For many years after the stock market crash of 1929, an extended period of economic decline and stagnation was referred to as the "Great Depression." The government took precedent-setting steps following Franklin D. Roosevelt's election as president of the United States in 1933. The unemployment rate was 25 per cent in Roosevelt's first year in office.

The recession has driven many people in the United States to abandon their homes. People who are homeless have become more numerous, especially in urban areas. More than a million people benefited from the programme by refinancing their home loans at lower interest rates.

Because there was no secondary mortgage market, the government held onto them until they were paid off.

Initiatives funded by the government

The government devised some programmes to help the country overcome the Great Depression. There were thousands of new employment in the public works industry due to these actions that were not bailouts in the conventional sense.

Providing price support and subsidies to farmers

There were millions of layoffs, and the economy started getting back on track. Economically, the Great Depression loosened its hold on Europe in 1939 when hostilities escalated into World War II. When the United States entered World War II in 1941, a considerable economic recovery was already underway, culminating in a postwar boom in the 1950s.

The bailout of the 1989 Savings and Loan Crisis

S&Ls, which provide mortgages to homeowners, partly contributed to the post-World War II housing boom. S&Ls often paid a higher interest rate than commercial banks and offered incentives and gifts to entice deposits.

Many S&Ls had a surplus of cash, so they decided to invest it in risky commercial real estate ventures. As a result of the rise in interest rates, S&Ls had to pay out more interest on deposits than they were getting back on fixed-rate loans. Consumers remained loyal to these banks even though several were insolvent by the early 1980s. In the hope of recouping their losses, regulators allowed zombie banks to continue operating.

S&Ls were either bankrupt or on the verge of bankruptcy in 1986. The federal government had to pay billions of dollars to secure federally insured accounts. Just two of the measures Congress took to handle the issue were the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery and Enforcement Act of 1989 and the establishment of the Resolution Trust Corporation to liquidate assets. Between 1986 and 1995, the federal government spent over $160 billion cleaning up the savings and loan disaster (in 1990 money).

Recession or Bank Rescue of Great Recession

During and after the financial crisis of 2007-2008, unprecedented federal action was required to save banks and restore financial market trust. The financial crisis was triggered by the collapse of mortgage-backed securities (MBS) and the housing market's demise.

Early on, it was impossible to determine which companies possessed hazardous assets or would follow suit. Lack of confidence grew as market participants refused to bear counterparty default risk. As a result, companies could not obtain the funding required to remain in operation.

In reaction to the financial crisis, Congress passed the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008. The U.S. Treasury was able to buy up to $700 billion in hazardous assets from companies, allowing them to replace those assets with more stable ones. The TARP programme was established by law.

The Treasury Department can purchase an additional $250 billion in bank shares, providing much-needed capital to financial institutions. Each bank, including Bank of America (BAC) and Citigroup (C), offloaded shares worth $20 billion (C). The Treasury Department made a profit from the sale of those shares. Government aid to banks totalled $245.1 billion, of which the government recouped $275.6 billion in return for an investment of $30.5 billion.

Bank of America Merrill Lynch

Bear Stearns' mortgage woes necessitated Federal Reserve intervention in 2008 to prevent the company from falling under. Bear Stearns joined the ranks of "too big to fail" banks like Bank of America, Citigroup, and AIG. Many people thought its death would spell trouble for the entire industry. The Federal Reserve facilitated the merger of Bear Stearns and JPMorgan Chase to save both companies. There was a bridging loan of $12.9 billion with interest provided by the first Federal Reserve.

A Worldwide Outbreak of COVID-19

Government bailouts like COVID-19, where people were ordered to stay at home to prevent the spread of the disease, are among the most extreme examples. This led to a significant drop in economic activity and employment worldwide. On March 27, 2020, President Donald Trump signed into law the CARES Act, which offers over $2 trillion in assistance. Stimulus money totalled $1,200 for each adult and $500 for each dependent child. Another $600 per qualified adult and each dependent child will be paid out at the end of 2020.