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Show H0IT1E Town w. 5 IN WASHINGTON -TSI Ike's Chances UNLESS Gen. Dwight Elsenhower repudiates his statement of January 8, taken by his backers as a "go" sign, and returns to this country In time for a pre-conven-tion campaign, the chances against his obtaining the GOP presidential nomination must be something like a 100-to-l shot. For despite all the organization work his enthusiastic supporters can do for him and his personal popularity throughout the country, the convention machinery, even down to the. keynoter vlll be In the bands of his opposition. Convention nominations are made by the politicians poli-ticians and NOT by the voters. And if General Ike means what he said in his statement he will not lift a hand to obtain the nomination. Here is what he said: "Under no circumstances will I ask for relief from this assignment in order to seek nomination for political office and I shall not par ticipate In the pre-convention activities ac-tivities of others who may have such an intention with respect to me." The only loophole he leaves is that he will accept the nomination nomina-tion next July which he considers would be "a duty that would transcend trans-cend my present responsibilities." The only manner in which General Flspnhnwpr vonM ret I "relief" from his present assignment as-signment would be for him to ask for relief, which he says he will NOT do under any circumstances, circum-stances, or for President Truman Tru-man to recall him, which the President said he would NOT do unless the general asks to be relieved. So there we have an Impasse. Will He Return? The hope of some of his backers that the general will return to this country probably In March, is born of what will be a determined effort to recall him for some such reason as testifying before a congressional committee, in an attempt to stampede stam-pede him into making a definite commitment. However, those who know him best declare he will sidestep side-step any such attempts to get him to return here In violation of his determination de-termination to stick to his job in Europe. Indications today are that the keynoter a the GOP national convention may be none other than Gen. Douglas MacArthnr, staunch supporter of Senator Taft, and no friend of General Elsenhower. Thus the convention conven-tion may be treated to the spectacle spec-tacle of one national hero, Mae-Arthur, Mae-Arthur, pitted against the other national Idol, Eisenhower, with MacArthur seeking to electrify . the convention in favor of Senator Sen-ator Taft. The Senate Lineup One bit of evidence as to how the GOP politicians, who will control the convention, are lined up behind Taft and Eisenhower was the vote on the successor to the late Kenneth Wherry as GOP senate floor leader. Twenty-six senators voted for Sen.. Styles Bridges of New Hampshire, backed by Senator Taft. and 15 voted for Sen. Leverett Saltonstall, backed by the Eisenhower forces, led by Senator Lodge of Massachusetts Massa-chusetts and Duff of Pennsylvania. Sen. George Aiken of Vermont ha rn i carl trio nti-actj.. - ijuauuil VI J U .- I where General Eisenhower stands on such questions as labor, agriculture, agri-culture, health, education, conservation conser-vation and the St. Lawrence waterway. water-way. And Senator Aiken is one who could be presumed to be in the Eisenhower camp. This query from Senator Aiken is likely to grow into a chant before many days have passed and General Eisenhower if he does come home, will face a veritable barrage of brickbats or, as President Truman suggested at a press conference, the rotten egg and tomato throwing iJ partisan politics. Reluctant to Run President Truman at this same press conference didn't make it any easier for Eisenhower, and fed fodder to the Taft camp when in answering a query, he opined, with a mischievous grin, that he had always al-ways thought the general was a Democrat until he read his formal January 8 statement So the gen eral's backers have a grim campaign ahead of them without any help from their candidate, unless he reconsiders re-considers and nullifies his formal statement; unless he decides hij joo in Europe is ended prior to July and asks to be relieved. More Taxes Asked President Truman, in his annual economic message to congress, asked for a tax increase of about . $5,000,000,000. However, administration administra-tion leaders in both the house and senate expressed the opinion that there was little likelihood of him getting it. The President also asked for tighter price controls, a check on private spending, greater productivity, pro-ductivity, and a return to pay-as-we-go government financing In the coming year |