Evening star., 1935-04-25
POLITICIANS LIKE
WALKER TACTICS
Chief of Relief Spending
Expected to Please
Party Men.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.

BY DAVID LAWRENCE.
Capitol Hill is breathing easier. A
"practical" man is at the head Of the
spending. His name is Frank G.
Walker and he used to be treasurer
of the Democratic National Commit
tee.
This doesn't mean that MeSsrs.
Tugwell or Hopkins or Ickes are to be
sidetracked, but it does mean that
President Roosevelt has asked Mr..
Walker to take the place alongside
of him in handling the $4,000, 900, 900
fund, with its vast possibilities in the
realm of what is called work relief"
There is no concealment of the fact
that, in handling public works prof.
ects, members Of the Senate and
House of the Democratic faith and
loyalty found Secretary Ickes a some
what difficult person to deal with.
Mr.. Ickes knows about politics In its
objective sense. but refuses to become
subjective. Somehow or other he in
sisted on using logic and courage in
telling the seekers after favors that
he would apply his independent judg-
ment to his job and the protesting
groups who might want him to do
otherwise could forget their pork
barrel" traditions.
Walker Skilled in Politics.
But, notwithstanding the splendid
record in administrative ways that
Secretary Ickes made. 1t appears he
is not the type to handle matters OF
this kind on the eve of presidential
and congressional election. So Frank
Walker was chosen. Now 1t should
not be assumed that Mr.. Walker Is
by any means an old-fashloned po-
litical manipulation. For he Is not.
But his skill in handling the politi-
clans may mean less antagonism to
the administration than some one
else's method.
For. whatever virtues the New Deal
may have or whatever ideals 1t has
championed. the fact remains that
$4,000 000.0 600 is s4000,0 100000, and
that it is going to be spent in some
districts and not in others, and that
1t may mean hard feelings and dis
appointments as we'll as money giving.
SuSIl SllIuIliOOuilStcJ SAS ny
executive. who knows how to say
mo" gracefully and tactfully when 1t
Is necessary and who knows how to
say "yes" when it is essential for all
good men to come to the aid Of the
party, is almost indispensable. This
is getting down to first principles In
modern politics.
New Job for Richberg.
Mr.. Walker is a man Of business
training and capacity. 1t Is alto
gether fitting that he should be asked
to take over the dictatorship Of the
National Emergency Council, as Mr..
Richberg turns to the big law task he
has ahead of him in trying to make
the novel ideas of the New Deal stick
from constitutionality basis. And,
If he makes good in that very difficult
and perplexing assignment, Mr.. Rich
berg may look ahead to filling place
on the Supreme Court Of the United
States some day when Senator Joe
Robinson of Arkansas has been re-
warded and there Is still another va
cancy.
Incidentally, Mr.. Walker is an ex-
cellent contact man for the President
with the heads of emergency agencies
as we'll as with the members Of the
Cabinet. When he was director Of
the National Emergency Council be-
fore, the post was of much less i'm
portance. Now 1t is virtually the
No job in the Government. at least
in the executive branch of the Gov
aNt {e rS NJ
not merely infinite tact and patience
but real diplomacy and business ca
pacity. Mr.. Walker will prove a great
asset to Mr.. Roosevelt. and this is not
in any way rejecting upon Donald
Richberg, who has performed very
we'll in the Office, but who probably
prefers chance for promotion in his
own field of the law.
1t should not be overlooked that
DR.. Tugwell is going to have a chance
to put into effect his ideas of rural
rehabilitation, and. while Mr.. Roose-
welt has given his Undersecretary
of Agriculture free hand and lot
Of money to spend, nevertheless some
of this authority will have to be
checked through a man of Mr.. Walk
erS perspective, ZOO.
TugwelI Plan Far-Reaching.
The country has little idea today
Of the immense transformation which
the Tugwell plan of moving people
back to the land involves. 1t is q
scheme that means redistribution of
the population and possibly with
drawal from various cities Of what
has been called surplus population.
There are uncles and aunts and BROTH
ers and parents and relatives gener-
ally whose presence in given locality
may cause one to dislike being trans
planted, but the Federal Government
work all sorts of miracles these days,
so little thing like personal inclina-
ton will not worry the authors of
the new scheme. They also work
on the principle Of averages-if the
maximum number who want to move
can be moved and given a means of
livelihood on the land, something may
be accomplished.
What it will do to real estate values
In our cities is something else again,
but that touches the whole question
OF trying to develop national suff1ci-
ency and new economy, and all this
dispatch set out to explain was that
at the head of all the spending is
someone with practical mind who
knows something about politics. cam
paign funds and the other attributes
Of political government. There is con-
siderable satisfaction about 1t in
Congress, where, for long time, it
was feared there might be failure to
understand that, all things being
equal, the participants in a political
system cannot be ignored on the eve
Of campaign year.
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