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Unlock This CourseMost opposition to the New Deal came from people who thought the government was doing too much. A different group of critics said the opposite: Roosevelt was doing too little to help ordinary Americans. By 1934 millions of people were still out of work, and these critics promised much bolder help.
Key terms:
Huey Long was a Democrat who had been Governor of Louisiana and became a US Senator. He was a brilliant speaker, nicknamed the 'Kingfish', and he was popular with poor farmers because he had built roads, hospitals and schools in his state. At first he backed Roosevelt, but he soon broke with him and said the New Deal protected the rich and left the poor behind.
On 23 February 1934 Long used a national radio speech to launch his Share Our Wealth plan. His slogan was 'Every Man a King'. The plan said that:
Long told supporters to start local Share Our Wealth clubs, and he claimed that millions joined. Many people believed that he planned to stand against Roosevelt for President in 1936. Roosevelt took him seriously.
The plan had weaknesses. Critics said there was not enough money in the country to pay for it, and that Long ran Louisiana like a dictator. On 8 September 1935 Long was shot in the state capitol building at Baton Rouge and he died two days later. His movement quickly fell apart.
Charles Coughlin was a Catholic priest from Royal Oak, Michigan. His weekly radio sermons reached millions of listeners, and he received huge numbers of letters. At first he praised the New Deal. By 1934 he said it was not going far enough to take power away from the bankers.
On 11 November 1934 he announced the National Union for Social Justice. Its aims, which he called principles of social justice, included:
Coughlin said he was against both capitalism and communism, and he attacked the bankers. Over time he became more extreme and angry. He turned against Roosevelt, and in 1936 he backed a new party, the Union Party. Its candidate, William Lemke, won fewer than one million votes, about 2 per cent. Later Coughlin's broadcasts turned openly antisemitic, and in 1942 his church ordered him to stop broadcasting.
Both men had huge audiences and spoke to people the New Deal had not reached. Roosevelt feared Long could split the Democratic vote in 1936. Many historians think pressure from the left helped push him towards the Second New Deal in 1935, including the Social Security Act with its old-age pensions and higher taxes on the wealthy.
The critics were never united, and Long's death in 1935 removed the strongest one. Their plans were hard to carry out. Coughlin's Union Party did badly, and Roosevelt won the 1936 election by a landslide, taking 46 of the 48 states.
So the radical critics were most dangerous before 1936, when they made Roosevelt move faster. After that, their threat faded.
Study Extract C and Sources A and B.
A practice extract written for this lesson, in the style of a modern history book.
Huey Long and Father Coughlin spoke for millions who felt the New Deal had done too little. Roosevelt took them seriously and pushed through bolder measures in 1935. But the two men were never united. Long was shot dead in 1935, and Coughlin's candidate won very few votes in 1936.
From a radio speech by Huey Long, US Senator for Louisiana, 23 February 1934 (text from a pamphlet published by his supporters).
... there should be a guaranty of a family wealth of around $5,000; enough for a home, and automobile, a radio, and the ordinary conveniences ... We have to limit fortunes. Our present plan is that we will allow no one man to own more than $50,000,000.
From a radio address by Father Charles Coughlin, a Catholic priest, announcing the National Union for Social Justice, 11 November 1934.
I believe in nationalizing those public resources which by their very nature are too important to be held in the control of private individuals. I believe in private ownership of all other property. ... I believe in the abolition of the privately owned Federal Reserve Banking system and in the establishment of a Government owned Central Bank.
Extract C suggests that radical critics were a serious threat to Roosevelt. How far do you agree with this interpretation? Use Extract C, Sources A and B and your own knowledge to explain your answer. [16 marks]
Extract C suggests that Long and Coughlin were a serious threat, and there is a good deal to support this. The extract says they “spoke for millions” who felt the New Deal had done too little. Source A shows how bold Long's ideas were: he wanted every family to have around “$5,000” of wealth and a limit on fortunes of “$50,000,000”. Source B shows that Coughlin wanted “nationalizing” of key resources and a “Government owned Central Bank”. Both plans offered far more than Roosevelt had promised. My own knowledge supports this. Long launched Share Our Wealth clubs and many believed he would stand for President in 1936, which could have split the Democratic vote. Coughlin had a huge radio audience, and in November 1934 he started the National Union for Social Justice.
The extract is also right that Roosevelt “took them seriously”. In 1935 he brought in the Second New Deal, including the Social Security Act with its old-age pensions and higher taxes on the rich. These measures were close to what Long had demanded in his plan, so the critics may have forced Roosevelt to move left.
However, the extract and the sources also show limits to the threat. Extract C says the two men “were never united”. The sources agree: Long wanted to cap fortunes, whereas Coughlin accepted “private ownership of all other property”. Neither source shows any plan to defeat Roosevelt, and both are only words on the radio. In practice, Long was shot in September 1935, which ended the strongest challenge. Coughlin backed the Union Party in 1936, but its candidate William Lemke won only about 2 per cent of the vote, while Roosevelt won 46 of the 48 states.
Overall, I agree only in part. Before 1936 Long and Coughlin were a serious threat because they reached millions and pushed Roosevelt into bolder action. But they were not a threat to his hold on power, since they were divided, Long was killed and the voters stayed loyal to Roosevelt. The threat was real but short-lived. Source B is also only one priest's statement of beliefs, so it shows what Coughlin wanted, not how many people would have voted for it.
What lifts it to the top level: it uses the extract and both sources, adds precise own knowledge on both sides, and reaches a judgement that sets the threat to his policies against the threat to his power.
In a 16-mark interpretation question, build one paragraph that supports the view and one that challenges it, quote Extract C and both sources by name, and add facts that appear in none of them.