Evening star., 1937-06-20
NEW PARTY COALITION
DEPENDS ON DEMOCRATS
Roosevelt Attitude on Court s'Bolters',
Seen Shaping Jeffersonian.Republi.
can Lines for Next Campaign.
BY MARK SULLIVAN.

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~ can leaders, chiefly OF the
~ strongly progressive wing,
4 a have recently made some
gestures looking toward coalition with
the Democrats who oppose President
Roosevelt's court measure. The ges-
lures so far have not reached the point
Of discussion with any Democrats
When and If they do reach that point
the Democrats will give the proposal
q very cold shoulder. Certainly the
Democrats in question would spurn
any suggestion Of coalition at this
time. In fact, the gesture of Pro-
gressive Republicans seems at this
time very uncalled for.
That American politics is in flux
everybody knows. Quite probably
some kind Of new alignment is ahead.
Only by new alignment can the
changed currents of American thought
find solidified expression. But the
time is not yet. The beginning of a
new alignment may take place next
year. as an incident of the Congress
sional elections. The alignment may
come to fruit in the presidential
election of 1910. No doubt at the
present time new alignment is under
way among the voters. But anything
like organization or coalition would
be at this time premature.
The new alignment, in a formal
sense. must wait until determination
OF who and what school of thought
is going to control the Democratic
party. What is now going on is
struggle for control of that party.
The struggle is made vivid by the
situation In the Senate. In that
body are IS Democrats tout OF a total
OF 96). Close to half the number are
opposed to Presidents court measure
in its original form. Slightly more
than half are willing to vote for it
(Vllling to vote for it, that is, as
matter OF party discipline or per-
sonal prudence-there are not 10
men in the Senate, of all parties,
who really believe in iD.
Democratic Split.
Here is a separation of the Demo-
cratic party in two roughly equal
groups on the most important measure
Mr.. Roosevelt has sent to Congress.
That amounts to a division Of the
Democratic party into two. The
opponents OF the Presidents court
measure are not insurgents, except
against the President. They are not
rump. They are very close to half
OF the party in the Senate.
Democrats opposed to the Presi-
dents court proposal" Is long
phase. In an article such as this I
am obliged to repeat it several times.
I wish there was 4 shorter phrase.
But I can think of no shorter phrase
that does not distort the facts. Much
distortion Of fact and some public
harm is caused by newspaper writer's,
especially headline writer's, seeking
short phrases. 1t will not do to use
the term "anti-Rooeevelt Democrats"
for the Democratic Senat tors who
oppose the court proposal. Practically
~'~AS OAAS "a eAAoSC oNlldtUS, WHEN he
makes speech against the court
measure, begins by saying that he is
loyal to President Roosevelt, that he
has supported most or all of the Presi-
dents measures. and that Mr.. Roose-
welt Is very great President.
This means. among other things,
that all the Democratic Senators re-
gard the President as a symbol of the
headship of the party. just as they
regard the Stars and Stripes as the
symbol OF the country, and what is
going on is struggle for the right
to possess the symbol, the right to
be regarded as the true Democratic
party While this struggle is going
on the last thing desired by either
faction is any negotiations with Re-
publicans. So long as the conflict
remains what it now is a struggle
within the party. any gestures OF
Republicans toward one OF the fac
tions would be acutely embarrassing
to the latter.
Sooner or later one faction or the
other will win, on the court proposal
and generally. BY winning, that