“Franklin Delano Roosevelt: Leader of the Free World” Few presidents live up to the name “leader of the free world.” Franklin Delano Roosevelt embodied this title, both through his actions and his beliefs. Roosevelt's efforts to turn around the economy, provide jobs for young men, and his involvement in World War II shaped the United States into what it is today. The 1920s, known as the “Roaring Twenties,” were a period of prolonged economic prosperity. All this ended in 1929, with the stock market crash. This crash effectively ended the prosperity we had known and ushered in a decade of high unemployment, poverty, deflation and plummeting incomes across the board. These circumstances led the American people to become distrustful and generally disillusioned with the American government. These negative feelings focused on the most visible government official, who at the time was the 31st president, Herbert Hoover. Although he played no direct role in the Great Depression, Hoover's tax-raising and spending policies were considered extravagant at the time and widely ridiculed for their recklessness. By raising taxes during times of economic hardship, Hoover made it almost impossible for the poor to escape poverty. With Congress passing budgets to raise taxes across the board and deregulate business, economic recovery has been slowed to a near standstill. All the while, Hoover attempted to implement several emergency relief measures, but it was too little, too late. President Hoover was considered a weak president and the American people were fed up with weak politicians. In the words of his opponent in the 1932 presidential election, “there is nothing in this man but jelly!” ” and “[He’s] a big, shy capon” (Gibbs 111). This opponent continued... middle of a page... factual evidence everywhere else, and most of the information I used was either common knowledge or material I learned from studying my favorite president . I believe that Roosevelt truly embodied the American spirit and that his wise politics, his promotion of intellectual cabinet members, and his work to turn around the economy shaped the United States in countless ways. I truly believe that Roosevelt was the definition of “president” and “leader of the free world.” Works Cited Ermentrout, Robert Allen. Forgotten Men: The Civilian Conservation Corps. Smithtown, NY: Exposition, 1982. Print. Fried, Albert. FDR and his enemies. New York: St. Martin's, 1999. Print. Gibbs, Nancy. “When a new president meets an old one, it’s not always pretty.” Time. Time Inc., November 10, 2008. Web. April 20, 2014. Public opinion, 1935-1946 ed. by Hadley Cantril and Mildred Strunk 1951. p. 111