Franklin D Roosevelt Use of Executive Powers

Introduction 

Franklin Delano Roosevelt (FDR) is one of the celebrated US presidents, especially due to his role in ending the impact of Great Britain and leading the USA through World War Two (WWII). FDR was the 32 nd president of the USA, and he is the longest-serving head of the nation as he served four terms as the president. He is remembered as the president who helped American people in overcoming economic, social, and political challenges that they were facing in the 20 th century. Unlike previous presidents, FDR re-engineered the government significantly, especially through the use of executive powers he was accorded as the head of the nation. He specifically expanded the powers of the US federal government through several programs and executives’ orders at the time when a significant number of Americans doubted the ability or suitability of the government in providing economic stability. FDR mainly change America through his New Deal program. It is also alleged that it was FDR who used his powers and influence to force America into WWII. Consequently, some people argue that FDR expanded his executive powers entirely too far. 1 Although FDR helped in restoring the economic stability of the USA and he successfully led the country through WWII, he overused his executive powers to championing for his ideology, programs, and policies. 

FDR’s New Deal and the Expansion of Executive Powers 

FDR came to office at the time when the country was facing one of the gravest challenges in its history. It was estimated that the nominal gross nation product had dropped by about 50%, specifically between 1929 and 1933. 2 The income from the agricultural sector reduced from $6 billion to $2 billion while investment collapsed from $24 billion to $3 billion over the same period. 1 At the same time, about 13 million Americans were rendered jobless by the Great Depression. Therefore, like many countries in the world, the US was faced with the Great Depression, which is still regarded as the greatest economic catastrophe in the history of human beings. 3 The Great Depression started in 1929, and it lasted for several years, leading to economic stability in countries such as the USA. 

The attempt by the Hoover administration to address the problem of the depression did not result in a significant outcome, as the rate of unemployment was still high and many Americans were suffering. Therefore, while campaigning during the 1932 presidential election, FDR promised Americans a New Deal that would help in restoring the economic stability of the country. Therefore, immediately after assuming office in March 1933, FDR delivered a New Deal to Americans who were desperate for the solutions to address the tough economic times that was making life unbearable for many. FDR’s excessive use of executive power was mainly seen and experience in his determination to implement the New Deal despite the challenges and obstacles he was facing. 

The New Deal contained several programs that were supported and opposed by a significant number of Americans, especially people who did not believe in FDR’s economic and political ideology, as the deal was not based in any sound economic theory. Through the New Deal, the FDR administration launched emergency programs that were aimed at providing grants to both state and local governments to offer relief payments to millions of Americans. To effectively implement such programs, FDR ensured that Congress passed the Social Security Act of 1935, which made it possible for the government to assist the unemployed in the country. The Act created unemployment insurance pool that helped millions of Americans. Importantly, the Act paved the way for the creation of the Social Security Administration the set up administrative funds that were dedicated to helping the disadvantaged in the society, including pension for old age period. 4 

At the same time, to revamp the agricultural sector, the FDR administration created the Agricultural Adjustment Administration (AAA), which was aimed at ensuring that farmers take land out of production while at the same time it enabled farmers to access cheap loans. 5 For instance, FDR aggressively championed for the establishment of the Commodity Credit Corporation to provide nonrecourse loans to farmers. Besides, the Farm Credit Administration made it easy and convenient for farmers to access production loans. FDR initiated many programs that reformed the agricultural sector. Also, the New Deal increased the use of intergovernmental funds or grants to improve the welfare and wellbeing of Americans. 

The New Deal was based on several assumptions. First, FDR and supporters of the New Deal assumed that the country needed the intervention of the federal government for it to move out of the depression, which was making the lives of Americans unbearable, particularly those in poor households. Therefore, the federal government introduced many reforms that challenged the status quo and a common perception of the role of the government. Traditionally, the government was hesitant to intervene in economic operations due to the assumption economy should only be influenced by market forces such as demand and supply. The New Deal ensured that the government was directly involved in economic activities. Secondly, proponents of the New Deal assumed that the Great Depression was caused by the inherent instability of the market, as well as the failure of the government to intervene. 6 Thus, government intervention was needed to ensure economic stability. 

The need to implement the New Deal to end the impact of the depression made FDR to excessively expand his executive right from the time he was sworn in as the president of the USA. His first intention to expand his executive power was seen in his first inaugural address when he argued that the US Constitution is simple and practical, making it possible to make changes that are aimed at addressing extraordinary needs of the people. His argument was mainly based on the need to access constitutional powers that could enable him to freely exercise his executive powers, especially in the times of emergency. 

The banking sector was almost collapsing when FDR assumed office in March 1933, as a significant number of commercial banks closed while many others stopped offering loans to people due to the impact of the Great Depression. To restore sanity and stability in the banking sector, FDR was forced to invoke the Trading with Enemy Act. He used the bank to create an unusual national banking holiday while stopping any gold transaction in the country. 7 Even though the Act gave the president some economic powers, especially during wartime or emergencies, it did not allow give the head of the nation the mandate of regulating the domestic economy. Therefore, lawmakers and scholars argued that FDR used unspecified presidential executive powers to regulate the domestic economy, primarily the local domestic sector. At the same time, he put a lot of pressure on lawmakers to pass the Emergency Banking Act that enabled the national government to control currency transactions, including gold transactions. It is alleged that Congress only spent 30 minutes to discuss the Emergency Banking Act before passion it into law. 8 

Apart from the Emergency Banking Act, FDR relied heavily on his executive power to push some legislation aimed at facilitating the implementation of the New Deal. Specifically, the legislation was intended to give the president immense powers to control the economic activities. For instance, by forcing the enactment of AAA, FDR got the executive power to have full control of the agricultural sector, including dictating the type of crops that could be planted by farmers. 9 At the same time, FDR pushed for the passage of the National Industrial Recovery Act (NRA) to enable the federal government the power and authority to control both the production and employment in various industries. Thus, the fact that FDR managed to pressurize Congress to pass many laws within his first 100 days in office meant that he expanded his executive powers too far. 

