Evening star., 1937-06-20
Back.Stage Maneuvers
in Washington
BY OVEN L. SCOTT.

"delAAIktoI, IL CHI KNOW LnlS. some.
body is going to get badly hurt, polite
| ally at least. before accounts are settled
| IN feuds now generating.
Definitely. some OF Mr. Roosevelt's
| one-time allies In Congress are giving
| him his first real hazing. They started
by busting Jimmy Roosevelt the Presi-
dents son. as a Legislative liaison agent
| for the White Houhr. Charlie West, the
White Ho,ne scout and soothing syrup
| dispenser OF Capitol Hi. and Tommy
Corcoran. exuberant whip-lasher, aren't
far away from similar treatment, If
their ears are not burning. they should be.
That is but the beginning
Unanimous Senate nomination OF Sen
| ator Joseph Robinson for the place on
the Supreme Court left vacant by Justice
Willis van observation-disclosures Mr.
Roosevelt--fits into the picture. So does
the Scathing attack on the Presidents
motives. purposes and methods made by
majority OF the Senate Judiciary Com
mittee In its vote against Supreme Court
enlargement. No previous President,
within memory Of Senators now serving,
has been forced to take such a lashing.
The TACT that this attack. along with
some others, was arranged in a sup
poSedly secret rendezvous arranged by
John D. M. Hamilton, chairman OF the
Republican National Committee, and
attended by leading Republican strate-
glsts OF the Senate is not going to sim
pity matters when the time comes to
settle accounts. Neither is the fact that
some Democratic Senators encouraged
the Republicans to insist that Congress
pry into the income tax returns of Mr..
and Mrs. Roosevelt, Treasury Secretary
Morgenthau. Postmaster General Far
ley and Joseph p Kennedy, head of the
Maritime Commission.
And do not take too literally the story
that John Nance Garner, Vice President.
went home because of the heat He went
TO help put the heat on his boss" the
President. The cleavage there has been
growing ever since Mr.. Roosevelt kept
quiet while sit-down strikers held auto
mobile plants. 1t widened with the
court-change plan and with the tax
dodger hunt The Vice President did not
care to lend his wide influence to the
Presidents side Of the argument In Con-
gress.
Actually, his going has given rise to
an undercover walk out movement.
Senators talked coyertly about pulling
stakes shortly after July IS, regardless of
the state Of the legislative program be-
fore the President decided to let Con-
gressmen air their grievances to him and
his cabinet on Potomac River island.
Mr.. Roosevelt will try to talk them
around, in his peace session, by re-estab-
fishing contact with the rank and file
who had been drifting away from their
early allegiance.
What's up is shown in part by the ex-
perience of one administration Official
who walked blithely into a congressional
committee session the other day to give
some requested advice, only to be re-
minded sternly that:
There seems to be some doubt around
town about who does the legislating for
this Government. We Just want to put
you straight"
And, on the other side there was the
experience OF committee chairman who
went to the White House to suggest a
compromise on sugar legislation He
came away with his tail feathers droop-
ing, told by the President that there
would be no compromise so long as a
sugar lobby hovered around Washington.
To make 1t more impressive. the Pres-
cent later reasserted his position to
newspaper men.
All OF this, and more. too. caused one
good Democrat, who is sitting on the
side lines while the rabbit punches are
being delivered, to observe:
III the measure Of great politician Is
tolerance-and that astute professor
politician and philosopher. T. Y. Smith
says it is-there aren't many great poll
tlclans In high places in the Natior's
Capital today
What. then. is the matter?
About the best and simplest explana-
ton is that the presidential bug already
is beginning to bite important people one
year before the next general primary
elections and three years before the next
national party conventions.
1t has nipped at least three of those
close around Mr.. Roosevelt and an unde-
termlned number in Congress.
Those who have been bitten-and their
1rlends-already are playing for position.
The fact that some of the most active
think that the President himself has the
Dug Tor third term despite his numer-
Gus pubic protestations to the contrary,
only adds to the complications
The real battle is for control of the
party machinery and the nomination in
1940
Some OF the Senators. led by a group
OF "coat-tailers," having slid into office
on one pair of coat-tails worn by Mr..
Roosevelt. now are jumping off them
and starting search for a new pair
for the next ride. If they guess right,
all to the good, but. If they guess wrong,
and Mr.. Roosevelt continues to keep his
hold they are in for trouble No man in
public life bears grudges quite as deeply,
or possesses a memory quite so long, as
the present President.
So when Senators move out to do bat
tie, they must know that what follows
is going to be highly entertaining, even
II devastating to many hopes and aspi-
rations.
The coat-tail group, whose members
have deeply offended President Roose-
welt by telling the Nation that he has
violated every sacred tradition of Amer
lean democracy" includes Senators Van
Nuys Of Indiana. McCarran of Nevada,
Burke OF Nebraska, Connally of Texas,
OMahoney of Montana and Hatch of
New Mexico. They are Joined by Sena-
tors Wheeler of Montana, Clark of Mis-
souri, and King of Utah. Among their
number the presidential bug has bitten
badly Senators Wheeler and Clark, If
the revolving Senate Democrats can best
the President and recapture the national
machinery OF their party, the stars of
these two will rise. But otherwise, each
will continue to be classed as Just an
other Senator.