Read Ebook {PDF EPUB} That Man An Insider's Portrait of Franklin D. Roosevelt by Robert H. Jackson That Man: An Insider's Portrait of Franklin D. Roosevelt by Robert H. Jackson. That Man: An Insider’s Portrait of Franklin D. Roosevelt Robert H. Jackson John Q. Barrett, ed. Foreword by William E. Leuchtenburg New York & Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2003. $30.00, 290 pages, ISBN 0-19-516826-7. Thomas J. Mayock Annandale, Virginia. No sooner did Bob Jackson resume his seat on the Supreme Court after prosecuting at the Nuremberg trials than he set about preparing his place in history. He gave interviews to a biographer, Eugene Gerhart; and started on an autobiography. In the midst of this, in 1953, he began a study of Franklin Roosevelt. Then a heart attack warned him that he was running out of time. He barely completed a lengthy oral history for Columbia University before he died in 1954. Fifty years later a family closet yielded the study of Roosevelt he had started. He called it That Man , a term applied to Roosevelt by people so outraged by him that they refused to utter his name. John Barrett has taken on the task of completing That Man , using the Justice’s notes and other of his writings. This is a lucky find since Jackson is a first-class, fairly impersonal observer with an enviable prose style. He gives us a piece, which easily outshines most of the books by presidential intimates, avoids the worshipful, and provides a realistic view of FDR in action. No telling how much head- scratching it would have saved scholars had it appeared a half-century earlier. Born on a farm in the New York-Pennsylvania borderland that had already produced a Democrat of conscience in David Wilmot (he of the Anti- Slavery Proviso) Jackson came to know Roosevelt well. They were allies in New York politics in Woodrow Wilson’s time and early in the New Deal Jackson migrated to Washington. FDR groomed him for New York governor in 1937. There was talk of his being the Heir Apparent, but his lawyerly temperament was a handicap. He rose from Solicitor General to Attorney General and in 1941 went on to the Court. Thus he saw less of FDR during the war and the years of the Chief’s declining powers. That Man is a report card on Roosevelt, with seven headings: politician, lawyer, commander–in-chief, administrator, economist, companion and sportsman, and leader of the “masses.” As to FDR’s eventual place in history, Jackson returns a dusty answer. He insisted that he was merely giving testimony and not rendering judgment, which should await the fullness of time. He is somewhat less of an FDR fan than Barrett or William Leuchtenburg, who has written a foreword to the book. “That Man as Politician” is the most interesting and perhaps the most consequential chapter. FDR sometimes irritated Jackson, by keeping him on the string with hints about the Chief Justiceship. But no bitterness surfaces in the narrative and Jackson’s account of how he and Frank Murphy came to be sworn in on the same day is not only good humored but high comedy. Amiably discussed are the Third Term, FDR’s attitude towards the Congress, the ill-begotten Court-packing proposal, the Cabinet, and the fading of Jackson’s presidential hopes. In all this Jackson displays a wry understanding of American politics. In “That Man As Lawyer” Jackson shows his colors. No one has ever contended that FDR was much of a lawyer. He said that the law, with its delays, bored him. He thought in terms of right and wrong. In 1940 he was spooked by the Fifth Column, and worried about alien spies and saboteurs. On the other hand, Attorney General Jackson, along with his predecessor Frank Murphy, worried about civil rights. They resisted transferring the Immigration and Naturalization Service out of the Labor Deportment. On the Court they were to dissent in the litmus Korematsu case on Japanese exclusion, (322U.S.214, 1944). FDR’s feelings about wiretapping were predictable. Under “Commander-in-Chief,” Jackson describes a poker party FDR organized on the evening of September 2nd because he was tired of the talk of war. After taking a call from Ambassador Kennedy, he sadly announced to the table that war would be declared on the morrow. But the poker continued for an hour or so. There was some confusion about whether Canada was bound by London’s declaration of war, which FDR cut short by picking up the phone and asking Mackenzie King. At this point Barrett has added an unpublished document from Jackson’s files—his account of the destroyer-bases deal. This paper, which was worked over by his son William Jackson, and E. Barrett Prettyman, his last law clerk, gives insight into FDR’s political skills as well as his sensitivity about issues posed by any cession of British colonies. FDR knew enough about the Caribbean to realize that British colonies would be a burden to the United States. As Assistant Secretary of the Navy under Wilson he had been involved in the occupation of poverty-stricken Haiti. He called Puerto Rico a poorhouse. Congress was opposed to acquiring any further “native” populations. So, leasing of bases was acceptable, but no transfer of sovereignty. Roosevelt’s opinions about British colonies were mightily strengthened after he