Question

Read the excerpt from the interview with E.Y. (Yip) Harburg.

Everybody picked up the song in ’30 and ’31. Bands were playing it and records were made. When Roosevelt was a candidate for President, the Republicans got pretty worried about it. Some of the network radio people were told to lay low on the song. In some cases, they tried to ban it from the air. But it was too late. The song had already done its damage.

Based on the excerpt and your knowledge of American history, which statement is most accurate?
Republican President Hoover was immensely popular with the public.
Herbert Hoover was instrumental in the recovery of the American economy.
The Democrats won the election due to the success of Harburg’s song.
Franklin Roosevelt, a Democrat, won the election of 1932.

Answer 1

Franklin Roosevelt, a Democrat, won the election of 1932.

The excerpt shows Republicans were worried about the song’s political impact, but it does not support the other claims (Hoover was not popular, he didn’t engineer the recovery, and the song alone did not “cause” the Democratic victory).