Folsom's work is particularly interesting in light of our current economic situation. There are many differences between the two events, but the response that has been undertaken in the last twenty months bears a marked resemblance to what some were calling for in 1932. Has it worked? Perhaps in the short term it slowed the bleeding, but are we through it yet?
The crux of Folsom's argument though is not the attempted solution to the Great Depression by FDR and "The Brain Trust". Rather it is how FDR changed the Presidency and the longterm effects of the New Deal. Folsom offers eleven examples. These are: minimum wage, Social Security, labor unions, farm subsidies, AFDC, tariffs, Federal Reserve, FDIC, SEC, taxes, and character.
