The Salt Lake tribune. [volume] (Salt Lake City, Utah) 1890-current, 1912-07-13
RooSEVELT's NEW NONSENSE

Col Roosevelt is quoted as saying
| that "No honest man who was put on
| as Republican elector at the primaries
against Mr.. Taft And in support Of
this extraordinary proposition he, after
indulging in few filings at pickpocbets
and thieves, proceeds to say that ''Mr.
Taft is not the nominee of the rank
and file of the Republican party" but
is the fraudulent nominee of the
Barnes Penrose- -Guggenheim machine,
which has nullified the wish Of the
great majority Of the Republican
party and Roosevelt then lays down
the law that ''If any elector named at
the primaries last spring is to act hon
estlY he must either vote for me, or not
run for elector at all.'
First Of all, Roosevelt affects to act
as judge In his own case and to declare
that he was entitled to the nomination
undertakes TO judge his own contest is
always in the wrong. We say "al-
ways because no one who wins OBJ
jects TO the decision, 1t is only the
one who loses who undertakes to over
rule the decision against him. So that,
on general account, Roosevelt is wrong
on this proposition; and specifically he
is wrong with regard to the Chicago
convention. because even if he were to
be gwen the seventy~two votes that he
cries for so persistentlv, that would not
be enough TO nominate him, He loses,
therefore, on both accounts.
With respect TO the electors that were
nominated prior to the Chicago conveu-
ton, there is only one plain duty before
them. They were nominated as Repub-
ican electors, TO support the ticket
that was to be nominated In Chicago.
They were nat nominated for Roose-
welt, for Taft. or for anybody else. In
like manner the electors nominated
prior to the Baltimore convention were
nominated to support the candidate for
President and Vice President that were
TO be nominated at Baltimore. To say
that each State has right to nominate
electors who will support the "favorite
son Of that State for President, Is to
introduce anarchy, and to make unity
Of action absolutely impossible, On
that basis Roosevelt claims the electors
Of the States that declared for him in
the primaries. and Taft would be ousted
from his rights; Wilson would receive
the votes Of the electors of those States
only which showed preference for
him. Champ Clark would get the cleo
toral vote of those States which sup
ported him at Baltimore; Underwood
would receive the votes Of Alabama,
Georgia. and the other States that sent
delegates for him. and so on. The inn
possibility Of electing anybody on that
basis is evident That would mean ev
erv Presidential year that the election
Of President and Vice President by the
electoral college would fail and the
election would every time be forced
into the House Of Representatives
The nonsense OF all that sort Of claim
Is clear the moment II is looked into,
even a little. If the electors in the
States Of this Union are 70 stick to the
choice of their States as declared be-
fore the National conventions. and paw
no attention 10 the nominees there
made, then il j. idle talk about party
action al ali We would in that case
simply have to follow political leaders,
pie would have no chance whatever to
net unitedlv for any principle. policy,
or plan OF procedure.
II is astonishing that Roosevelt 8
political skv is so overcast with the big
ME-, that he should be led into the ex-
position OF such ridiculous folly rs is
contained in this latest expression from
him.