Gold, the Brains Trust, and Roosevelt

In this article I revisit the period leading to the abandonment of the gold standard by the US government in 1933, and I investigate whether there was a preconceived plan to take the country off gold. My conclusion is that in 1932, during the primary and presidential campaigns, neither Roosevelt nor his influential inner circle, a group known as the Brains Trust, had very strong views on gold or the dollar. They did believe in the need to experiment, and tinkering with the currency was a possible area for experimentation, but it was an option with a low priority.