AFTER ROOSEVELT

Evening Star, Issue 23189, 11 February 1939, Page 1

AFTER ROOSEVELT

THE NEXT PRESIDENT? CORDELL HULL IS BOOMED NEUTRAL ON NEW DEAL The emergence of the Hull presidential boom, in recent days in Washington, has been one of the most extraordinary of political events, writes Edward D. Canham from Washington to the ‘ New York Times.’ Oh, of course, there has been talk of Cordell Hull for President for years. But, somehow, just since the elections, and not directly connected with the new trade treaties at all, the Secretary of State’s name has suddenly shot to the fore. He left for the Lima Conference perhaps just in the nick of time to prevent his boom from getting stale. A. good many people are assuming that the President elected in 1940, whether Democrat or Republican, will be a moderate. It is generally felt that President Roosevelt cannot swing the Democratic nomination for one of. his New Deal favourites, like Harry L. Hopkins, Robert H. Jackson, or Harold L. Ickes, And people are wondering whether or not he can get the third term nomination for himself. . Certainly, even as things stand now, there would be a titanic struggle with the conservative forces within.the party. One of the most effective ways of blocking the third term would be for its Democratic opponents to advance a strong canditate of their own. And preferably,, that candidate should be a man to whom Mr Roosevelt cannot openly or effectively object. There are few such men, and the outstanding one of them is Cordell Hull. ATTITUDE TO NEW DEAL. About Secretary Hull there. is one amazing fact. I do not believe anybody in Washington knows what Mr Hull really thinks about the New Deal. Occasionally ho has paid his; tribute to some aspect or other of broad Administration objectives, but <?jhe has gone on the record in favouryof New Deal measures rather less than many Republicans like Arthur Vandenburg or Alf Landon or Cabot Lodge. At bottom, Mr Hull is a liberal —an old-fashioned liberal—and he leans toward free trade at home as well as abroad. He probably sympathises more with Woodrow Wilson’s New Freedom', than with Franklin Roosevelt’s New Deal. But perhaps not.- None of us really knows what his pre-1933 viewpoint means translated into terms of budget-balancing and WPA and power policy and stock market regulation and monopoly control. In short, Mr Hull is the State Department sphinx on everything that doesn’t concern his own policies. Secretary Hull’s two fixed points, the trade agreement programme and his often expressed condemnation of the agressor nations (whom he describes privately in the most picturesque terms), arc even somewhat ' contradictory of certain typical New Deal doctrines. Most of the real New Dealers have leaned toward an America selfcontained. They- have been isolationists. They have regarded European or Asiatic politics as an unfortunate interruption to the glorious act of rolling up their sleeves and making America over, NEW POLICY EVOLVED. Latterly, it is true, (New Dealers like Secretary lekes have been stirred up by Fascism as expressed in the Spanisti and German situations to evolve a foreign ploicy of their own somewhat more violent than that of Secretary Hull. But their policy rests solely on sympathy with leftist forces, and has nothing to do with the Secretary of State’s economic drive. Despite this, two things are basically true —that nobody knows what Mr Hull thinks of the New Deal and that the New Deal is only expediently wedded to his principles; Planned economy does not really go along with free trade. These facts may well _be highly advantageous to Mr Hull in the political manoeuvring of the coming months. They make him an ideal “ compromise ” candidate, acceptable to both sides. His relation to many New Deal policies may be somewhat akin to that of Charles E. Hughes or Herbert Hoover to the Teapot Dome scandal that erupted under their noses in the Harding Cabinet. But Mr Hull’s present prestige rests on more important factors. It rests upon - his high character, _ his consistency, his determination, his self-respect. It rests upon something intangible upon his idealism and a religious sense and all the attributes that make up that one great word “ character.” And all these things add up to a new kind of political “ it.” You can’t define it, but you can certainly recognise it. DINNER FOR ROOSEVELT.

Thus, recently, the National Press Club gave its annual dinner for President Roosevelt. Secretary Hull was the second ranking guest. When he was introduced the whole group of 400 men arose'uninvited, cheered and applaude Mr Hull as they did for nobody else, except the President. The same thing happened this year at a Gridiron dinner. And the Secretary of State certainly looks like a President. He has never seemed handsomer, happier, and more poised than since the new British and Canadian trade agreements were signed. Moreover, there are certain practical factors. He is the especial Cabinet favourite of “Jim” Farley. Between these two men there is a striking affinity. He is also respected and liked by his old colleagues in the Senate and by the party organisation with which he once had 3 close connection. He would be just the man with whom to “ stampede ” a convention. Well, this is simply reporting to-day’s atmosphere. It can change, and no doubt President Roosevelt’s attitude and policies will have a great effect on events. But as of to-day it can flatly be written that the Administration has a crown prince. And probably doesn’t like it very much.