Franklin Delano Roosevelt

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History shows, that the Democratic Party is, and has been, certainly since the election of FDR in 1932, the party of the people. Democratic Administrations and members of the Democratic Party in all levels of government; federal, state, and local work hard for regular, hardworking, not rich people. They work for the people who make up the great majority of the population of the United States.

Democrat Franklin Delano Roosevelt, the 32nd president of the United States, was elected to the Presidency in the middle of the Great Depression. Many people suffered greatly during the Depression, but the people who endured the greatest hardship were the regular working people. Many rich people lost most or even all of their wealth, yet many of them still fared better than working people. Working people lost their jobs, their homes or places to live (shelter) and became homeless, they lost the ability to buy food, and had to go to soup kitchens and stand in long lines to get bread or other handouts.

Unemployment was 32%. There were runs on the banks. The Chicago Grain Exchange, the New York Stock Exchange, and the banking system all collapsed. Farmers could not make enough money to carry on operations 

FDR saved the banking systems by guaranteeing bank accounts. He helped farmers with loans and subsidies, price supports and selective crops to grow. He rationed gas, food, and other products. He started the New Deal project, to include the WPA, "Works Project Administration" to put people to work on infrastructure and the CCC "Civilian Conservation Corp" to put youth to work. He started low interest refinancing of homes to prevent foreclosures. He got many projects and initiatives started to help the people. He made people start to feel better and raised morale with his "Fire side chats" on the radio. Unemployment dropped to 14% in just four years. He got laws passed to prevent future depressions.  He started the Social Security System to protect older citizens. He made people have a sense of pride and feel better about themselves. He restored our faith.

He started many programs to make to make America better. No matter what he tried one faction, or another was always working against him. Never the less he succeeded in pulling our country out of the depression, and in so doing, not only did he help all Americans, rich and poor alike, he help the whole world.

In addition to saving America and the world from the Great Depression, he led the Allies to total victory in World War II.  Sadly, just as victory was at hand, he died of his ill health on April 12, 1945 just 26 days before victory in Europe was achieved on May 8, 1945, and four months before victory in Japan on August 14, 1945.

After the war was over, the U.S. rebuilt the countries it defeated or liberated, while Russia, the Soviet Union, just kept and dominated the countries it defeated or liberated.  Winston Churchill in a speech in 1946 said that an "Iron Curtain" had descended across Europe. The United States, a free country, prospered and became the Greatest Country on earth and the leader of the world. Great Britain, the countries of Western Europe, Japan, Australia, and later South Korea, were all free, and all prospered. The Soviet Union, being a dictatorship without freedom and individual liberty collapsed.

He was the youngest person ever elected president. A Navy veteran of WWII, he received the Navy and Marine Corp medal for Heroism. He won a Pulitzer Prize in 1957 for writing "Profiles in Courage".

John F. Kennedy brought a new spirit of optimism to America.  He encouraged us to see a new vision of a bright future. During his Inaugural Address in 1961  he stated so eloquently, "The torch has been passed to a new generation."  It was during this same speech he made that often-quoted request, "Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country."  His administration came to be called, "Camelot".

As President, he brought the U.S. economy out of recession of the Eisenhower Administration, and increased the GDP from 2.2% to 5.5%. He held inflation to a low of 1%, and increased industrial production 15%, and decreased unemployment.

He established the Peace Corp which still operates today. American volunteers helped poor people in underdeveloped countries with education, healthcare, farming, and construction. Over 220,000 Americans have participated helping over 140 countries.

He helped avert nuclear war with Russia, got missiles out of Cuba, and contributed to a Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty in 1963.

His New Frontier Program helped expand unemployment benefits, developed programs to aid cities to improve housing, transportation, passed the Water Pollution Control Act to protect rivers and waterways. He got anti-poverty legislation passed, increased Social Security benefits, raised minimum wage, assisted farmers by expanding rural electrification, soil conservation, crop insurance, and farm credit.

 He worked to improve Civil Right for African Americans, requiring affirmative action from government contractors to treat all workers equally regardless of race, creed, color, or national origin. He called on all Americans to recognize Civil Rights as a Moral Cause. He initiated the work that resulted in the landmark Civil Rights Act of 1964, passed by LBJ.

His Equal Pay Act of 1963 abolished wage disparity based of sex, beginning the improvement of women's pay. He began the work to overhaul American immigration that led to the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965.

In addition to these achievements he led the way for America to pursue the exploration of space, The Last Frontier,  "To go where no man has gone before." In a speech before a Joint Session of Congress, May 25, 1961 he called for an ambitious space exploration program. Not only did he envision putting a man on the moon, he also called for the development of weather satellites, and satellites for world wide communication. In his speech he stated, "First, I believe that this Nation should commit itself to achieving the goal before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to earth."   Though he did not live to see his vision come to pass, the goal was achieved on July 20, 1969, 5 months and 11 days before the end of the decade. 

