At the Center of Power: Roche in the New Deal Government, 1934–1939

This chapter details events in Josephine Roche's life from 1934 to 1939. Serving as assistant secretary of the treasury in the New Deal government carried Roche to the height of her renown and power. Between 1934 and 1938, her central responsibility was health policy, but the full range of her involvement in the New Deal went well beyond that core focus. She also shaped one of the most significant pieces of federal legislation in the twentieth century, the Social Security Act, and oversaw the implementation of such New Deal programs as the National Youth Administration, all the while pushing for more effective regulation of industry and the unionization of American workers. As she dashed from one New Deal initiative to another, Roche was celebrated as an icon of female achievement who represented the new level of power achieved by women in politics and government during the 1930s.