ABSTRACT
The Franklin Roosevelt presidency (served 1933-1945), regarded as one of the greatest in US history, raises central issues in the study of presidential leadership. Debate continues about Roosevelt’s style of leadership, scope of power, and legacy. His policies broke new ground. In fact, the economic regulatory policies enacted during his tenure were largely intact until the 1990s, and the Social Security system he helped create mushroomed in the decades after its birth. That legacy was challenged, however, in 1995 when House Republicans sought to fulfill their “Contract with America,” which called for reducing the size and role of government. Since that time, Republicans have sought to scale back the programs of FDR’s New Deal. Roosevelt’s leadership style, although emulated by some presidents, has had its critics as well. Important questions have emerged about the extent to which FDR dominated Congress, the sources
of his rhetorical successes, and how well-as the first of the high-opportunity presidents-he actually used the extraordinary opportunities available to him during his first years in office.
