Transcript: Chapter 18

Narrator: By the end of his first term, Roosevelt had begun to shift the balance of power in America. The rich felt the sting of higher taxes and workers acquired the right to bargain collectively. Soon great American industries -- steel, rubber, automobiles -- would be unionized for the first time, and the men FDR grew up with, who went to Groton and Harvard, had begun to say, "That man in the White House has gone too far."

Bronson Chanler, Hudson Valley Neighbor: People from Franklin Roosevelt's class when he first was elected had no idea that he was going to anything as radical as he did do. They really believed that because he was one of them, more or less -- propertied and coming from old New York society -- that the last thing he would do would be anything that would cause anguish to his peers.

Curtis Roosevelt: People who held a position in society that was basically inherited and family-oriented instinctively felt that this was being lost and that "that man in the White House," Franklin D. Roosevelt, was responsible and hence he was a traitor to his class.

They hated him, and I know this from my personal experience of people who would come up to me, not just when my grandfather was alive, but ever since, but particularly, say, in the 10 or 15 years after he died, and express their vitriolic hate towards Franklin D. Roosevelt in a way that is totally irrational.

Bronson Chanler: A great yachtsman in Marblehead, Mass., Mr. Crowninshield, when he-- on entering in his log book of his yacht a description of something really terrible, he'd refer to it as "a Roosevelt." "It was blowing an absolute Roosevelt that day and the fog was thicker than a Roosevelt," 'cause he used the word Roosevelt-- I mean, it seems ridiculous, but that was the extent to which these people took their hostility to the New Deal.

Narrator: The rich and the privileged might hate him, but as his first term was drawing to a close, Roosevelt remained immensely popular with ordinary Americans. In spite of persistent hard times, the president had given them hope.

Alistair Cooke: The most astounding thing was the pictures of Roosevelt you saw -- framed photographs, framed bad watercolors, good photographs, bad photographs -- but everywhere. Bus stations, libraries, barbershops, homes -- there were pictures of Roosevelt.

I went into this lodge and as we were checking in, I looked and saw this photograph, you know, where the clerk was checking us in, and it was rather bad. It had been -- very bad color with sort of rouged cheeks. And I made a joke about this, you know, the way they'd done him up, and we were thrown out. Now, that was the striking thing. It had nothing to do with partisanship. You know, for the time being, the entire country's decided he was the savior.

I don't believe five Americans in a hundred knew he was paralyzed. I think if it had been absolutely common knowledge, it would have been very difficult to elect him.

Hugh Gallagher, Biographer: The country just simply didn't perceive Roosevelt as being handicapped, and they would look and they just would not see what they were seeing. People wanted him to be president, he wanted to be president. There was this little matter of being crippled in the way.

The president was always performing. He was performing before crowds, before visitors of state, the Congress and so forth, but also for his family and everyone else. When he met Orson Welles, he said, "Orson, you and I are the two best actors in America," and he was right, you know. He was right.

He's appearing in public. It's politically important that he not look helpless. He's got to plan how will he enter a room? How will he move across to the chair? Who will help him sit down? How will he do it? Who will take the cane? How-- do they know? Is the chair stable?

MILTON LIPSON, Secret Service: We became experts at designing ramps, and there would be ramps that would be erected either on a permanent or temporary basis to allow for the wheelchair. Of course, there were times when he would be helped by a couple of agents in a fireman's carry, and all he would do was drape his arms around us and we'd form a fireman's carry and carry him.

Hugh Gallagher: For large crowds, they would build a ramp for the car, so the car would come into the stadiums, drive up on the ramp and then the president, still seated, would address the public.

And they had the braces painted black, even though they were shiny steel. He wore black shoes, black socks, black trousers-- black trousers cut long so that the braces all but disappeared if you weren't looking closely.

Chalmers Roberts: Most of the pictures you see of him, he's either standing up and if you look carefully he's holding onto somebody's arm or he's setting in a chair. There are very few pictures of him in a wheelchair. This was not exactly a conspiracy, but it was a conspiracy of consent between photographers and the White House, something that could never exist today.

Hugh Gallagher: At Hyde Park, they have something like more than 40,000 still photos of Franklin Roosevelt and of those 40,000, there are only two of him in a wheelchair, and they were family photos. And there was never a cartoon of him being handicapped or being in a wheelchair or otherwise. He was always running and jumping or in a boxing ring, hitting -- knocking a Republican out of the ring or something like that. People were more polite back then, and the press loved Franklin Roosevelt because he took care of them.

President Franklin Roosevelt: I can't be truthful and say that I am glad to get back. I'm awfully sorry to get back, but while I've been having a wonderful time, I gather also that both houses of Congress have been having a wonderful time in my absence.

Chalmers Roberts: He was awful good at charming you. You had to be awful careful you didn't get badly seduced and a lot of people did.

WALTER TROHAN, Journalist: He had the press with him heart and soul. If he made a crack, the place would bust into an uproar as though they were doing it to applaud a TV comedian.

President Franklin Roosevelt: And I have come back with all sorts of new lessons, which I learned from barracuda and sharks. I'm a tough guy.

WALTER TROHAN: I've heard him tell women how hard it was for him to go through the press conference because these men were so alert and so sharp that he had to keep on his toes, so to speak, every minute. Well, it wasn't so. They were all with him.

Reporter: Mr. President, how soon are you coming back?

President Franklin Roosevelt: Just as soon as Congress will let me.

WALTER TROHAN: And he liked jokes and he liked trading jokes. And I used to make dirty cracks at something under the New Deal, and he'd come back and make dirty cracks at my publisher or me or we'd play poker with him, which was a rather good index to his character. He was a great bluffer, and a lot of reporters would lose to him and enjoy putting down on the expense account, "Lost to President Roosevelt at poker." I never claimed a loss.

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