The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1934-02-09

cal parties, and of "blocs" and other
divisions of political opinion. The ex-
pressions have become so common that
newspapers and other periodicals no
longer enclose the words right" or
left" In quotation marks. In other
words, those two terms have come to
be understood as meaning conserva-
tive or radical thought, respectively,
and with this change has come an APP
plication for them to our own politi-
cal set-up.
Lately, l have been inqulring of
many political leaders for their opin-
ions as to the direction President
Roosevelt may be expected to head In
his administration of affairs of our
nation. The real way to judge, 1t ap-
pears, is by classification Of his ad-
visers. If they are of the left wing,
It is to be assumed that he Is aligned
with the radical group, and If his adj
visers are to be catalogued as leaning
to the right the conservative element
must be considered as dominant in the
affairs of the nation.
All of us recognize that there are
certain of the Presidents policies,
thus far developed, that are decidedly
radical, as measured by the course of
the nation In previous years. Yet, the
men and women with whom l have
consulted point out that among his pol
icies are those that have been fostered
k,.od hxy xrhn coll thnn1-
selves conservative.
/ found the same results in In
quiries about his advisers. Some of
them long have been known as radi-
calls; some Of them have stood with
the conservatives, and with it all some
Of his advisers heretofore have been
known as Republicans, some have been
found in the two major political par
ties at different times. and some are
old-time Democrats. IT is apparently
a new political party, but still under
the Democratic label.
When one takes look at the Pres
ident's policies, the things he has done
under the guise Of
Let Business leading the country
Manage Itself out of the depres-
sion, an attempt to
analyze his leanings to the right or
the left becomes more difficult. For
example, the Democratic party long
has fought against trusts, big combi
nations, big business generally. Yet,
1t was President Roosevelt who pro-
jected the NRA into our economic
structure with an appended statutory
provision that antitrust laws shall not
operate against corporations and bust
nesses that agree to operate under the
codes Of MIRA. The Democratic party
always has talked about protecting the
little man, small business. But the
NRA has been attacked by such lib
erals or radicals as Senators Nye of
North Dakota. Norris of Nebraska, and
Borah of Idaho, as being a death SEN
tence for the man with small bust
ness
On the other hand. asked in a good
many places whether the principle of
NRA was revolutionary in the sense
Of general change In our economic
life, and everywhere the answer was
that actually NRA proposes to give
business more power to manage It.
SELF This is the attitude of General
Johnson, NRA boss The codes, he
says, are for the purpose Of having
business manage itself by men Of its
own choosing with only little gov
eminent supervision.
With the agricultural adjustment
administration, the AAA. answers to
my queries were different Most ev-
eryone views the AAA as being wholly
revolutionary, as compared with our
traditional methods of dealing with
such problems. 1t is. indeed an out
Fight overturning of our established
principles. Under the principle Of
AAA, the federal government is lay
ing special taxes on special classes
for the benefit Of a special class.
Whether you agree that the nations
agriculture must be saved by that
manner or whether your conclusions
hold such methods of taxation to be
discriminatory, the fact remains that
the AAA Is based on class taxation.
In supporting that legislation and in
giving Secretary Wallace and Admin
istrator Davis free hand to develop
the new scheme, Mr.. Roosevelt is re-
garded by the political students as
having gone as far to the left as the
most radical could desire. short only
of actual government management of
the industry. 1t is only necessary to
think Of crop control. government pur-
chase Of pigs to prevent SURPRISES on
the markets and the payment of bene-
fits to farmers for signing crop reduc-
ton agreements to realize the extent
to which the President has gone.
The Tennessee Valley authority is
another agency that might be held
to be long step to
A Step 10 the left by the Pres
The Left ident. That is pure
ly government own
ership and government participation