Roosevelt's New Deal in American Government History Research Paper

Roosevelt's New Deal in American Government History - Research Paper Example This is all part of a debate that was being had during the dawn of the American republic between Alexander Hamilton and Thomas Jefferson. As Hamilton once said, â€Å"It's not tyranny we desire; its a just, limited, federal government.† The idea had support, but also had a lot of opposition. Many Americans felt that the creation of federal parties would make the U.S. like the U.K. which they hated (Singleton, 89). Thomas Jefferson once wrote, â€Å"The two enemies of the people are criminals and government, so let us tie the second down with the chains of the Constitution so the second will not become the legalized version of the first.† He did not want federal parties taking power and using it to create a strong central government. Roosevelt's response to the Depression ignored both men but was inclined towards Hamilton's view. He used the federal government to drastically change the country forever. He changed labour law, created social security, and put the government into the very heart of the economy. The government became the back-stop for economic problems, and taxpayers were on the hook for failures in the private sector. This greatly increased the power of government and the power of the presidency. As the historian Amity Shlaes has written, Roosevelt's actions actually prolonged the Depression (Shlaes, 21). It was not until the Second World War revved up the American economy, that things got back to normal. At the time supporters felt it was necessary.