Quote:

If WWII was part of the New Deal, then yes, the New Deal helped. When Pearl Harbor was bombed, FDR had been in office almost 9 years, yet the unemployment rate was still around 15%.


Agreed - Hitler was the best thing that ever happened to FDR.

The Crash happened early in Hoover's term and he tried a lot of things for over three years before FDR came along. Most of the things that worked for FDR were actually ideas Hoover had used with some success: FDR (Harry Hopkins) just renamed the agencies and fired everyone who voted wrong.

In truth there isn't much Hoover or FDR could have done after Smoot-Hawley kneecapped trade (the stock market and business activity had mostly recovered in the six months after the Crash, until Smoot-Hawley).
_________________________
"If they can't picture me with a knife, forcing them to strip in an alley, I don't want any part of it. It's humiliating." - windsock