MCC History Practice Exam

The main idea here is government action to help people during a severe economic crisis. Roosevelt’s response to the Depression is best captured by the New Deal, a broad array of programs and policies aimed at providing relief to the unemployed, jump-starting the economy through public works, and reforming the economy for the long run. This included job-creating programs like the Civilian Conservation Corps and the Works Progress Administration, direct relief and social safety nets, and financial reforms to stabilize banks and markets. Such active federal intervention stands in contrast to laissez-faire approaches that favor limited government, and to a balanced-budget stance that would curb spending during a downturn; while the gold standard relates to monetary policy, the defining response to the Depression in this era is the New Deal relief and relief-focused reforms.