![]() ![]() ![]() Rampant consumer spending had led to large price increases during World War I. Roosevelt's greatest problem, however, was how to tap into the middle and lower income levels. Some members of Congress disliked Roosevelt's political agenda in any form, and others were reluctant to face reelection after raising taxes. The Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor angered, frightened, and unified the nation, but although the public was eager to contribute to the war effort, Roosevelt's economic policies still faced difficulties. Roosevelt was determined not to rely too heavily on loans, but borrowing was inevitable. Roosevelt hoped to pay for half the cost of the war, or more, out of current income, but collecting such a colossal sum was a daunting task. At the war's peak, federal expenditures were twelve times greater than in the last peacetime year. planningÄuring the two years before the United States entered the war, the enormity of America's financial burden became apparent. government financed a massive expansion of the nation's defense industry, so that by 1945 the government owned billions of dollars worth of factories and machinery. government made direct and frequent contact with more than 90 percent of the American population. Nearly forty million Americans paid income taxes for the first time, and an elaborate price control system touched the life of every consumer. World War II was the most expensive war in American history, exceeding all other conflicts in economic impact. ![]()
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