Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1916-02-04
WILSON'S DENOMINATION DEPENDS ON PEOPLE
LETTER WRITTEN BEFORE HIS INAUGURATION BUT JUST
RECENTLY PUBLISHED, REVEALS PRESIDENTS VIEWS
ON s1NGLETERM PLANK OF PLATFORM

use to the utmost every proper in
fuence within my reach to see that
he is. before the term to which l have
been elected is out. That side Of the
matter need disturb no one.
"And yet, if he is deprived Of every
other means of deciding the question,
what becomes Of the argument for
constitutional limitation to a single
term? The argument is not that it
is clearly known now just how long
each president should remain in
office. Four years is too long a term
for a president who is not the true
spokesman of the people, who is i'm
posed upon and does not lead. It is
too short term for a president who
is doing or attempting a great work
of reform and who has not had time
to finish it.
''To change the term to six years
would be to increase the likelihood Of
its being too long, without any assur-
ance that it would, in happy cases, be
long enough. A fixed constitutional
limitation to single term of Office is
highly arbitrary and unsatisfactory
from every point of view.
"The argument for it rests upon
temporary conditions which can cas-
lily be removed b. law. Presidents,
it is said, are effective for one-half
of their term only because they de-
vote their attention during the last
two years of the term to building up
the influences, and above all the or
ganization, by which they hope and
purpose to secure a second nominal
ton and election.
"It is their illicit power, not their
legitimate influence with the coun-
try, that the advocates of a constitu-
tional change profess to be afraid of,
and heartily sympathize with them.
It is intolerable that any president
should be permitted to determine who
should succeed him-himself or an
other-by patronage or coercion, or
by any sort of control of the ma
chinery by which delegates to the
nominating convention are chosen.
"There ought never to be another
presidential nominating convention;
and there need never be another.
Several of the states have success
fully solved that difficulty with re-
gard to the choice of their governors,
and federal law can solve it in the
same way with regard to the choice
of presidents. The nominations
should be made directly by the people
at the polls.
Conventions should determine
nothing but party platforms and
should be made up of the men who
would be expected, If elected, to carry
those platforms into effect. It is not
necessary to attend to the peoples
business by constitutional amend
ment II you will only actually put the
business into the peoples own hands.
IT think it may safely be assumed
that that will Ne done within the next
four years; for 1t can be done by
statute; it need not wait for consti-
tutional change. That being done,
the question Of the presidential term
can be discussed on its merits.
Presidency Is Abnormal.
ut must be clear to everybody who
has studied our political development
at all that the character of the presi-
dency Is passing through transit
tional stage. We know what the
office is now and what use must be
made of It; but we do not know what
it is going to work out into; and until
we do know. we shall not know what
change, II any is need
ed, it would be best tc make.
II must speak with absolute free
dom and candor in this matter, or not
speak at oil; and 1t seems to me that
the present position Of the presidency
in our actual system, as we use 1t, Is
quite abnormal and must lead even
tually to something very different.
"He is expected by the nation to be
the leader of his party as we'll as the
chief executive officer OF the govern
ment. and the country will take no
excuses from him. He must play the
part and play it successfully, or lose
the country's confidence. He must
be prime minister, as much concerned
with the guidance of legislation as
with the Just and orderly execution
Of law; and he is the spokesman Of
the nation in everything. even the
most momentous and most delicate
dealings of the government with for
,ign nations.
"Why in such circumstances should |
he be responsible to no one for four
ong years? All the peoples legisla-