Body paragraphs exercise

Amenta describes the organization of the Townsend Plan in 1934. An aging, gaunt, stooped man was able to spark mass support for the idea of nationally provided old-age pensions. Townsend clubs quickly spread, mostly in the West. When Townsend went to Washington in 1935, he failed, however, because of his inept tactics and President Franklin D. Roosevelt's opposition. The president had his own program for the elderly and thought Townsend's scheme daft. But instead of waning after the passage of the Social Security Act, support for the Townsend Plan grew, numbering 8,000 clubs in 1936, because Roosevelt's act validated the idea of pensions but did not yet pay sizable sums. Townsend condemned the Social Security Act as inadequate, endorsed Republican candidates, and promoted Townsend bills, only to see Congress vote them down.

Essay Title: - Alternate Solutions to the New Deal

Introductory paragraph:

Throughout the 1930s, due to the Great Depression, demands from all segments of society kept constant pressure on the government. The reaction of the Roosevelt administration to this social unrest was a series of programs known as the New Deal.

• However, his program was not the only alternative to solve the economic problems and alleviate the hardships of the middle- and lower classes/poverty stricken. Carious demands for change/possible solutions came from all parts of economics.

Paragraph 1, topic sentence:

According to Athans (1998), Charles Coughlin was one of those who reacted to Roosevelt’s organization of state economy. Originally he was a supporter of Roosevelt but after his election he established the anti-Roosevelt Union Party and stood up against him.

Paragraph 2, topic sentence:

Amenta (1994, 678) claims that the program “Share Our Wealth”, which was supported by Senator Huey P. Long, would repress the reign of the rich people and provide money and possession to the poorer people.

Paragraph 3, topic sentence:

Richards (2007, 319) points out that in 1930’s there were other ambitious people who had the idea of supporting the elderly thanks to their programs. One of them was Townsend who ended up defeated by Roosevelt’s program.

Conclusion:

Populist, socialist and Communist groups also proposed programs to solve the nations’ problems, and the government responded by creating programs of its own. First recovery, and later reconstructions, were the Roosevelt administration’s priorities. Eventually, the social and political ferment arising from the depression era hardships was met head on by Roosevelt’s solutions to the nation’s economic problems.