. . . In 1928, a third business-friendly Republican, Herbert Hoover, was elected president. Hoover held a strong belief in American individualism, free enterprise, and decentralized government, but at the same time, he was not a supporter of laissez faire doctrine. He opposed an economic free-for-all since he believed it led to a concentration of power that stifled equality of opportunity and initiative. Rather, he believed in an individualism fused with public service. Hoover proposed that volunteerism within the community was the best antidote for poverty as well as for a myriad of other social problems. He called on individuals, local charity organizations, churches, and local governments to work cooperatively to alleviate suffering and distribute relief. Hoover claimed that voluntary cooperation was “self-government by the people outside of the Government.”

Myers-Lipton, p. 161

  (Excerpted from “Social Solutions to Poverty” © Paradigm Publishers 2006)