The Fairmont West Virginian. (Fairmont, W. Va.) 1904-1914, 1913-12-05
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REPUBLICAN NATIONAL COMMIT.
TEE CANNOT ALTER THE
PRESENT BASIS.
so REPORTS CHAIRMAN OF LIE.
GAL COMMITTEE ON MUCH
CONSIDERED MATTER.

1 .F 'rH.# = F.. r
DETROIT, Mich, Dec. 5.--The Re-
publican national committee has no
IauthorIty to change the basis Of rep.
resentation and voting in national
conventions.
The national committee has au-
thority to change the manner anu
method of choosing delegates to fu-
Iture national conventions so as to
provide that delegates be chosen in
such manner as the laws Of the sew
Ieral states from time to time may
provide Delegates shall be chosen
according to the laws of the state
| they represent instead of according
| to the discretion Of the committee it.
self. "a
The national committee has the
| authority to call a special national
convention of the party, the legal
form Of which a call is provided, by
the legal committee.
These conclusions are reached in
an opinion made public here today
by Charles B. Warren, of Detroit,
chairman Of the legal committee, APP
pointed by the executive committee
of the Republican national, commit
tee.
The executive committee in wash
lington, May "a. last, adopted reso-.
luton requesting the chairman to
call a meeting of the national COM
mittee, to be held within sixty days
after the expiration Of the special
session of congress convened in
March, 1918. The national commit
tee will consider among other things
proposed plans for party reorganiza-
ton. The legal committee was
named to make detailed examtna-
ton Of the questions that would
arise.
In reaching his conclusion Mr.,
Warren quotes extensively from ma
tional conventions of the party from
THAT Of 1856 to 1912.
The first question considered vas
"Has the national committee au-
thority under its present powers to
change the present basis of repre-
sentation and voting in national
conventions now, aside from repre-
sentation from the territories, terri
torial possessions. and the District OF
Columbia, being3a number of dele
gates from each state equal to dou-
BILE the number 81 senator's and rep
resentatives in congress from that
state, eacl entitled to one vote?"
ITO answer this question:" says
the opinion, it is necessary to ascer-
tain the source and extent OF the
mowers Of the national committee
and to determine whether the var1'
ous national conventions have deter
mined and fixed the basis OF repre-
sentation and voting lin national
conventions, to be changed only by
a national convention.
"There is no federal law provid'
ling for the election of a national COM
mittee. While it is true that in a
limited number of states method is
provided by statute for the naming
or nominating of member OF the
national committee, 1t is, neverthe-
less. true that the members OF the ma
| tional committee, have invar1aoly
been elected by the national conVeh-
| ti6ns Of the party since the election
ofi the first committee by the con-
vention of 1856.
"Whatever method the law OF any
state provides for the selection oil a
person to represent the Republican
electors of that state on the national
committee, such selection is, tn~tact'
only nomination properly to be ac'
cepted by the delegation from sucN
state In presenting to the next ma
tional convention the name OF mem
her from such state Of the national
committee. :,
"The nomination of members OF
The national committee has uniform
Ily been made in national conven-
tions by the delegations from the
several states and territories, but the
election Of such a committee has in
yariably been by the national con-
vention,
"The national committee Is then
the creature of the national conYen'
ton, 1t possesses no authority de-
rived from any other source what
| ever. II obtains all its powers from
| the national convention, and derives
| Wy .,. -. nn1,- God