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Show LEGION MEN HIT BY RULING National Judge Advocate Decides Or. ganization Officer Ineligible if Holding Public Office. A decision of far-reaching importance impor-tance as affecting the participation iu Politics of men holding otlice in the American Legion has just been handed hand-ed down by Kobert A. Adams, national na-tional judge advocate of the Legion, in response lo an inquiry from the lnter-I'ost lnter-I'ost Council of Los Angeles, Cal. At its annual election held in December De-cember a l.os Angeu-s nost elected ('banning i-'ollette as comiiiamlor for Ul-l. A short time afterwards i'ol-lette i'ol-lette was appointed justice of the peace by the hoard of supervisors of I. os Aiiucles county. The ouesiioii arose whether, lu view uf the fact that Follette had been appointed ap-pointed to an otlice which, in its nature, na-ture, except in the matter of filling vacancies, is an elective, salaried public pub-lic otlice, he was eligible to serve as an officer of the Legion. In his oliicial ruling, the national judge advocate says: "This beitijr a salaried, elective pub lie ollice, it is my opinion that the method of tilling a vacancy is not et-v sentia! in determining the eligibility of a I.egionaire holding such ollice. The otlice is elective, although the case with which we deal is that of an appointment. ap-pointment. "The purpose of the constitutional provision is. of course, to prevent, so far as possible, the use by a member of the Legion of his Legion membership member-ship in furthering a political career. Consequently, the effect of an appointment ap-pointment is in no wise dissimilar from an election, and It Is my opinion that the incumbent is, by the accept ance of his office, rendered Ineligible for the ofiice of the American Legion ' It Is believed that many Legion members, appointed to political offices will be affected by this ruling. |