Franklin Delano Roosevelt was president from 1932-1944, being the only president elected 4 times, to serve 12 years in the Oval Office. Many people remember him as the man who led us through WWII, or the predecessor to Harry Truman. Some remember him as the man who locked up their families in internment camps, or others, who see him as the man that saved their grandparents from the Great Depression.
Modern-day Democrat-Liberals have him listed as one of the best presidents of all time. Conservatives have him somewhere among the top, but not necessarily there. The way I see him, he was a tyrant.
Without sugarcoating or pushing it, here is a list of what he did:
-Interned many people based solely on their nationality (He interned American-born Japanese as well)
-Declared war on Japan
-Brought us the "New Deal" (both the first and second one)
-Founded the Social Security Administration
-Got us out of the Great Depression (increased wartime production)
Notice these are only the bigger things, and I'm going to leave a lot of things out for the sake of time. In 1942, less than a year after the U.S. entered the war, he signed executive order 9066, which calls for the internment of Japanese Americans on the West coast. There were numerous camps in the Mohave Desert region and as far away as Arkansas. While many people got to live their normal lives in these camps, many were forced to sell their property and quit their jobs to live a new one in the camp. If this is not the ultimate act of tyranny, I do not know what is. Taking citizens (Yes, he did take American-born citizens) and forcing them to relocate or be arrested based solely on their race is eerily similar to the ways Adolf Hitler had Jews sent to "work camps" where most of them died.
The next thing, which basically was a bump in the road, is WWII. Most history textbooks credit him with "declaring" the war, which is too much. After Pearl Harbor, it would be political suicide to not declare a war against Japan.
He founded the Social Security Administration and brought us the "New Deal", which is basically a way for the government to create jobs and promote economic growth. Social Security is one of the most flawed agencies within the government. It brought us the food stamp, a small piece of paper that can now allow poor families to buy anything at their local grocery store. Social Security is essentially what it says in its name, Social Administration. It takes taxpayers' money and brings it to others in form of things like food stamps. This was the onset of our modern Medicaid/Medicare and Obama-care. The New Deal was a WWII-era "stimulus" package and a government-promoting set of laws at the same time. It gave money to state and local businesses, but created Federal Jobs like the WPA. It also brought the minimum wage, which only causes economic stagnation. If it weren't for the wartime production, I'm sure as hell the U.S. would have it's head stuck up it's ass.
Since getting us out of the Great Depression is something FDR is often credited with, I'd like to point out why its false. During the war, it was companies like Boeing that helped boost the GDP. They could create a B-29 in a matter of days. FDR only declared the war. He did not guide the armies or navies. He did, provoke the Japanese to attack the U.S. We had embargoed them, told them to move out of China and expected them not to attack us? If anything, he should be credited with being the founder of what is crippling today's economy and bringing the US into the war.
Fun facts:
-Even though internment camps were installed, many Japanese joined the US Army's 442nd Regiment, which is today, the most highly decorated military unit in US history. This shows how far people are willing to go for freedom.
-President Roosevelt signed the most executive orders with 3,522.
-10 Japanese spies were found through the war, all of whom were white.
-More German/Italian spies were found, yet none of them were interned.
Remember, the more you know, the more free you are.
(Unless you watch FOX News.)
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