contracted a fever in British Africa; he told Churchill Bathurst was a “hell-hole.” Publisher Alfred Knopf advised his friend to keep That Man on the light side. He needn’t have worried. Jackson wrote easily in the vernacular: “I went and had lunch with so-and-so.” He shares the jokes. FDR enjoyed jokes, even bad ones, and used them to avoid unpleasant subjects. If Jackson flunked Roosevelt on some aspects of his performance—namely, lawyer, administrator, and economist—he thought him more than the sum of his parts. He liked him personally and identified his power as an immense personal following. If he adds little to the present-day assessment of the thirty-second president, you can say that he had him right all along. That Man is a good, if somewhat sardonic read, full of little surprises such as the need to convert Jackson into “America’s Sweetheart.” FDR and the politicos realized that he just didn’t have political sex appeal. None of the presidents Jackson knew enjoyed the job like FDR. It was something he as a handicapped person could do and there is a smell of blarney about his protestations that he longed to get back to squirehood on the “lordly Hudson” and write his reminiscences. There are, however, a number of predictions one can make about Roosevelt reminiscences: one, that they would be stylishly written, for FDR could write, and, two, be not short on embellishment, for like many lovers of history he was inclined to take liberties with the Muse. With a navy at his disposal, another thing FDR could do was fish. Jackson entertains us with a junket to the Dry Tortugas where the presidential party trolled off the redbrick ruins of Fort Jefferson. Built in the 1840s to deny an anchorage to a hostile fleet, the place had already been designated a national monument by Roosevelt. But as part of a practical joke, he complained that he hadn’t received any salutes from the garrison and fired off a message advising the time of his arrival. Barrett is Professor of Law at St. Johns University in New York and Fellow of the new Robert H. Jackson Center in Jamestown, New York. He was entrusted by the family to edit the manuscript because he was, and is, contemplating a biography. He tells the steps he took to flesh it out and provides notes and biographical sketches because the men and events are now long gone. A bibliographic essay provides a shortcut to the huge literature on Roosevelt and a list of commentaries on Jackson’s jurisprudence. A fine scholarly performance. That Man: An Insider's Portrait of Franklin D. Roosevelt. Title: That Man: An Insider's Portrait of Franklin . Publisher: Oxford University Press. Publication Date: 2004. Binding: Paperback. Book Condition: GOOD. About this title. Robert H. Jackson was one of the giants of the Roosevelt era: an Attorney General, a still revered Supreme Court Justice and, not least important, one of Franklin Delano Roosevelt's close friends and advisers. His intimate memoir of FDR, written in the early 1950s before Jackson's untimely death, has remained unpublished for fifty years. Here is that newly discovered memoir. Written with skill and grace, this is truly a unique account of the personality, conduct, greatness of character, and common humanity of "that man in the White House," as outraged conservatives called FDR. Jackson simply but eloquently provides an insider's view of Roosevelt's presidency, including such crucial events as FDR's Court-packing plan, his battles with corporate America, his decision to seek a third term, and his bold move to aid Britain in 1940 with American destroyers. He also offers an intimate personal portrait of Roosevelt--on fishing trips, in late-night poker games, or approving legislation while eating breakfast in bed, where he routinely began his workday. We meet a president who is far-sighted but nimble in attacking the problems at hand; principled but flexible; charismatic and popular but unafraid to pick fights, take stands, and when necessary, make enemies. That Man is not simply a valuable historical document, but an engaging and insightful look at one of the most remarkable men in American history. In reading this memoir, we gain not only a new appreciation for Roosevelt, but also admiration for Jackson, who emerges as both a public servant of great integrity and skill and a wry, shrewd, and fair-minded observer of politics at the highest level. About the Author: Robert H. Jackson was Associate Justice of the Supreme Court from 1941 to his death in 1954. A major figure in American legal history, he also served as Solicitor General and Attorney General of the United States, and the American Chief Prosecutor at the Nuremberg Trial. Author of the best-selling The Nürnberg Case , he is considered by many to be the finest writer ever to sit on the Supreme Court. John Q. Barrett is Professor of Law at St. John's University in New York and Elizabeth S. Lenna Fellow at the Robert H. Jackson Center in Jamestown, New York. He formerly served in the office of Independent Counsel Lawrence Walsh investigating Iran-Contra, and in the U.S. Department of Justice. He discovered the manuscript of That Man among Jackson's papers while researching a biography of the Justice. William E. Leuchtenburg , the leading historian