Evening star., 1935-09-16
THE POLITICAL
MILL
By G.. Could Lincoln.

AlbAt W PACfCAAt IAAC CllOASC Va 0CkC-
cations to the Democratic National Con-
vention of 1896 instructed for President
Roosevelt Is actively launched In the
South and the border States. 1t may
spread to all other sections of the coun-
try If the constitutional" Democrats
back OF the anti-RooSevelt campaign
have their way. The head and forefront
of this anti-Roosevelt movement is
tall. broad shouldered, white haired
Texan, John Henry Kirby. Mr.. Kirby
Is "A years old. He has always been q
Democrat and supported Roosevelt in
1882. But he is through, now. SO far as
Roosevelt Is concerned.
Kirby has plenty of practical ideas. He
Is going out to get q real organization
to help him in this fight. AS chairman
Of the newly organized Southern Com
mittee TO Uphold the Constitution. he
has already signed up some $4,000 DEM
ocrats who are opposed to the Roosevelt
New Deal. and. therefore. opposed to
the denomination OF the President.
r ~
A few months ago the movement
launched by Mr.. Kirby and his friends
would have appeared fantaStical. But
the sentiment which is back Of the
committee OF which Kirby Is chair
man received great impetus when the
Supreme Court Unanimously pulled the
props from under one of the principal
New Deal laws and dumped the N. r. A.
into the discard as unconstitutional
The feeling was existent and to a very
large degree i'll the Southern States.
But 1t needed some stimulus. Now Mr..
Kirby and his committee are planning
to go into all the communities of the
South to organize against the election
of Roosevelt delegates. 1t is likely to
be tough job. in the face of the pow
erful organization that has been built
up by the administration and Postmaster
General and Democratic National Chair
man Farley. But even il the fight is un-
successful in the delegation election, it
may stir q lot of Democrats to swing
away from Roosevelt when the general
election comes.
Mr.. Kirby's first formal statement
about the activities of the Southern
Committee to Uphold the Constitution
was made here yesterday. He is plan
ming Is bring about national conven-
ton of constitutional Democrats in
Washington next December. II he does,
and there is big turnout as there
may well be. the Roosevelt Democrats
will have something to think about. The
Roosevelt Democrats are the last to
admit. generally speaking, that the
President has any aims to do anything
to the Constitution. They know, or at
least they have learned, that such q
program on the part of the administra-
tion would meet with popular resentment.
They learned this after the President
had clearly implied in his now famous
hour r-and-a-half talk to the press after
the Supreme Courts N. r. A. decision
that something must be done to make
it possible for the Federal Government
to deal with hours Of labor, with the
farm problem and everything else that
the New Deal has attempted.
Mr.. Kirby and his associates, however,
say that actions speak louder than words
They insist that the New Deal program
has been in violation of the Constitution
all along the line, and they point to the
Presidents letter to Representative Hill
Of Washington during the last session
urging the passage of the Guffey coal
bill, even though Congress had reason
able doubts as to its conStitutionality.
While Mr.. Kirby, in his press con-
ference here yesterday, sought to keep
away from candidates, he said quite
frankly that If the Democrats nominated
Roosevelt, he would vote for q ''consti-
tutional" Republican, and that for him.
self he would support Senator William
Z. Borah If he were running against
Roosevelt. OF course, Mr.. Kirby would
prefer to vote for q constitutional"
Democrat against q Republican candi-
date. He is seeking to bring about the
nomination Of such q candidate. He
mentioned as available constitutional
Democrats for the presidential nomina-
tion former Gov. Joseph B. Ely Of Mas
sachuSetts, Newton D. Baker Of Ohio
and former Gov. Albert C. Ritchie of
Maryland. So far as Roosevelt himself
is concerned, Mr. Kirby has had enough,
even if the President should swing back
and declare his opposition to anything
that would change the intent of the
Constitution. I'VE believe that Mr..
Roosevelt is an apostate." Is the way
Kirby put it.
Mr.. Kirby insisted that Borah, II he
becomes the Republican nominee, could
Texas was one OF three Southern States
which gave their electoral votes to q
Republican President in 1928. Incl
dentally, Senator Borah campaigned
actively in Texas and in other Southern
States during that contest. Kirby is
looking to Gov. Talmadge Of Georgia,
an active opponent OF the Roosevelt
New Deal. to take q prominent part in
the fight to head of Roosevelt delegates
to the next national convention.
One Of the interesting things which
Kirby said was: I'VE are not organizing
a new party. The force being enlisted
to oppose that combination of socialistic
professors and Communist sympathizers
welding such influence in the admins
tration Of the affairs of our Government
is composed Of Democrats still faithful
to the principles of the Declaration of
Independence.
II this constitutional" movement
against the New Deal becomes very pro-
nounced among the Democrats Of the
South it is reasonable to expect that the
Roosevelt Democrats will begin to pic
ture the President as the greatest up
holder of the Constitution since the days
OF George Washington. They will find
a lot to say along that line, undoubtedly.
Gov. Talmadge of Georgia is said to
be leader in the constitutional" Demo-
cratic movement. The Georgia Gov
ernor has become an even more out
standing figure in the ranks opposing the
denomination OF President Roosevelt in