Show i J t r f I I Series of Contradictions Marks Political Campaign By BAUKHAGE News New Analyst and Commentator V WASHINGTON WASHINGTON Political Political currents and cross currents are running high wide and deep along the Potomac these days The wave of popularity stirred up by Stassen supporters is not pleasant pleasant pleasant pleas pleas- ant for regular Republicans to contemplate Some of the professionals non-professionals t however particularly those in the thc Taft corner are very bitter about it i ii ft not because they think hink that Stassen will get in but because of the way 5 1 he has served to block bleck ck the Taft Tart efforts efforts despite despite the fact that the efforts f x have been labelled rightly or wrongly futile from the beginning f dont don't admit they are worrying but I Il l. l I talked to one of the Taft men re recently What makes me sick he said is the way the people who z- z have done their i J Y f i best to break down downY t t w i Taft t are full of v 1 praise for him how now that tha t the they d. d I y j think he is beaten They describe his hise efficiency e f fie i e n c y his knowledge h his i s frankness f ran k n e s s his grasp of the subjects subjects sub- sub j he discusses s And they talk t a I k about a ab b o 0 u t Stassen's I vagueness and inability inability inability in in- ability to answer answer Tafts Taft's charges And these he wound up are arc the same people who have been shooting shooting shooting shoot shoot- ing at Taft ever since he started his presidential campaign There is something in what this man says You would be surprised how many liberals how many Democrats Democrats Democrats Dem Dem- even praise Taft privately would really like to see him elected but either they cant can't quite come out openly in i n his favor or they take for far granted he cant can't win anyhow Then there is the great group of Republicans who are going to vote for Dewey Dewcy but act as if they were gritting their teeth in the process What have you got against Dewey I ask them Some are vague others say the New York governor is a strad an opportunist never comes out for an issue until he sees a Gallup poll on it but I II suppose hell he'll win Can he I Since the Stassen hurricane hurricaneS the S L are talking a n little differently differently differently dif dif- dif dif- about Dewey Some of them who have predicted right along that 5 5 S Dewey would win now are saying that S Stassen has undermined him so thoroughly that now Dewey has no nomore noY noi Y more chance than Taft i T 1 And all the time the tide is rising But heres here's an interesting interesting interesting inter inter- esting thing Way back in February February February ary some very canny observers were saying that Speaker Joe Martin Martin Martin Mar Mar- tin of the house of representatives had the best chance of anyone for forthe forthe the Republican presidential nomination nomination nomination nomina nomina- the Taft- Taft tion in case of expected Dewey deadlock i At the time many people were surprised at that opinion But it wasn't long before we began to see mention of Martin here and there Then finally insiders accepted him himas as probably the best bet of the seva several sev sev- a k eral Republican dark horses I know I could feel his tiffs popularity growing k around the country f as I traveled But then came the surprise move when Martin 1 was credited with bringing about settlement of the row the the coal miners' miners pension row appointment of Sen Styles Bridges of New Hampshire as neutral trustee on the Ule pension board with John Lewis and Ezra Van Horn and the agreement that was reached between Bridges and Lewis At first the settlement put Martin In a favorable light with the pub pub- lic Then some of the conservative Republicans who hate Lewis expressed expressed expressed ex ex- pressed their disapproval There here were hints of a deal that had been reached between Bridges and Lewis before Bridges was appointed Democrats Democrats Democrats Dem Dem- charged that Martin was poli poli- ticking Horn representing the operators operators operators op op- op- op appealed to the courts to declare the pension agreement in in- valid Martins Martin's stock dropped And the theold old timers began to say his chances for the presidential nomination were slim Not so much because of the pension deal itself but paradoxically paradoxical paradoxical- ly and ly-and and this is one of ot the accepted paradoxes of politics politics because because his intervention in the row was taken as asa asa asa a public avowal of his candidacy Martin ceased to be a dark horse horse- and as a light horse he wasn't considered considered considered con con- nearly as much of a favor favor- ite The paradox applies to Senator The Michigan senator senator sen sen- ator constantly and consistently has disavowed any desire or in intention intention intention in- in of being a candidate for forthe forthe forthe I the Republican nomination If U according according according ac ac- ac- ac cording to this paradoxical political political political po po- po- po rule mIe the old timers say he hc