Show liili imi li IT MATTER for the reaper by george B lockwood the nation will be prosperous no matter who is its president is the caption of an editorial printed in the hearst newspapers the president i after all only the national executive the no laws aas of congress and the well defined wishes of the people which he carries into execution are more important than his personality concludes the editorial Is it true that it does not matter to the people of the united states who is president the president of the united states is the most powerful executive in the world if in har mony with the congress elected with him he is in position to define the policies of the united states if out of harmony with the majority in congress lie he is in position to deadlock the government and put it in the position of a great business corporation with its president and board of directors at odds and working at choss purposes is an all too common belief that the national government runs of its own momentum that it does not much matter what ale aie its policies tile the result is about the same this would not be believed of any other great enterprise ter prise business concerns succeed or fail in accordance with the wisdom of their management and especially of their underlying policies what is true of the business enterprise is true of the national government the influence of our national natio nal executive upon national policies is very great the presidency is a broadcasting station which reaches the ears cars of every american and of the whole world if congress is out of harmony with the will of the executive the presidency is the most effective agency for changing public opinion in existence I 1 in the field of foreign affairs the influence of the presidency is especially great A president may initiate foreign policies which either in their acceptance or rejection profoundly affect the status of the government of the united states it is impossible that the influence of a president like governor smith who has been an ardent advocate of the league of nations including article X would be the same as that of a president who believes in the policy of avoiding international ter political entanglements entangle ments it is impossible that the influence of a president who believes in firmly upholding the rights and just interests of the united states abroad should be the same as that of a president committed to the theory that the american who travels or invests abroad does so entirely at his own risk and is not entitled to tile the protection of his own government it is true tl ue that the prosperity pio and security of the united states does not depend upon the election of any one man to the presidency that the welfare of the american people might not be affected by the election of a candidate for president who does not represent the popular will in ie ference to certain great national principles and policies is a statement that cannot be logically supported men should be supported or opposed for high executive or legislative of offices flees not on the basis of their personalities but on the basis of the principles and policies they represent to choose men for such posts on the ground that they are not the whole show and therefore would be powerless to carry out their wishes would represent an abandonment of common sense by the voters |