The Associative Vision at Home and Abroad by Ellis Hawley
The chapter in Ellis Hawley’s, The Great War and the Search for a Modern Order, entitled, “The Associative Vision at Home and Abroad” dealt with the visions of Herbert Hoover. The chapter initially dealt with Herbert Hoover’s vision of the, “associative state”. The “associative state” was a vision that Hoover had for America, after he had seen the effects of World War I, and the scandal that accompanied the Coolidge administration. The “associative state” was the idea that the public sphere should cooperate with the private sphere, in the business realm. Hoover, an individual whom largely went against many progressive ideals, was a strong believer in new individualism. Hoover envisioned partnership, which would bring large in addition to moderate business spheres not readily accessible to government scrutiny into having a closer relationship with government. Bound by Quaker influences and a firm belief in science and the scientific method, Hoover went about to found the “associative state”.
Hoover’s visions of the “associative state” were viewed as heretic by many of his contemporaries. Individuals such and Calvin Coolidge in addition to Andrew Mellon adamantly rejected Hoover’s idea of cooperative partnership. The thesis of their argument being that cooperative partnership went against their views of unfair competition in business, in essence it went against the conservative platform of establishing and upholding anti-trust laws. Hoover was also criticized for the desire to expand government agencies and create new ones, in order to promote economic harmony, and put a check on codes and ethics on ways that business was conducted.
Hoover, as Secretary of Commerce attempted to put his vision of the “associative state” into effect. He did this through his belief in de facto intervention in markets through incentives. In no other market did he display this plan more than agriculture, by creating the Food Administration. Hoover pushed for scientific innovations in agriculture, to produce high quality yields and better methods of farming.
Hoover is also vilified repeatedly for his inaction with the Depression. His personal policy and his party’s policy were designed to let the country find its own way, for if it became dependent on government aide, it would be a weaker nation that if it found it’s own way. This was a flawed assumption on their behalf though, because even in the 1920’s, there was a movement from many of the nation’s younger voters advocating change.
However, even before the Depression, there were signs that Hoover was becoming more conservative. As Document A suggests, Hoover did not want to be considered completely laissez-faire. He seemed less determined to preserve the extremely capitalistic society of the 1920's which was run, often corruptly, by political machines, such as Tweed. However, the success of the American economy under the private interest beliefs of Harding and Coolidge required him to ensure that the lack of intervention ...
The Second issue Hoover addressed were the challenges he would face in his presidency. Hoover’s nation was coming out of a war and was facing an economy plummeting into an unknown Great Depression. Hoover proclaimed a need for reform of the criminal justice system, the enforcement of the Eighteenth Amendment, cooperation of government and businesses, the development of education, organization of the public health services, and maintaining the integrity of the
Historians claim that Hoovers term during the depression was filled with false promises and accuse the president of doing nothing while the depression worsened. Along with worsening the debt and a fairly aggressive use of government it is clear his approach towards the situation was not the best. FDR’s approach would prove during his administration to suffice in the augmentation of the crisis. Although it seemed like a completely opposite presidency, many ideas came from his predecessor. Roosevelt’s team of advisors understood that much of what they produced and fashioned into the New Deal owed its origins to Hoover’s policies.
The year 1906 brought about a new era in governmental legislation that helped to shape the way privately owned producers of consumable goods would conduct themselves in the future. President Theodore Roosevelt, a man known for his tenaciousness when tackling the issues of the people, pursued these legislative changes, refusing to back down to the lobbyists who stood in his way. One such industry brought to its knees was the meat packing industry, a thriving group of companies that supplied not only the United States but also the markets in Europe with processed foods.
In Harold C. Livesay’s Andrew Carnegie and the rise of Big Business, Andrew Carnegie’s struggles and desires throughout his life are formed into different challenges of being the influential leader of the United States of America. The book also covers the belief of the American Dream in that people can climb up the ladder of society by hard work and the dream of becoming an influential citizen, just as Carnegie did.
98-176. 5 Robert H. Ferrell, America as a World Power, 1872-1945, (New York: Harper & Row Publishers Inc., 1971), p. 265. 6 Arthur Meier Schlesinger, p. 46. 7 Hamilton Fish, FDR: The Other Side of the Coin, (New York: Vantage Press 1976), pp.
