An Independent Republican's Story:
NEUBERGER, MAURINE B.
An Independent Republican's Story Senator from Vermont. By Ralph E. Flanders. Little, Brown. 312 pp. $5.00. Reviewed by Maurine B. Neuberger United States Senator from Oregon I had the...
...Even though he had respect for President Truman, Flanders continued to feel that President Roosevelt was responsible for "committing our country—and the world—to an acceptance of the Soviet alliance as a love affair...
...Flanders' speech on liberals and conservatives is a gem of an essay, too...
...Before it went into effect, the nations of Western Europe, particularly France and Italy, were rapidly drifting toward Communism...
...During that time he and my husband were colleagues and had mutual admiration for each other, even though they represented opposite political points of view...
...In all the years since the close of the Second World War this has been the most successful of our international undertakings...
...Though my philosophy of government differs in several instances with that of the Senator, I find much of great interest and agreement in this delightful account...
...Flanders attributes a large share of the Plan's success to the fact that its director was Paul Hoffman, "an experienced and socially-minded businessman," who is now head of the emergency fund program for the United Nations...
...I had a feeling of excitement and anticipation in reading about the events leading up to the censure of the Senator from Wisconsin by his colleagues...
...Of this postwar recovery program, the Senator says: "The second session of the 80th Congress was notable for the promulgation of the Marshall Plan, which put millions of dollars into the economic restoration of Europe...
...This acquaintanceship made me turn to the sections of Flanders' very readable autobiography which deal with the Senate...
...They do and in this way: As we rise from the table the ladies go off with the hostess and the men go with the host into a separate room where coffee is being served...
...After a half hour or more of this, at the host's suggestion we 'join the ladies.'" Yes, Mr...
...Here the conversation gravitates toward subjects of great pith and moment...
...Under the Marshall Plan, production reached prewar levels in a remarkably short time, people were put to work and social stability established...
...For the ensuing period the Communist menace has been held in check...
...Views and information are exchanged that would not come easily in formal visits to the office of the respective officials...
...Many readers will find the Senator's account of his growing concern with McCarthyism the most fascinating part of this book...
...But nothing pleased me so much as the following paragraph, which touches on my own experience as a woman member of this great body: "These social events were delightful but, you very properly may ask, do they serve a useful place in the life of a Senator...
...Nevertheless, the section on McCarthy is a factual report, and since it was written by one so closely connected with the incidents, it is an important contribution to the history of this infamous period...
...In Manchuria, in Nationalist China, in the satellites, in Berlin, all went as the Soviet had planned and as Roosevelt agreed to...
...Even though the end of the story is wellknown, one's interest is not dimmed because Flanders writes about it in much the same way that one would write a suspense story...
...Reviewed by Maurine B. Neuberger United States Senator from Oregon I had the pleasure of knowing and observing Senator Ralph Flanders for four years, from 1954 until his voluntary retirement from the Senate in 1958...
...The Senator also stresses that the programs were worked out with the nations concerned and were "truly cooperative...
...We still have segregation of the sexes...
...The Senator made his "debut" in the 80th Congress, which became better known to the general public than any other Congress because of the disdain which President Truman held for it and his frequent use of descriptive epithets to express his opinion about it...
...However, the President could not have been too critical of the Senator from Vermont during that period because of Flanders' support for one of Truman's great memorials, the Marshall Plan...
...His concern for our Reciprocal Trade agreements is timely, and the comments on the state of education should be read by every Senator as the 87th Congress again pursues this unresolved problem...
Vol. 44 • July 1961 • No. 27