of Roosevelt and the New Deal, has contributed a foreword discussing Jackson's relationship with FDR. "About this title" may belong to another edition of this title. Items can be returned within 30 days of the estimated delivery date. All returns must be approved before an item is shipped back. Domestic returns generally take two weeks and International returns can take up to six weeks to be received and processed by our return center. In the event that an item is being returned due to an error on our part, a prepaid return label will be supplied via email upon request. If a return is not approved, there may be a delay with processing a refund. Tax ID: 87-07. Orders usually ship within 2 business days [M-F]. Unfortunately, as a bulk order shipper, we do not provide tracking for individual orders included in our bulk shipments. Items shipped via USPS Standard Mail should arrive within 4-14 business days [M-F]. Please note, as per USPS, depending on service location and/or high peak periods within the post office, deliveries can take up to 21 business days [M-F] to arrive. Should your order not arrive within 21 business days [M-F], please contact us promptly for resolution. That Man: An Insider's Portrait of Franklin D. Roosevelt. Robert H. Jackson was one of the giants of the Roosevelt era: an Attorney General, a still revered Supreme Court Justice and, not least important, one of Franklin Delano Roosevelt's close friends and advisers. His intimate memoir of FDR, written in the early 1950s before Jackson's untimely death, has remained unpublished for fifty years. Jackson provides an insider's view of Roosevelt's presidency, including such crucial events as FDR's Court-packing plan, his battles with corporate America, his decision to seek a third term, and his bold move to aid Britain in 1940 with American destroyers. He also offers an intimate personal portrait of Roosevelt. That Man : An Insider's Portrait of Franklin D. Roosevelt by Robert H. Jackson (2003, Hardcover) С самой низкой ценой, совершенно новый, неиспользованный, неоткрытый, неповрежденный товар в оригинальной упаковке (если товар поставляется в упаковке). Упаковка должна быть такой же, как упаковка этого товара в розничных магазинах, за исключением тех случаев, когда товар является изделием ручной работы или был упакован производителем в упаковку не для розничной продажи, например в коробку без маркировки или в пластиковый пакет. См. подробные сведения с дополнительным описанием товара. The Children’s Hour. The process of making a cocktail can evoke sensations of confidence and creativity – even before imbibing. The person creating or preparing the cocktail, exerts a certain amount of control. Do they follow the prescribed recipe? Or do they venture out on their own, and tinker with convention, to create something unique and special? Changing course, can potentially lead to devastating results. Franklin D. Roosevelt enjoyed preparing cocktails, and drinking them as well. He also enjoyed the challenges of the Presidency. Metaphorically, the two mix well together. For example: The Great Depression. It was far from the first major economic crisis facing the United States, but this time the crisis appeared far worse, and the stakes far greater. Should the President tackle the crisis using known and trusted economic formulas, or should he attempt something new to create the results he wanted? As the nation’s mixologist, failure for Roosevelt risked far more than a horrible tasting Daiquiri or Manhattan. With that said, try to imagine that tremendous burden of responsibility he carried while steering the nation through those difficult waters in the 1930s, and later on during World War II. Perhaps only those who have served as President could even remotely understand what was required. The office, in any era, is notorious for the physical and psychological toll it extracts. Finding rest and distraction from stress can be in and of itself, a difficult task for any individual. It is far more difficult for someone who is never truly away from their work. Individuals often turn to social activities or hobbies to distance themselves. Roosevelt had several hobbies that he used to distract himself from the stresses of his day as President – stamp collecting perhaps the best known. But enjoying an evening of socializing – centered on a cocktail – was another escape for FDR. Franklin D. Roosevelt in Hyde Park, New York. Taken right in front of his room at the FDR Library. 