Final answer:
The New Deal led to an era known as Cooperative Federalism, characterized by active federal legislative involvement and an increase in federal grants to state and local authorities to assist with New Deal programs and to mitigate inequalities.
Step-by-step explanation:
The New Deal programs led to an era of federalism often referred to as Cooperative Federalism. This period was marked by significant federal legislative activism, aimed at addressing national problems such as marketplace inefficiencies and social inequality, through a nationalization of politics. The era was defined by a major expansion of the federal government's administrative apparatus and an increased flow of federal grants to state and local governments to support ongoing New Deal and Great Society-era programs. Furthermore, states were given flexibility in implementing federal social welfare programs, although this led to variations in benefit levels across states.
During the 1930s, with programs like the Works Progress Administration (WPA) and the Social Security Act, the federal government took a more active role in economic stabilization and social welfare, representing a departure from previous laissez-faire policies. Despite subsequent criticisms and the push for New Federalism, which sought to revert the expansion of federal powers, many of the New Deal initiatives enacted during President Franklin D. Roosevelt's administration have had lasting impacts and continue to influence the structure of American government today.