The Washington times., 1936-02-08
VOTERS | LITTLE
INFLUENCED
BYL0YAETY
Roosevelt Is Courting
Liberals As Smith
Leads 'WaIkout'
BY GEORGE r. HOLMES
international News Service

international News Service
Political Developments since the
turn Of the year have convinced
a great many politicians in both
parties that the presidential cleo
ton in November is going to wit
ness more criss-crossing Of party
lines, more party bolting, than any
election since 1919.
The bonds of regularity have
been weakened in both parties to
a point where the leaders vision
an electorate dividing in Novem-
Der along politico- economic lines,
rather than on straight politics.
Smith Leads 'sWaIk"
al Smith already has threat
ened to take Q walk" away from
the Roosevelt banner. Moreover,
he asserted there we're some mil
lions of Democrats who felt as he
did. Among those millions are such
party figures as John w. Davis
and former Gov. Joseph B. Ely Of
Massachusetts,. There is ample evi-
dence that the Roosevelt New Deal
has alienated many conservative
Democrats.
On the other hand, the Progress
sive Republicans openly threaten
to take walk for themselves If the
Cleveland convention In June fails
to nominate a liberal" Republi-
can candidate and fails to give him
a liberal" platform on which to
rim.
Realizing the detection On the
part Of the conservative Demo.
crats, President Roosevelt Is open.
1y courting the support Of these
ssive Republicans. His
luncheon conference with Senator
Borah Of Idaho, himself an avowed
candidate for the Republican
nomination, was significant step
in that direction.
Liberals Talk Frankly
In the past few weeks, Mr..
Roosevelt has consulted other Re
puhliCars who are demanding q
liberal candidate and a liberal plat
form at Cleveland, among them
Senator Norris Of Nebraska, sSe11a.
tor eLa4Eollette Of Wisconsin, and,
mora significantly, Senator Cou.
zens Of Michigan. II
Norris and La Toilette both sup
ported the Democratic ticket in
80 and expect to do so again.
Senator Couzens and Senator
Borah did not support the Demo
cratic ticket in '32, and their
course in '36 will remain u1a-
charted until it Is seen what hap
pens at Cleveland.
While the senators have not
disclosed what went on around
the Presidents flat.topped desk at
these luncheon conferences, and
the White House has preserved
its, customary reticence, it is
known that the conversations be-
tween Mr.. Roosevelt and his viSt-
tors have been conducted upon
an exceedingly frank basis. Mr..
Roosevelt asked for frank ap-
praisal of his Administration -
and got it.
Sympathetic Toward Aims
Senator Couzens is reported to
have told the President he was
inclined to synpathize with the
broad aims of the New Deal, its
social and economic detectives.
but that he thought the waste and
extravaganza in Federal spending
was indefensible, and that many
spots in the Administration setup
were filled with incompetent men.
It was perhaps significant that
after this meeting between the
President and the Michigan 1nde-
pendent that Mr.. Roosevelt can.
celled 1000 million dollars Of
authorized funds being held IN
various Government lending agen-
cies, and called in the principal
spenders, Ickes, Hopkins, ct al, to
see what could be done about
Tightening up.
Democratic leaders, Of course,
are hoping for an old-fash1oned
Republican battle at Cleveland
that viii leave scars such as they
themselves experienced at Mad1-
son Squafe Garden in 1924. Some
Of them predict a head-on clash
between the Hoover and Borah
elements Of the convention, and
in that case they believe the for
rner President will win and that
Borah will take a walk" ana
take with him the considerable
following he admittedly has in
the West. -.
Others believe the Cleveland
convention may be q repetition OF
Chicago in 1920, with Borah, Ian
don and Knox going into a bitter
deadlock, as did Lowden, Wood
and johnson in 1920. Warren G..
Harding emerged from the 1920
deadlock.
The field of speculation as to
who might emerge from such a
situation in Cleveland Is well-nigh
limitless. In either case, there
probably would be some Republi-
can scars, especially if the Hoover
element played any considerable
part in the outcome.
In that connection, q recent
White House caller who discussed
politics with the President later
l. pAaCaUoIt