Tananbaum, Duane, Drawn to public service

(New York, NY :  Columbia University Libraries,  c2009.)

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^^"Text of Wadsworth's
Talk on Social Security,"
New York Times, May 9,
1936, p. 6.
 

^* Roosevelt to Henry
Morgenthau, Jr., March
19,1936, in Elliott
Roosevelt, ed., F.D.R.:
His Personal Letters,
I, 572; James Farley,
Private Memorandum,
June 30, 1936, Farley
Papers, Box 39, Private
File, June 1936, Library
of Congress.
 

an increased tax on liquor to provide financial assistance to people over 65,
dependent children, and the blind, but the Republicans denounced his bill
as "just another New Deal boondoggle."^' (See cartoon 11) Hoping that a
public announcement would dissuade Roosevelt or anyone else from trying
to change his mind, Lehman announced on May 20, 1936, that he would
not seek a third term as Governor.

President Roosevelt and Democratic Party Chairman James Farley
immediately set out to reverse Lehman's decision, believing that his presence
on the ballot in 1936 was necessary for Roosevelt and the Democrats to carry
New York. When Lehman had first informed the President of his intentions
back in March, Roosevelt was "greatly disturbed" by the news and instructed
Secretary of the Treasury Henry Morgenthau, Jr., who was married to
Lehman's niece Elinor, to "get pressure to bear from any source you can" to
persuade Lehman to change his mind. Lehman's desire to do everything he
could to ensure Roosevelt's re-election left a small opening that the President
and Farley exploited brilliantly, orchestrating events at the 1936 Democratic
National Convention to increase the pressure on Lehman to continue as
Governor- They arranged for Lehman to give the main speech seconding
Roosevelt's nomination for President, which triggered a massive display of
support for Lehman, second only to the cheers for Roosevelt himself The
outpouring of support and affection for Lehman had its intended effect, and
the Governor began to weaken. Roosevelt discussed the governorship with
Lehman on the way back from the convention and at his Hyde Park home,
warning Lehman that his withdrawal would put at risk all the social welfare
legislation they had worked to enact in Albany over the last eight years. The
President complained to Farley that Lehman "had worn out fifteen dollars
worth of carpet" pacing while trying to make up his mind, but the President
was elated when Lehman consented to run if FDR formally asked him to do
so, which would give him a rationale for reversing his earlier decision. ^''
 


 

. ^^^
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