Wallace believed that Democratic party leaders had unfairly stolen the vice presidential nomination from him, but he supported Roosevelt's ultimately successful campaign in the 1944 presidential election.
Roosevelt, hoping to mend ties with his popular vice president, offered Wallace any position in the Cabinet other than that of secretary of state, and Wallace asked to replace his old rival Jones as secretary of commerce.
In that position, Wallace expected to play a key role in the postwar transition of the economy.
In January 1945, with the end of Wallace's term as vice president, Roosevelt nominated Wallace for the position of secretary of commerce.
Wallace's nomination prompted an intense debate as many senators objected to his support for liberal policies designed to boost wages and employment.
Conservatives failed to block the nomination, but Senator Walter F. George led passage of a measure removing the Reconstruction Finance Corporation from the Commerce Department.
After Roosevelt signed George's bill, Wallace was confirmed by a vote of 56 to 32 on March 1, 1945.

Roosevelt died on April 12, 1945, and was succeeded by Truman.
Truman quickly replaced most other senior Roosevelt appointees, but he retained Wallace, who remained highly popular with liberal Democrats.
The discontent of liberal leaders strengthened Wallace's position in the Cabinet; Truman privately stated that the two most important members of his "political team" were Wallace and Eleanor Roosevelt.
As secretary of commerce, Wallace advocated a "middle course" between the planned economy of the Soviet Union and the laissez-faire economics that had dominated the United States before the Great Depression.
With his congressional allies, he led passage of the Employment Act of 1946.
Although conservatives blocked the inclusion of a measure providing for full employment, the act established the Council of Economic Advisers and the Joint Economic Committee to study economic matters.
Wallace's proposal to establish international control over nuclear weapons was not adopted, but he did help pass the Atomic Energy Act of 1946, which established the United States Atomic Energy Commission to oversee domestic development of nuclear power.

World War II came to an end in September 1945 with the Surrender of Japan, and relations with the Soviet Union became a central matter of foreign policy.
Various issues, including the fate of post-war governments in Europe and Asia and the administration of the United Nations, had already begun to strain the wartime alliance between the Soviet Union and the United States.
Critics of the Soviet Union objected to the oppressive satellite states that the Soviet Union established in Eastern Europe and Soviet involvement in the Greek Civil War and the Chinese Civil War.
In February 1946, George F. Kennan laid out the doctrine of containment, which called for the United States to resist the spread of Communism.
Wallace feared that confrontational policies towards the Soviet Union would eventually lead to war, and he urged Truman to "allay any reasonable Russian grounds for fear, suspicion, and distrust".
Historian Tony Judt wrote in Postwar that Wallace's "distaste for American involvement with Britain and Europe was widely shared across the political spectrum".

Though Wallace was dissatisfied with Truman's increasingly confrontational policies towards the Soviet Union, he remained an integral part of Truman's Cabinet during the first half of 1946.
Wallace broke with administration policies in September 1946 when he delivered a speech in which he stated that "we should recognize that we have no more business in the political affairs of Eastern Europe than Russia has in the political affairs of Latin America, Western Europe and the United States".
Though Wallace's speech was booed by the pro-Soviet Union crowd he delivered it to, it was even more strongly criticized by Truman administration officials and leading Republicans like Robert A. Taft and Arthur Vandenberg.
Truman stated that Wallace's speech did not represent administration
Wallace believed that Democratic party leaders had unfairly stolen the vice presidential nomination from him, but he supported Roosevelt's ultimately successful campaign in the 1944 presidential election. Roosevelt, hoping to mend ties with his popular vice president, offered Wallace any position in the Cabinet other than that of secretary of state, and Wallace asked to replace his old rival Jones as secretary of commerce. In that position, Wallace expected to play a key role in the postwar transition of the economy. In January 1945, with the end of Wallace's term as vice president, Roosevelt nominated Wallace for the position of secretary of commerce. Wallace's nomination prompted an intense debate as many senators objected to his support for liberal policies designed to boost wages and employment. Conservatives failed to block the nomination, but Senator Walter F. George led passage of a measure removing the Reconstruction Finance Corporation from the Commerce Department. After Roosevelt signed George's bill, Wallace was confirmed by a vote of 56 to 32 on March 1, 1945.
Roosevelt died on April 12, 1945, and was succeeded by Truman. Truman quickly replaced most other senior Roosevelt appointees, but he retained Wallace, who remained highly popular with liberal Democrats. The discontent of liberal leaders strengthened Wallace's position in the Cabinet; Truman privately stated that the two most important members of his "political team" were Wallace and Eleanor Roosevelt. As secretary of commerce, Wallace advocated a "middle course" between the planned economy of the Soviet Union and the laissez-faire economics that had dominated the United States before the Great Depression. With his congressional allies, he led passage of the Employment Act of 1946. Although conservatives blocked the inclusion of a measure providing for full employment, the act established the Council of Economic Advisers and the Joint Economic Committee to study economic matters. Wallace's proposal to establish international control over nuclear weapons was not adopted, but he did help pass the Atomic Energy Act of 1946, which established the United States Atomic Energy Commission to oversee domestic development of nuclear power.
World War II came to an end in September 1945 with the Surrender of Japan, and relations with the Soviet Union became a central matter of foreign policy. Various issues, including the fate of post-war governments in Europe and Asia and the administration of the United Nations, had already begun to strain the wartime alliance between the Soviet Union and the United States. Critics of the Soviet Union objected to the oppressive satellite states that the Soviet Union established in Eastern Europe and Soviet involvement in the Greek Civil War and the Chinese Civil War. In February 1946, George F. Kennan laid out the doctrine of containment, which called for the United States to resist the spread of Communism. Wallace feared that confrontational policies towards the Soviet Union would eventually lead to war, and he urged Truman to "allay any reasonable Russian grounds for fear, suspicion, and distrust". Historian Tony Judt wrote in Postwar that Wallace's "distaste for American involvement with Britain and Europe was widely shared across the political spectrum". 
Though Wallace was dissatisfied with Truman's increasingly confrontational policies towards the Soviet Union, he remained an integral part of Truman's Cabinet during the first half of 1946. Wallace broke with administration policies in September 1946 when he delivered a speech in which he stated that "we should recognize that we have no more business in the political affairs of Eastern Europe than Russia has in the political affairs of Latin America, Western Europe and the United States". Though Wallace's speech was booed by the pro-Soviet Union crowd he delivered it to, it was even more strongly criticized by Truman administration officials and leading Republicans like Robert A. Taft and Arthur Vandenberg. Truman stated that Wallace's speech did not represent administration
Henry A. Wallace