[1] Historian Alonzo Hamby emphasizes Snyder's conservatism, noting that he was openly skeptical of New Deal policies, broad social programs, and intellectuals who believed the economy could be centrally managed from Washington.

However, liberals criticized him for removing federal controls on the economy too quickly after the war, arguing that this hurt consumers, delayed the housing program, and bankrupted small businesses.

"[6] Snyder was appointed Secretary of the Treasury in 1946 by his close personal friend, President Harry S. Truman, with whom he had served in the Army Reserves.

The key elements of his program included maintaining confidence in the government's credit, reducing the federal debt, keeping interest rates low, and encouraging public thrift through investment in U.S. Savings Bonds.

He successfully reduced the national debt while balancing the budget, but he was reluctant to support large expenditures for the Marshall Plan, which provided aid to Europe.

Paul Nitze, an American negotiator, recalled a 1949 meeting in Washington where Snyder made undiplomatic remarks, essentially telling the British to "get off their butt" and solve their productivity problems.

[9] Snyder funded the Korean War by raising taxes, and his tenure was marked by constant feuding with the Federal Reserve System, which gained greater independence in 1951.