Evening star., 1935-03-31
Presidents Heavy Task Has Become
Complex i'm Administration of New Deal

war and military war. Either of
which would gravely affect the Ameri-
can situation. The President must
determine this country's policy and its
program.
Who are the aides surrounding Mr..
Roosevelt?
First there are his secretaries. OF
these. Louis McHenry Howe, a former
newspaper man and closest adviser for
years, has handled political problems.
He has been closest to the presidential
ear during the last two years. His
gift has been in sensing popular senti-
ment. Marvin Mcintyre, also a for
mer newspaper man, is the official
greeter and syphoner Of callers into
the Presidents Office. Stephen Early,
another former newspaper man. deals
with the press.
Then comes the cabinet. This group
grew up naturally out of conferences
of department heads in the first ad-
ministration Of George Washington.
1t has continued to be a round table
discussion group. Most Of its mem
bers are chosen for their political
Affiliations and accomplishments rath-
er than for ability to deal with mod.
ern economic problems.
Cabinet meetings under the New
Deal are not the ponderous confer
ences on fundamental national issues
that many may imagine. They are
twice weekly gatherings. lasting about
two hours, during which much chat
ting ocurs, and during which an op-
portunity is given Mr.. Roosevelt to
talk over individual problems with
specific members Of the group.
But cabinet meetings did not bring
into conference the heads of New Deal
alphabetical creations, so there was
created the National Emergency
Council to serve as a broader ad-
visory group. 1t meets every two
weeks, on Tuesdays. This gathering
is even more cumbersome than the
cabinet meeting and is not noted for
results.
When 1t became clear that none
Of these agencies was functioning to
coordinate the widespread Federal
activities. Mr.. Roosevelt appointed
Donald Richberg to be his chief aide
and co-ordinator. Now Mr.. Richberg
has worked himself out Of that Job
and back into the job of trying to
run the N. r. A. He found extreme
difficulties in the path of any CO.
ordinator.
The upshot Of 1t all is that the New
Deal has developed into a bevy of
separate shows, run by a group of
rugged individualists, with Mr.. Roose-
velt depending on his personal grasp
of governmental and economic prob
lens to keep the machine functioning
At that point, officials studying the
problem of administering the huge
Federal machine believe that some
new administrative structure will need
to be built sooner or later.
They say that the original brain
trust" brought to Washington by Mr..
Roosevelt, was intended to fit in be-
tween the cabinet and the PreSi-
dent. This group of advisers pre-
sumably was to supply the President
with expert analysis Of the questions
that reached him for decision. It was
to be non-political to a degree, and
above all to endeavor to work all the
experiments into a logical pattern.
But brain-trust advice was not al
ways easy to accept. Brain trusters
soon were In trouble with politicians.
This group Is now scattered and in
effective, except for a few individuals.
Now Henry Wallace, Secretary of
Agriculture, would insert into the
Government, alongside the President,
an economic council functioning to
make broad decisions on economic
policy, which the President and the
Congress would adhere to in guiding
their own actions.
Others believe the United States
has reached the point where 1t must
create a permanent secretariat, such
as Lloyd George created in England.
This would be group of specialists,
trained in the Government, serving
through one administration after an
other, and responsible for effective
administration.
There Is agreement that the pres
ent hit-and-miss system, built for
government in the days when Presi-
dents could nap and be assured that
all was well with the country, does
not function effectively at time
when Presidents almost daily are
called upon to make decisions affect
ing directly the lives of the mass Of
citizens.
II government Is to continue to
guide the economic as well as the
political life Of the Nation, there is
growing agreement that the executive
branch must be strengthened, in order