228 a short history of the united states
Hotel v. Parris), as was the National Labor Relations Act (NLRB v.
Jones and Loughlin Steel Corp.). Most important, the justices approved
the Social Security legislation in Steward Machine Co. v. Davis. By
these decisions the Court ended the quarrel with the President. FDR
lost the battle but won the war. Instead of his court-packing bill, he
was forced to accept a weaker measure, the Judicial Procedure Reform
Act, on August 26 , 1937. This legislation permitted federal judges to
retire at full pay after they reached age seventy, but did not authorize
the appointment of new federal judges. In time, with the retirement of
many of the “nine old men,” the President filled the Supreme Court
with New Dealers, and this “Roo sevelt Court” upheld the constitu-
tionality of every important New Deal measure.
The failure of the court- packing scheme had one beneficial result: it
helped restore a better balance between the executive and legislative
branches. No longer could FDR expect Congress to accede to his every
wish. A proper respect for the prerogatives of Congress was necessary
if the President expected to win approval for his more controversial mea-
sures. Henceforth he found it beneficial to consult with congressional
leaders beforehand and try to accommodate their needs and wishes.
One important success came on September 1 , 1937 , with passage of
the National Housing Act. Senator Robert Wagner had been trying for
years to get it enacted, but the House defeated it. Henry Steagall,
chairman of the House Housing Committee, considered the measure
financially reckless and socialist. Roo sevelt then stepped in and used his
charm to persuade Steagall to allow the bill out of his committee so it
could be voted on by the members, knowing full well that a majority of
them would approve it. Out of a sense of party loyalty, Steagall agreed.
The Wagner-Steagall Housing Act, as passed, created the United
States Housing Authority as a public corporation under the Depart-
ment of the Interior and made available $ 500 million in loans for
low- cost housing. By 1941 the authority had provided funds for build-
ing more than 500 low-rent buildings containing 161 , 000 apartments,
at a cost of $ 767 , 526 , 000.
A sharp recession early in 1938 , resulting in part from Roo se-
velt’s efforts to balance the budget at the same time that the new Social