March 9th 2009

The World Economic Conference

• Roosevelt pulled the U.S out of the world economic conference in London which had hoped to strengthen gold standard and help stabilize other countries' currency.
• Roosevelt feared being a party to an agreement might frustrate his efforts to inflate the prices of agricultural and industrial goods

Good Neighbor Policy

• Good Neighbor Policy renounced U.S rights to intervene in Latin American affairs
• Marines were brought home from Haiti and Nicaragua
• Platt Amendment was revoked

Court Packing Scheme

• Roosevelt asked Congress to give him authority to appoint one new Supreme Court justice for every current justice over the age of 70 and who had served for at least 10 years
• His purpose was to prevent the conservative Supreme Court from dismantling the New Deal
• Majority of the court had been appointed by Republican presidents
• Request if granted would have resulted in 6 New Justices and a New Deal majority
• Roosevelt's proposal was greeted with a storm of indignation that hurt Roosevelt's reputation
• Within a month one justice switched from anti-New Deal to Pro-New Deal and the Constitutionality of the Wagner Act and Social Security Act were upheld
• Some historians believe that court packing scheme caused justices to look more kindly on the New Deal

The Roosevelt Depression

• Few months after court-packing scheme a sharp recession hit the economy
• When production began increasing in 1937 unemployment went to 14 %, Roosevelt began to scale back relief programs out of concern for budget deficit
• Social Security kicks in and money begins to come out of workers' paychecks
• No pension were being paid and consumer spending dropped
• Roosevelt Depression cost New Deal democrats in off-year elections (1938)

Chapter 26

Rise of the Aggressor States

• September 1931 Japan seized Manchukio from China
• Violated League of Nations charter, the Washington treaties, and Kelogg-Briand Pact
• U.S declared diplomatic recognition of Manchukio but took no other action

In Germany 1933, Hitler came to power

• institutes one party dictorial state
• Denounces Treaty of Versailles
• Blames problems of Germany on Jews
• Claimed genetic superiority of Aryan race
• Withdraws Germany from League of Nations
• Institutes a military draft
• Doubles military expenditures

In Italy 1932, Mussolini came into power; captures and seized Ethiopia

The Nye Report in 1936 emphasized that American bankers and weapon makers had developed a huge stake in winning WWI to preserve profits

• By 1935 public opinion polls opposed foreign conflicts
• U.S responded to rise of dictators with the neutrality acts of 1935-1936 designed to prohibit the growth of financial connections to belligerents or countries involved in wars

The Neutrality Acts

1. Placed an arms embargo on belligerents
2. Prohibited loans to belligerents
3. Stopped American travel on ships belonging to belligerents

Neutrality Act of 1937 broadened the embargo to cover all trade with belligerents, unless nation at war paid in cash and carried products away i its own ships---CASH AND CARRY

• Hitler encouraged by American neutrality and British appeasement remilitarized the Rhineland in 1936 and provided aid to Franco in Spain while the U.S refused to aid to Spanish elected government
• In 1937, Japan invades China capturing Beijing, Shanghai, Nanjing, and Shandong.
• In October 1936 Germany and Italy formed Axis pairs later joined by Japan
• In March 1938, Hitler takes control of Austria. Then announces to seize part of Czechoslovakia

Roosevelt starts moving toward intervention.

• In May 1938 he announced program of naval replacement
• French and British leaders met with Hitler in Munich, Germany in Sept. 1938. At Munich, the French and British caved into Hitler demands and was allowed to take Czechoslovakia in exchange for not gaining more territory (Appeasement)
• On March 1939, Hitler and Soviet Union sign Norr Aggression pact with Soviet Union ending any thought about fighting
• On Sept. 1939, Hitler invades Poland, Britain and France declare war on Germany