Episodi

  • FDR and the Dust Bowl: The New Deal's Fight Against Nature — Fexingo History

    FDR and the Dust Bowl: The New Deal's Fight Against Nature — Fexingo History
    Apr 27 2026
    In this episode of Franklin Roosevelt and the New Deal Explained, hosts Lucas and Luna shift focus from Washington politics to the Great Plains, exploring how the New Deal confronted the Dust Bowl. Learn about the little-known Resettlement Administration and its successor, the Farm Security Administration, which relocated struggling farm families and promoted sustainable agriculture. Discover the role of soil conservationist Hugh Hammond Bennett, who convinced Congress that farming practices were turning the plains into a desert. Hear the story of the Shelterbelt Project, a massive tree-planting initiative that aimed to break the wind. And meet the photographers of the FSA, like Dorothea Lange and Walker Evans, who documented the human cost of the disaster and shaped America's visual memory of the era. This episode covers the intersection of environmental crisis, government intervention, and human resilience during the 1930s.

    #DustBowl #FDR #NewDeal #FarmSecurityAdministration #ResettlementAdministration #HughHammondBennett #ShelterbeltProject #DorotheaLange #WalkerEvans #SoilConservation #GreatPlains #GreatDepression #FexingoHistory #History #1930s #EnvironmentalHistory #Photography #AmericanHistory #FranklinRoosevelt #WPA

    Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/franklin-roosevelt-and-the-new-deal-explained-fexingo-history--6985379/support.
    Mostra di più Mostra meno
    7 min
  • The Wagner Act: How FDR Empowered America's Workers — Fexingo History

    The Wagner Act: How FDR Empowered America's Workers — Fexingo History
    Apr 26 2026
    In 1935, at the height of the New Deal, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the National Labor Relations Act, better known as the Wagner Act. This landmark law gave American workers the legal right to organize unions and bargain collectively, transforming the relationship between labor and capital. In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the fierce political battle behind the bill, the role of Senator Robert F. Wagner, the violent labor struggles of the mid-1930s—from the Toledo Auto-Lite strike to the Memorial Day Massacre—and how the Wagner Act led to the rise of the CIO and the sit-down strikes that unionized the auto industry. They also discuss the law's limits: how it excluded agricultural and domestic workers, disproportionately affecting Black and women workers, and the long-term legacy of the Wagner Act in shaping American labor law. Packed with specifics—dates, names, and places—this episode offers a fresh look at a cornerstone of FDR's New Deal that remade the American workplace.

    #WagnerAct #NationalLaborRelationsAct #RobertFWagner #FDR #NewDeal #LaborHistory #Union #CIO #JohnLLewis #SitDownStrike #MemorialDayMassacre #ToledoAutoLiteStrike #FrancesPerkins #LaborLaw #1930s #GreatDepression #History #FexingoHistory #FranklinRoosevelt #WPA

    Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/franklin-roosevelt-and-the-new-deal-explained-fexingo-history--6985379/support.
    Mostra di più Mostra meno
    8 min
  • FDR and the Black Cabinet: Race, Politics, and the New Deal — Fexingo History

    FDR and the Black Cabinet: Race, Politics, and the New Deal — Fexingo History
    Apr 26 2026
    In this episode, Lucas and Luna explore the crucial but often overlooked role of the Black Cabinet, an informal network of African American advisors who pushed Franklin D. Roosevelt to address racial inequality during the New Deal. They focus on Mary McLeod Bethune, the indomitable educator and activist who led the Division of Negro Affairs in the National Youth Administration. Learn how Bethune leveraged her friendship with Eleanor Roosevelt to secure funding for Black youth programs, even as FDR hesitated to challenge Southern Democrats on civil rights. The conversation also covers Robert C. Weaver, a young economist who became the first Black presidential advisor, and the political tightrope FDR walked between progress and pragmatism. Discover how the Black Cabinet’s efforts laid groundwork for the civil rights movement, despite the New Deal's shortcomings on race—like the exclusion of agricultural and domestic workers from Social Security. A nuanced look at one of the New Deal's most complex legacies.

