The current recession will soon become the longest since the
Great Depression. The U.S. is losing over 500,000 jobs each
month, and a new president, elected overwhelmingly, is pleading
for unity and urgent action on a scale not seen since the New
Deal. At such a moment, it is imperative to expose a dangerous
popular myth regarding the efficacy of President Roosevelt’s
actions: that it was not the programs of the New Deal, but only
the placing of the nation on a wartime footing years later, that
restored the health of the nation’s economy. This belief, though
widely held, cannot stand up to even the most basic economic
analysis. Yet the mainstream corporate media, which abound with
anti-government ideology, seek to reinforce this myth. Just this
past Sunday, The Washington Post featured on Page One of its
Outlook section an article by Amity Shlaes headlined “FDR Was a
Great Leader, But His Economic Plan Isn’t One to Follow.”
Underscoring Shlaes’s made-up claims, the Post ran the
continuation of her piece under