The American Economy Since WWI Objective: Students will investigate the relationship between politics and economics.

Warm-up: The Flow Map Create a flow map of your own life, starting with Kindergarten up to the present.

Warm-up: Economy & Politics??? What are the 2 major political parties in the United States? How do you think economics and politics are related??? What role does economic stability play in the popularity of a given political party?

1776-What’s the Big Deal??? Extra-Credit: Raise your hand if you know what happened on this year that is so important and relevant to this class???

Adam Smith: The Wealth Of Nations Published this in 1776 Revolutionized the way nations thought about the economy Known as the “father of classical economics”

His Beliefs: Believed individuals are innately selfish-want the best for themselves, their family, and friends There’s an invisible hand (PROFIT) that will drive individuals to work hard The govt. doesn’t need to intervene and tell people what to do Laissez-faire policy!!! From , the U.S. pursued classical economics

What Happened in the 1930s? Why did the policy of “no govt. intervention” stop suddenly in the 1930s?

The Great Depression Spurned by the major stock market crash of 1929 which was caused by Minimal government regulation Buying stocks on margin (credit) High interest rates – hard to pay credit back FDR set the precedent for government involvement by creating new jobs and helping people – Adam Smith’s idea of no government involvement could not work anymore – people needed help from their government The New Deal – Reform, Relief, Recovery (3 R’s) Finally ended with U.S. entry in WWII

COOLIDGE-CLINTON Let’s examine past Presidents of the United States after WWI and look for patterns, trends, and changes that took place over time.

+/- Chronology of Past Presidents Title: American Economy Since WWI In order, starting with Coolidge, create a flow map for the presidents since WWI. Paste their picture inside the box with their name, year of service and party. Determine if the economy was good or bad during his tenure and put a + sign above or a – sign below to demonstrate this. Write 3 Reasons to support your +/- choice below the box.

Example George W. Bush Republican Took the U.S. from an economic surplus to an economic deficit. Will have spent nearly $3 trillion on a war that has yet to be won, while we continue to battle poverty, failing schools, home mortgage crisis and rising gas prices. He looks like a monkey!

Making Connections!!! Answer Qs in complete sentences. 1.Who are the three economic presidents? 2.Why do you think they are considered to be economic presidents? 3.What did the economy look like under these 3 presidents? 4.During times of war, what happens to the economy? 5.What are the main differences between the Democrats & Republicans when it comes to economic policies? --Give one example for each party to support this from your flow map -- Predict what do you think will be the outcome in this years presidential election based on this information?

Two Major Political Parties DemocratsRepublicans Liberal, Left, supported by labor, help the individual Conservative, Right, supported by big business, help yourself