Evening star., 1936-01-23
THE POLITICAL
MILL
By G. Could Lincoln.

II By G. Gould Lincoln.
The much-heralded Liberty League
dinner, with Al Smith as its premier
speaker, Is in the immediate ofnng. There
has been a tremendous amount of inter.
est and speculation as to what the former
leader Of the Democratic party will have
to say Saturday night about the New
Deal and President Roosevelt. Reports
flltering into Washington are that Mr..
Smith Is going to speak his mind with
the utmost clarity. What effect this
will have on the body polite remains to
be seen. Only few years ago any
thing the former Governor had to say
was particularly effective. He had big
following in the country. When the
Roosevelt administration first developed
its "New Deal" tampered with the money
and started on its way to the regimenta-
ton of the farmers and business, Al
Smith, then editor Of the New Outlook,
wrote of "baloney dollars" and declared
that the American people were being sub
jected to experiments like lot Of guinea
pigs.
Those were the days when the New
Deal was more popular. Mr.. Smiths
structures were characterized as those of
disgruntled, defeated candidate for the
Democratic presidential nomination.
"Sour grapes" was the word used. Since
then a lot of water has run under the
bridge. The critics of the New Deal have
mounted in number. It Is not likely
that the former Governor of New York
has any idea Of becoming candidate
again for the presidential nomination
certainly not at this time. But whether
the declaration that he Is not candidate
for office, if he makes 1t, will strengthen
him as critic Of the administration or
weaken his position is question. AS
long as man Is a potential threat at
the polls or in the national conventions.
he exerts considerable degree Of inf1u-
ence politically.
\ X
Next week the Jeffersonian Democrats
are to hold their convention in Macon,
Ga. Here again is another sounding
board for the criticism OF the Roosevelt
administration. What these disgruntled
Democrats would like to accomplish is
the defeat of President Roosevelt for re-
nomination as Democrat. There seems
no slightest chance of this, although
there may be State here and there
which will send delegates opposed to his
denomination and will SO vote. Whether
these revolving Democrats in Macon will
60 to the length of putting an independ-
ent Democratic ticket in the field is
another thing.
Putting an Independent Democratic
ticket in the field would be real job
HI ,tro
organization. The Democrats who plan
to attend the Macon convention are from
the Southern and border States-the
East, North and West are not included.
Anything short OF Nationwide move
ment for an independent Democratic
ticket might be futile. However, there
several of the Southern States might be
weaned away from Roosevelt.
When William Jennings Bryan was
nominated for President by the Demo-
cratic National Convention in 1896 and
he campaigned on free silver" plat
form, the conservative Democrats-many
of them followers of Grover Cleveland,
then PreiSdent-put an Independent
ticket in the field headed by Palmer
the gold Democrats. When the show
down came on election day the vote for
Palmer was disappointing. His total vote
was only little more than 13l 600 the
country over. However, the 5000 votes
cast for Palmer in Kentucky, had they
been given to Bryan, would have carried
that State for the Democratic ticket. AS
it was the State was counted for Nc
Kinley. In that election the total pop
ular vote was something over 13,775,000.
In the election of 1882 the total popular
vote was 39,734.351.
The anniversary Of the birth Of Abra-
ham Lincoln, in campaign years, is al
ways the occasion of great republican
activity, with speeches by party leaders
everywhere Former President Herbert
Hoover will deliver the next of his at
tacks on the Roosevelt New Deal in
Portland, Greg, the night Of February
IL. under the auspices of the Republican
State Committee, and his address will
be broadcast over the radio. Senator
Vandenberg of Michigan, who, while not
candidate for the presidential nomina-
ton, has many supporters throughout
the country, is to deliver an address in
New York which will receive much at
tention.
Congress has been in session three
weeks. In that short period what it and
the Supreme Court have done to PreSi-
dent Roosevelt's budget for the fiscal
year 1887 is plenty. Congress has
passed the soldiers bonus bill. The most
conservative estimates are that it will
call for a Government expenditure Of
cash of $1,000 100000 during the fiscal
year 1887, which begins July /, 1886. and
ends the following June 30. The bonus
payments may run much higher, how
ever. When the Supreme Court knocked
out the A. A. A. and the processing
taxes a fruitful source of Government
income went out the window. It is now
proposed by the administration leaders
to appropriate $240. 100000 to pay the
farmers for the fulf1llment of their con-
tracts entered into with the A. A. A.
before the law was declared invalid. It
is proposed further to appropriate nearly
$500 100000 for q new farm relief plan
which is as like the old A. A. A. as one
pea is to another, except in name, and
the Supreme Court has handed back to
the professors 5000 100000 Of impounded
taxes. The increased appropriations be-
cause of the bonus and the farm relief
legislation approximate two billion dol
lars The loss in income from the proc