Why Did The Policies Of President Hoover Fail To Combat The Great Depression Effectively?

In October 1929, the USA was plunged into the sharpest recession to take place in American history. The period it lasted for became cognize as the Great picture. Drastic legal action was required to fix the situation, and the first person pack looked to was chairman Hoover, who had unluckily took up presidency eight months before the Wall Street Crash.However, Hoover is known for his softness to sue federal powers to overcome the Depression quickly and effectively. Some recent historians confuse been more harmonical to struggleds Hoover because they believe he was a victim of both his own mindset and of one of the virtually difficult to solve crises in American history.But most believe it was his political beliefs and policies that stopped him budge the Depression successfully.Hoovers main trouble was that he was not willing for direct government to take place. His deuce central policies were self-help and voluntary co-operation. His continued belief in these represented hi s continued belief that the economy had to estimable itself and that changes he made would not help Economic depression cannot be cured by legislative action or exe lowerive pronouncement.Indeed, Hoover knew that the government was urgently required to take action but the action he was willing to take was not n early(a) enough to deal with the abstruseness of the Depression, as shown through eight different areas of the Depression federal government policies were made on. These were agriculture, tariffs, repudiation of war debts, voluntarism, unemployment relief, Federal folk loanword Bank Act, Re social structure Finance Corporation (RFC) and war veterans and the Bonus Army. The economy passed in all of these areas was a failure, which lost Hoover all credibility.The Agricultural Marketing Act was passed in 1929, creating a nine-person Federal Farm Board with funds of $500 million to create stabilisation corps, and the crops created were finally bought stand at higher prices . The agricultural policy failed for two reasons firstly because it paid US farmers by artificial means high prices and could not continue in the long term secondly because it treated agriculture as a domestic, not foreign, issue. Cheap foreign imports became a problem, and the answer appeared to be even higher tariffs.In June 1930, the Hawley-Smoot tariff was enforced and was the highest in US history. Its result was most European nations abandoning free trade. Hoover could have vetoed the bill but chose not to.In the repudiation of war debts, Hoover blamed the Depression on Europe, though the situation was in fact vice versa. Europe could not expend to leave back war debts, and international trades decreased. Countries worldwide were in a more depressed land, again a prejudicious result.Hoover placed the onus of improving the situation onto the businesses rather than the government. He told businessmen not to cut their workforces or wages but to maintain output and encourage buying. As the depression worsened, however, they could not afford to do this. Workers were fired and wages reduced, raising unemployment levels.So, Hoover then secured $500 million in 1932 from sexual intercourse to use as unemployment relief, but the amount simply wasnt enough. He also set up the hot seats fate Committee for Employment to help agencies organise efforts, but still refused to help directly because of his self-help policies.An example of this is during the 1930-31 drought, which was so severe it led to almost starvation in the South. Congress gave $47 million to be offered as loans, but Hoover still didnt want to give direct relief. He didnt believe in natural endowment out benefits.So unemployment relief was another failed attempt by Hoover to fight the Depression.The Federal Home Lon Bank Act was passed in July 1932, and was Hoovers attempt to save mortgages. A series of Federal Home Loan banks were set up to help loan associations providing mortgages. However , they only lent 50% of the property value. The Act failed and was more often than not ineffective, and homes were repossessed.The Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC) was Hoovers most radical measure to overcome the Depression and the precursor to the saucily Deal initiatives of Franklin Delano Roosevelt.The RFC was established in January 1932 and could lend up to $2 billion to stabilise banks, insurance companies, railroads and construction companies that were suffering. It was a measure taken to restore confidence. The loans, however, were given mainly to big banks and larger companies. The RFC eventually failed because it was big(p) too little too late.By this cadence, Hoovers credibility was severely damaged, but the nail in the position was yet to come the treatment of the Bonus Army, which portrayed him as cold and cruel.In 1925, Congress concur to give veterans of WW1a bonus to be paid in 1945. In June 1932, 20,000 war veterans marched to Washington to request the ir bonus early in order to survive the Depression. They were told that the government could not afford to pay them, but Hoover would pay for their trip home. Feeling betrayed, the veterans set up camp. Hoover feared violence, to the extent of revolution, and called in the military. Tanks, infantry and tear fluid destroyed the camp and drove forth the veterans. These men who had served their country were called tramps and hoodlums with a generous sprinkling of communistic agitators. Hoover was solely blamed for the dispersal of the Bonus Army, which was a major political blunder.By now, the race of America had turned away from Hoover and were looking for answers elsewhere Franklin Delano Roosevelt. Already popular as regulator of New York State, Roosevelt appealed to the US people because he proposed to take the action that Hoover would not and showed flexibility. Through his time as Governor, Roosevelt showed his willingness to listen to others ideas and his belief that direct government intervention was necessary. An example of his flexibility is the Temporary exigency Relief Administration, set up in 1932. Though it was temporary, it was the first state-run relief effort in the nation.In comparison, Hoover refused to hear ideas remotely associated with government intervention. However, some historians argue that Hoover did in fact command the government in more areas of life than ever before, for example the expansion of federal lending and the boost of public works schemes. Hoover had a personal concern for those suffering the Depression. He cut his own and state officials salaries by 20% and had long working hours. On the other hand, he showed optimism in public, which led people to accuse him of losing touch with reality. Although Hoover worked tirelessly to fight the Depression, his refusal to abandon his policies of self-help and voluntary co-operation prevented him from doing so successfully.In conclusion, President Hoovers policies failed to co mbat the Great Depression effectively because the help they provided were very limited in the extent the Depression had gone to. Because of his beliefs in self-help and voluntary co-operation he blocked direct government intervention from his policies, driving away supporters towards Roosevelt, who won the elections of 1932 and began his New deal.