Show GOP leaders intrigue e press with election prospects by vein news analyst and commentator service 1618 1616 E eye ye street NW washington D 0 washington D C this weather in washington and elsewhere develops more heat than light a ir trite t e phrase I 1 know but blit its apropos because heat rather than light is always the keyword at this season politically politic c ally speaking congress accomplished its fade ade out rather gracefully I 1 thought even e v en if 11 the they must h have ave prayed for or f forgiveness a or k the th things in 9 we a cave have left undone done as fervently as for the things they did which sit too well with their consciences and now the voice of the vote getter is heard in the land radio and newspaper correspondents are being courted by both P political oli parties for example recently a crowd of radio folk was given a luncheon table look at the vote getting machinery behind the republican lines our hosts were republican chairman carroll carrol B reece at one end of the table and republican campaign manager clarence brown at the other A simi similar lar jaunt into democratic territory will be reported in a future column reece quiet popular chief reece is a slight greying quiet voiced man whose tennessee accent reminds one occasionally of claude pepper in one of claudes moments if you can catch him in one personal confession I 1 like pepper and reece both and so do a lot of 0 people who would be the first to say the views of these notables do not necessarily agree with those of the undersigner undersigned under signed it is a little presumptuous off of me to refer to reece as greying because the year 1889 had to stretch itself from january to december to fill the time gap between my birthday and his bis he has taught in almost as many academic institutions as I 1 have casually attended he was a battalion commander in world war ft 1 whereas I 1 never rose above the exalted station of etall and among his five decorations are the distinguished service cross the distinguished service medal and the purple heart he was cited for or bravery by a marshal three generals and a colonel perhaps the same qualities which won reece his decorations qualified turn tor for his present job he certainly lack assurance even if lie he rattle sabers in expressing it but we are not talking about reece we are talking about his job lie he is out on the hustings although his trip which will take him as far west as seattle and as far south as georgia is mildly camouflaged as a vacation anyhow mrs and miss reece are going along and a part of the time will be spent at a resort in the backstopping Back stopping reece here in the capital where nobody votes but where a lot of writers and talkers remain will be clarence brown representative from the seventh district of ohio a state which might be called a latter day mother of presidents and which right now is looking hopefully over the patterns of maternity gowns brown and reece con complement each other very well reece is slight dignified soft spoken brown is large loud enough to be heard in the back row without using the PA system and hall hail fellow well met As campaign manager he is going to sweat it out that is literal with the rest ot of the washing toniann who dont vacate in the summer I 1 have a fellow feeling for or representative brown tinged perhaps with the natural deference a reporter always has tor for a publisher brown publishes several country newspapers the way he put it himself in the congressional directory whereas I 1 merely write for several besides this one also he has three more children chil dien than I 1 have he and I 1 once met on the debating platform and while I 1 would naturally never admit that I 1 present the best argument I 1 will concede somewhat grudgingly that browns resounding oratory won him the most applause we were debating selective service and 1 I hasten to explain that former forme r senator now supreme court justice t burton and I 1 had the unpopular side anyhow brown may the best man win won reece and B brown rown talk on the record at the luncheon but 1 I have a good idea ot of how things looked to the republicans at that congenial gathering of radio folk II if the elections were held as of 0 that moment they claimed the republicans public ans would win a majority ol of seats in the house of 0 representatives and would make very heavy inroads on the democratic majority in the senate since then many of the primary battles have been fought and ill report the reactions later gallup poll heartens GOP in the first place I 1 understand that the republicans took considerable satisfaction in the gallup poll which showed that excluding the one party democratic states 48 46 per cent of 0 the persons interviewed showed a democratic pre preference ferenc e and 54 per cent a republican preference the GOP leaders believed they had a good fighting chance to win 15 to 17 senatorial seats from their opponents in new york they say governor deweys deleys good record and the campaign he Is planning ought to pull in a republican senator they wont say whom they believe democratic senator mead will have to run for the governorship they felt they had a chance in delaware and west virginia and that it the ballots were cast at that moment they would win in missouri missour sour im still talking about tile the 10 11 7 1 11 4 V carroll B reece and rep brown senatorial race they called montana and washington probabilities rather than mere possibilities knows he has a fight they say and they believe the republican candidate john henderson has a chance against the popular gentleman from wyoming I 1 heard a lot of talk too about the interesting possibility in connecticut where clare luce was expected to oppose former OPA administrator chester bowles which would be a colorful affair with all the technical skill of her publisher husband and all the skill of an advertising man mr bowles pitted against each other As to the house of representatives republican machinery has been grinding in at least 75 districts OF 01 kentuck bloody battleground kentucky was catalogued cataloguer catalo gued as still a dark and bloody battleground at the time of the luncheon representative senta tive mays followers seemed to feel according to press reports that he be was a martyr it if something should come out to change their minds on that score he might go down to defeat and we are reminded that as one republican put it every 20 years or so kentucky changes its mind other debatable districts were listed in pennsylvania indiana delaware maryland west virginia and new york what the republicans seem to count on most Is the natural reaction throw the rascals out theory which americans always have reverted to after so long a period of any bartys incumbency in addition say the GO Pundits there are the usual mistakes of the party in power which result in the well known attitude of one of clarence browns constituents who told him 1 I dont know who im FUR but I 1 know burned well who im AGIN 1 the republicans think they have discovered a trend away from centralized government which may turn the voters against t the administration and into republican pastures |