The driving force of the New Deal was based on two primary economic interventions. Of the two interventions, one was set up to last for the longest time while the other one was to live for the short time. One of these projects is National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA). It was signed into law by President Roosevelt in the year 1933. NIRA was set up when the economy of the country was somewhat weak and the president said that the primary goal of such Act was to assure the reasonable profits to the growing industry. The president also said that he was aiming at eliminating piratical methods that have demeaned the integrity of many companies, although they had contributed to healing of labor forces. Many industries had collapsed in the country and their refurbish needed unity and cooperation of manufacturers ((Skocpol 271).
NIRA brought different organizations together as far as labor and management are concerned. The competition of industries in the country was regulated where the company was given the limits of its production. The workers' welfare was also factored in where the act gives the minimum wage the worker ought to get. The amount of hours worked by workers in industries was also fixed where the employees were granted the opportunity to bargain through their representatives. From the text, “the assurance of the reasonable profit to industry and living wage for labor” give the quote that supports the argument. In other words, the workers were not exploited in terms of working many hours to meet the firms’ daily expectations.
The other key point of the reading is the set-up of the Agricultural Adjustment Act (AAA). It was also signed in the year 1933 by the President. The primary function of this body was to raise the price of the agricultural products in the economy. The increase of the price was to be proportional to the price that farmers pay to the industries for the final products. Another aim of AAA was to change the economic relationship between the agricultural sector and industrial sector in America. AAA directed the government agencies to work closely with the administrative control both the production process and marketing of the final products. The quote “distribution of the final products to the market and boosting the price of the agricultural product” back up the point that argues about the establishment of AAA.
“Although NIRA helped to fund the small industries, industrial capitalists got very many problems in implementing the decision reached upon by the committee that was chosen by the government”. AAA’s actions towards the growth of the local industries materialized. This helped the association to be given the upper hand in its activities as compared to NIRA. From the text, the US’s business went down due to the security reasons. The terrorist from Middle East rose against US, which devastated USA’s evolution ((Skocpol and Finegold, 269).
When the Agricultural Adjustment Administration was at its peak in the spring season, Roosevelt got satisfied that the program that led to the launching of AAA was well planned. While being back up by the relevant authorities in US, Roosevelt offered the worthwhile contributions that not only benefitted the Agricultural Adjustment Act but also constructing it. Davis, who became the director of AAA, spearheaded the body by reorganizing and eliminating the parallel divisions by bringing together all sectors under Processing and Marketing into the pool of Production. In this case, Davis helped in shaping the New Deal’s welfare by boosting the standards of AAA.
However, AAA had the problem with racial discrimination. The Latin Americans were not included in either the association where they claimed that they were inept. When the comparison between the message in the contexts and the reading in class is made, there is a slight difference in that, in the context, the New Deal does not include the racial discrimination. In the course, more details on how the black people were demeaned are depicted. Although it was not directly carried out, when they were denied to run the top seats in the association showed how they were discriminated.
There are a number of examples of these key ideas, and a number of important events that fit into the timeline of the American New Deal. The most important event is the failure of the National Recovery Administration, or the NRA. The NRA was meant to be to the business world what the AAA was to the agricultural world—however, it failed because it failed to mobilize the groups of individuals that were capable of political learning for the betterment of the people and the country as a whole (Skocpol and Finegold 266). Brinkley and Foner also suggest that although it has been claimed that Roosevelt could have further consolidated power and restructured the American party system during the New Deal infrastructure reform, he was really walking on thin ice with conservatives in Congress over his reform suggestions, and could not overrule business without serious consequences (Brinkley and Foner 145).
The AAA, conversely, was lucky; there were a number of extremely competent, concerned individuals in the AAA, and their multifaceted approach to the development of agricultural policies is what founded the long-term success of the AAA (Skocpol and Finegold 268). These individuals build two side-by-side organizations that were designed to control the agricultural productions and the economy in the United States; it was a successful project, because it developed the type of political learning that Skocpol and Finegold suggest are fundamentally important for the ongoing success of administrative interventions in an industry. The New Deal era was a complex and difficult time for the United States. There can be no doubt that the many different implications of each movement of each player in the game during this time must be thoroughly investigated for a true understanding of the political structures that resulted; however, there are a few underlying rules that the polices as a whole followed regardless of the actors.
In conclusion, the New Deal information adds some information to what was taught in class in that it explains the outcomes of the two associations, Agricultural Administration Act (AAA) and National Industrial Recovery Act (NIRA). AAA, after doing a recommended job, was given the mandate of regulating the amount of goods produced by the firm and marketing the final products. It was also given the authority of increasing the price of the agricultural products. The price of the agricultural product was raised so that it can be at the same level with the amount the consumers pay for the final products from the firm.
Work cited
Himmelberg, Robert F. The New Deal and corporate power: antitrust and regulatory policies during the thirties and World War II. New York: Garland Pub, 1994. Print.
Skocpol, T., and Finegold, K. State capacity and economic intervention in the early New Deal. S.l: [s.n.], 1998. Print.
