However, although it didn't change the economic state of the country, the New Deal gave hope and confidence to thousands. The CCC helped make our National Parks tourist-friendly and gave people jobs when they would have had nothing. The dams built in the Northwest like Grand Coulee and the Tennessee Valley Authority gave electricity and power to many for the first time. So the New Deal may not have pulled us out of the Depression, but it was NOT a waste.
It may not have been a waste, but it was not the business of the government to "steal from the rich and give to the poor."
Yes, it could have been worse, but that doesn't justify FDR's actions.