Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1936-04-20
Anti.New Deal Democrats.

Democrats who do not believe in the
Roosevelt New Deal may adopt any one
of number of courses when election
day rolls around. They may vote the
Republican ticket. They may stay at
home and not vote at ALL or they may
swallow the New Deal. hook, line and
sinker and vote for the reelection of
President Roosevelt. Generally speak
ing, the Democrat especially if he hap
pens to hold public Office, is harder to
pry away from his party allegiance than
is the Republican.
The 1928 presidential campaign was,
perhaps, an exception to this rule. Many
thousands of Democrats deserted AL
Smith. Four States of the Democratic
solid South that year voted for Hoover.
Two Democratic Senators-Simmons of
North Carolina and Helm of Alabama
came out against Smith. What happened
to those Senators when they came up
for reelection, however, is calculated to
make other Democratic Senators, now
opposed to the Roosevelt New Deal, think
a second time before they jump the party
reservation.
1t now appears that Democratic Sen
ators who have denounced the Roosevelt
New Deal, for example Carter Glass of
Virginia, Harry Flood Byrd, also of Vir-
ginia, and Willard Tydings of Maryland,
will be found. not opposing the re-elec-
ton of President Roosevelt. but actually
aiding him in the coming campaign.
And yet Senator Glass in speech that
has been much quoted said that death
would have been better than the disgrace
of the New Deal. Decidedly, it looks as
though Democrats were more inclined
to be regular" than are Republicans.
When Hiram johnson of California,
George w. Norris of Nebraska. Robert M.
La Toilette of Wisconsin and Bronson
s. Cutting of New Mexico fell out with
former President Hoover and his policies,
did they support him for reelection in
1882? They old not. Furthermore, these
Republican" Senators went out on the
firing-line to battle for the election OF
the Democratic national ticket. And SO
far none of these recalcitrant Repub-
licans has been defeated, either for re-
nomination or for reelection. johnson
was reelected in 1884. La Toilette turned
Progressive and was also reelected.
Norris has failed this year to enter the
Republican primary or the Democratic
for denomination. He is being pressed by
his friends to run as an independent next
Fall.
So much for Democrats in Office. They
are likely to go along with Roosevelt.
What of the Democrats who are not in
Office or in places of political power who
are against the New Deal? Will they
join up with Roosevelt? Assuredly some
of them will not, as, for example, former
Senator Jim" Reed of Missouri, John
w. Davis and Alfred E. Smith, both of
whom were Democratic nominees for
President before Roosevelt. Nor will
John ]. Raskob, former chairman of the
Democratic National Committee, be in
line for Roosevelt Some of them, If not
all, will vote the Republican ticket, even
though they hate to do so.
How many of the rank and file of the
Democracy who are anti-Roosevelt will
follow these gentlemen rather than
Glass, Byrd and Tydings? 1t is ques-
ton that the Democratic high command
would like to have answered. 1t is
question which may be in part answered
when the Democratic protest vote is
cast in Maryland, Pennsylvania, Ohio
and New Jersey for Henry Breckenridge,
who has offered himself as candidate
in the presidential primaries against
Roosevelt. And it may be more fully
answered when the Republicans have
nominated their candidate and written
their party platform in Cleveland.