    #BlackCabinet #MaryMcLeodBethune #FDR #NewDeal #EleanorRoosevelt #RobertCWeaver #NationalYouthAdministration #CivilRights #GreatDepression #AfricanAmericanHistory #RaceAndPolitics #FDRAdministration #1930s #WashingtonDC #SocialSecurity #CivilianConservationCorps #History #FexingoHistory #FranklinRoosevelt #WPA

    Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/franklin-roosevelt-and-the-new-deal-explained-fexingo-history--6985379/support.
    Mostra di più Mostra meno
    4 min
  • FDR's Court Packing Fight: The Battle That Almost Broke the New Deal — Fexingo History

    FDR's Court Packing Fight: The Battle That Almost Broke the New Deal — Fexingo History
    Apr 25 2026
    In 1937, flush from a landslide reelection, Franklin Delano Roosevelt launched the most audacious political gamble of his presidency: a plan to add up to six new justices to the Supreme Court. The so-called 'court-packing' scheme was designed to break the conservative majority that had struck down key New Deal programs like the National Industrial Recovery Act and the Agricultural Adjustment Act. But FDR badly misread the political winds. Over several months in 1937, his plan triggered a firestorm of opposition from Democrats and Republicans alike, led by figures like Senator Burton Wheeler and Chief Justice Charles Evans Hughes. The fight exposed the limits of presidential power, ended FDR's legislative dominance, and ironically gave him a more favorable Court anyway through retirements and the 'switch in time that saved nine.' This episode unpacks the personalities, the politics, and the constitutional stakes of a conflict that nearly broke the New Deal coalition. We'll follow the story from the 1936 landslide through the furious Senate hearings, the defection of key allies, and the long-term consequences for Roosevelt's second term.

    #FDR #CourtPacking #NewDeal #SupremeCourt #1937 #JudicialReform #FexingoHistory #History #AmericanHistory #FranklinRoosevelt #CharlesEvansHughes #BurtonWheeler #NationalRecoveryAct #AgriculturalAdjustmentAct #SwitchInTime #SenateBattle #ConstitutionalCrisis #SecondNewDeal #GreatDepression #WPA

    Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/franklin-roosevelt-and-the-new-deal-explained-fexingo-history--6985379/support.
    Mostra di più Mostra meno
    6 min
  • The Social Security Act: FDR's Boldest Gamble — Fexingo History

    The Social Security Act: FDR's Boldest Gamble — Fexingo History
    Apr 25 2026
    In this episode of Franklin Roosevelt and the New Deal Explained, Lucas and Luna explore the creation of the Social Security Act of 1935—a landmark law that established old-age pensions, unemployment insurance, and aid for the blind and dependent children. They discuss the political battles FDR faced, including opposition from conservative Democrats and the American Federation of Labor, and the compromises that made the Act possible. Learn about the influential role of the Committee on Economic Security, chaired by Frances Perkins, the first female cabinet member. The episode also delves into the act's exclusion of farm and domestic workers—a deliberate concession to Southern congressmen that left many African Americans uncovered. Lucas explains how the payroll tax system was designed to make Social Security self-funding and resistant to repeal, and why the program was initially seen as radical but soon became the bedrock of the American welfare state. This episode sheds light on a turning point in US history that continues to shape political debate today.

    #SocialSecurity #FDR #NewDeal #FrancesPerkins #CommitteeOnEconomicSecurity #OldAgePension #UnemploymentInsurance #1935 #WagnerLewis #AmericanFederationOfLabor #SouthernBloc #PayrollTax #GreatDepression #USHistory #History #FexingoHistory #NewDealExplained #FDRNewDeal #FranklinRoosevelt #WPA

    Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/franklin-roosevelt-and-the-new-deal-explained-fexingo-history--6985379/support.
    Mostra di più Mostra meno
    8 min
  • The WPA: FDR's Jobs Army and the America It Built — Fexingo History

