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Politics : Stockman Scott's Political Debate Porch -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: techguerrilla who wrote (52090)	7/26/2004 9:14:16 PM
From: stockman_scott	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 89467

"We can NOT lead if our leaders MISlead." -Jimmy Carter

To: techguerrilla who wrote (52090)	7/26/2004 9:24:31 PM
From: stockman_scott	Respond to of 89467

John: thanks for sharing your insights...It's great that you have a personal connection with the Kerry / Edwards team...The more I learn about both of them the more excited I am about their prospects. Oliphant is a Pulitzer Prize winner and an outstanding writer... boston.com Here's another column worth reading... Inspiration from FDR and Chicago '32 By Thomas Oliphant Boston Globe Staff July 25, 2004 boston.com JOHN KERRY could derive hope from the following contemporary description of Franklin Delano Roosevelt's acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention in 1932, the one that made so much possible: "The convention was only lukewarm to the (New York) governor up to that time. Governor Roosevelt had the votes but not the enthusiasm. His appearance changed all this." It also didn't hurt that toward the end of his address, Roosevelt uttered a few words for the first time that, like those of another Yankee in 1960 describing a New Frontier, have lasted: "I pledge you, I pledge myself to a new deal for the American people." The description was from an elegant, principled journalist -- the late Richard Strout of the Christian Science Monitor, who went on to write eloquently liberal columns into his 80s as TRB in The New Republic. Strout's words are a reminder that conventions and their speeches are not as irrelevant to American politics and government as modern know-it-alls like to claim. Those who take the trouble to communicate passion and conviction can still make a difference, even in a cynical age. Still struggling with his notes and drafts and thoughts, John Kerry might also get a chuckle from knowing that at almost the last minute FDR ditched nearly all of the speech draft prepared by his closest political intimate at the time, Louis McHenry Howe. The final version that helped make history was essentially a patch job -- a little Howe, a lot of a noted New York jurist (Samuel I. Rosenman), and polish from famously anonymous staff man Raymond Moley (later in life a cranky conservative). All these years later, the ballgame is still what you have to say, not how late it comes together. The Democrats' gathering in Chicago long ago was a truly pivotal event in the depth of the Depression. American politics would change utterly for more than a generation because of what happened there. And yet, this event that ushered in an era of revolutionary change, that gave America its leader in world war that would usher in still more revolutionary change, this moment when modern progressivism emerged, was a classic political street fight. Its outcome was anything but guaranteed, and only occurred because the sharpest of elbows were being thrown by people who knew what they were doing. In the end, Roosevelt emerged because he was willing to make a deal with his strongest opponent -- House Speaker John Nance Garner of Texas. As it turned out, the prize FDR could offer -- the very vice presidency that Garner would eventually dismiss as not worth a warm bucket of spit and "the worst damn fool mistake I ever made" -- made sense at the time to a presidential candidate who couldn't win and was looking for a way to lighten up after three decades of power-brokering. The insights about 1932 come courtesy of the perfect companion to this week's convention -- the book "Happy Days Are Here Again" by Steve Neal. With no rules fights, platform wars, or protean nomination struggles, the only question, albeit a huge one, is whether the Democrats can show the country their ticket is ready to replace an administration that for the moment the people seem inclined to replace. Neal's book is a reminder of what life was like when the drama was real, not scripted, and the stakes were as high as they get. The cast of characters, great and small, was worthy of Ben Hecht, from the ridiculous (Huey Long) to the sublime (Cordell Hull), from the sinister (mobster Frank Costello) to the merely sad (Al Smith on his last political legs). Legendary reputations were made in Chicago (Jim Farley, Hull, Alben Barkley, and Robert Jackson of New Hampshire). It was there that William Randolph Hearst played the part of press lord to the hilt, and Joseph P. Kennedy made his bones on the national scene via his connection to Hearst. Neal -- for years the political columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times and the go-to guy in Illinois -- tells the story with typical grace, ease, and wit. The tale is only made sad by the fact that Neal died shortly after finishing the manuscript earlier this year. Fortunately, the pols in Illinois and Chicago don't forget. Late tomorrow at the Harvard Faculty Club there will be a celebration of Neal's life and his last, timely book. A Daley or two will attend, as will his year's phenom -- Senate candidate and convention keynoter Barack Obama. Conventions are always enlivened and enlightened by a sense of history. This year, the political world is lucky to have this delightful tale of 1932 as allegory for this week's shenanigans, as well as the memory of a writer who gave the game some of its nobility. Thomas Oliphant's e-mail address is oliphant@globe.com.