Evening star., 1940-06-03

SnAres w. noss' COrdell Hull
was gaining, and the President
would swing to him if he couldn't
put over Attorney General Robert
H. Jackson. Or perhaps the Presi-
dent would plump for Justice Doug
las of the Supreme Court. Jim Far
ley couldn't hope to be the first man
on the ticket but he had a good
chance to be nominated for Vice
President, and if that happened
would the fact of his Roman Cathol-
icism hurt the party's chances in
the election?
Thus the political patter of a dead
and gone era.
Only one question remains. Will
Roosevelt take it?
The belief grows in Washington
that he will.
Speculation on Running Mate.
Speculation turns to the vice presi-
dency. If Roosevelt runs. jackson
and Farley, being from New York,
pass automatically out of the pic
ture. Contrary to what has some
times been written. this is due to no
constitutional inhibition against the
election Of a President and a Vice
President from the same State. The
Constitution merely forbids the cleo
tors OF State to vote for more than
one inhabitant of that State. The
practical effect, of course, is to rule
out a second New Yorker if Mr..
Roosevelt is nominated otherwise,
either Mr.. Roosevelt or his running
mate would be deprived in advance
OF the electoral college votes of New
York.
With Jackson and Farley out, who
are left?
There's Wheeler. He has said
for whatever disavoWals of this kind
are Worth-that he wouldn't accept
second place on the ticket. More
pertinent is the fact that the iso-
latlonlst views of the Montana Sem
ator are wholly out of tune with the
foreign policy of the President. And
If Roosevelt runs again, he will run
because OF the impact of the war
on the United States.
There's McNutt. He's possi-
blllty. and he would like the noni-
nation. His weakness is that he
has never been fully accepted by
the inner circle of the New Deal:
7 his strength in his good administra-
tive record, his vigor as cam
palgner and the fact that of all
the Democratic speeches that have
been made in the pre-convention
campaign his have been by long
odds the best expression Of the
Roosevelt point of view. A frus-
trated opportunist, say his enemies;
man of too great abilities to be
permanently blanketed, say his
friends. He may come back.
Douglas Talk Grows.
Then there is Douglas of the Su-
preme Court. Talk about him for
the vice presidential nomination
has grown as the manifest grip of
the President on the national con-
vention has tightened. The New
Deal leaders of the draft Roosevelt
movement would like Douglas on
the ticket. To those on the party's
right and in the middle he would
be bitter pill to swallow. He could
be nominated only at the all-out
insistence of Roosevelt. But even
this might happen.
Middle of = the roader Senator
James F. Byrnes of South Caro-
lina-able, shrewd, popular, skilled
in congressional leadership-is a
distinct possibility. and so also, with
much the same qualifications and
the additional advantage of a close
personal tie with John Garner, is
the House majority leader. Sam
Rayburn of Texas New Dealers
friendly to the Rayburn idea-and
they are numerous-have COM
mented for long time on the neat
alliterative effect to be achieved
by naming the Texan. 1t might we'll
be Roosevelt and Rayburn.
1t might even be-for the OBJ
vious purpose of dramatizing a
united party front in a time Of
crisis-Roosevelt and Garner. Moth
ing, today, is incredible.
Intrinsically, the vice presiden-
tial nomination of 1910 on the DEM
ocratic ticket-on either tickets
of enormous importance. From a
strictly political point of view. If
Roosevelt runs it makes little diff
ference who runs with him.
There will be in that case only
one determining issue, reducible to
one word.
Roosevelt.