(FDR image courtesy of the FDR Presidential Library and Museum. Reagan image courtesy of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library)
In his autobiography--"Ronald Reagan: An American Life"--Reagan wrote: "The WPA was one of the most productive elements of FDR's alphabet soup of agencies because it put people to work building roads, bridges, and other projects...it gave men and women a chance to make some money along with the satisfaction of knowing they earned it."
In the "Final Report on the WPA Program, 1935-43," FDR wrote: "(The WPA) has added to the national wealth, has repaired the wastage of depression and has strengthened country to bear the burden of war."
Question: If one of the main Democrat/Progressive heroes (FDR) liked the WPA, and one of the main Republican/Conservative heroes (Reagan) liked the WPA, then why don't we have a new WPA to address our persistently high unemployment rates? (There is/was a "21st Century WPA Act," but it appears to have either died in committee, or has been collecting dust for the past year. See: http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/query/z?c112:S.1517.IS:)
Hi, i'm brazilian. A sincere question: Is Trump attempting something like a new WPA—something he didn't do in his first term but is doing now? Please, excuse my poor english.
ReplyDeleteThere are currently no efforts to revive the WPA. The WPA ended in 1943, and over the decades there have been several attempts to bring it back, but nothing currently. We continue to rely on either regular job openings or short-term unemployment benefits for those who can't find a job. It's unfortunate, because it leaves a lot of people in a state of financial and mental distress, especially during recessions or poor job growth.
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