Final answer:
President Hoover took several actions during the Great Depression including expanding public works and establishing the RFC.
Step-by-step explanation:
During the Great Depression, President Hoover took several steps that aligned with his belief in rugged individualism and opposition to direct government aid to individuals. His approach included invoking a spirit of volunteerism and self-reliance among American businesses and the citizenry. Among the measures taken were the expansion of public works, the enactment of a $160 million tax cut, and the establishment of the Reconstruction Finance Corporation (RFC).
Hoover's administration also initiated the President's Emergency Committee for Employment (later renamed the President's Organization of Unemployment Relief), which focused on aiding state and private relief agencies rather than offering direct federal relief.
Despite these steps, the measures were criticized as being too little, too late. The actions taken under Hoover's leadership were small in scale and restrictive in scope, leading to minimal impact on the spiraling economic crisis. The efficiency of his policies was also undercut by the political perception that he favored financial institutions over the struggling masses.