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Frances PerkinsFrances Perkins
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way. I don't remember that exactly, but somebody muttered that.

In the year or so previous to the nominations for President in 1940 of course politics became a matter of great interest around Roosevelt. In Cabinet circles and in Congressional circles there was great speculation. Although I didn't think it desirable - in fact I thought it rather undesirable - in my own mind, as early as shortly after the 1936 election, I said to myself, “I'll just bet this will go on and this man will get a third term.” After the European war started blowing so hard it seemed to me just inevitable that he would be the Democratic Presidential candidate. During all of this time there never was a moment when he said so himself. Frequently, in talking of a bit of legislation, or of an administrative problem, I would say, “Well, if we don't get that through this year, we can put it through next year, or it could even go until after the election.”

He would laugh and say, “Well, how do you know there's going to be any next year for us? Papa won't be around.” He'd always say, “Well, I won't be here and we better not leave too much to be done after this year.”

But it seemed to me clearer and clearer that he was going to be around, largely because of the lack





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