TLS, two pages, 8 x 10.5, State of New York Executive Chamber letterhead, April 25, 1931. Letter to Robert L. Holliday of the First National Bank. In part: “I stated sometime ago that it is my intention to devote my entire time and thought to my duties as Governor of the State of New York and to give no attention to matters involving my own political future…I approve of course of any organization of the friends of any one suggested for public office, where such organizations are devoted to spreading a knowledge of the merits and qualifications of the man they favor. It is a wholesome thing in our public life that individual voters at our coming presidential primaries should be fully informed by the friends of the different men suggested as to their respective fitness and qualifications. I am human enough to feel highly honored at your action. There is nothing so heartening to one holding public office as to find that what he has done or tried to do has met with the notice and approval not only of the citizens of his own state, but in other states as well. At the same time I want to make it absolutely clear to you, as I have to the people of New York that I am personally giving my whole attention solely to my duties as Governor and am taking no part in national political affairs or national political questions.” In addition to signing at the conclusion, Roosevelt has written “Personal” at the top of the first page. In fine condition.
As the US sank into the Great Depression, New York governor Franklin D. Roosevelt began his second term with a clear focus on strengthening his increasingly desperate state. Along with supporting lower taxes for farmers and developing public power utilities, Roosevelt created the Temporary Emergency Relief Administration (TERA), showing that the government should and could step in to provide direct relief and aid to its unemployed and needy citizens. In doing so, he established his credentials as a bold liberal reformer, setting a precedent by creating a new agency to meet a new problem—one he would rely heavily upon during the New Deal years. Ironically, by focusing solely on his responsibilities to the state and “taking no part in national political affairs,” FDR proved himself the strongest candidate to pull the US out of the Depression. A remarkable letter highlighting the determination and loyalty that would propel the Democrats’ rising star into the White House the following year. Pre-certified John Reznikoff/PSA/DNA and RR Auction COA.
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