Franklin D. Roosevelt in FDR's New Deal
Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882–1945) was the 32nd President of the United States and the only chief executive to be elected to more than two terms in office. After he did it, it was made illegal to serve more than two terms. Roosevelt held the presidency from 1934 to 1945, leading the United States through the Great Depression and World War II. His legislative program, the New Deal, greatly expanded the role of the federal government in American society.
In his four terms in office, Roosevelt virtually reinvented the presidency, transforming the office into something much more powerful than it had ever been before. Roosevelt's New Deal dramatically expanded the federal government's role in shaping American society, permanently altering the relationship between the economy, the people, and the government.
He also did his best to make cigarette holders look cool. It didn't work.
For more on FDR, check out our learning guides for his 1933 Inaugural Address, his first Fireside Chat, Executive Order 9066, the Pearl Harbor Address to the Nation, his "Great Arsenal of Democracy" speech, and his "Four Freedoms" speech.
Yep, that's what four elections will get you: a lot of speeches and more importantly, a lot of Shmoop screen-time.