Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-04-27
BY WILLIAM HARD.

The boldest general play in national
politics is now being made by Gov
Franklin D. Roosevelt, Democratic Gov
srnor of New York He is putting
himself far out into the lead as q
prospective candidate for the Demo-
cratic nomination for President in 1882.
Moreover. he Is establishing himself
solidly on an issue which can last a
very long time and on which the Re
publicanS are politically weak. That
issue is the electrical light and power
question, commonly described as the
power trust" question.
This last week most especially has
seen Gov. Roosevelt advancing with
cane and sword into the center Of the
political arena as the peoples "mata-
dor" against the supposedly raging ana
ramping brutal power trust bull. Mr..
Roosevelt's maneuvers to irrltate the
bull and to awaken the spectators con-
stitute undoubtedly the weeks out
standing political event.
The audacious-and also aStute-New
York governor got his instant chance
through reports rendered to the New
York Legislature by a commission on
the improvement Of the local State
laws regarding the regulation of pub
lie utilities and through bills which
the Legislature thereupon passed. The
commission which rendered the reports
had for its chief legal counsel the
eminent Republican lawyer, Col. William
j. Donovan, who was assistant TO the
Attorney General of the United States
under President Coolidge and who was
much mentioned as possible Attorney
General or a possible Secretary OF war
in the cabinet of President Hoover.
Col. Donovan Is now the mead OF
large and growing law firm in New
York City. He is not only one of the
ablest, but also one of the most liberal
and open-minded Republican public
men in New York State politics. Under
his guidance the commission for I'M
proving the New York public utility
laws made Investigations of the deepest
scientific thoroughneSs and then made
reports which went very far indeed. as
most Republicans thought. toward a
more rigorous public utility regulation.
~ ~
The problem then for Gov. Roosevelt
was to 20 farther, and he most certain
~ has done so. The investigating COM
missions majority reports and recon-
mendations were based essentially on
the idea Of trying to make progress 70
ward more and better public utility
regulation while still remaining fairly
we'll on the roadway laid down and
marked out by the United States Su-
prenne Court in It's decisions regarding
the constitutional method Of establish
ing the valuations" Of public utility
Gov. Roosevelt has accepted that
fundamental challenge and has come
out squarely and uncompromisingly
against the Supreme Court. All the
rest of his multitudinous remarks on
other points in the course of his scorch-
ing vetoes, or In the course Of his con-
temptuous approvals, of the new pub
lib utility regulatory bills passed by
the New York Legislature are OF minor
political importance. The heart OF the
issue raised is that Gov. Roosevelt has
embarked not only on State campaign
but also on a national campaign to re-
verse the decisions of the United States
Supreme Court regarding the "valua-
lions" of all public utilities, whether
they operate light and power plants. or
water plants. or gas plants, or trolley