The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1936-07-02
Democrats United for
Roosevelt and New Deal
Wild Demonstrations in the Philadelphia Convention
Flexible Platform Adopted and Two
thirds Rule Abrogated.
By EDWARD w. PICKARD
g Western Newspaper Union


Convention Hall, Philadelphia -
"What this country needs is four more
years of the New Deal under the ad-
ministration of Franklin Delano
Roosevelt. And that is just what this
country is going to get"
Such in effect was the expressed
belief and confident determination of
the Democratic National convention
of 1886.
With complete and beautiful una
nimity the delegates again put at the
head of their party ticket the names
of Roosevelt and Garner. If there was
one among them who didn't like this,
le wisely held his peace. All those who
had anything to say-and most of
them had-were confident, vocifer-
ously or serenely, of sweeping vic
tory in November comparable to that
they had in 1882.
Before it concluded its labors the
convention did another notable thing.
It voted to abrogate. the old rule re-
quiring a two-thirds vote for the
nomination of candidates. The south
ern states fought the change stub
bornly in the committee on rules and
voted against it on the floor, but they
were outnumbered.
Platform Draft Was Revised
Whatever other diSsension there
was in the convention related to the
platform upon which the candidates
were to take their stand, and this was
carefully confined to the committee
rooms. Senator Wagner of New York,
chairman of the resolutions commit
tee, had been in conference with
President Roosevelt in Washington
and brought here well planned lot
of plankS which had the approval of
the chief. But there were two startling
political developments shortly before
the convention opened which required
much revision of the platform. First
of these was the formation of the third
or Union party with Congressman
Lemke as its standard bearer. Second
was the open letter to the delegates
here signed by Al Smith, Ex-Governor
Ely, cambridge Colby, Ex-Judge
Cohalan and Ex-senator Jim Reed
of Missouri. This rather astounding
document urged that the convention
discard Franklin D. Roosevelt and
nominate real Democrat" or else
abandon the old party name. The five
eminent gentlemen said that if this
demand were not complied with, and
of course they knew it would not be,
they would be forced to take the field
in opposition to the New Deal and
its leader.
The letter from Smith ct al. was re-
ceived here with angry scorn, silent
contempt or fierce declarations that it
meant nothing more than five Old
Deal votes lost to the cause. But the
Union party was something else again.
1t really caused much trepidation in
the minds of the leaders, who realized
that the prospective combination of
radical and dissatisfied farmers, fol-
lowers of Father Coughlin and adj
herents of the late Huey P. Long now
shepherded by Rev. Gerald Smith
might well lead to the loss of num-
Der of states and certainly would
draw heavily from the New Deal vote
unless something were done about it.
Many thought the best plan was
decided liberalization of various parts
of the platform though this would ne
cessitate moving Mr. Roosevelt quite
distance from the ''little to the left
of center" position he had chosen.
Conservatives who have opposed
many of the New Deal doings but
still remain in the party ranks, fought
stubbornly against this shift to the
left, and the subcommittee that had
the building of the platform in hand
spent long and weary hours debating
the proper wording of the resolutions.
Gives President Wide Scope
AS finally decided upon, reported to
the convention by Senator Wagner
and adopted by that body, the plat
form is cleverly devised affair which
lodges many issues and leaves the
President free to follow almost any
policy he may determine upon as
occasions arise. 1t is flexible in the
extreme. Starting off with the self
evident truths" that the nation was
brought to the brink of ruin by twelve