Herbert Hoover, One of the Worst Presidents in American History

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Recommended: Introduction about great depression

Because of the plague known as the Great Depression, Herbert Hoover is often seen as one of the worst presidents in American history. He enacted policies such as the Hawley-Smoot Tariff that flushed America deeper into the depression. Hoover didn't understand that to solve a crisis such as a depression, he needed to interact directly with the people by using programs such as social security and welfare. Instead, Hoover had the idea that if he were to let the depression run its course, it would eventually end. There are three things that can be used to define Hoover's presidency during the depression, his actions, his mentality toward fixing things, and the fact that he helped pave the way for the “New Deal”

One main cause of the depression was the overproduction of farming and factory goods. The nation was so over-productive that its citizens couldn't afford to pay for these goods because all of the money was going into production fees, and not salaries When Hoover enacted the Hawley-Smoot Tariff, U.S. goods acquired an enormously high 60% tax rate, this was part of the reason for the depression, since no other countries wanted to pay the high tariff rate just to buy goods from the United States. While Hoover thought that he was helping the economy with this tariff, it turns out that all he did was isolate the U.S. from Europe and other parts of the world that would normally trade with the United States. President Hoover also thought that the government shouldn't give the citizens any direct help, when in fact, that was exactly what they needed to do. Instead of going out into the community and directly helping people, Hoover thought that if he created “public works” like the Hoover Dam, he could create jobs, and help citizens ...

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... FDR may be known as the father of the new deal, but with the presented argument, I believe that Herbert Hoover blazed the trail for FDR so that he could create the New Deal.

In conclusion, Herbert Hoover tried every method he could think of to combat the Great Depression, unfortunately for him, he didn't know what the proper method was. This depression was unprecedented in American History, and Hoover tried to just let boom and bust run its course. He had some good ideas but they were too late in his term, he was too orthodox in his thinking, and he wasn't willing to try anything drastic. Herbert Hoover could have been a great president in a different era, but he just happened to be very unlucky with when he was elected. Hoover may end up being one of the worst presidents in history, but when you look at it closely, he was a victim of circumstance and environment.

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