ROOSEVELT FORCES LAUNCH DRIVE IN TEXAS AS GARNER BOOM SLOWS DOWN
Munz, Charles Curtis
Roosevelt Forces Launch Drive In Texas As Garner Boom Slows Down Liberal Dems May Gain Control of Slate Convention By CHARLES CURTIS MUNZ AUSTIN, Texas—The Roosevelt forces have suddenly come to...
...But two of his close political friends are on the committee...
...9 has been voted by the Illinois Labor's Non-Partisan | league, it was learned here...
...Roosevelt in the Illinois primary election Apr...
...They like open-handed, generous men...
...legislative representative of the railroad labor brotherhoods...
...He says, "I'm for anybody who is for Roosevelt...
...Garner's reputation for small economics hardly fits that ideal...
...Roosevelt Forces Launch Drive In Texas As Garner Boom Slows Down Liberal Dems May Gain Control of Slate Convention By CHARLES CURTIS MUNZ AUSTIN, Texas—The Roosevelt forces have suddenly come to life in Texas...
...In 1938 the 45 largest insurance companies hired 15,745 agents and fired 16.297...
...The endorsement stressed the accomplishments of the new deal...
...Other important, members of the Miller committee are O. P. Lockhart, who as a member of the State Democratic Executive committee cast one of the two votes last week against Garner...
...Miller has made a very fine mayor, and his influence is considerable...
...There is no part of the country that is more New Dealish...
...What controversy...
...The action of the Illinois league in endorsing Roosevelt was regarded here as an indication of the stand the CIO may take if Roosevelt is nominated fcr a third term and the Repubicans adhere to their prartic...
...j State chairman of the league is Ray Edmundson...
...He still has many friends and admirers...
...Murray called this a "fink proposition...
...The Miller committee plans to start precinct organization immediately...
...Tcxans pride themselves on doing things in a big way...
...James E. Ferguson...
...I dont know of any controversy In the field...
...Around 16 per cent earned nothing and only 9 per cent...
...John L. Lewis...
...VMW Pres...
...That life...
...note of Lewis' appearance before the board of governors of the Building Trades Employers assn., where he had explained the single contract system of the UCWOC and the wage scale of $9 for all mechanics, $6 for helpers and $5 for laborers...
...They were helped by the result of the New Hampshire primary on Mar...
...The CIO...
...Maverick Active Some of the most important Roosevelt leaders in Texas are not members of the committee, but they will give it strong support...
...This is a sudden and dramatic reversal of the outlook for Garner's campaign in Texas...
...But mainly the Roosevelt leaders depend for success upon their belief that 80 per cent of Texas voters are for Roosevelt...
...In the 20 years that he was a major force in Texas politics, Ferguson counted on his "vest pocket vote" among the tenant'farmers, and it is said, probably with justice, that he still commands 25 per cent of the Texas vote...
...One of these is Mayor Maury Maverick of San Antonio...
...Not Too Popular Not that Garner was overwhelmingly popular among the people...
...Becaaise of the pressure applied to them and the meager earnings, the turnover in agents was terrific, it was brought out...
...3,000 or more...
...The Connecticut Mutual, it was disclosed, had 112 agents with two or more years of experience who earned an average of $875 a year, while those with three years' experience were still earning less than $1,000 for the whole of 1938...
...After Miller, the most important member of the committee is former Gov...
...Both sides avow that they are not in the least concerned about what the other is doing...
...Though it has no member on the Miller committee, the CIO will certainly increase its efforts now that there is a real change of sending a Roosevelt-instructed delegation from Texas to Chicago...
...Since most building activity now is in the largely nonunion field of small home construction, the AFL and CIO are expecte \ to meet headon there...
...W. Lee O'Daniel, who will probably run for re-election, is not taking any part in the Roosevelt-Garner struggle...
...The success of the Miller committee, of course, depends a great deal on what happens in other states...
...Pres...
...James V. Allred is also felt on the Miller committee...
...Sadler is going to run for governor, and he will want to make the most of his support of Roosevelt, especially since Gov...
...Last week the Texas Democratic Executive committee, which Is controlled by a crowd of reactionaries, endorsed Garner's candidacy overwhelmingly, with only two dissenting votes, and those two were rather timid and hesitant...
...12, in which Roosevelt delegates easily won all the places...
...Allred himself was made a federal judge by Roosevelt, and so of course will take no active part in the campaign...
...insurance business is ripe for reform was brought out very definitely...
...of choosing a Tory candidate...
...president of district-12 of the United Mine Workers (CIO...
...It is now considered certain here that John Nance Garner's presidential candidacy will travel an exceedingly rocky road in his home state in the slightly more than two months that will end with the Texas State Democratic convention in Waco on May 25...
