Politics & Power Quote by Franklin D. Roosevelt

Roosevelt takes a word that sounds like a kazoo solo - "boondoggle" - and turns it into a piece of political jujitsu. In the middle of the Depression, when the New Deal was being attacked as wasteful make-work, he doesn’t deny the accusation so much as reframe it: if "boondoggles" are what it takes to get people paid, moving, and feeling like the country isn’t stuck, then fine. Let the insult become the instrument.

The intent is strategic levity with teeth. FDR is speaking in a register he mastered: patrician confidence dressed in folksy language. By joking about "enshrining" the term in American hearts, he anticipates a media environment that thrives on catchphrases and controversy. He’s also setting a trap for critics: if you sneer at a "boondoggle" that keeps a family afloat, you’ve chosen ideological purity over bread-and-butter relief.

The subtext is that symbolic language is part of economic policy. The New Deal wasn’t only about funding projects; it was about restoring faith in collective action. Even a derisive word can become a brand marker for progress if outcomes follow. Roosevelt hints at a larger truth of crisis governance: legitimacy is built not just through balance sheets but through stories people can repeat.

Context matters: the Works Progress Administration and other programs were under fire for perceived inefficiency and featherbedding. FDR’s quip doesn’t erase the waste question; it dares the public to judge by results. If the country climbs out, the punchline becomes proof.