Historical president 1866-1958

Historical President 1866-1958 Name Class Information Date Introduction Since 1789, the US has been engaging in elections to vote for their president. Even though the country has succeeded in having one of the greatest historical presidents, it has also been ruled by some presidents who performed poorly during their tenure. This reason has prompted them to be keen to look at the factors that make a great president to prevent making mistakes in the future. One way to understand what makes a president great is by looking at the former great presidents and identifying the attributes that made them great. Even though the US had 45 former presidents, Franklin D. Roosevelt remains one of the greatest US presidents. Roosevelt was the US president between 1933 and 1945 and remains the longest-serving US president in American history. Most people have acknowledged his outstanding transformation during his tenure at the White House despite being elected during the Great Depression and the same period when Germany and Japan had risen beyond control. The measures he employed during this period made him one of the defining figures in US history.[Yoo, John. "Franklin Roosevelt and Presidential Power." Chap. L. Rev. 21 (2018): 205. https://digitalcommons.chapman.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1423&context=chapman-law-review] [Lipset, Seymour Martin. "Roosevelt and the Protest of the 1930s." Minn. L. Rev. 68 (1983): 273. https://scholarship.law.umn.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=3316&context=mlr] [Gropman, Alan. "Industrial mobilization." The Big'L': American Logistics in World War II (1997): 1-96. https://books.google.co.ke/books?hl=en&lr=&id=FSeJJDfj140C&oi=fnd&pg=PA1&dq=Rooseveltruled+during+Great+Depression+and+the+same+period+when+Germany+and+Japan+had+risen+beyond+control&ots=3ZjMX1tmxz&sig=kuGCnba391NAf4G2lD10Ro9I1Gg&redir_esc=y#v=onepage&q&f=false] Conflict Management Skills One quality that made Roosevelt a historically great president was his conflict management skills. In most instances, the country is faced with crises. Common crises include wars, natural disasters, and economic downturns. Since the president is the country's leader, he or she should make tough decisions during this period, offer assurance, and even unite the country since this crisis can divide the country. Roosevelt remains the greatest leader because he dealt with the crisis as the American President. For example, during his election, Americans were experiencing a depression. The Americans elected Roosevelt over his Republican opponent, President Herbert Hoover since they believed that Roosevelt would help to handle this depression. During his campaign, Roosevelt promised the country that he would implement new innovative strategies to help save the US from economic, social, and political disaster, creating a firm foundation for future prosperity and stability. When in office, he allowed the American federal government to assume new and powerful roles in the country's corporate life, economy, healthcare, well-being, and welfare of its citizens.[Baum, Matthew A., and Samuel Kernell. "Economic class and popular support for Franklin Roosevelt in war and peace." Public Opinion Quarterly 65, no. 2 (2001): 198-229. https://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/document?repid=rep1&type=pdf&doi=92aa946605f8d0f10b489434636e5feb554ae703] Furthermore, in 1935, the federal government offered unions the right to organize and have collective bargaining. This move played a major role in establishing the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938 to set a ceiling for the hours and floor for the wages that have been employed. Similarly, in 1935, his leadership offered financial aid to the aged, unemployed, and infirm who could not provide for themselves. This aid helped to reduce the number of people suffering in the country. Moreover, in 1933, the federal government helped agricultural and rural America with price support and development programs where these sectors struggled. Roosevelt's leadership also played an important role in boosting the American economy by embracing the activist fiscal policy after 1937, when the government was responsible for smoothing rough spots within the country.[Forsythe, John S. "Legislative History of the Fair Labor Standards Act." Law & Contemp. Probs. 6 (1939): 464. https://scholarship.law.duke.