...The Garner forces have had oodles of money, and Roy Miller, the urbane sulphur lobbyist who is managing the Garner campaign, has had 20 full-time organizers beating the Texas bushes...
...But even more important in putting new heart and courage into the Roosevelt forces was the growing belief that Garner's campaign had passed its peak, and that President Roosevelt will be in full control of the Chicago convention...
...If there is any, it must be of the AFL's making...
...Thomas A. Murray of the Building and Construction Trades council let down the bars enough to ta...
...The people of Texas were for Roosevelt first—and for Garner only if Roosevelt did not run...
...Miller Heads Committee The state-wide committee for Roosevelt that was formed this week is headed by Mayor Tom Miller of Austin...
...Several, radio talks over state-wide hookups are contemplated, and a mass meeting of Roosevelt supporters will be held in Austin early in April...
...But they were not proud of Garner himself...
...D. C. — Endorsement of Pres...
...He is the most enthusiastic New Dealer in Texas, and he can be counted on to swing the powerful San Antonio delegation to Roosevelt...
...Roosevelt and Vice President John N. Gamer...
...During 1939 the same companies took on 19,055 agents and dismissed 22.178...
...inquired A. D. Lewis, chairman of the United Construction Workers Organizing committee, and brother of CIO Pres...
...All they have to do, they believe, is mobilize the Roosevelt sup-' porters, and Garner, they think, will be beaten...
...But there is no doubt whatever where Maverick stands...
...Individual congressmen are discussing the possibilities of some form of federal-state control with the hope that the industry itself will institute necessary reforms...
...John L. Lewis recently announced opposition to a third term fo: Roosevelt and previously denounc. ed Garner...
...This week the Roosevelt forces pulled themselves together...
...He was a popular governor, and left office only a little over a year ago...
...Railroad Commissioner Jerry Sadler will also be an important ally of the Miller committee...
...tive secretary of the State Federation of Labor, and Joe Steadham...
...As recently as a week ago it appeared as If Garner would have no opposition worthy of the name, and that he would win the Texas delegation by default...
...In that event the shift to Roosevelt is likely to be the noisiest and dustiest stampede Texas has known since a barbed-wire fence was stretched across the old Chisholm Trail 50 years ago...
...T. H. McGregor, a former state senator, and Charles E. Green, well-known Austin newspaper editor...
...But politics and the weather change fast in Texas...
...Labor is represented on the Miller committee by Harry Acreman, execu...
...These disclosures are leading congressmen to realize that both the agents and the policy holders require some protection not now offered voluntarily by the individual insurance companies...
...Candidates In the primary, on the Democratic ticket, are Pres...
...See Action as Probe Result of Insurance WASHINGTON, D. C—The investigations undertaken by TNEC of the insurance business may lead to some action...
...For example, it was shown that more than half the full-time insurance agents of the 27 largest firms earned less than $250 during 19.18...
...New York NEW YORK CITY—The metropolitan area will apparenlty be the stage for a first-class row between the AFL and CIO in the building industry, but so far the battle has not passed the propaganda stage...
...A state-wide committee was formed this week to campaign for a Roosevelt-instructed delegation from Texas to the National Democratic convention in Chicago...
...On the basis of the primary Illinois delegate to the Democratic national convention in Chicago will be obligated to Roosevelt or Garner...
...Besides, Texas likes President Roosevelt...
...They are Edward Clark, former secretary of state, and Everett Looney, former assistant attorney general...
...If Roosevelt wins over Garner in Wisconsin on April 2, and in Illinois on i April 9, it is expected here that the Garner candidacy in Texas will come to a full stop...
...For all of that, until this week the Garner campaign in Texas was rolling along merrily like a circus calliope...
...Illinois WASHINGTON...
...Moreover, it now appears quite possible that the Roosevelt forces will control the state convention...
...despite John L. Lewis's impatience with Roosevelt, has long been active for the president in the cities, especially in San Antonio, Houston, Dallas, and Beaumont, where it is strongly organized...
...The powerfal influence of former Gov...
...Maverick has favored an uninstruct-ed delegation, on the theory it would be easier to get than a delegation instructed for Roosevelt, and Just as favorable to the president's renomina-tion, or to the nomination of a liberal of Roosevelt's choice...
...It is true that the people of Texas were a bit proud of having a presidential candidate that was really taken seriously by the rest of the nation...
...Against Lewis' scale of $9-6-5 the AFL is planning a special rate of $9 or $10 a day for mechanics employed on 1-and 2-family houses...
...Lewis told reporters that he w'as not versed in that sort of language and didn't know what Murray meant...
Vol. 10 • March 1940 • No. 13
