WI: 8.8 Earthquake in the Heartland, 1930?

What if, on August 7, 1930 (a date which was picked because of it's proximity to the Midterms) an 8.8 magnitude earthquake along the New Madrid Fault hit, somewhere near Cairo, Illinois? Not a full-scale 1811-style event, with three similarly-sized quakes, just a singe 8.8. How does Herbert Hoover react? How does this effect the Midterms? Is this the kind of kick-start a la World War II, to bring an end to the Great Depression? Will this effect the rise of totalitarianism in Europe? Will FDR still get elected, or is this enough to butterfly his becoming a candidate?
 
The disruption won't last that long. Reconstruction and repair provides a temporary help to the economy. Won't be enough to re-elect Hoover in 1932.

I'm not so sure. Hoover was a mining engineer, and an expert on disaster relief. He will be in his element and will know exactly what to do. He will look decisive instead of hapless, it might be just enough to pull out a very narrow win.
 
Top