The daily independent., 1937-07-29
WA WMs


Fight; Real Issue Is Roosevelt
Program; Must" Bills Stir UP
Negro Issue; FDR Agreed On z
Judges But Robinson, Expecting
Court Seat, Sulked; Sore AT
Garner For Forcing Surrender
On Court BY AdrOit Maneuvers.
Washington-You hear lot OF
| talk around Capitol lobbies that
the Supreme Court fight is over,
and everything is now love ana
kisses in the Democratic Party.
But don't be deceived by those
kisses. There may be temporary
lull in the battle, but it will be
very temporary.
The real issue today is: Will the
Roosevelt program go on?
In four years he has put through
program more radical than any
other President since Lincoln, and
it is no secret that to many OF his
party leaders that program has
been just as bitter medicine as
the program of Lincoln was to
their forebearS.
The Roosevelt program, so far
has been whipped through by the
scourge of the depression and by
overwhelming popular demand.
But now the depression is over,
public opinion is more complacenC
and Roosevelt has suddenly SUI
fered a smashing, terrific defeat.
White House advisers are put
ting out the story that the defeat
was neither significant nor I'M
portant. But they are WhiStling IN
their boards. Real fact is that
Roosevelt was given a crushing
blow. and given it not by Repub-
licanS, but by members of his own
party.
Growing Split
Those same members now face
issues to which they secretly OBJ
iect Just as vigorously as they did
to the court plan-perhapS more
so.
Look over the important, bills
earmarked for action before ad-
journment. They got down to the
roots Of traditional opposition
within Roosevelt'S own party.
There is the wages and hours
bill. which puts the Negro of the
South on the same economic plane
as far as wages gO-With white
labor. In the opinion of some peO-
pie it CompleteS-frOm the econO-
mic vieWpoint-thee emancipation
which Lincoln started. There is
potent, deep-rooted opposition to
this bill on the part Of many
Democratic Congressman. but 1t
is a must" measure on the pro-
gram of their leader.
There is also the housing bill by
which. for the first time the Gov
ernment reaches down into the
SlumS with its own money and
builds tenementS to competei with
private real estate Not only are
the real estate operators opposed,
but also the agricultural areas,
which get no benefit.
Dodge Roosevelt
All the talk about adjournment
because of fatigue and hot wealth
er is bunk. Real reason is the de-
sire to dodge the Roosevelt pro-
gram.
Hostile Democrats have tasted
blood and may get away with 1t
this time. They even continue to
get away with it. But if they do,
| it means the real elimination of
the long talked-of split within the
Democratic Party.
Roosevelt is an adroit leader. He
will Soft-soap and Wisecreack. He
can dodge and sometimes retreat.
But in this case the old Dutch is
up, and you can write it down in
the book that he is in for a
knock down and -drag-out fight to
the finish with the Democratic
Old Guard
Post MOIrtem
Post MortemS are dreary, but
in the case of the Supreme Court
fight there are some significant
lessons to be gained from review
ing the strategy by which the pre-
sident lost it.
There were, of course, the al
ready known facts that he muffed
the first play by not taking Sena-
tors into his confidence, also by
letting Attorney General Cum
mings get him off on such wrong
steers as old age and crowded
court dockets as the excuse for
reorganization. Important also is
IllC 1oCG IlldG IVOOocFclV "do ONCl-
confident, went fishing instead of
fighting. He let his opponents
drag out the battle until Chief
Justice Hughes could spring some
favorable decisions.
1t was after the Wagner Act de-
cision, upholding the New Deal,
that unwritten history took place
which had an all-important
bearing on the fight.
At that time Roosevelt indicated