    The WPA: FDR's Jobs Army and the America It Built — Fexingo History
    Apr 24 2026
    In this episode, Lucas and Luna dive into the Works Progress Administration, the largest New Deal agency. They explore how the WPA put millions of unemployed Americans to work building bridges, roads, and airports—but also funded artists, writers, and musicians. From the WPA's famous posters to the Federal Writers' Project guidebooks, they discuss the cultural legacy and political controversy surrounding the program. Luna asks about the difference between a relief program and a jobs program, and Lucas explains how the WPA's average wage of $50 a month compared to private sector wages. They touch on the end of the WPA in 1943 as the war economy ramped up, and reflect on what it meant for a government to bet on the dignity of work. This episode is specific to FDR's WPA—not just the New Deal generally—and includes references to Harry Hopkins, the Federal Art Project, and the controversy over 'leaf raking.'

    #WPA #NewDeal #FDR #GreatDepression #FederalOne #HarryHopkins #FederalWritersProject #FederalArtProject #PublicWorks #AlphabetSoup #DignityOfWork #HaroldIckes #PWA #NorthAmerica #1930s #AmericanHistory #History #FexingoHistory #FranklinRoosevelt #SocialSecurity

    Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/franklin-roosevelt-and-the-new-deal-explained-fexingo-history--6985379/support.
    Mostra di più Mostra meno
    7 min
  • The Tennessee Valley Authority: FDR's Grand Experiment — Fexingo History

    The Tennessee Valley Authority: FDR's Grand Experiment — Fexingo History
    Apr 24 2026
    In this episode, Lucas and Luna dive into the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), one of the most ambitious and controversial programs of the New Deal. Created in 1933, the TVA was a federal corporation tasked with transforming the impoverished Tennessee Valley through dams, hydroelectric power, flood control, and economic development. We explore the visionary behind the project, Senator George Norris, and the opposition it faced, particularly from private power companies like Wendell Willkie's Commonwealth & Southern. The conversation covers the construction of Norris Dam, the social impact on rural electrification, the environmental costs, and the TVA's role in World War II, including powering the atomic bomb at Oak Ridge. We also touch on the TVA's lasting legacy and its model for regional development worldwide.

    #TVA #TennesseeValleyAuthority #NewDeal #FDR #GeorgeNorris #WendellWillkie #NorrisDam #Hydroelectric #RuralElectrification #OakRidge #ManhattanProject #CommonwealthAndSouthern #MuscleShoals #FloodControl #GreatDepression #History #FexingoHistory #AmericanHistory #FranklinRoosevelt #WPA

    Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/franklin-roosevelt-and-the-new-deal-explained-fexingo-history--6985379/support.
    Mostra di più Mostra meno
    6 min
  • The Day FDR Took Office: A New Deal Begins — Fexingo History

    The Day FDR Took Office: A New Deal Begins — Fexingo History
    Apr 23 2026
    It's March 4, 1933. Franklin Delano Roosevelt stands before a shattered nation: one in four Americans jobless, banks closed coast to coast. In this pilot episode, Lucas and Luna step into that inaugural moment, then zoom out to the man and the crisis that birthed the New Deal. They explore how FDR's upbringing, his battle with polio, and his experimental 'brain trust' shaped a radical response. From the Hundred Days to the Civilian Conservation Corps, from the fear of communism to the fireside chats that redefined presidential communication, this episode lays the groundwork for understanding the most transformative period in modern American history. No dry policy list—just the human story behind the alphabet agencies, the court-packing fight, and the enduring question: did the New Deal save capitalism, or transform it?

    #NewDeal #FDR #GreatDepression #FranklinRoosevelt #HundredDays #BrainTrust #AlphabetAgencies #FiresideChats #CivilianConservationCorps #BankHoliday #EleanorRoosevelt #HerbertHoover #1933 #History #FexingoHistory #AmericanHistory #EconomicHistory #Presidency #WPA #SocialSecurity

    Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/franklin-roosevelt-and-the-new-deal-explained-fexingo-history--6985379/support.
    Mostra di più Mostra meno
    8 min