American Government During The Twentieth Century - 1626 Words

Throughout history, United States’ government influence has expanded to include more areas of the lives of individuals than ever before. In 1789, American government was granted the privilege to intervene in a limited amount of citizens’ affairs. Today, American Government has grown to be involved in family life, social life, and even life of foreign nations. This type of involvement is not traditional and not what America’s founding fathers intended. Life in America was not always so intertwined with government. In fact, American government did not begin to expand exponentially until the twentieth century through World War I, the New Deal, World War II, and the Cold War. The increase in government growth through these time periods†¦show more content†¦To address the negative sentiment towards government, the Constitution was drafted on the principle that government’s primary objective is to protect the people’s liberties. Although this pr inciple remained intact throughout history, additional responsibilities were incorporated into the role of American government; one of which is securing the economic welfare of its citizens. This new responsibility defines the Progressive Era of American History. This era consisted of incredible social activism and political reform resulting in many agencies and laws being created such as the Interstate Commerce Commission, Sherman Antitrust Act, Food and Drug Administration, Federal Reserve, Federal Trade Commission, et cetera. These laws and agencies expanded what the Federal Government could do and thus legally and forcefully pushed government into the lives of people. This push of government never stopped. World War I delayed the spread of government in the name of economic welfare. Instead, it allowed for expansion of government in the name of securing liberties†¦our founding principle. World War I mobilized our nation to support our allies and eventually our own troops in the fight against the Central Powers. Unprepared for war, the United States had to act quickly. The federal government assumed new power in order to convert the economy for war. The Wilson administration took few but very powerful steps to convert