New Deal

New Deal The programme of Franklin D. ROOSEVELT (1933–38), in which he attempted to salvage the US economy and raise the Great DEPRESSION. New Deal legislation was proposed by progressive politicians, administrators, and Roosevelt's ‘brains trust’. It was passed by overwhelming majorities in Congress. The emergency legislation of 1933 ended the bank crisis and restored public confidence; the relief measures of the so-called first New Deal of 1933–35, such as the establishment of the Tennessee Valley Authority, stimulated productivity; and the Works Project Administration reduced unemployment. The failure of central government agencies provoked the so called second New Deal of 1935–38, devoted to recovery by measures, such as the Revenue Act, the Wagner Acts, the Emergency Relief Appropriation Act, and the Social Security Act. Although the New Deal cannot be claimed to have pulled the USA out of the Depression, it was important for its revitalization of the nation's morale.