Many people believe that Herbert Hoover was an extreme conservative while Franklin D. Roosevelt was a die-hard liberal simply due to the fact of their political affiliations and the parties to which they belonged. However, this is simply not true. It is believed that Hoover was devoted to keeping a balanced budget and would not spend a dime and risk sacrificing that aspect of his administration. Roosevelt on the other hand is regarded as a president who spent great, mass amounts of money on the people of the United States with no worries of whether the budget was balanced or if the government had a deficit. Of course, both presidents were conservative or liberal according to their respective parties, but at times, each could be shown as being a little less liberal or conservative. .
Herbert Hoover had always been known for his balanced budget throughout his years, yet in 1930, he spent great amounts on public projects creating a deficit. This is certainly not a conservative take on economics. Roosevelt answered to this occurrence in a campaign speech in which he said that he would reduce government spending and attempt to reverse the deficit. A true liberal president would have not worried about such a thing and would have increased the spending. However, a look at government finances during the depression years reveals that Roosevelt did not stay true to his previous comments; expenditures increased greatly and the deficit rose. This is characteristic of a liberal president and in this case, Roosevelt was just that. Roosevelt also comments on the problems that he will solve with the utmost speed and devotion. Roosevelt becomes a president who cares more about the people and the state of the citizens rather than the economy or the budget or the deficit. All of that no longer matters to Roosevelt. .
Another item that represents Hoover's turn to liberalism is a political cartoon. In the cartoon, Hoover is attempting to prevent a small rowboat from going over a waterfall.
Hoover was an incumbent presiding over the worst economic collapse in the nation's history. ... Hoover on the other hand could not grasp those ideals. ... Hoover was not an outgoing person, whereas Roosevelt radiated charm. ... Hoover blamed foreign nations for the depression. ... Hoover, Republican; Norman Thomas, Socialist. ...
American governmentThe "one great difference that has characterized the division [between liberals and conservatives]," said fdr "has been that the liberal party - no matter what its particular name was at the time - believes in the efficacy of the will of the great majority of the people as distinguished from the judgment of a small minority." ... New Deal liberalism's final political victory came in 1964 when Lyndon Johnson once again defeated Hoover's ghost in the form of the outspoken economic libertarian Barry Goldwater. ... The Warren Court's 1954 Brown v. ...