"Savior or Dictator?": Legacy of FDR
- Rosie Jayde Uyola
- 4 hours ago
- 4 min read
Target: I can evaluate Franklin D. Roosevelt's presidency by comparing the success of Social Security to the controversy of his "Court Packing" plan.
Key Vocabulary
The New Deal: FDR’s massive plan to fix the Great Depression. It created government jobs, protected bank savings, and helped the poor.
Social Security Act (1935): A New Deal law that provides money to elderly people (pensions), the unemployed, and the disabled. It is still used today.
Checks and Balances: The system that stops one branch of government (like the President) from becoming too powerful. The Supreme Court can stop the President by declaring laws "Unconstitutional."
Court Packing Plan: FDR’s failed attempt to add 6 new judges to the Supreme Court so they would stop rejecting his New Deal laws. Critics called this an abuse of power.
Part 1: Do Now (5 minutes)
Directions: Read the prompt below and write a 5-8 sentence response.
Prompt: Imagine you are the captain of a basketball team. The referee keeps making calls against your team, and you are losing. You decide to change the rules: you are going to hire six extra referees who are your best friends. They will outvote the old referee and make sure you win. Is this a fair way to win? Why would the other team (and the fans) get angry at you? |
Sentence Starter: This is (fair/unfair) because... The other team would be angry because I am trying to manipulate the...
Part 2: Analyzing the Sources
Directions: Analyze the two documents below and then answer the questions that follow.
Source 1: FDR, Statement on Signing the Social Security Act (1935)
Context: Before the New Deal, if you got too old to work, you simply starved or moved in with your children. FDR signed this law to ensure the government protected its citizens.
Original Text | Simplified Text |
"We can never insure one hundred percent of the population against one hundred percent of the hazards and vicissitudes of life, but we have tried to frame a law which will give some measure of protection to the average citizen and to his family against the loss of a job and against poverty-ridden old age... The law will flatten out the peaks and valleys of deflation and of inflation. It is, in short, a law that will take care of human needs and at the same time provide the United States an economic structure of vastly greater soundness." | "We can't protect everyone from every single bad thing in life. But we have tried to write a law that will give some protection to the average citizen against losing their job (unemployment insurance) and against being poor when they are old (Social Security)... This law will help stabilize the economy. Basically, it is a law that takes care of human needs and makes the United States economy much stronger and safer." |
Source 2: Political Cartoon - "Step by Step" (1937)
Context: After the Supreme Court struck down some New Deal laws, FDR tried to pass a law to add more judges who would agree with him (Court Packing). Many Americans feared he was becoming a dictator.
Description: The cartoon shows FDR walking up a staircase. Each step gives him more power. The steps are labeled: "Government Reorganization," "Supreme Court Revision" (Court Packing), and "Dictatorship." The cartoonist is warning that if FDR controls the Court, he will become a dictator.
Analysis Questions
Directions: Answer the writing questions and the two Multiple Choice questions.
1. According to Source 1, why does FDR believe the government must provide Social Security? (What "hazards" is he protecting people from?)
Sentence Starter: FDR believes the government must protect citizens from the "hazards" of... and "poverty-ridden..."
2. Look at Source 2. How does this cartoon criticize FDR? Does the artist believe FDR is trying to help the country or help himself?
Sentence Starter: The cartoon criticizes FDR for trying to take too much... The artist believes FDR is trying to become a...
Regents-Style Multiple Choice
3. A major lasting effect of the New Deal (Source 1) was that:
(1) The government stopped regulating the stock market
(2) The Federal Government took on a greater responsibility for the economic welfare of citizens
(3) The United States adopted a communist economic system
(4) State governments became more powerful than the Federal Government
4. FDR's "Court Packing" plan (Source 2) was rejected by Congress and the American public because:
(1) It would have cost too much money
(2) It threatened the system of checks and balances and separation of powers
(3) The Supreme Court was already too large
(4) FDR was a Republican and Congress was Democrat
Part 3: Exit Ticket (5 minutes)
Directions: Answer the following prompt in a complete paragraph (5-8 sentences).
Prompt: Using evidence from both sources, evaluate the legacy of FDR. Did he save the country with laws like Social Security (Source 1), or did he go too far by trying to control the Supreme Court (Source 2)? |
Sentence Starter: FDR's legacy is complicated. On one hand, he helped millions of people by passing Social Security (Source 1), which protected the elderly from... However, many people feared he was becoming too powerful. As shown in Source 2, his attempt to "pack the court" made people worry he was stepping toward... Overall, I believe he was (a hero/a dictator) because...