Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1919-09-07
PLAN OF REPUBLICAN
CAMPAIGN IS SHAPING
Determined Fight Next Year to Increase
Majorities in Congress and
Capture Presidency.

counted as certain, and Kirby demo-
craft, in Arkansas, will not be disturbed.
nor will Lenroot (republican) in Wis
consin.
The republicans are bent on making a
winning fight against Senator Nugent.
(oemocraO. in Idaho, and say they will
Undoubtedly win, if no mistake is
made in picking the candidate
Other democrats whose seats will con-
tinue to be occupied by them or other
democrats are Overman. North Carolina;
Smith, South Carolina: Smith. Georgia,
and Underwood in Alabama.
Senator Phelan. in California. is one
of the democrats to be shining mark
for the republican campaigners. They
believe that they will defeat him. PEN
rose is accredited safe in Pennsylvania.
Considerable attention is being given
| to the prospect of making fight against
Senator Smith of Maryland. 1t is claim
ed that the republicans have the entire
delegation outside of Baltimore and that
city went republican by 5000 in the last
election. from which they figure that
, the drift is republican.
Smith, in Arizona, is also considered
as fair mark for the republicans. They
say that Spencer, in Missouri Crepubli-
CAM, will be reelected by an increased
majority.
Senator Thomas. in Colorado. is rated
by the republicans in much the same
way as Chamberlain in Oregon. They
consider him a good man and will not be
disappointed il their campaign against
him is unsuccessful.
The present party strength in the
House is 239 republicans and 1s1
democrats. The republican majority
of forty-six in the last election has
been increased by Keller. in Minne-
sofa, succeeding Van Dyke. who died,
and Swope, in Kentucky, succeeding
Helm, who died. ~
Fight Is to Be General.
The campaign for the House in the
coming election will be conducted
along different lines than the success
full one of last year. The first thing
that Will Hays. the chairman Of the
republican national committee, and
Representative Tess. chairman Of the
congressional campaign committee.
did then was to decide not to go into
a general campaign, but to concen-
trate their strength on doubtful dis
! tricts. They made survey by CALI
| ing in the republican members Of
| the various state delegations for con-
ference. They went over the districts
rv,l ..
sitting members on just which dis
tricts were doubtful. and they found
out that sixty sitting republicans
feared the result in their home dis
tricts. Then they asked the sitting
republicans which of the districts held
by democrats in their respective
states might be won by a vigorous
fight, and they found that there was
a chance in forty-nine districts.
Sixty republican districts to be held
and forty nine democratic districts to
be swung over. How reliable the sur
vey was and how effective the repub-
lican campaign is shown by the fact
that the republicans saved ffty-seven
of the sixty republican seats and
won thirty-seven of the democratic
seats.
President Wilson's appeal to the
country, it is claimed, turned the
drift toward the republicans. The
second and third day after his let
ter was made public the mail of the
republican congressional committee
contained checks for $4,000. The sig
nificant feature was that a big ma
s,rT~I.
our reply to President Wilson
Presidency at Stake.
So last years campaign was waged
in close, fighting districts. The COM
ing campaign will not be of that sort
1t is more than congressional fight,
and will go all up and down the line,
taking in the President as we'll as
state offices, so it must be planned on
a comprehensive scale.
The drift now is supposed to be in
favor of the republicans, so they are
optimistic that they will hold the
present majority in both houses ana
increase it materially. They point to-
the recent by-election as showing
the drift to the republican cause.-The
way in which the baby member of
the House, King S~ope, swept. a long,
time democratic district in Kentucky
from a normal democratic majority Of
5000 to a republican majority of
100 rs considered prophetic.
In this same connection, the repub-
licans are now predicting that they
will win another seat in the seventh
Alabama district, where a successor
is being elected to succeed the late
Representative John l.. Burnett. The
organization has been very
active and has had a capable candi-
date, c. B. Cnnamer. The best con-
firmation of the sanguine expectations
of the republicans is in the unwonted
activity of the democrats, which indf-
Gates that at least they are scared.
The republicans are feeling pretty
'cocky" that they have successfully in
vaded the erstwhile solid south" and
are determined to keep pounding
away below the Mason and Dixon line.
OF course, there have to be cam
paign issues. A rather thorough can
vass of the House majority shows
that there is a deep-seated conviction
that the drift toward the republicans
which they believe exists is due to
general dissatisfaction over what is
termed lack of business methods"
in the present administration. While
they admit that "extravagance is
Inevitable in times of war" and that
would occur, no mat
ter which party was in power, they
say: 1.-The democratic extravaganza