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1972&context=lcp] [Phillips, Sarah. "FDR, Hoover, and the New Rural Conservation, 1920–1932." In FDR and the Environment, pp. 107-152. New York: Palgrave Macmillan US, 2005. https://link.springer.com/chapter/10.1057/9780230100671_6] Effective Media Communication Skills Having effective Media communication skills is critical for every president. Effective communication could help the president to communicate the visions, policies, and goals to the administration and citizens. Furthermore, it helps in crisis management, where the president will accurately convey the information and offer guidance about how the government addresses the crisis and reassures the country. Moreover, it helps the president to inspire the nation positively, which helps unite the divided nation during difficult times. Effective communication also boosts media relations, where the president can effectively communicate with journalists. Roosevelt had outstanding communication skills, which were evident during his fireside chats. Roosevelt used fireside chats to communicate directly with the American people. This process helped him to convey the message without any interpretation or filter. Furthermore, since Roosevelt maintained an informal tone in the fireside chats, it helped establish a connection between him and the American citizens. Roosevelt used the fireside chats to attain personal connections with US citizens, increasing their support. Roosevelt also used the fireside chats to simplify the complex programs and policies. He was using the fireside chats to educate the citizens about the government's measures and their motives. Moreover, they helped to encourage the country due to the tough times of War II and the Great Depression. This encouragement inspired Americans by instilling confidence in their spirits and boosting their collaboration to improve the nation. The fireside chats also played a critical role in his political influence. For example, he used the platform to boost popularity by connecting to the public personally. This approach attracted a huge, strong following that supported his policies and helped him in his reelection campaigns.[Fakıoğlu, Yağmur. "Propaganda and Democracy: A Study of Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s Fireside Chats." Master's thesis, Bilkent Universitesi (Turkey), 2020. https://repository.bilkent.edu.tr/server/api/core/bitstreams/49e61d91-e011-49af-8416-ee95f3e78544/content] Economic Stewardship Economic stewardship was another critical factor to consider in whether the president was great. The main reason is that the country's economic status will determine its power. Some factors citizens look at in economic stewardship include fiscal policy management, economic growth, and job creation. Roosevelt's regime has been accredited to provide one of the greatest economic reforms that have impacted some of the changes that we are currently experiencing. For example, during his time assuming office, Roosevelt had a huge banking crisis due to the Great Depression. Roosevelt employed critical measures in banking and financial reforms to deal with the Great Depression. One of the reforms was the Emergency Bank Act (1933). This Act offered the president the authority to reopen the solvent banks and regulate the banking transactions under federal supervision. Roosevelt also employed the Bank Act of 1933, which was referred to as the Glass-Steagall Act. This Act set up a Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) to insure the bank while helping separate investment banking from commercial banking, minimizing the speculative trading risk. The main aim of the Glass-Steagall Act was to reform the banking system to help a similar financial collapse.[Awalt, Francis Gloyd. "Recollections of the Banking Crisis in 1933." Business History Review 43, no. 3 (1969): 347-371. https://fraser.stlouisfed.org/files/docs/meltzer/awarec69.pdf] [Calomiris, Charles W., and Eugene N. White. "The origins of federal deposit insurance." In The regulated economy: A historical approach to political economy, pp. 145-188. University of Chicago Press, 1994. https://www.nber.org/system/files/chapters/c6575/c6575.pdf] Roosevelt also helped in building the Banking Act of 1935. The following Act was created based on the Emergency Banking Act and the Bank Act of 1933 to strengthen the regulation of banks and financial institutions. This Act helped establish the Federal Open Market Committee, which controlled the monetary policy while maintaining the banking system's stability. Roosevelt also spearheaded the establishment of the Securities Act of 1933. This Act was set up to restore people's confidence in the stock market by emphasizing the stock market to maintain transparency and disclose their information to the investors. This Act caused the establishment of the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) to protect investors from fraud while regulating the securities industry. Roosevelt also introduced the Home Owner’s Loan Corporation (HOLC). Since the country was experiencing a housing crisis, Roosevelt created HOLC to refinance home mortgages while helping to prevent foreclosures. The following process helped relieve millions of homeowners struggling to continue with their mortgage payments during the Great Depression era. Roosevelt also introduced the National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA). Even though NIRA was not spe...