Modern American liberalism in the context of "Presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt (1933–1941)"

⭐ In the context of the Presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt, modern American liberalism is considered to have been defined by what key political development?

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⭐ Core Definition: Modern American liberalism

Modern liberalism, often referred to simply as liberalism, is the dominant ideological variant of liberalism in the United States. It is most synonymous with the ideology of social liberalism, which is a variant of liberalism that moves beyond classical liberalism to account for poverty, seeking a balance between civil liberty and social equality via a social safety net. U.S. modern liberalism also takes inspiration from cultural liberalism and progressivism, and some (but not all) modern liberals explicitly identify with the contemporary U.S. progressive movement. Writing in 1993, American academic writer Ian Adams argued all major U.S. parties up to that point were "liberal and always have been. Essentially they espouse classical liberalism, that is a form of democratized Whig constitutionalism plus the free market. The point of difference comes with the influence of social liberalism."

Economically, modern liberalism accepts a role for government to protect against market failures, protect competition and prevent corporate monopolies, and supports labor rights. Its fiscal policy supports sufficient funding for a social safety net, while simultaneously promoting income-proportional tax reform policies to reduce deficits. It calls for active government involvement in other social and economic matters such as reducing economic inequality, expanding access to education and healthcare, and protection of the shared natural environment, in large part on the contention that advances in those areas create a thriving economy in the long run. Modern liberalism was formed in the 20th century in response to the Great Depression. Major examples of modern liberal policy programs include the New Deal, the Fair Deal, the New Frontier, the Great Society, the Affordable Care Act, and the Build Back Better Plan.

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👉 Modern American liberalism in the context of Presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt (1933–1941)

The first term of the presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt began on March 4, 1933, when he was inaugurated as the 32nd president of the United States, and the second term of his presidency ended on January 20, 1941, with his inauguration to a third term. Roosevelt, the Democratic governor of New York, took office after defeating incumbent president Herbert Hoover, his Republican opponent in the 1932 presidential election. Roosevelt led the implementation of the New Deal, a series of programs designed to provide relief, recovery, and reform to Americans and the American economy during the Great Depression. He also presided over a realignment that made his New Deal Coalition of labor unions, big city machines, white ethnics, African Americans, and rural white Southerners dominant in national politics until the 1960s and defined modern American liberalism.

During his first hundred days in office, Roosevelt spearheaded unprecedented major legislation and issued a profusion of executive orders. The Emergency Banking Act helped put an end to a run on banks, while the 1933 Banking Act and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 provided major reforms in the financial sector. To provide relief to unemployed workers, Roosevelt presided over the establishment of several agencies, including the Civilian Conservation Corps, the Public Works Administration, and the Federal Emergency Relief Administration. The Roosevelt administration established the Agricultural Adjustment Administration to implement new policies designed to prevent agricultural overproduction. It also established several agencies, most notably the National Recovery Administration, to reform the industrial sector, though it lasted only two years.

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Modern American liberalism in the context of Political ideologies in the United States

American political ideologies conventionally align with the left–right political spectrum, with most Americans identifying as conservative, liberal, or moderate. Contemporary American conservatism includes social conservatism and fiscal conservatism. The former ideology developed as a response to communism and then the civil rights movement, while the latter developed as a response to the New Deal. Modern American liberalism includes cultural liberalism, social liberalism and progressivism, developing during the Progressive Era and the Great Depression. Besides conservatism and liberalism, the United States has a notable libertarian movement, developing during the mid-20th century as a revival of classical liberalism. Historical political movements in the United States have been shaped by ideologies as varied as republicanism, populism, separatism, fascism, socialism, monarchism, and nationalism.

Political ideology in the United States began with the country's formation during the American Revolution, when republicanism challenged the preexisting monarchism that had defined the colonial governments. After the formation of an independent federal government, republicanism split into new ideologies, including classical republicanism, Jeffersonian democracy, and Jacksonian democracy. In the years preceding the American Civil War, abolitionism and secessionism became prominent. Progressivism developed at the beginning of the 20th century, evolving into modern liberalism over the following decades, while modern conservatism developed in response. The Cold War popularized anti-communism and neoconservatism among conservatives, while the civil rights movement popularized support for racial justice among liberals. Populist movements grew in the early-21st century, including progressivism and Trumpism.

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Modern American liberalism in the context of Robert F. Kennedy

Robert Francis Kennedy (November 20, 1925 – June 6, 1968), also known by his initials RFK, was an American politician and lawyer who served as a U.S. senator from New York from 1965 until his assassination in 1968. A member of the Democratic Party, Kennedy previously served as the 64th United States attorney general from 1961 to 1964. Like his brothers John F. Kennedy and Ted Kennedy, he was a prominent member of the Democratic Party and is considered an icon of modern American liberalism.

Born into the prominent Kennedy family in Brookline, Massachusetts, Kennedy attended Harvard University, and later received his law degree from the University of Virginia. He began his career as a correspondent for The Boston Post and as a lawyer at the Justice Department, but later resigned to manage his brother John's successful campaign for the U.S. Senate in 1952. The following year, Kennedy worked as an assistant counsel to the Senate committee chaired by Senator Joseph McCarthy. He gained national attention as the chief counsel of the Senate Labor Rackets Committee from 1957 to 1959, where he publicly challenged Teamsters president Jimmy Hoffa over the union's corrupt practices. Kennedy resigned from the committee to conduct his brother's successful campaign in the 1960 presidential election. He was appointed United States attorney general at the age of 35, one of the youngest cabinet members in American history. Kennedy served as John's closest advisor until the latter's assassination in 1963.

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LINKED FROM (PARENTS)
← Presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt (1933–1941) ← Political ideologies in the United States ← Presidency of Franklin D. Roosevelt, first and second terms ← Robert F. Kennedy
LINKS TO (CHILDREN)
Liberalism in the United States → Social liberalism → Liberalism → Classical liberalism → Poverty → Civil liberty → Social equality → Social safety net → Cultural liberalism → Progressivism → Progressivism in the United States → Whig constitutionalism → Free market → Regulatory economics → Monopolies → Labor rights → Tax reform → Deficits → Economic inequality → Healthcare in the United States → Environmentalism → Great Depression in the United States → New Deal → Fair Deal → New Frontier → Great Society → Affordable Care Act → Build Back Better Plan →