During the 1930's, America witnessed a breakdown of the Democratic and free enterprise system as the United States fell into the worst depression in history. The economic depression that beset the United States and other countries was unique in its severity and its consequences. At the depth of the depression, in 1933, one American worker in every four was out of a job. The great industrial slump continued throughout the 1930's, shaking the foundations of Western capitalism. The Great Depression forced Americans to come together and find someone to help them climb out. On March 4, 1933 Franklin Roosevelt wondered if it were possible to "do anything to save America now." With millions of people tightening their belts, Roosevelt decided to gather a group of lawyers and university professors called the "brains trust" …show more content…
So FDR sought relief for the unemployed and poverty stricken people of the United States. To start he launched the Federal Emergency Relief Administration (FERA) which furnished more than $1 billion in grants to states, local areas, and private charities. This money was spent on projects such as repairing schools, laying sewer pipes, and building roads. From this came the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), a program that was important to Roosevelt because it combined his concern for conservation and his compassion for the youth. Along with these programs came one that aimed to help relieve unemployment, but did more than just that, the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA). This area was one of the poorest areas of the country and from the TVA it not only gave people jobs it also saved three million acres from erosion, multiplied the average income in the valley tenfold, and repaid its original investment in federal taxes. Planning not just for regions but for the whole economy seemed to many New Dealers the key to