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Show !"L-j',""ulllJJ"11""- ' , (felund tke JJeadlined There is little doubt that President Presi-dent John F. Kennedy acted in the "Roosevelt tradition" when he clashed with Big Steel over its now withdrawn price increase. in-crease. The question is, which Roosevelt Roose-velt did Kennedy most resemble? The answer to this is not only intriguing. It might help provide a clue to the way we might expect JFK to act and react in future crises. Every President is inevitably compared with, or contrasted to, his predecessors until he firmly establishes his own presidential identity. It still is much too early to cast President Kennedy in anyone's any-one's mold. But it is becoming increasingly clear that JFK, while a "middle-of-the-road conservative con-servative liberal," is falling into the ranks of our "Strong Presidents," Presi-dents," who believe in fully exercising exer-cising the powers at their command. com-mand. Presidents Jackson, Lincoln, Theodore and Franklin D. Roosevelt Roose-velt and Harry Truman acted in "Teddy" Roosevelt had been nominated and elected to the Vice-Presidency, with no thought that he would ever become President. Pres-ident. Feeling the lack of a man-dante man-dante for the Presidency, he too, moved about slowly during the first years of his First Term. But TR, unlike his Democratic cousin, FDR, was "impetous." FDR prided himself on his political polit-ical cunning. "Teddy" was more bombastic, and given to the sort of mannerisms JFK displayed when he exploded over the Steel price rise at his first news conference con-ference on the increase. All are products of Harvard: TR ('80), FDR ('04), JFK ('40). But Teddy Roosevelt and Kennedy Ken-nedy share an intellectualism FDR never claimed. They also share a youthful approach to the Presidency. TR became the nation's youngest President at age 42. JFK became the youngest young-est elected President at age 44. Both TR and JFK will be remembered re-membered for their colorful, active young families and for their vigorous interest in rigorous rigor-ous sports, which FDR's polio prevented him from engaging in. TR first made the White House a familiar mansion to writers, authors, artists and was himself an author and founder of the Authors' League of America. JFK, like TR, won accolades for his historical writings, having won a Pulitzer Prize for his "Profiles "Pro-files in Courage." TR won election largely on his record as a popular Spanish-American Spanish-American War hero, just as JFK campaigned strongly as a Second Sec-ond World War Naval hero. Both were Navy enthusiasts, as was FDR. All 'shook up" old line military leaders when they became be-came President. But TR, the "Hero of San Juan Hill" and JFK stressed guerilla warfare as Presidents Pres-idents rarely have. FDR was wealthy but hardly in the same league with the Kennedys. Ken-nedys. TR's father, like Kennedy's, Kenne-dy's, was one of the richest men in the country. While FDR was this tradition, while most others, such as Hoover and Eisenhower, for example, have not. Heretofore, it had been mere speculation, or supposition, or wishful thinking among liberals, that Kennedy would be a "Strong President." Many liberals still are critical of many of the Kennedy Administration's Admin-istration's policies and tactics. But the main effect of the steel price rise crisis is to prove that whatever else JFK may be, he doesn't intend to be one of our! weaker Chief Executives. His bold action against Steel may very well alienate him with the Business community, as most Republicans hope and believe. But his one swift action in opposing op-posing the steel price rise has, if nothing else, firmly established JFK in the "Strong Presidents' " ranks. . During his 1960 presidential campaign, it had been popular . to compare young JFK with the late President FDR and to predict pre-dict that there would be a burst of creative presidential activity similar to Franklin D. Roosevelt's Roose-velt's famed "First Hundred Days," when he assumed the Presidency. It quickly became apparent, however, that Kennedy preferred pre-ferred the Eisenhower approach to the Presidency, which was to use his Executive powers only when absolutely necessary, keep-; keep-; ing them in reserve and to rely upon personal popularity and powers of persuasion to negotiate negoti-ate agreements rather than capitalize capi-talize on discord. largely considered "anti-Wealth," "anti-Wealth," TR and JFK began as conservatives who turned liberal only after seeking the Presidency. Presi-dency. FDR had his run-ins with Depression De-pression Era Big Business. But how ironic is it that JFK should have had a run-in with U.S. Steel, which was formed in 1901 during TR's term! JFK's anger over a price rise "double cross" was like TR's anger when he learned that he had been "hoodwinked" "hood-winked" into delaying anti-trust action against U.S. Steel. TR made up for it by launching 44 anti-trust suits. oBth were vigorously anti-Crime. anti-Crime. Just as TR waged an anti- JFK went out of his way to remain on the best of terms with Republicans, staffed his Administration Admin-istration with conservatives, nurtured nur-tured close ties to Business, gave Congress the bit in guiding his legislative program and even eased, such liberals as Chester Bowles into the background when conservatives protested their policies. A major reason for Kennedy's "Go Slow" approach has been the razor-thin election victory he won over Republican Richard Rich-ard Nixon. FDR acted boldly on his 1932 election mandate. Kennedy Ken-nedy realizes he has no mandate and must rely largely on events, assumed support and personal popularity. He is in this regard much like the position in which the other Roosevelt, Republican Theodore, found himself when he succeeded the assassinated McKinley to the Presidency in 1901. Mafia drive and created the FBI, JFK's anti-Crime interests are reflected in his anti-Hoffa role on the Senate Rackets Committee. Commit-tee. Teddy Roosevelt's "Charge!" up Cuba's San Juan Hill was like JFK's attempted Cuban invasion in its boldness except that one succeeded and the other failed. TR's Latin American interests in Cuba, Panama, etc. are similar simi-lar to Kennedy's Latin problems today. Kennedy has an abiding interest in Africa as TR did. The African proverb, "Speak Softly and Carry a Big Stick" has become be-come Kennedy's motto in dealing with Khrushchev. Russian-Chinese rivalry after the Boxer Rebellion plagued TR, just as it does now. There are other surface comparisons. But history will judge best if JFK could ever really fill Teddy Roosevelt's shoes. |