Evening star., 1934-12-09
ROOSEVELT SYMPATHY
BELIEVED LEANING LEFT
Presidents Natural Urge Is Declared
Toward New and Untried
Social Experiments.
BY MARK SULLIVAN.

largely, so far as politics and
L business 60, with discussion of
whether President Roosevelt
is going to the left or the right. The
answer is vastly important. For good
or i'll, Congress has turned over to
Mr.. Roosevelt much of its powers;
consequently much of government
consists of whatever happens to be at
the moment the judgment of the
President, as modified by his tenn
peramental bent and as modified by
the influence of whatever group of
advisers is closest to him.
This delegation by Congress OF
much of its power to the President
was undoubtedly useful when it was
made, in the midst of the almost i'm
minent chaos at the time Of the uni
versal bank closing and soon after.
Whether it is wise to continue this
delegation of powers, whether the in
dividual who happened to be Presi-
dent at the time that the delegation
was made, happens also to have the
best possible personality for the ex-
ercise of wide powers, whether
country at any time is happier under
regime of government by men rather
than government by laws-all these
questions are no matter; the condition
exists.
Ickes May Have Made Slip.
The recent wave of speculation
about whether the President is going
to the left or to the right arose in
connection with difference of opin-
ion between two heads of Government
branches about building construc-
ton. Secretary of the Interior Harold
L. IckeS made remarks which implied
that he believed the Government
ought not to wait on private capital,
but should itself go shead with
large program of residence building
1t will be clarifying to point out
that Mr.. Ickes remarks were made
in answer to questions at a confer
ence with newspaper men. His die
tum was not a we'll considered eX-
preston of policy, long reflected upon.
Mr.. Ickes, like some other members
of the administration. has fallen into
a way Of feeling called upon to make
striking answers to questions asked
by newspaper men.
When any public official falls into
this way of thought he is subject to
being asked questions at times when
he is tired; and on some such occa-
sions he may say what he would not
have said in a thoughtfully worked
out statement of policy.
Mr.. Ickes Is not really one of the
radicals of the administration. On a
fortnight question whether America
ought to keep its present system Of
private ownership of industry or 60 to
universal public ownership-on such
question Mr.. &ckes would answer
Fundamentally and conservatively in
favor of the traditional American
system. His radicalism-radicalism is
much too strong a word for tex
presses itself merely in a wish for
greater regulation of business in the
interest of the public. His is per-
fectly honest mind, but it is not the
quickest mind in the world The
rather numbering quality of some of
his actions, and the meticulous safe
guards he has taken to insure that
there shall be no graft in the ex-
penditure Of money in his charge,
have led to slowness Of action which
patience with him in the White House
Socialism Not in Mind.
The sum of all this is that almost
certainly Mr.. Ickes did not make the
declaration about the Government
going into the construction industry
with any intent of bringing about
State Socialism in America. At the
same time he is quite capable of TAX
ing an action which, without his in
tending the ultimate outcome, would
lead toward State Socialism This ap-
pears to have been the case in the
present instance
Immediately after Secretary Ickes
made his declaration about Govern
ment building the head of another
branch OF the administration, Mr..
James A. Moffett Of Federal housing,
declared that entry Of the Govern
ment into building on large scale
would have the effect of keeping pri-
vate capital out of this field. Mr..
Moffett did not say anything about
the fundamental theory involved, but
he could have added that paralysis
of private capital in the construction
industry, If prolonged for sufficient
period, would go far toward carrying
America to State Socialism.
All that needs to be done by those
who hope to bring about fundamental
change in the American system is
merely to keep the old system un-
workable for a sufficiently long time.
Let the depression be kept in existence
long enough, let industrial recovery be
postponed for sufficient period, and
the result will be that radical move
ments will grow. If, nearly two years
from now, in August, 1936-if at that
time we are still as deep in depression
as we now are, then the Socialist Mr..
Sinclair's E. P. I. G. in California, for
example, would have more votes in 1896
than when 1t won the Democratic
gubernatorial nomination in California
in August, 1884, and cast nearly a
million votes in the gubernatorial
election in November.
President Leans to Left.
The controversy between Mr.. Ickes
and Mr.. Moffett focused public atten-
tion upon the problem whether the
bent of the administration as whole
is toward the left or the right. The
answer to that is partly within the
Presidents own mind, partly it is
matter of the preponderant weight OF
groups who advise him.
BY and large, the President will, in
the net, go toward the left. He gets
stimulation out of new ideas and
tends instinctively to act upon them.
AS between a new way and the drab
path that follows precedent and takes
careful account of principles, the
President gets more interest out OF
the former. This Is now SO well
known as to be commonplace. The
President himself has said it, in vary
ing forms, often. The result Is that
the element of personality in deter
mining the country's course will tend
to carry us toward the left. Until,
perhaps. the time comes when, so to
-