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Frances PerkinsFrances Perkins
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in the campaign. When the campaign got going every speaker, including Joe Robinson, John Nance Garner, Alben Barkley, Pat Karrison, spoke out of this campaign book, saying, “We did this, this and this.” I made a very good speech myself at some place up on the Hudson, which Jim heard about. He said, “Frances, I suppose you didn't write that speech out.”

I said, “No, but I've got my notes.”

He said, “I wish you'd write that out, only fix it so that it could be said by anybody and let me circulate that. That's a good model for these boys to talk on.”

I had a good audience and spoke just extemporaneously, with just a few pencil notes in my hand. I itemized everything that had been done for the people of the United States. I said, “The Democratic party has established the idea that the welfare of the people is the first charge upon the government.”

At any rate, in the course of the campaign, Jim remarked on how well it was going, and on the fine speech that someone had made on the basis of the model I had drawn up. He said, “The response is wonderful. We did all these things out of just sheer goodness, you know, just decency. What could you do with everybody down and out, but that? You know, they're just discovering that there were votes





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