Educated at boarding schools (and later at Harvard, where he earned a master's), Mr. Mindel, 59, comes from a cultured, political family that hosted Eleanor Roosevelt in their New Jersey home.

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He said Roosevelt was the son of a wealthy family but knew the "free market was not a free licence to take whatever you can, where ever you can".

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While Hitler is poised to pounce on a terrified Europe, Roosevelt is finding what peace he can at his beloved family estate in upstate New York, overlooking the Hudson River.

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On Feb. 6, the president arrived in the Roosevelt Room to a standing though subdued ovation from some 40 family members.

CENTERFORSECURITYPOLICY: Center For Security Policy