Franklin Delano Roosevelt Struggles

As the 32nd President of the United States and leader of the American army, Franklin Delano Roosevelt had a crucial role in leading the nation out of a worldwide conflict: World War II. With America suffering from the Great Depression just two years before in 1939, Roosevelt was challenged with a very difficult and important task that no other president was required to face. At this time, there were many struggles that the United States and the President had to overcome. Franklin Delano Roosevelt was an important part of World War II, and lead America through two of the nation’s most difficult periods in history; he brought prosperity to the country and helped the people, commanded the army through the most grueling war in history, and defeated

“It was the worst economic disaster in American history. Farm prices fell so drastically that many farmers lost their homes and land. Many went hungry.” For Roosevelt, it was his job to help the nation overcome this crisis. He was able to prevent most of the damaging effects before America was forced to join the war with the Allied Powers. However, even if the nation was not currently active in the war, the fear of oncoming conflict had frightened the people, and it had affected what they chose to do financially. Roosevelt suggested implementing “alphabet agencies” that could improve employment rates, home ownership, and consumer product prices. Some of these included the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA), and the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA). Many more of these agencies were created, each with their own specific cause, but were all linked together with the purpose of helping the American economy and improving the lifestyle of the people. This group of acts and services was called the New Deal, and for the most part was a successful series of reforms. Some of these institutions are still in place today, such as the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and the Social Security Act (SSA), which was one of many that were added during

Alongside this, it was also his duty to create alliances with other nations, ones that would help bring down the enemy powers. In early 1941, he passed the Lend Lease Act in order to assist Great Britain in their attempts to stop Germany. In order to assist British forces, “President Roosevelt convinced the U.S. Congress to send ‘all aid short of war’ to Britain and the Soviet Union to help fight the Nazis.” Roosevelt soon became acquainted with the Prime Minister Winston Churchill, and also fostered a good relationship with the Soviet Union and its leader, Joseph Stalin. Together, the three planned, discussed, and strategized tactics they could use to stop the Axis Powers; Germany, Japan, and Italy. They would occasionally meet or write to each other in order to discuss recent events throughout the war, and what their next actions would be. Back in America, Roosevelt announced that the army’s arsenal was expanding, building sixty-thousand aircrafts in the year 1942, and more than one hundred twenty-thousand by the year 1943. Anti-aircraft guns and tanks were also being mass-produced, with a total of seventy-five thousand tanks and thirty-five thousand anti-aircraft weapons built by 1943. After the tragic bombings of Pearl Harbor, America officially entered the war against Japan, Germany, and Italy. One day after the attack, Roosevelt presented his famous