were thrust into the limelight his c cause use woud suffer too At this writing seems to stand as the No 1 bet however claim that thin thia paradox is all old hat that times and political thinking have changed One of the first black marks which the Republican old guard checked against Stassen was the fact that he came right out as a candidate way ahead of time The traditional thing is to be oh so coy about Labout it But some observers feel as Newsweek Newsweek Newsweek News News- week magazine expressed it some sometime sometime sometime time ago forthright quest for votes may end much of the traditional traditional traditional coyness of aspirants In the future its it's thought that more candidates candidates candidates can can- will frankly announce their intentions well in advance of elec elec- tion Well maybe There is plenty of old-line old resentment resentment resentment resent resent- ment against Stassen not only because because because be be- cause he began an open campaign so 50 early but also because of the efficient powerful organized highly-organized and aggressive machine he has built up A right wing Republican I spoke to recently seemed especially especial especial- ly resentful grumbling about the big money backing Minnesota's governor ex-governor and the New York banking interests that wanted in Senator Taft was reported so furious Curious over Stassen's invasion of Ohio that it was thought that he might for forget et his rivalry with Dewey and throw his support to to the New Yorker earlier in the convention if the deadlock was certain All this talk AGAINST candidates is interesting psychologically You always hear far more reasons reasons reasons rea rea- sons for voting AGAINST a candidate c candidate candi candi- date than you hear for voting FOR one Its It's a very good thing that no candidate is ever quite so bad as his opponents claim he is Otherwise Otherwise Otherwise Other Other- wise the government would fall faU apart regularly every four years Monroe Doctrine 1 Is Reactivated On Charles street in the sleepy little town of Fredericksburg Va in the first floor office of a story- story half and-a-half brick house you can ean see if you obey the parking signs and stop there a n beautiful brass-bound brass mahogany desk artistic handiwork of the French cabinet makers of the early century It is an historic piece of furniture furniture furniture furni furni- ture for on its surface years ears ago there was signed a document which reactivated today becomes at once the challenge and anti the hone of free men throughout the world That desk carefully carried across the seas as a precious heirloom found its way into the great empty rooms of the White House newly- newly rebuilt after the destructive fire set by an enemy torch in the War of 1812 r Turn back the pages to December of the year 1823 At this desk sits sitsa a man in a st stiffly starched stock His broad forehead is wrinkled with thought His wide eyes look down at atthe atthe atthe the document he is about to sign I It is his message to the congress congress congress con con- gress of the United States but it embodies the spirit and is couched in the phrases which his predecessors sors have used before him expressing expressing expressing sing the intent and the obligations of the young republic of which he James Monroe is the President Two Tavo years before the Czar of all fh the Russians nC h had n uttered a ukase that no foreigner must approach within miles of the American coastline north of the parallel Russia then had a firm foothold on the northwestern coastline of the western hemisphere The iron curtain curtain curtain cur cur- tain had descended Plus ca change plus ca reste lax meme chose 1 I We could not view vie any interposition interposition interposition for Cor the purpose of oppressing oppressing oppressing sing them the free Cree countries of the Americas by any European power in any other light than as the manifestation of an unfriendly ly disposition toward the United States One hundred and twenty-five twenty years pass Today the United States in a world that has shrunk until Moscow is nearer to Washington than Boston Boston Boston Bos Bos- ton was in Monroes Monroe's time rededicates rededicates rededicates cates its resources to help free peoples to maintain their free institutions institutions institutions and their national integrity against aggressive movements that seek to impose upon them totalitarian totalitarian totalitarian regimes The words are President Truman's Truman's Truman's Tru Tru- mans man's but the spirit is the same sameI as that breathed In m the Monroe doc doc- trine America carries on Polysyllabically John L L. L Lewis and Gen Douglas MacArthur have something in in common common Perhaps Lewis should run as MacArthurs MacArthur's vice president Think of all the sonorous word syllable s state t tat a t e e. e ments they could get out C In President Lincoln's time most of the speeches were made in the open air without benefit of public address system or microphone Now all you really need is a few friends who can make themselves heard in a smoke filled oke d ro room i |