BRAIN TRUST

BRAIN TRUST. Before his 1932 nomination as the Democratic presidential candidate, Franklin D. Roosevelt brought together Raymond Moley, Rexford G. Tugwell, and Adolph A. Berle, Jr. as close advisers. These three continued to aid Roosevelt during his campaign for election. After his inauguration, they became prominent in the councils of the chief executive and received salaried offices in Washington. They and the group of economists, lawyers, and scholars who subsequently joined the administration earned the name "the brain trust," whether or not they were close to the president or truly responsible for any novel programs or policies. Thus, the expression "brain trust" became a symbol for all New Deal experimentation.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Reagan, Patrick D. Designing a New America: The Origins of New Deal Planning, 1890–1943. Amherst: University of Massachusetts Press, 2000.

Rosenof, Theodore. Economics in the Long Run: New Deal Theorists and Their Legacies, 1933–1993. Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1997.

Erik McKinleyEriksson/a. e.

See alsoGreat Depression ; President, U.S.

Brain Trust (1933–35) Name given to the advisers of US President Franklin D. Roosevelt. It first described his closest advisers in the presidential campaign of 1932. Later, the term was applied more widely to members of his administration who advised on the policies of the New Deal.

brain trust • n. a group of experts appointed to advise a government or politician.