Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1904-01-22
POLITICAL DRIFT.
A Comprehensive View Of the Situation From
the Yakima Democrat.

A Comprehensive View Of the Situation From
the Yakima Democrat.
Now that the year 1904 is here and
with a Presidential and State CAM
paign coming on the politicians are
beginning to bestir themselves in the
endeavor to find out where they are at
and to whom they want to tie.
Politics in this State, especially
within the ranks of the Republican
party. was probably never in a worse
muddle than seems to be the case at
the present time. That party is so
badly divided into factions and cliques
that it more resembles mob without
a leader than it does a compact politi-
cal organization that is presumed to
be held together by common belief
in certain political principles.
The reason for the existence OF this
state OF affairs among the Republicans
OF Washington is obvious. The fault
does not lie with the rank and file OF
the party, for the rank and file of the
Republican party, like that of other
parties, is honest and is desirous of
securing good government. The fault
lies with the leaders OF the party and
not with the followers. The trouble
is that the leaders are almost without
exception men of small bore who are
actuated by selfish motives and who
care nothing for the party beyond the
desire to use it for their own ends.
Some of them have traded the party
off or mortgaged it to the corporations
80 many times that the acts OF these
political highwaymen no longer cause
surprise or even much comment.
If the Democratic party is to stand
any chance whatever in this State in
the coming campaign it will be only
through fully espousing the cause OF
the people and nominating for Office
men who, il elected, can be trusted to
carry out the will OF the people. II
they do that there is possibility OF
success. Thousands of good Republi
cans may thus be induced to support
the Democratic ticket; not that they
intend to turn Democrats but because
they feel the necessity of purifying
their own party by ridding it of a lot
of grating and selfish comorants who
are intent only on securing their own
ends. For this the Democratic party
is the only available club at hand with
which to accomplish their purpose
and their disposition is to use it with
telling effect.
If the Republican party of this State
had but one able, conscientious leader
in whom the people had confidence we
would not hear so much talk about
the possibility Of the election of q
Democratic governor this year. Al
the State is now Republican by q
majority ranging from twenty to thirty
thousand it is plain that no Democrat
would stand the ghost of a show were
it not for the distrust that exists
among the masses for the leaders OF
the party, a distrust which is a amply
justified by the facts.
For the Office OF Governor a swarm
of candidates have already appeared
and Others are coming out almost
daily with the desire to contest the
nomination with the present eccentric
occupant OF the executive chair, act
ing on the assumption that the present
Governor has no chance to succeed
himself. When one analyses the
political and public records or these
men it is only to discover that they
have done nothing in all their lives tC
entitle them to such a position o
trust and high honor. Indeed, with
many of them the only claim they
have to political recognition of any
kind is for service they have rendered
in the past to some corporation.
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