Like Roosevelt, Obama exudes a hard-to-understand confidence, only partly explained by their mothers who raised them to be self-confident. And of course, when Roosevelt took office, the Depression had hit, banks were shut down, the stock market had crashed and unemployment was soaring. Obama is taking office in the worst economic crisis the nation has faces since the Depression.

To address the crisis, Obama, like Roosevelt, seems to personify the hope the American people are seeking amidst the anguish. Obama, like Roosevelt, has called for the renewal of "widespread economic security," is beginning his presidency with a call for unity, and seems committed to compromise and experiment, above all to act. Alter reminds us that FDR's most important line in his first Inaugural speech was his call for "action and action now." Following Roosevelt, Obama often stresses the importance of immediate action.

The similarities between the 30s and today extend beyond Obama and Roosevelt. Republican opposition acted similarly. For example, despite the danger of a massive number of home foreclosures, Hoover in the 30s and Bush W. today, failed to directly help those homeowners, worsening the economy. Today's crisis of capitalism, like the Depression, was caused by the greed and corruption of big finance and their political and laissez-faire academic allies.

Differences

There are major differences. The economy of the Great Depression was much worse. Conditions were so bad, as Alter recalls, that it gave rise to authoritarian ideologies challenging democratic capitalism. He quotes Arthur Krock of the New York Times comparing the mood in Washington on Roosevelt's Inauguration Day to "a beleaguered capital in wartime." Communism had captured the imagination of many on the left. "In 1932," Alter says, "Fascism was socially acceptable and even a little trendy." One senator told Roosevelt, "If ever this country needed a Mussolini, it needs one now." Walter Lippmann, the venerable sage, told Roosevelt, "The situation is critical. You may have no alternative but to assume dictatorial powers." No one is calling for Obama to assume dictatorial powers and there are no fundamental ideologies competing with democratic capitalism. In fact, Republican rule based on Christian fundamentalism, the religious belief in an unfettered free market, and crony capitalism has been shattered.

Also as Alter has pointed out in a recent Newsweek column, the sequencing of events is different. In the early 1930s the economy collapsed first, setting off a banking crisis. Today it's a banking crisis that caused the economic collapse. "Where Hoover launched a modest intervention in the economy called the Reconstruction Finance Corporation," says Alter, "Bush and Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson are investing taxpayer money much more heavily."

What Will the Future Bring?

Obama is bent on passing a sweeping economic agenda to create and save jobs through tax cuts and public spending on roads, bridges, schools, health care as well as clean energy technology that would make the United States less dependent on foreign oil.

Will the public support Obama?