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Show Labor Draft FDR's Bid fM For Support of Veterans Legislation Would Signify Full Backing of llfp) War Effort; See Servicemen as SJA Powerful Political Group. " By BAUKIIAGE New Analyst and Commentator. ft NU Service, Union Trust Building, Washington, D. C. "If the President really Intends to crack down and Jam this national service bill through congress one thing is certain he doesn't Intend to run tot a fifth term." That statement made by a seasoned sea-soned old-timer who is a very good political weather prophet started me off on a Journey of exploration which disclosed a number of Interesting Inter-esting observations concerning the President's plans for the next four years which can be reduced to four main points: 1. Whether or not the President believes he owes a debt to labor for the activities of the CIO Political Action committee In the last election, elec-tion, he doesn't intend to pay such debt 2. He has found a "better 'ole," and he intends to make use of It If he can, namely, another much more important pressure group which will probably be getting up steam long before the next election, but 3. Mr. Roosevelt Is not Interested in the next presidential election for himself, because 4. He has much larger fish to fry before and after 1848, and something's some-thing's cooking right now. How can the President afford to overlook the support of labor (point 1) and hunt a "better 'ole" (point 2)7 Because the most powerful pressure pres-sure group the country has ever known is now in the making, the veterans of World War II. election Indicate Veta Influence It is still too early for the men and women in the military service to wield much direct political power, but Judging from the vote cast In the last election and the efforts made both to prevent and to obtain it, the predischarge Importance of veterans veter-ans cannot be entirely overlooked. Already, there are a number of very clear signs of the stirring of tremendous potentialities of the veteran vet-eran in the postwar political world. At present, three hundred thousand have already Joined the American Legion. We are not allowed, because be-cause of security reasons, to print the number of men already discharged, dis-charged, but as of some five months ago It was a million and a half. The Legion does not take any but those with honorable discharges and that would mean that World War II dischargees dis-chargees are Joining up at about the same rate that World War I veterans vet-erans became legionnaires. The Legion has nearly a million and a half dues-paying members out of the three-million who served In the last war. If the same proportions propor-tions were maintained we can envision envi-sion a future veterans' organization (either the Legion or a new group) numbering at least five million persons. And that calculation Is based on the armed forces as of today. to-day. By the time the war Is over the number of those who will have served will be much greater. That Is looking at the potential strength of the World War II veteran vet-eran pressure solely in terms of numbers. Another highly Important factor must be considered. There Is much evidence Indicating that the present day fighting man Is much m more politically conscious than we were In 1917 and '18. This is seen In the discussion ("orientation") groups which are carried on by the army and navy all over the world, by the tremendous amount of news which reaches the troops even In remote comers of the world, by their constant call for more, and by their very emphatic and continued gTlpes about how the civilian front Is being run. I have talked with one of the editors edi-tors of the present Stars and Stripes, with the head of the legislative division divi-sion of the American Legion and with a member of the Veierana Administration Ad-ministration who keeps In close touch with current veteran affairs. All agreed emphatically to the thesis that the men and women in the fighting forces will come back with a keen Interest In how the country coun-try Is to be run and with a firm Intention of seeing that they are going go-ing to have their say in the running. This feeling Is paralleled by the demands de-mands In every liberated country by the people who carried on the resistance against the enemy, who In every case demand strong representation repre-sentation in the new governments. Vets Demand All-Out Effort We can see that any man with his eye on the political future will have to woo the veteran. And that brings us back to the National Service bill. Now one of the chief gripes of the serviceman is the fact that he is drafted to fight where and when he Is told but the men who work in the war plants do not have to take orders or-ders from anybody. The sorest spot on the G.I.'s soul is the strike of the miners last year. Naturally, he thinks a labor draft law should be passed. That Is the kind of news the President Presi-dent wants to get out. That is one of the reasons why he wants a national na-tional service bill passed. He knows its importance to the morale of the fighting men as well as to the production pro-duction of supplies. That Is why he is willing to risk the anger of labor pressure against the measure. He knows that the morale of those boys now will affect their attitude toward the government when they return and their confidence In the leaders of the country. But where, then, does point 3 (Mr. Roosevelt is not interested in the next presidential election) come In? The answer Is In the "Blgger'flsh" he has to fry (point 4). When an American reaches the presidency It is usually considered that he has hit the ceiling and from there on there is no place to go but down. True, the United States Is a pretty big outfit to boss, but what about the United Nations? Bigger. Whether or not the United States puts Its weight behind a United Nations Na-tions organization to prevent future wars will depend on the verdict of the men who know more about war than anybody else in the world, the men who are fighting this one. And anyone who champions this undertaking, whether he is finally chosen as its leader, or whether he merely goes down in history as the man who made it possible, he will have to have the confidence and the support of the veterans, whose opinions opin-ions on the subject will receive general gen-eral acknowledgement, it Is conceded. con-ceded. Incidentally, another Roosevelt figured in one of the most ambitious elTorts at International organization for the preservation of peace, "Teddy" "Ted-dy" having prompted Czar Nicholas II of Russia to call the second Hague Peace Conference of 1907. Here Is a little human Interest story that will interest you If you have a boy In the service or if you are a psychiatrist . My friend Joined me In the club. He was obviously feeling very proud and happy about something. He told me he had Just had a telephone call from his boy who was training to be a paratrooper. It Is something to be allowed to take the training all are volunteers. It Is a lot more to make good. Well, the boy had made his first Jump from a plane. It was, he had phoned his father, Just like riding on a roller-coaster. The real hard Jumps, he said, were the first at about 33 feet from a tower with a cable attachment. And the fifth Jump from the plane. That Is the one that ends a lot of careers. Some of the toughest-flbered boys can't make that one, even If they have gone through those preceding. Including In-cluding the first tower Jump. Then they are "wsshed up" as the saying say-ing goes, and they disappear. But a lot disappear after the first jump. Men who have come back with medals for bravery In action sometimes stand there, the tears streaming down their cheeks because be-cause they Just can't dlvt off Into nothing. But my friend's boy said It was like a roller-coaster. And as the father sat there you could see that that meant a lot to him and at last he revealed why. "I could.i't help remembering." he said, "when the boy was about five and his older brother had Just climbed up on a chair and Jumped iff. He got up on the chair but he Just couldn't make the Jump . . . now he's done It." |