| | In February 1944 Congress rejected Roosevelt's demand for a $10,500,000,000 tax boost and cut it to $2,300,000,000. Roosevelt vetoed it saying this was a "bill not for relief of the needy but of the greedy." | | In February 1944 Congress rejected Roosevelt's demand for a $10,500,000,000 tax boost and cut it to $2,300,000,000. Roosevelt vetoed it saying this was a "bill not for relief of the needy but of the greedy." |
| − | Senator Barkley, Democratic leader, rose on the floor of the Senate to say the veto was "a calculated and deliberate assault upon the legislative integrity of every member of Congress." The entire Senate united in a roar of applause. Barkley declared that after seven years of carrying the [[New Deal]] banner for Roosevelt, he would now threaten to resign his post as Democratic majority leader and he called on every member of the Congress to preserve its self respect and override the veto. The Senate overrode it 72 to 14 and the House 299 to 95. | + | Senator [[Alban Barkley]], Democratic leader, rose on the floor of the Senate to say the veto was "a calculated and deliberate assault upon the legislative integrity of every member of Congress." The entire Senate united in a roar of applause. Barkley declared that after seven years of carrying the [[New Deal]] banner for Roosevelt, he would now threaten to resign his post as Democratic majority leader and he called on every member of the Congress to preserve its self respect and override the veto. The Senate overrode it 72 to 14 and the House 299 to 95. |
| | Had FDR chosen not to run in 1940, he would quite likely have lived longer (the impact of the presidency on its occupants' health is infamous, and FDR eventually confided at least to his wife [[Eleanor Roosevelt]] that he wished to live beyond his term). The [[22nd Amendment]] to the [[U. S. Constitution]], if any, would have dealt with something besides term limitation of the President. FDR's reputation would, however, have been determined by the same factors that determined it in real life: the outcome of World War II, the ability of his party to cement its majority, and in the short term, the willingness of his successor to follow his policies. One of these, the close alliance with the [[Soviet Union]], was repudiated almost immediately by Truman, and as a result, Roosevelt is remembered by [[conservatives]] as at best a qualified success. A Republican 33rd President, however, would most likely have appointed anti-New Deal Justices to the [[U. S. Supreme Court]] (particularly had he been elected in 1940), with the result that Roosevelt today would be roundly condemned as a [[demagogue]], notwithstanding his decision to respect [[George Washington]]'s two-term precedent. Since the Republicans did not actually retake the [[White House]] until the [[1952 Presidential election]] (and then through a candidate who was perceived as being above politics), the New Deal had time to be embraced by a new generation of politicians and constitutional scholars of both parties, although not universally (see [[Constitution in exile movement]]). This may have been an equally important factor in Roosevelt's decision. [[Strom Thurmond]] was a supporter of the President's decision to seek a fourth term, and referred to Roosevelt as having been the world’s greatest leader. <ref>[http://www.kevinbaker.info/c_wtm.html What Trent Meant], Kevin Baker.</ref> | | Had FDR chosen not to run in 1940, he would quite likely have lived longer (the impact of the presidency on its occupants' health is infamous, and FDR eventually confided at least to his wife [[Eleanor Roosevelt]] that he wished to live beyond his term). The [[22nd Amendment]] to the [[U. S. Constitution]], if any, would have dealt with something besides term limitation of the President. FDR's reputation would, however, have been determined by the same factors that determined it in real life: the outcome of World War II, the ability of his party to cement its majority, and in the short term, the willingness of his successor to follow his policies. One of these, the close alliance with the [[Soviet Union]], was repudiated almost immediately by Truman, and as a result, Roosevelt is remembered by [[conservatives]] as at best a qualified success. A Republican 33rd President, however, would most likely have appointed anti-New Deal Justices to the [[U. S. Supreme Court]] (particularly had he been elected in 1940), with the result that Roosevelt today would be roundly condemned as a [[demagogue]], notwithstanding his decision to respect [[George Washington]]'s two-term precedent. Since the Republicans did not actually retake the [[White House]] until the [[1952 Presidential election]] (and then through a candidate who was perceived as being above politics), the New Deal had time to be embraced by a new generation of politicians and constitutional scholars of both parties, although not universally (see [[Constitution in exile movement]]). This may have been an equally important factor in Roosevelt's decision. [[Strom Thurmond]] was a supporter of the President's decision to seek a fourth term, and referred to Roosevelt as having been the world’s greatest leader. <ref>[http://www.kevinbaker.info/c_wtm.html What Trent Meant], Kevin Baker.</ref> |