The acts that were passed by Congress during FDR's first days in office did not consider several factors, including the powers and mandate of the Supreme Court to oversee the operations of the national government. 10 Consequently, FDR engaged in a lot of conflicts with the Supreme Court, which also proved that he expanded his executive powers too far. For instance, in January 1935, the Supreme Court revoked the provision of the NRA that allowed the executive arm of the government to ban the interstate transportation of petroleum products. At the same time, in the Schechter Poultry vs. the USA case, the Court ruled that it was illegal for the Congress to delegate legislative authority to the president. Besides, the Supreme Court found that the NRA was unconstitutional because it allowed because it provided the federal government with excess powers to control domestic economic activities. FDR use political attacks to reduce the influence of the Court because he believed that it was interfering with the implementation of the New Deal. Specifically, FDR used his executive power to increase the number of justices who were serving at the Supreme Court to influence decisions made by the court. 11 FDR critics argued that he was abusing his presidential executive powers to interfere with the justice system in the country. FDR was willing and ready to expand his executive power immensely to ensure that his policies and programs were implemented within the required time. 

Apart from the implementation of the New Deal, FDR expanded his executive powers during WWII. For instance, while working with legal minds like Justice Sutherland, FDR ensured that the federal government had exclusive powers of the national security, as well as international relations. The Neutrality Act that was first passed by the Congress in 1935 prevented the USA from intervening WWII. 12 However, FDR still expanded his executive powers to push the country to the wars against the public will and expectations. He pressurized Congress to change the Neutrality Act so that he could find some loopholes to push the US to the war. Changes in the Act enabled FDR to supply some arms and money to China after the Japanese attack. 13 FDR’s role in the war showed that he expanded his executive powers. 

The methods of the New Deal challenged the status quo and contravened the Constitution, making FDR expand his powers. The main method used in the implementations of the New Deal was the expansion of the government role in economic activities. Conventionally, the role of the government should be to provide security and public goods to its citizens. The New Deal, on the other hand, was challenging this common belief and ideology, which existed for many years. 14 At the same time, the New Deal required the presidency to be involved in the legislation process actively, a role that should only be played by Congress. Therefore, some people may argue that FDR could not implement the New Deal without expanding his power. 

Conclusion 

The impact of the decision by FDR to expand his executive powers is still being felt in the USA, even though he left his office many years ago. FDR was determined to implement the New Deal and to implement his policy and programs, which explains why he decided to expand his executive power too far. He used his executive powers to influence the Congress and the legislation process. At the same time, he expanded his executive powers to reduce the influence of the justice system, especially the Supreme Court. Although the decision by FDR to expand his executive powers was somehow justified, it affected various aspects of Americans. 

Bibliography 

Crafts, Nicholas, and Peter Fearon. "Lessons from the 1930s Great Depression." Oxford Review of Economic Policy 26 (2010): 285-317. 

Warber, Adam L., Yu Ouyang, and Richard W. Waterman. "Landmark Executive Orders: Presidential Leadership Through Unilateral Action." Presidential Studies Quarterly 48 (2018): 110-126. 

Yoo, John. "Franklin Roosevelt and Presidential Power." Chapman Law Review 21 (2018): 205- 272. 

1 John, Yoo. "Franklin Roosevelt and Presidential Power." Chapman Law Review 21 (2018): 206. 

2 . John, Yoo. "Franklin Roosevelt and Presidential Power." Chapman Law Review 21 (2018): 209. 

3 . Nicholas Crafts, and Peter Fearon. "Lessons from the 1930s Great Depression." Oxford Review of Economic Policy 26 (2010): 285. 

4 . Nicholas, Crafts, and Peter Fearon. "Lessons from the 1930s Great Depression." Oxford Review of Economic Policy 26 (2010): 288. 

5 . John, Yoo. "Franklin Roosevelt and Presidential Power." Chapman Law Review 21 (2018): 217. 

6 . Nicholas, Crafts, and Peter Fearon. "Lessons from the 1930s Great Depression." Oxford Review of Economic Policy 26 (2010): 291. 

7 Ibid., 292 

8 . John, Yoo. "Franklin Roosevelt and Presidential Power." Chapman Law Review 21 (2018): 219. 

9 . Ibid., 223 

10 . Adam L. Warber., Yu Ouyang, and Richard W. Waterman. "Landmark Executive Orders: Presidential Leadership Through Unilateral Action." Presidential Studies Quarterly 48 (2018): 110. 

11 . John, Yoo. "Franklin Roosevelt and Presidential Power." Chapman Law Review 21 (2018): 230. 

12 . Ibid., 235 

13 . John, Yoo. "Franklin Roosevelt and Presidential Power." Chapman Law Review 21 (2018): 240. 

14 Ibid., 243