Compare the achievements of Eisenhower’s “dynamic conservatism” to those of

the New Deal.

Dwight Eisenhower was an international figure and a man of readily

acknowledged decency and integrity. In the election of 1952, he pledged to clean up “the
mess in Washington” and to travel to Korea to secure “an early and honorable” end to the
prolonged conflict. He was the first professional soldier elected president since Ulysses S.
Grant in 1868. Eisenhower was appealing to the “middle-of-the-road voter” because he
promised to pursue a “middle way” between conservatism and liberalism. He presented
his approach of “dynamic conservatism” which meant that he would be conservative
when it comes to money and liberal when it comes to human beings. His campaign was
widely popular and won against Adlai Stevenson.
Conservatives had high hopes that they would be able to roll back some of the
New Deal reforms, like mandatory contributions to Social Security. However, this issue
did not correspond with his notion of “dynamic conservatism.” Instead, he signed
legislation, which increased Social Security benefits and added 7.5 million workers,
mostly farmers, who originally had been excluded from the initial Social Security Act.
He also supported an increase in the minimum wage and explanation of unemployment
insurance.
At the same time, Eisenhower was pro-business and maintained support for his
conservative base. He promoted the Submerged Land Act, which handed over $40 billion
dollars of oil-rich land to private companies with little regulation or environmental
protection. He also tried to reduce federal spending and balance the budget. One
approach was through Eisenhower’s “New Look” in which military spending could be
reduced by relying less on conventional ground forces and more on the air-atomic
strategy. However, during his administration, the U.S. faced three recessions from 1953-
1954, 1957-1958, and 1960-1961. Moreover, America’s cost at defense spending tripled
throughout the decade. So, he gradually shifted to increased deficit spending, like his
predecessors.
Under Eisenhower, government spending on defense continued to provide
employment. Universities received billions of dollars for military research. Eisenhower
kept intact the basic structure of the New Deal, even convincing Congress to set up a
federal Department of Health, Education, and Welfare. Conservative Republicans
charged that he was being too liberal. Eisenhower took the base work of the New Deal
and tweaked it and made it better.