Franklin Roosevelt's policies did not end the Great Depression. Many of them made it worse. Harassing regulations won't help today, either

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In his new book False Dawn: The New Deal and the Promise of Recovery, 1933-1947, University of Georgia professor and Cato Institute senior fellow George Selgin elaborates the case that Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal did not end the Great Depression, contradicting a fundamental tenet of Keynesian orthodoxy. On the contrary, FDR’s anti-business policies and rhetoric contributed to the anemic business investment that is key to understanding the length and severity of the Great Depression.

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New Deal programs prolonged the depression in several ways, Selgin argues. One was via the “high-wage doctrine,” which holds that legislating higher wage rates lifts consumer spending. FDR pursued this chimera by adopting a federal minimum wage, exempting firms from antitrust action if they raised wage rates, and making it easier for workers to unionize and go on strike.

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