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Laurence Steinhardt is Roosevelt’s Choice for U.S. Minister to Sweden

April 28, 1933
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Laurence A. Steinhardt, New York lawyer and financial expert, has been selected by President Roosevelt as the next United States Minister to Sweden, it was announced today. The President’s nomination of Mr. Steinhardt has been sent to the Senate for confirmation.

The new envoy is regarded as an ideal selection for his duties, by reason of his training and experience Born in New York City on October 6, 1892, Mr. Steinhardt is descended, on his mother’s side, from a Virginia family. His father was one of the founders of the National Enameling and Stamping Co. As a young man he gained a first-hand knowledge of manufacturing and trade.

He received his education in New York City at the Franklin School, Columbia University, and Columbia University Law School, graduating in 1915 with the degrees of Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Laws and Master of Arts. He practiced accountancy with the firm of Deloitte, Plender & Griffiths, chartered accountants, and subsequently entered the army as a private, was assigned to the 60th Field Artillery, and served on the staff of the Provost Marshal General.

After his discharge, with the rank of sergeant, Mr. Steinhardt became a partner in the well known law firm of Guggenheimer, Untermyer & Marshall, and is generally regarded as a trial lawyer of exceptional ability. In recent years he has become an authority on economic, financial and international affairs, and in 1931 wrote, “The Truth, The Whole Truth, and Nothing but The Truth,” which criticized the Hoover administration’s economic and international policies, forecasting many of the consequences of these policies. The article caused a stir in political circles. He is the author of various articles on subjects as diversified as “Medical Jurisprudence” and “The Legal Status of the Trade Union.”

WAS ROOSEVELT ADVISER

Mr. Steinhardt was a member of President Roosevelt’s pre-convention committee, a member of the Democratic National Finance Committee, served on his party’s executive finance committee, and took an active part in the campaign.

The new envoy has traveled extensively, speaks French and German fluently, has represented many important interests, and has served as a director of a large number of charities and industrial enterprises. He was married in 1923 to Dulcie Yates Hofmann, who is also an accomplished linguist, speaking Italian in addition to French and German. They have one daughter, eight years of age.

ADVOCATES TRADE STIMULATION

During the past few months, Mr. Steinhardt has been repeatedly mentioned in well-informed circles as slated for the post of Minister to Sweden or Switzerland. He succeeds John Motley Morehead, appointed in 1930 by President Hoover.

Mr. Steinhardt recently delivered an address before the Swedish Chamber of Commerce of the United States, on board the M. S. “Gripsholm,” advocating the lifting of the “arbitrary and senseless restrictions which are hampering and strangling international trade.”

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