1942. NPx 48-22:3715(2). FDR Library Photograph Collection. Franklin D. Roosevelt’s position as President required him to be accessible – so getting away from his surroundings during the day or night was not always possible. He was also restricted by the physical limits set by his paralysis, due to a bout with Polio earlier in his life. Roosevelt would instead gather his closest staff, friends, and confidants, known as his “inner circle,” into his White House study; one of the few spaces on Earth where he could feel any sense of privacy. Out would come his cocktail set. Called “The Children’s Hour” by the President (it is believed in homage to the Henry Wadsworth Longfellow poem of the same name), these intimate social gatherings immediately preceded dinner during most evenings of his Presidency. The only regulation for attendance – leave official business at the door. Those lucky few who ever attended one of these exclusive cocktail hours – whether at the White House, or at another location the President was visiting – knew their role was to entertain the 32 nd President. Discussing politics however, was not completely prohibited. In fact it was irresistible. The gatherings gave the President and his guests the chance to air out their feelings on issues and people. Some of the barbs and banter would be directed at one another. Something that probably wasn’t discussed – FDR himself. The President rarely revealed anything deeply personal. Not even in this intimate roundtable of friends. The cocktail hour was the President’s time to unwind – with stories and jokes as copious as the gin ratio. The President himself, usually prepared and served the cocktails at these gatherings. What would he mix for you? That depended on what he had available, and what he knew how to make. Roosevelt enjoyed the classic Old Fashioned, but the Martini was perhaps his favorite – though his recipe was not always traditional, or consistent. The martinis started out simple enough, usually as a 3:1 or sometimes 4:1 Gin and Dry Vermouth. Shaken over ice. Cocktail glass. Olive or lemon peel garnish. Then it gets complicated. Sometimes if inspiration came to him, the President would add a drop or two of absinthe for flavor, according to some sources, including his grandson, Curtis Roosevelt. Sometimes a splash of brine to make it dirty. At other times, he might add more vermouth than his sons or guests cared for. Perhaps he might add some fruit juices or liqueurs, or substitute with an alternative liquor for gin when his home bar was limited. Sometimes an extra measure of gin to be on the safe side, as he could lose track of his measurements while deep in storytelling. You can see how quickly things could get out of control. According to his grandson Curtis, the martinis were said to be “truly awful.” Even his brother-in-law Hall Roosevelt, was known to have told FDR that he didn’t know how to make a martini. Sam Rosenman, a close friend and one of the President’s speechwriters, recalled FDR making such a cocktail in his book, Working with Roosevelt (Harper & Brothers, 1952): … the President, without bothering to measure, would add one ingredient after another to his cocktails. To my unpracticed eye he seemed to experiment on each occasion with a different percentage of vermouth, gin and fruit juice. At times he varied it with rum – especially rum from the Virgin Islands. If anything, Roosevelt appears to have rejected the purist’s notion of what a martini was, and may have been out to satisfy a more adventurous side – even though it apparently didn’t work well for his friends. The President’s apparent taste for experimentation in his cocktails, seemed to mirror his style of experimentation in confronting the challenges facing the nation. Aside from the martinis, FDR appears to have been successful at producing crowd pleasing cocktails. In her book, F.D.R., My Boss (C. Scribner’s Sons, 1949), Grace Tully, Personal Secretary to the President (1941-1945), recalled a summer cocktail FDR created using rum, orange juice, and brown sugar. She described it as “a nice summer drink.” It may have proven a little too much for her though, as she tried to avoid bringing it up, for concern it might be recreated for her. Would he take requests? Certainly. The President however, would gently rebuke your choice if it deviated from what he thought made the best drink. Missy LeHand’s or Grace Tully’s preference for an Old Fashioned made with Scotch whisky, was considered “silly” and “sacrilegious.” There was still something of the traditionalist in FDR it seems. The President, after all, knew what he liked – and if he made a cocktail to his liking, he would sip it and say “yummy, that’s good.” According to John Gunther, in his book Roosevelt in Retrospect (Harper & Brothers, 1950), some other creations included Goldwasser and Demerara rum, or gin and Benedictine. There is one unsubstantiated tale Gunther recalls, of the President stocking a top shelf gin and a bottom shelf gin – the former for his favorite guests, the other for everyone else. Perhaps this contributed to the poor rating some gave for his martini. Franklin D. Roosevelt sits with Fala in the White House Oval Study. December 20, 1941. NPx 59-109. FDR Library Photograph Collection. Those sharing a drink and a laugh with the President, were in elite company. One staple attendee of the evening socializing was Marguerite “Missy” LeHand, Personal Secretary to the President (1933-1941). She would act as hostess for the very small gatherings, which would include over the years White House staff and advisors such as Grace Tully, Louis Howe, Harry Hopkins, Marvin McIntyre, and Steve Early. Family and friends would also attend, such as his daughter Anna. In later years, Fala, the President’s beloved Scotty dog, would be by his side. FDR even held his cocktail hour at large diplomatic conferences, and enjoyed sharing a moment over a drink with other world leaders, such as Winston Churchill. After partaking in one of FDR’s mixed drinks