Sadly, a short time after it had become known that he was thinking about getting out of the Viet Nam War, in light of increasing evidence that it was unwinnable, he was assassinated.

He established the Department of Energy, and in so doing developed an energy policy and strategy for the U.S. The Dept. of Energy oversaw energy conservation and research, radioactive waste disposal, and domestic energy production. It also sponsored physical science research. President Carter also reduced our dependence on foreign oil.

He established a separate Department of Education, and a Department of Health and Human Services, by splitting the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. The Department of Education fosters excellence in education, and equal access to education for all. He expanded the Head Start Program.

President Carter deregulated the airlines resulting in increased numbers and availability of flights and routes, decreased air fares and, an increase in the number of passengers and miles flown. He, however, kept the full authority of the Federal Aviation Administration to oversee the industry.

He deregulated the domestic beer industry increasing the number of breweries from only 44 to over 1400 and increase the verities and types of beer. He also deregulated oil, trucking and railroads, thereby increasing competition and availability of products and services.

President Carter also worked to protect the environment by reducing activities that were harmful, like surface mining without reclamation. He passed the Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977. He protected and increased public land in Alaska for National Parks and Wildlife Refuges. He established the Superfund to clean up contaminated hazardous sites.

President Jimmy Carter negotiated, with great personal effort, the Peace Treaty between Israel and Egypt, which he considered to be his greatest achievement.

He did what he felt was the correct moral thing by returning the Panama Canal to Panama. He retained for the United States the right to protect the canal from attack, and to guarantee its continued neutral service to all ships of all nations. 

He established the Carter Center to advance Human Right and to alleviate Human Suffering. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 2002. He has never stopped working for the improvement of the Quality of Human Life.

President Obama was one of the greatest presidents of all time and worked very hard to do the right and best thing for our Great Country and all of our people, and to make America the leader of the world.  He tried to have America set the example for responsible behavior in world affairs.  He tried to use common sense and common decency in all of his endeavors.

The very first thing President Obama had to do was pull us back from the brink of economic and financial disaster brought on by the careless and inept policies of the George W. Bush Administration.  It was called the "Great Recession" and would have soon, except for the swift action of Barack Obama, become a serious Depression, an economic calamity. He passed the American Recovery and Re-investment Act.

President Obama achieved Health Care Reform by passing the Affordable Care Act of 2010, which would cover 32 million uninsured poor Americans. No president before him had been able to achieve such an Accomplishment. The Affordable Care Act was based in part on republican Mitt Romney's health insurance program for Massachusetts, which was a success by many people. On the contrary Obama's ACA was resisted by many people, most especially by pretty much all republicans, and people who evidently, for some reason, just didn't like President Obama.

Despite all the ridicule and criticism, it was a good program that was good for many people who heretofore had no health insurance or health care. Republicans, always favoring rich people, continuously complained, decried, and fear-mongered about it. Before ACA, "Obamacare", poor people had nothing, which was pretty much how republicans liked it.

The succeeding administration of Donald Trump, for some reason, seems determined to reverse all of the good programs and actions of President Obama regardless of how bad such actions are for many of our people and our country.

In 2009 President Obama was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for his extraordinary efforts to Strengthen International Diplomacy and Cooperation between peoples.

President Obama passed the Wall Street Reform, by signing the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010. He saved the American Automobile Industry and thousands of jobs. He signed the Lilly Ledbetter bill giving women the right to sue for wage discrimination. He overturned Bush's restrictions on stem cell research and passed the Christopher and Dana Reeves Act to aid research for a cure for paralysis. He created 2 million private sector jobs in just 14 months. He passed the Credit Card Bill of Rights. He allowed gays and lesbians to serve openly in the Military. He passed Student Loan Reform, and expanded Pell Grants.

He ended the Iraq War in accordance with the Bush plan, bringing home our troops. He began troop reductions in Afghanistan. After lengthy intelligence gathering, Obama ordered a daring raid which resulted in the death of Osama Bin Laden in 2011.

He appointed Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan to the Supreme Court. President Obama reauthorized Children's Health Insurance, and increased support for veterans. He started programs to reduce defense spending while increasing spending on intelligence gathering and cyberwarfare. He closed dirty power plants, and cracked down on "BAD", for profit, colleges.

President Barack Obama achieved many more worthwhile things than are described here, and he always work hard to do the right and proper thing for all our people, especially regular hardworking people, disadvantaged poor people, and our Great Country. He tried to lead our country to set the example in the world of proper behavior, and caring for others with compassion, dignity, respect, acceptance and tolerance. He is an honorable and truthful person who always tried to do the right and fair thing for all.