Albuquerque morning journal. [volume] (Albuquerque, N.M.) 1903-1926, 1919-04-08

WILSON'S INFLUENCE WAVES.


There is complaint that, owing 10
criticisms by senators and IN Ameri-
can newspapers, President wilson mas
lost much of his influence at PARIS
For that fact-and it is 1act thaV
tba Influence of our president doesn't
now extend much further than me
vote of the American deleganoh-
woodrow Wilson has only himself TO
blame.
First of all. the president has been
more narrowly partisan IMAM any
other president since Reconstruction
DAYS He never invited republican
"a The White House until he called to-
sether the members of the senate ana
house committees on foreign rela'lohs
IN a conference after his return from
Europe.
Beyond doubt. had not the next
congress- been in control of the repup-
licans he would have called only me
democratic members, as he did before
he made his address to congress rec
on,mending that declaration Of war
with Germany be passed.
He did all in his power to make 1t
n war by the democrat party, ana
deeply resented any criticism of Sec
retary Baker and George CreeL Wheh
he wanted bill passed he usually
entrusted trssto Postmaster General
Burleson, until word was sent to him
that the senate would not further
consider any bill brought to 1t
through the medium of Burleson,
In the selection of his peace COM
mission, the president ignored the re-
publican party, though he could not
hone TO have that treaty ratified eX-
cept by republican votes He disre-
garded precedent and named no mem
Der of the senate on the commission.
j The president took neither the SEN
ate nor the American people into ms
confidence before he sailed for Eu-
rope, and instead of open covenants
openly arrived at" the conference in
Paris was conducted with far more
secrecy than that at Vienna, settling
the Napoleonic wars or that of Ber-
lin settling the Turco-Russian war,
or that at London settling the Balkan
war.
On leaving France for Washington,
the president wirelessed the senate
requesting that senators refrain from
discussion of the proposed covenant
of the league OF nations until he ar
rived at Washington; at the same time
he arranged TO make speech in Bos-
ton on the day of his arrival in the
United States. He would present his
views to the country before there had
been adverse criticism.
In his meeting with the foreign re-
lations committees he urged that the
covenant be accepted as it was drawn
in Paris. But there was storm of
criticism, and the president issued a
statement in Paris, few days ago, re-
ferrlng to such criticism as wise. He
is trying to have five of the six de-
fects pointed out by Senator Fail
amended.
The senate is composed of ninety
six members. Thirty three Of those
senators can defeat any treaty pro-
posed The senate, IN 1897. defeated
the arbitration treaty with England,
submitted by President Cleveland and
it so amended Mr. Taft's arbitration
treaties that they bore no resemblance
to the original drafts.
So this opposition by the senate to
treaties proposed by the president is (
nothing new. All treaties must be
made with the advice and consent of
the senate. President Wilson has
tried to make treaty without the
advice of the senate and to have its
t'consent' merely regarded as a mat
ter of form.
For the failure of the president to
be taken as segiously as he was when
he first went to Europe, he has no
one to blame but himself.