at the Teheran Conference, Soviet Premier Joseph Stalin noted it was “cold on the stomach.” Franklin D. Roosevelt, Joseph Stalin and Winston Churchill at the Teheran Conference in Teheran, Iran. November 29, 1943. NPx 48- 22:3715(107). FDR Library Photograph Collection. One notable absence – the First Lady, Eleanor Roosevelt. Alcoholism ran a deep vein through her family. Her father, brother, and several other members of her family on both sides fell victim to it. While she tolerated alcohol consumption in her husband and others, it was not something she appears to have been completely at ease with. She would make an occasional appearance at the cocktail hour, usually when friends of hers were invited for dinner, and thus were invited to the pre-dinner ritual gathering. Even so, she would often be seen standing in the doorway, according to Curtis Roosevelt in his book Upstairs at the Roosevelts’: Growing Up with Franklin and Eleanor (University of Nebraska Press, 2017). Her son James recalled that sometimes she could be seen with an offered cocktail in hand, but this may have been more out of politeness, than for personal enjoyment. Eleanor Roosevelt did not approve of FDR’s choice of leisure activity, considering it an inefficient use of his time, and according to Grace Tully, usually “had some plan for the evening,” that would preclude her from attending. The First Lady also never seemed completely comfortable in the atmosphere of jokes and small talk. She preferred to dedicate much of her time to her work, even in the evening, feeling her responsibility to help those in need could afford few frivolities, and chose her own methods for relaxation. It was one of the contrasts between Franklin and Eleanor. The First Lady did however, have an important ally in Sara Delano Roosevelt, the President’s mother. She also felt Franklin had become too infatuated with his cocktail hour. Neither of them though, appears to have gone beyond their verbal disapproval. Perhaps they each knew the true purpose of the gatherings. Curtis Roosevelt, who was nine years old when he began to receive an invitation to attend the cocktail hour, described in his book being a witness to the scene surrounding his grandfather, with a ginger ale in his hand. There was an atmosphere of conviviality. Conversation was spontaneous, even noisy, a mixture of lighthearted banter and serious dialogue, but it always touched on politics. Grace Tully recalled the cocktail hour as “the pleasantest period of the day, especially if the group was small.” If the number of guests grew larger than 15 people, Tully recalled the drinks would sometimes be prepared in the kitchen, leaving FDR to pour them, as mixing so many cocktails would be a “chore” for the President. FDR understood his time was limited at these gatherings. In his book, That Man: An Insider’s Portrait of Franklin D. Roosevelt (Oxford University Press, 2003), Supreme Court Justice Robert H. Jackson described FDR as usually enjoying a “couple of cocktails” before dinner, but Tully also described FDR’s practice of extending the good times as long as he could: After a second cocktail, he would look around at the empty glasses and say, “How about a little dividend?” or “How about another sippy?” and usually added, “Will you have a smig?”… On some occasions it was done to use up what was in the shaker and on others he wanted to be sure he had enough customers to warrant making a third round. The Children’s Hour was often less than that, in spite of efforts from his daughter Anna to move up the time for the gathering, to give her father more time to mix and socialize, and avoid the rush he so disliked. At the White House however, the ultimate say in their duration was left to Eleanor. Preferring dinner on time at 7:30, she would appear at the gathering, which meant it was time to wrap things up. Franklin D. Roosevelt being presented a globe by the United States Army at the White House in Washington, D.C.. December 1942. NPx 61- 244. FDR Library Photograph Collection. This article is far from the first glance at FDR’s Children’s Hour. But, in these days of social distancing, the act of mixing a drink at home has developed a resurgence. Socializing has happened more often at home, on-line, instead of in bars or at a friend’s house. In our contemporary case, it is foisted on us by Coronavirus. We have been in many cases, compelled to find new and different ways to unwind, converse with friends, or to change our routines, in order to separate ourselves from stress. For FDR, it was no different, if we set aside the Great Depression and World War II. Because of the life he led, going out for the evening was out of the question. So he brought the fun home, and got through each day – with their successes, and their failures. The Children’s Hour was an important part of the President’s day. As much as breakfast in his bed with a stack of newspapers each morning helped him get started right – the evening unwind helped him finish the day with levity. He wanted fun. So did his guests. All of them had witnessed many days when laughter and smiles seemed in short supply. Together, they could cope. In retrospect, the taste of the cocktails mattered little. The fellowship mattered much more.