Proclamation 2039

During periods of national crisis, Americans turn to their president for leadership and generally support the expansion of executive power to respond to the crisis. One example of such support came in 1933, when the United States was in the midst of the Great Depression, a profound economic crisis that saw unemployment rise as high as 25 percent. Assuming office in March of that year, newly elected President Franklin D. Roosevelt quickly initiated a bold series of executive orders and proclamations that were an integral part of the "New Deal" he had promised Americans. In fact, in the course of his presidency, FDR issued more executive orders than any other chief executive in American history.

In the wake of the stock market crash of October 1929, nearly half of the country's 25,000 banks failed, wiping out the life savings of millions of Americans. In early 1933, banks throughout the nation were on the verge of collapse as nervous depositors panicked and attempted to withdraw their money all at once. Since banks only keep a small portion of their total deposits on hand, state governors were forced to declare a "bank holiday" and close the banks to prevent further bank failures.

Franklin Roosevelt was inaugurated on March 4, 1933, and the following day he issued Proclamation 2039, declaring a three-day federal bank holiday

During this time, Congress hastily passed an Emergency Banking Act to reorganize and stabilize the banking industry. At the end of the bank holiday, about three-fourths of the remaining banks reopened, and confidence in these vital economic institutions was slowly restored.

During the remainder of FDR's first hundred days in office, he issued numerous executive orders intended to address the severe economic crisis confronting the nation. At the same time, Congress granted the president considerable discretion to expand the role of the federal government in regulating the economy. Overall, Roosevelt's New Deal resulted in a significant expansion of executive power, one that forever changed the character of the American presidency.