Shortly after the American Revolution, the United States entered an era of profound economic and social change that was dominated first by the Market Revolution and subsequently by Andrew Jackson’s skillful use of the power of the presidency to crack down on capitalist exploitation. Jackson’s first biographer, James Parton, however, describes the legacy of the seventh President’s administration as one fraught with controversy, “Andrew Jackson was a patriot, and a traitor. He was the greatest of generals, and wholly ignorant of the art of war. He was the most candid of men, and capable of the profoundest dissimulation. He was a democratic autocrat, an urbane savage, an atrocious saint.”
Because the economy was unstable, Franklin Roosevelt imposed many programs to boost the economy both helping and hindering American citizens through banking and financial reformation with government regulation. After declaring the “bank holiday,” Roosevelt created the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) in order to put confidence back in the citizens and their ability to trust banks to keep their money. By also separating commercial banks from investment banks, the government was trying to keep the flow of money uniform. This idea is radical in form because of the new government imposed restrictions, and conservatives may argue this movement shows signs of socialism. Many people saw implications that free enterprise was disappearing; Herbert Hoover specifically mentions in his Anti-New Deal Campaign speech that he proposes to “amend the tax laws so as not to defeat free men and free enterprise.” The threat to free enterprise challenged the American economy because u...
After making his fortune he moved on to various jobs and positions abroad and at home, in 1921 he was appointed by President Harding to the position of Secretary of Commerce. During his tenure as Secretary of Commerce for the Harding-Coolidge administrations, McElvaine reveals that Hoover "was the greatest secretary of commerce in our history". McElvaine explains that Hoover "had no use for the strict laissez-fair attitude of the nineteenth century" and goes on to say that Hoover often said "the root of problem in our economic system was the unfair distribution of income between labor and capital". Divine et al., affirm McElvaine's statements adding that Hoover "sought cooperation between government and business". Divine et al., also state that as Secretary of Commerce, Hoover "used his office to assist American manufacturers and exporters in expanding their overseas trade". Divine et al., support the explanations of McElvaine by also citing that Hoover "strongly supported a trade association movement to encourage cooperation rather than cutthroat competition he did not view business and government as antagonist".
This article analyzes Roosevelt’s world-views and personal beliefs. Engel gives insight into Roosevelt’s philosophy for the roles played in the international arena, especially the role played by the United States. This look into Roosevelt’s philosophies will help explain his reasons for taking a stance against corruption in big business and the government.
...cy. From better working conditions and greater standards of living to the active supervision of modern corporations, the powerful federal government we have today reflects a lot upon Roosevelt’s efforts from a century ago. Many of the protective domestic provisions fought for in Roosevelt’s terms are now mere conventional responsibilities that we heedlessly expect our government to fulfill. In addition, modern foreign policies are also reminiscent of the foreign policy developed in Roosevelt’s time; the US has now adapted the reputation and the responsibility to “police” many foreign affairs, although collaboratively with other major countries through the United Nations. Ultimately, Roosevelt’s administration established a direction of government control that shaped the modern organized bureaucracy that keeps a watchful eye on labor, corporations and foreign affairs.
Roark, James L. The American Promise: A Compact History. 4th. ed. Volume 1: 1877. New York: BEDFORD/ST. MARTIN'S, 2010. Print.
The New Deal period has generally - but not unanimously - been seen as a turning point in American politics, with the states relinquishing much of their autonomy, the President acquiring new authority and importance, and the role of government in citizens' lives increasing. The extent to which this was planned by the architect of the New Deal, Franklin D. Roosevelt, has been greatly contested, however. Yet, while it is instructive to note the limitations of Roosevelt's leadership, there is not much sense in the claims that the New Deal was haphazard, a jumble of expedient and populist schemes, or as W. Williams has put it, "undirected". FDR had a clear overarching vision of what he wanted to do to America, and was prepared to drive through the structural changes required to achieve this vision.
The power of the federal government to regulate commerce was an issues that had existed since the chartering of the First Bank of the United States in 1791. Following the War of 1812, a division occurred in the Republican Party between those who supported the new commercial economy and those who believed agriculture was key to American prosperity. During this period Congress often encouraged manufacturing through the passing of numerous tariffs, which protected internal trade and made imported good, mostly British, and more costly. These tariffs did not help all of those in the United States, southern farm...