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Louisiana State University LSU Digital Commons LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses Graduate School 1971 Herbert Hoover and the New Deal, 1933-1940. Henry Esli Everman Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_disstheses Recommended Citation Everman, Henry Esli, "Herbert Hoover and the New Deal, 1933-1940." (1971). LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses. 1918. https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_disstheses/1918 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at LSU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses by an authorized administrator of LSU Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. I I 71-20,590 EVERMAN, Henry Esli, 1941- HERBERT HOOVER AND THE NEW DEAL, 1933-1940. The Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, Ph.D., 1971 History, modern University Microfilms, A XEROX Company, Ann Arbor, Michigan THIS DISSERTATION HAS BEEN MICROFILMED EXACTLY AS RECEIVED HERBERT HOOVER AND THE NEW DEAL, 1933-1940 A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of the Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in The Department of History by Henry Esli Everman B.A., University of Kentucky, 1963 M.A., Louisiana State University, 1965 January, 1971 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The author wishes to express his gratitude to Professor Burl Noggle for suggesting and patiently directing this dissertation. He is also indebted to Dr. Warren Miller, Mrs. Gary Peterson, Mrs. Ruth Dennis, and Mrs. Mildred Mather of the Herbert Hoover Presidential Library for the assistance they rendered in locating those materials most pertinent to this study. The staff at the Manuscripts Division of the Library of Congress was most helpful. A special acknowledgment should be made to Mrs. Dorothy M. Brown for permission to use the John Callan O 'Laughlin Papers. I am also indebted in sundry ways to Miss Helen Hunter, Miss Marion Mitchell, and to my mother, without whose aid and encouragement this project would never have been undertaken. TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE ACKNOWLEDGMENTS.......................................... ii ABSTRACT ................................................. iv INTRODUCTION ............................................ vii CHAPTER I. SHAPING OF AN AMERICAN INDIVIDUALIST ............................... 1 II. POLITICS AND POWER............................ 22 III. S A N C T U A R Y ..................................... 51 IV. CHALLENGE TO LIBERTY.......................... 90 V. ON THE ROAD ................................... 114 VI. YEAR OF DECISION............................... 157 VII. RECONNAISSANCE................................. 205 VIII. MIXED VERDICT ................................. 234 IX. "GRAYNESS IN THE AFTERNOON" .................. 250 SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY................................... 278 VITA ....................................................... 296 ABSTRACT The Hoover Papers at West Branch, Iowa, recently- opened to scholars, contain invaluable material on politics, policies, and personalities of the 1930's. Through an exten sive examination of the ex-President's papers and those of his chief lieutenants, Ogden Mills and John Callan 0 'Laugh- lin, I have attempted to reconstruct Hoover's political activities during the period, 1933-1940. Although Hoover's correspondence, speeches, and publications underline his devotion to the ideology of American Individualism, they also expose a man of political sensitivity, motivation, partisanship, and ambition. Hoover spent the entire decade of the 1930's embroiled in opposi­ tionist politics. The ex-President's retirement in Palo Alto was a screen which permitted him time to study issues, evaluate personalities, and plot strategy. He opened an extensive correspondence, advised supporters, dabbled in local politic and maneuvered for control of the Republican Party organiza­ tion. As his lieutenants pointed to accumulating "evidence" of New Deal tyranny and the need for a more aggressive role from their "Chief," Hoover restated his ideas concerning government in society in The challenge To Liberty. He denounced what he saw as an abridgement of individual liberties, an increasing bureaucratization, and regimentation of society. In his efforts to rally a dispirited party and to vindicate his own record, Hoover returned to the political stump and lambasted the New Deal. Too often, he ignored the harsh realities of the time and dwelt on ideas. Yet, he gained conservative support. He accelerated local activity through grass roots conventions and the enrollment of young Republicans. Although the GOP rejected his suggestions for a statement of principles, he was making a political come­ back. In 1936, anxious for vindication and a chance to "debate the issues," Hoover hoped a deadlocked convention would turn to him. He maintained an active schedule, denounced the New Deal, and delivered one of the best speeches of his career at the GOP Convention. The party, however, nominated a more available candidate and, as Hoover expected, lost the election. Convinced that his party must exert a more aggressive role and defend its record, Hoover attempted to reorganize it in 1937. He allied with conservatives in organizing a Program committee to draw up a statement of principles and outline policies. He developed a close working relationship with the National Chairman and the Executive Committee and v encouraged opposition to the New Deal. Despite the defeat of his mid-term convention proposal, Hoover's drive for party leadership was widely recognized as serious. 1938 was the crucial year for Hoover's political comeback. Despite his own activity and increased following, his lieutenants lost key positions inside the party organi­ zation. Only the Republican Party's sweeping congressional victories kept alive his glimmering hopes. Sadly, Hoover exhausted the last of his political strength in a futile effort to capture the 1940 presidential nomination. He openly courted delegates and advertised his willingness to run. He ignored reality. He failed even to endorse a more available candidate of his own views. 1940 was his political curtain call. Defeat, age, and death had decimated his political legion. The only door left open was that of elder statesman. Reluctantly, he looked toward it. INTRODUCTION Herbert Hoover was a man with strong psychological needs. Early in life he developed a set of principles which he categorized as "American Individualism.1' Throughout his professional and political careers he reaffirmed his devotion to that ideology. Not even the greatest depression in American history undercut his faith in his ideas. On leaving office, discredited, maligned, and heartsick, he felt need for vindication— both for his ideas and himself. This dissertation is not a biography, it is not a complete record of his career, it is not a study of the New Deal, nor is it an effort to show any continuity or relation­ ship between the Hoover Administration and the New Deal. It is primarily an examination of Herbert Hoover's political activity and his opposition tactics to the New Deal during the 1930's. It is an attempt to show why Hoover acted as he did. It focuses on his personal correspondence, his publica­ tions, and his speeches, all of which aimed at persuading the public to reject the New Deal. It is only one piece of a gigantic puzzle. The New Deal of the 1930's challenged many of Hoover's basic ideas concerning the role of government in the economy and society. With sincerity and with bitterness, he vii returned to the political arena after 193 2 in an effort to halt "the challenge to liberty." In his mental framework, the New Deal became synonymous with evil. Hence, his charges were dipped in extreme emotional and political hyperbole. At times his accusations and his failure to even admit the possible sincerity of his opponents are unreason­ able. Although he was often misquoted, often misled, and often misunderstood, he was his own worst enemy. He rarely exercised restraint in his analysis of the New Deal. Erroneous New Deal methods hardly proved conspiracy, un-Americanism, or totalitarian motives on the part of his opponents. Nor did the failure of certain New Deal policies invalidate their humane objectives or prove the soundness of his American System. His ideas, after all, had been thoroughly tested in his own administration. Notwithstand­ ing, his speeches, articles, and books evoked constructive debate and uncovered genuine flaws, potential dangers, and inefficient methods. Too, some of his charges were proven true in the long run. Despite the ex-President's blemished reputation, he commanded a significant following throughout the 1930's. He made the most of his influence. Of all the New Deal's critics, he alone held a national audience, he alone was consistent in opposition, and he was the most sincere opponent. Other men would have arrived at many of his con­ clusions concerning the inefficiency, unconstitutionality, viii and revolutionary nature of the New Deal, but it was Hoover who first saw, first denounced, and first demanded termina­ tion of many of the new proposals. He was a self-appointed "conscience'1 for the nation. At times he underlined a tragic as well as negative element of the 1930’s. He sincerely thought that an alien philoso­ phy

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