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U.S. At War: Something for the Boss

1 minute read
TIME

The shy, jug-shaped man who often says no to Franklin Roosevelt gulped and said yes. Thus Justice Samuel I. (“Sammy the Rose”) Rosenman, 47, decided to quit his job as a New York Supreme Court Justice (salary $25,000 a year) to become “special counsel” to the President (probable salary $10,000 a year).

In 1928, when Franklin Roosevelt was campaigning for New York’s Governorship, he met a learned, self-effacing young lawyer. Sam Rosenman at once became useful to Candidate Roosevelt; he dug up facts for campaign speeches, modestly made many a sound suggestion. Governor Roosevelt made Rosenman his personal counsel, dubbed him “Sammy the Rose.” In 1932 The Rose was appointed, then elected to a 14-year term on the New York Supreme Court bench. But for a decade he has remained a trusted Roosevelt adviser, shuttling back & forth—half the week in Washington, where a White House bed was always made up for him.

The Justice, in his new job, will 1) review court-martial cases referred to the President, 2) decide on draft deferments for Federal employes, 3) continue to touch up the President’s speeches. As for his lowered income: “Naturally, I am glad to do this for the Boss.”

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