New Deal Argumentative Analysis

The Great Depression of the 1930’s was the worst economic period in the history of the United States. Taking over the presidency in 1932, three years after the Depression began, Franklin Delano Roosevelt became responsible for leading America’s quest to escape the Depression. Roosevelt passed the New Deal in an attempt to help the nation recover through a series of initiatives focused on economic recovery. While most people would agree that the New Deal had a definite impact on the United States throughout the early-1930’s, there are some critics that think that the New Deal prolonged the Great Depression. These critics believe that different initiatives could have returned the United States to prosperity much sooner, and that the Depression would’ve continued much longer if not for the start of World War II.
Gary Dean Best is a critic that believes that the New Deal prolonged the Great Depression. As part of his book, Pride, Prejudice, and Politics: Roosevelt versus Recovery, 1933-1938, Best explains that his biggest problem with the Great Depression is that the United States failed to recover in Roosevelt’s first eight years as president. This issue deserves more attention from historians, according to Best, as the New Deal had flaws that aren’t discussed often enough.
Best claims that much of the New
In A New Deal for the American People, Biles argues in favor of the New Deal and each of its policies as helping to end the Great Depression, even though it didn’t totally restore economic prosperity. Biles begins his argument by mentioning a quote from Roosevlet following the Hundred Days, which stated, “Take a method and try it. If it fails, admit it frankly and try another. But above all, try something.” Because the Great Depression was so drastic, there was no easy fix, meaning that everything had to be done to try and see if it could help with recovery as best as it