David Niles

David K. Niles (November 26, 1890–September 28, 1952) was a political advisor who worked in the White House from 1942–1951 for the administrations of Franklin D. Roosevelt (1942-45) and Harry Truman. He was concerned chiefly with issues of civil rights, immigration, Jewish affairs, welfare, and Democratic Party politics. He was the White House planner for FDR;s third term campaign in 1940.

Career

Born in Poland of Jewish parents, Niles grew up in Boston. He could not afford college and became a political activist by 1924. He played a major role in every Democratic National Convention from 1928 through 1952. He had what [Roosevelt called a "passion for anonymity" and was seldom mentioned in the press.

Niles directed the Boston's Ford Hall Forum (1921-1952), a lecture service. He directed the American Business Census in Massachusetts (1933-1934). Moving to Washington in 1934 he moved up rapidly in the New Deal under the patronage of Harry Hopkins, becoming an assistant administrator of the Works Progress Administration (1936-1939), Special Assistant to the Secretary of Commerce (1939-1940). In 1940 he handled patronage for the Census Bureau, which hired 100,000 people to conduct the census that year. He worked for the Office of Production Management and War Production Board before becoming a presidential advisor.

Truman aide

Niles was one of only two Roosevelt aides retained by Truman upon his assumption of the presidency. Niles handled minority affairs, civil rights and Jewish issues. He was instrumental in Truman's decision to recognize the new state of Israel in 1948 and thereby solidify the Jewish vote in the 1948 election. He retired in 1951.

Communist target

This article is part of the Venona series.

Secret apparatus

Works Progress Administration

Board of Economic Warfare

War Production Board

Office of Production Management

White House

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In 1943, Congressman Fred Bradley accused Niles of having communist connections while involved with the Ford Hall Forum. [1] More recent allegations of Communist connections to Niles have arisen:

"An NKVD Venona document, a decrypted Soviet message, from New York to Moscow reported on a plan to send a husband and wife team of NKVD 'illegals' to Mexico.[2] The message said, 'Through CAPITAN'S (Roosevelt’s) advisor David Niles –will take 3-4 days, will cost 500 dollars.... [A]round Niles there is a group of his friends who will arrange anything for a bribe. Through them TENOR (Michael W. Burd) obtains priorities and has already paid them as much as 6000 dollars. Whether NILES takes a bribe himself is not known for certain.' Burd was a Soviet agent and an officer of the Midland Export Corporation in New York City."

(Romerstein and Breindel, p. 180.)

Further reading

• Michael J. Cohen, Truman and Israel, (1990).
• Herbert Romerstein and Eric Breindel, The Venona Secrets, Exposing Soviet Espionage and America’s Traitors, (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1997).
• Cornell Simpson, The Death of James Forrestal, (Belmont, MA: Western Islands Publishers, 1966).

External links

• Truman Library - David K. Niles Papers