Exploring American Histories: Printed Page 708

Documents 22.3 and 22.4

Packing the Supreme Court: Two Views

In his first term, President Roosevelt secured legislation to implement his New Deal; however, by 1937 the Supreme Court had overturned several key pieces of New Deal legislation, arguing that Congress had exceeded its constitutional authority. As the Social Security Act and the National Labor Relations Act came up for review before the Court, Roosevelt tried to dilute the influence of the Court’s conservative majority. Following his landslide reelection in 1936, he asked Congress to enlarge the Court so that he could appoint justices more favorable to his liberal agenda. The following cartoons take opposing positions on Roosevelt’s court-packing plan.

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22.3 The Great Emancipator, 1937
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Franklin D. Roosevelt Library

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22.4 Retire or Move Over, 1937
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The Granger Collection, New York

Interpret the Evidence

  • Question

    Why does the first cartoonist compare Roosevelt to Abraham Lincoln?

  • Question

    How does the second cartoonist’s idea of freedom differ from that of the first?

Put It in Context

Question

How do both cartoons appeal to the hopes and fears of the American public during the late 1930s?