Evening star., 1937-08-15
1910 CANDIDATE HINGES
ON PARTY.CONTROL WAR
Democrats Who Opposed Court Bill
May Challenge Roosevelt Again
on Vital Issue.
BY MARK SULLIVAN.

TO WRITE about the split in the
Democratic party is vain-for
there are matters even more
4 portentous ahead OF u.s. To
write about Democratic" and Re
publican at all is vain Those familiar
American terms have little bearing on
the issues Mr.. Roosevelt is going to
present to America, and about which
the country will have to decide But
1t is difficult to make these matters
clear until they arrive, until the people
are face-to-face with them.
However, the new issues, while
utterly different from any America has
known before, probably will be fought
out through the machinery OF two old
parties. The two parties and their
names are deeply rooted in American
usage. The names will remain. but
under them strange things will be
done. Meantime, what is happening
to the two parties. especially the DEM
ocratic party just now, remains i'm
portant.
Is there split in the Democratic
party? There most certainly is. Will
It be healed? National Chairman
Postmaster General Farley says it will
b. But will it?
Showdown Brought Changes.
Before answering that, consider the
nature Of the split, and the extent of it,
The split was brought out by the
PRESIDENTS court measure. The fig
Nf
before Senate Leader Robinson died,
before the break and the showdown
came. the division of Democrats in the
senate was about as follows:
For Presidents court measure 38
Against Presidents court measure 27
No position taken
After Senator Robinson died and the
break came, the IL who had taken no
position went over to the opponents
OF the Presidents measure The final
lineup, so far as there was any for
NAL lineup. was:
For Presidents court measure 81
Against Presidents court measure SO
That Is, on the Presidents court
measure the Democratic Senators were
divided almost exactly evenly. Prac-
ucally the same division appeared
again, when the Democratic Senators
met in party caucus to choose a sue
cessor to Leader Robinson. The rs
Democratic Senators divided thus:
50 for the candidate preferred by the
President, 81 against
To see the Presidents party in the
Senate divided almost exactly in two
Is to recognize there is split.
When a President has lost half his
party's Senators he has lost more than
half. For some Senators remain with
the President not because they agree
with him. but just because he is Presi-
dent. The actual dissent of Democrats
from the Presidents ideas is more
than half. Besides. the 81 Senate
Democrats who oppose the President
usually will have on their side the l6
Republicans in the Senate. In other
words, on any issue in the Senate the
side opposed to the President can
ordinarily win.
Want Control Recognized.
Speaking broadly, the Democratic
Senators opposed to the President can
beat him on any measure in Congress
any time they want to. They won't
want to often. They won't beat him
often unless he presses the issue on
them. They want to recover party
solidarity If they can and preserve it.
But the Democratic Senators want
party solidarity on one condition only.
They want party solidarity with them
selves in control, and with the Presi-
dent tacitly acknowledging they are in
control.
What has occurred is a fight for the
control Of the Democratic party. The
key to control is the next Democratic
nomination for the presidency. The
concrete question was land Isl which
side will name the Democratic nominee
Tor President In 1910. Will 1t be Mr..
Roosevelt. wishing to nominate some
one OF his choice. or renominate him.
self? Or will 1t be the other wing of
the party, wishing to nominate some
orthodox Democrat? In the struggle
the Democratic Senators opposed to
the President have won the first big
battle, won it decisively.
find myself using constantly a
cumbersome phrase, Democratic Sen
ators opposed to the President; or the
even more cumbersome one, Demo-
cratic Senator's who opposed the Presi-
dents court proposal" Why do not
use slmpuler term. nti-Roosevelt
Democrats? 1 do not use it because
the Senators in question do not call
themselves that. They shrink from the
term. Again and again during the
night on the Presidents court meas
tire Democratic Senators about to
make speech against the measure
were careful to begin by saying, In ef-
Iect, I regard Mr.. Roosevelt as a great
president, and it is with profound re-
eret I say I cannot follow him on his
court measure"
Some Fiction Hidden.
In this attitude there is some fiction.
The Democratic Senators opposing
the President know he is the symbol
OF the headship Of the party. They
know too that Just because he is
President, he receives a certain
amount OF loyalty, additional to what
goes to him because of his personality.
Clean 1ananese A,