Overzealous Presidential Comparisons

Recently I have learned that some overzealous prosecutors have little respect for former president Franklin Roosevelt. I will admit that Roosevelt did set the stage for future social programs and the welfare system, however, his virtues outweighed his defaults and failures, making him an admirable president comparable to other great American leaders such as Ronald Reagan.

In his era of turmoil, characterized by the Great Depression, Roosevelt replaced an inept predecessor in Herbert Hoover. Seen as a triumphant representative and native son, Roosevelt took unique, never-before seen economic tactics in an attempt to bring the country back to prominence. His social programs helped the country with the problem of unemployment, and the Lend-Lease Act caused a massive influx in manufacturing exports, a further remedy to unemployment. The New Deal (for saving the country, not for starting welfare programs), relief legislation, extending diplomatic relations to near-future ally USSR, and making the United States a friend of Latin America, and the Lend Lease Act were some of the high points of his presidency.

The tragedy of the loss and eventual futility of the Vietnam War in the early 1970s and the Watergate scandal contributed to a downward slide of American national dignity that began with the controversy surrounding involvement in the Vietnam War. Following this era came the Jimmy Carter administration, haunted by the Iran Contra scandal. This cultural destitution left only pessimism in American minds. This pessimism reared its head in the American economy, and Americans sought a respite from the turmoil caused by all of these issues. The country needed a strong president to look to in order to solve economic problems (sound familiar?), and Ronald Reagan accepted the role of reliever for the United States, as successfully as future 2005 AL Cy Young award winner Mariano Rivera relieves the 26-time world champion New York baseball Yankees (that's the most championships by any team in baseball).

Despite inheriting economic stagnation from the Carter years, Reagan put together perhaps the best economic system of any president in his century. He nearly doubled federal spending during his two terms, eventually decreasing his inherited deficit. Reagan’s large-scale military buildup was a part of the federal spending, which not only stimulated the economy but also helped to end the Cold War. Reagan’s supply side economics, which employed lower taxes to encourage investment and economic movement led to an economic boom that would be felt throughout the 1980s and well into the 1990s.

Although the tactics used and circumstances under which they were used were quite different for both presidents, they were both welcome relievers from embarrassingly desperate times in America. The economic tactics used were original ideas for their times. Roosevelt’s New Deal plan with social programs had not ever been used before his time, and supply side economics had never been used before Reagan’s time. Although Reagan’s policies were ultimately more effective, one could use the analogy that Reagan was like the Yankees and Roosevelt was like the pathetic rag-tag lucky 2004 "baseball team" from Boston.