The Depression Decade.  In the United States the greatest legacy
of the years 1930-1939 was the creation of the modern
bureaucratic welfare state, which arose in response to the worst
economic collapse in national history. Unlike other economic
crises, the Great Depression was not short-lived. It persisted
throughout the 1930s, affecting all aspects of society. The
critical political controversy of the decade focused on how
government ought to be used to bring the Depression to an end.
Every political quarter proposed solutions. In the desperate
times of severe economic crisis patience often grew thin, and
debates became strident. The major political contest took place
between Republicans and Democrats. Together these parties
consistently drew about 97 percent of ballots cast, and the
debate over how to end the Depression was generally carried out
on ideological terrain defined by individuals and groups within
them. Yet other groups—with a broad spectrum of alternative
political visions—also influenced the de