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Franklin D. Roosevelt · 1936 · Democratic nominee
Governor of New York 1929–32; Democratic nominee 1932; 32nd President, four terms.
Renominated by acclamation at Philadelphia (the two-thirds rule abolished). Ran almost entirely on the record; campaigned September–November through the Midwest, Plains and Northeast, closing at Madison Square Garden.
Positions (31)
| Issue | Position | Kind | Strength | Attribution | Ev. | First | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Farm prices and agricultural surplus | Continue soil conservation and domestic allotment payments; end ruinous surpluses; commodity loans on seasonal surpluses | pledge_forward | directional_stance | candidate_direct | A | 1936-06-25 | kept |
| Farm tenancy and access to land ownership | A definite reduction of farm tenancy; refinance farm debt at low rates over long terms | pledge_forward | directional_stance | candidate_direct | A | 1936-06-25 | partial |
| Crop insurance and storage reserves | Crop insurance and a stable food supply | pledge_forward | specific_pledge | candidate_direct | A | 1936-10-31 | kept |
| Farm and home mortgage relief | Low interest rates, sounder home financing, better banking | pledge_forward | directional_stance | candidate_direct | A | 1936-10-14 | keptcontested |
| Balancing the federal budget | Balance the budget within a year or two out of rising national income, without new taxes | pledge_forward | specific_pledge | candidate_direct | A | 1936-06-25 | brokencontested |
| Level of federal spending | Reduce the expenses of government as relief needs decline | pledge_forward | directional_stance | party_platform | A | 1936-06-25 | brokencontested |
| Level of federal spending | Defense of the eight-billion-dollar deficit as an investment in America | defense_of_record | directional_stance | candidate_direct | A | 1936-10-01 | not_applicable |
| Civil service and patronage | Immediately extend the merit system to all non-policy-making federal positions | pledge_forward | specific_pledge | party_platform | A | 1936-06-25 | partial |
| Policy toward Latin America and the Western Hemisphere | The Good Neighbor: no armed intervention, no territorial expansion, reduction of armaments | defense_of_record | directional_stance | candidate_direct | A | 1936-08-14 | kept |
| Who deserves credit for recovery (defense of record) | Recovery came from raising purchasing power at the bottom, not 'trickle down' | defense_of_record | vague_gesture | candidate_direct | A | 1936-10-14 | not_applicable |
| Communism, radicalism and "alien isms" as a political issue | Repudiate Communist support; the New Deal is the answer to Communism, not its ally | pledge_forward | specific_pledge | candidate_direct | A | 1936-09-29 | kept |
| Public ownership of electric power | Cheaper electricity and rural electrification by the 'yardstick' method | pledge_forward | directional_stance | candidate_direct | A | 1936-06-25 | kept |
| Amending the Constitution to enlarge (or restrain) federal power | Meet constitutional obstacles by 'clarifying amendment' -- and say nothing about the Supreme Court | pledge_forward | directional_stance | party_platform | B | 1936-06-25 | brokencontested |
| Antitrust and concentration of economic power | Vigorously enforce the antitrust laws and restore their efficacy against new corporate devices | pledge_forward | directional_stance | candidate_direct | A | 1936-06-25 | kept |
| Concentrated economic power vs. the average citizen (rhetorical framing) | Take power from the 'economic royalists': the mandate of 1932 is to end economic tyranny | pledge_forward | vague_gesture | candidate_direct | A | 1936-06-27 | partialcontested |
| Concentrated economic power vs. the average citizen (rhetorical framing) | 'I welcome their hatred': a second term in which organized money meets its master | pledge_forward | vague_gesture | candidate_direct | A | 1936-10-31 | brokencontested |
| Flood control and river-basin development | Continue drought and flood aid and a nation-wide flood-control and water-conservation policy | pledge_forward | directional_stance | candidate_direct | A | 1936-06-25 | kept |
| Housing and slum clearance | Extend the federal housing program toward adequate housing for those in slums; encourage private building | pledge_forward | directional_stance | candidate_direct | A | 1936-06-25 | kept |
| Right to organize and bargain collectively | Guard the worker's right to organize and bargain collectively | pledge_forward | directional_stance | candidate_direct | A | 1936-06-25 | kept |
| Working hours and labor standards | Shorter hours, higher wages, end child labor and sweatshops | pledge_forward | directional_stance | candidate_direct | A | 1936-06-25 | kept |
| Working hours and labor standards | Revive the NRA's principles 'by one device or another' (imputed; the President would not say) | pledge_forward | directional_stance | imputed_uncorrected | C | 1936-10-20 | kept |
| Gold standard and currency basis | A permanently sound currency stabilized against wide fluctuations | pledge_forward | directional_stance | party_platform | A | 1936-06-25 | kept |
| Old-age pensions and social insurance | Build on the Social Security Act toward economic security for all | pledge_forward | directional_stance | candidate_direct | A | 1936-06-25 | kept |
| Direct relief for the unemployed | Provide useful work at prevailing wages for the needy unemployed rather than a dole | pledge_forward | directional_stance | candidate_direct | A | 1936-06-25 | kept |
| Federal youth work and education programs (CCC, NYA) | Continue help for young people to obtain an education and a chance to use it | pledge_forward | directional_stance | candidate_direct | A | 1936-06-25 | kept |
| How to finance old-age and unemployment insurance (contributory reserve vs. pay-as-you-go) | Defense of the payroll-tax financing: the employer pays an equal share and the reserves are safe | defense_of_record | specific_pledge | candidate_direct | A | 1936-10-21 | partialcontested |
| Income and inheritance tax progressivity | Defense of the undistributed-profits tax as a loophole-closer; correct imperfections if found | defense_of_record | specific_pledge | candidate_direct | A | 1936-10-21 | abandoned |
| Income and inheritance tax progressivity | Taxes levied according to ability to pay; lower taxes for 99 percent, higher at the top | pledge_forward | directional_stance | candidate_direct | A | 1936-10-21 | partialcontested |
| Executive reciprocal trade agreements (1934 Act) | Continue the reciprocal trade agreements to lower barriers against American exports | pledge_forward | specific_pledge | candidate_direct | A | 1936-06-25 | kept |
| Benefits for disabled and service-connected veterans | Continue just treatment of war veterans and dependents | pledge_forward | vague_gesture | party_platform | B | 1936-06-25 | kept |
| Neutrality, arms embargoes and staying out of foreign wars | Keep the United States out of war: true neutrality, take the profits out of war, no political commitments | pledge_forward | directional_stance | candidate_direct | A | 1936-06-25 | partialcontested |