SOURCE: "Franklin D. Roosevelt and the Problem of Democratic Liberty," in ETHICS: An international Journal of Social, Political, and Legal Philosophy, Vol. LXXII, No. 3, April, 1962, pp. 180-92.

In the following essay, Frisch discusses Roosevelt's efforts to preserve American democracy during the Great Depression.

The literature on Franklin D. Roosevelt generally reflects praise from those who call themselves liberals and criticism from those who call themselves conservatives.¹ Both major factions in American politics have been so preoccupied with the intricacies of the class struggle that a proper understanding of Roosevelt as a democratic statesman has been prevented. The significance of Roosevelt's contribution to the American political tradition will be largely missed, we believe, unless we remove the dark glasses of the class struggle. The intention of this paper is to present a view of Roosevelt's statesmanship which moves away from the limits of partisan considerations, whether they be liberal...