Arizona republican., 1903-10-13
Cabinet Officers in Political Campaigns


 President Roosevelt has adopted a common sense policy in encouraging the members of his cabinet to take an active part in political campaigns. treasury wrote to MT. Roosevelt, ask ing for permission to make some speeches in Ohio. 'I am in receipt of letter from Senator Hanna" wrote MT. Shaw, inviting me to take some part in the Ohio campaign. now about to open. If agreeable to you I should like to accept" The president prompt ly replied:
 ''I am, glad you are going to Ohio, and I agree most heartily with all you say. The return of MT. Hanna to the senate and the triumph of the prin- ciples for which he stands in the present contest are things that con- cern not merely Ohio. but our coun- try as whole. and I congratulate you upon having the chance to do your share to secure not merely the triumph, but the decisive and over whelming triumph, of Senator Hanna
 
 There has never been any valid reason why the holder of a. cabinet portfolio should not make political speeches While both parties have from time to time tried to make capital out of the participation of cabinet off, cers in campaigns-neelect of official duty is usually the grave charge-it is not probable that there -r-i be much bowling hereafter It is, in fact. the duty of cabinet minister to appear on the stump and face the peop-e. It is the only way in which he can give them an opportunity to question him. Unlike the English system. the Ameri- can form of government does not give a member of the government a seat among the peoples lawmakers. where by question and vote he can be held accountable for his acts. The nearest approach to that situation is the ap- pearance of the minister on the stump. And the latter is the more satisfactory method.
 A member of the cabinet holds an office that is peculiarly political. The machinery of his department is oper- ated by assistant secretaries, chiefs of divisions, and clerks, while he helps the president to shape the policies of the administration, and he is con- suited frequently by the party leaders in congress. When he takes part in a political campaign, all of his import ant utterances are justly regarded as expressing the position of the presi- dent. There is no more effective way of enlightening the public as to the attitude of the administration on all the questions upon which the president himself nas not been heard.
 For example, when the people of Ohio heard these words from Secretary Shaw on Saturday, they heard in a few sentences the platform of the ma tional administration on the question of protection:
 "The plan proposed by the minority party is to throw our commercial doors wide open for the free importa- tion of the products of foreign labor. Members of that party insist that if we do this we will of necessity have un- restricted access to the markets of other countries. They urge that if we will but allow Europe to clothe us. furnish our glass, our earthenWare, our hardware, our steel rails. our structural iron and everything else we produce we will thus secure a most wonderful export trade. They insist that the way for us to capture the markets O; the world is to throw our markets open to the world. The logic of the opinion is that if We give away what we have. we will then have an abundance. England has had free goods for half a century. but she has never had free trade. She has run against the tariff at the entrance of every country she has attempted to invade, and now her colonies having become vigorous, are begging to inn pose duties upon her products and MT. Chamberlain resigns his position in the cabinet and at the time of life when most men are about to retire to the quiet of their homes, goes out to make the fight of his life in behalf of pro- lection. There is a great difference
 
 tries and free trade in foreign coun- tries.
 Think of it. Our farms produce four thousand millions and our shops and factories produce more than all the shops and factories in any other two countries on the map by three thous- and millions per annum. The produc- tive capacity, without Implications. amount to eleven billions, of which we export in round numbers billion and a half and import a billion.
 We. therefore, export practically 15 per cent of all We produce. Suppose we open the doors and allow Europe to clothe us and furnish us our manu- factured products, who will consume the products of our farms and what shall we do with the products of our factories?
 "No, we will take reasonable care of our own, encouraging those who can afford it to buy some of their luxuries abroad and from the importation of