930s #FDR #Cooperative #Electrification #TennesseeValleyAuthority #PublicPower #History #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

FDR's Unsung Hero: Marriner Eccles and the New Deal Economy

In this episode of Franklin Roosevelt and the New Deal Explained, hosts Lucas and Luna explore the overlooked but crucial role of Marriner Eccles in shaping New Deal economic policy. From his early days as a Utah banker during the Great Depression to his appointment as Federal Reserve Board chairman in 1934, Eccles challenged laissez-faire orthodoxy and championed deficit spending, wage growth, and consumer purchasing power as keys to recovery. Lucas recounts how Eccles' radical ideas influenced the Banking Act of 1935, which restructured the Federal Reserve and centralized power in Washington. The episode also delves into Eccles' bitter feud with Treasury Secretary Henry Morgenthau Jr. over fiscal policy, and his ultimate vindication as Keynesian economics gained traction. Listeners will gain a fresh perspective on the internal battles within FDR's administration and the intellectual foundations of the modern American economy. #MarrinerEccles #NewDeal #FranklinRoosevelt #FederalReserve #BankingAct1935 #KeynesianEconomics #DeficitSpending #GreatDepression #UtahBanker #HenryMorgenthau #FiscalPolicy #CentralBanking #USHistory #EconomicHistory #FDRAdministration #FexingoHistory #Podcast #History Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]

FDR's Dust Bowl Resettlement and the Nation's Refugee Crisis

In episode 159, Lucas and Luna explore one of the most overlooked crises of the New Deal: the Dust Bowl refugee crisis and the federal government's halting efforts to resettle displaced farmers. They focus on the Resettlement Administration's controversial camps for migrants in California, the rivalry with the Farm Security Administration, and the role of figures like Dorothea Lange and John Steinbeck in documenting the exodus. The episode also delves into the political backlash against resettlement, the fight over land use policy, and the long-term impact on American agriculture. Specific topics include the drought of 1934, the Taylor Grazing Act, the Klamath River dam controversy, and the legacy of the 'Okie' migration. #DustBowl #ResettlementAdministration #FarmSecurityAdministration #DorotheaLange #JohnSteinbeck #OkieMigration #TaylorGrazingAct #California #NewDeal #FDR #MigrantCamps #SoilErosion #Drought #GreatDepression #AgriculturalPolicy #KlamathRiver #History #FexingoHistory Keep every episode free: buymeacoffee.com/fexingo [https://buymeacoffee.com/fexingo]