FDR and the New Deal

First as promised :

You can read the text and hear the inauguration speech of Franklin D. Roosevelt and get an idea of his oratory.

There are more audio documents of speeches and fireside chats by President Roosevelt available for free.

Finally, I was listening to a podcast from NPR ( Shuffle, November 18, 2009) when I heard a story about the assessement of the number of jobs created or saved by the stimulus spending of the federal governement. This reminded me of what I told you about the difficulties in assessing the New Deal. It's very difficult for historians to identify the benefits of each ND programmes.

The Obama adminstration has created a website that allows the public to find out how and where the stimulus dollars are being spent: visit www.recovery.org to see it for yourself.

To read or listen to this five minute report, click here.

This piece was triggered by the criticism of the stimulus package by its opponents who consider that the massive spending (add additional debt) incurred by the governement is certainly not as efficient as the administration claims it to be.

Vice President Joe Biden was on Jon Stewart's Daily Show to defend the impact of the stimulus on employment. You'll hear a few allusions to the New Deal and some of the wasteful spending that occurred under FDR.

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Joe Biden Pt. 1
www.thedailyshow.com
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