A definitive history of the United Statesâ recovery from the Great Depressionâand the New Deal's true part in it. FDRâs New Deal has long enjoyed a special place in American history and policyâboth because it redefined the governmentâs fundamental responsibilities and because Rooseveltâs âbold experimentationâ represented a type of policymaking many would like to see repeated. But âthe thing about bold experiments,â economist George Selgin reminds us, âis that they often fail.â In False Dawn Selgin draws on both contemporary sources and numerous studies by economic historians to show that, although steps taken during the Roosevelt administrationâs first days raised hopes of a speedy recovery from the Great Depression, instead of fulfilling those hopes, subsequent New Deal policies proved so counterproductive that over seventeen percent of American workersâmore than the peak unemployment rate during the COVID-19 crisisâwere still either unemployed or on work relief six years later. By distinguishing the New Dealâs successes from its failures, and explaining how the U.S. finally managed to lay the specter of mass unemployment to rest, Selgin draws salient lessons for dealing with future recessions.
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