Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1920-06-07
RIVAL CANDIDATES
FACE VETO POWER
HELD BY JOHNSON

ullV " JUIjlvOVIv
LoWden's Chance for Party
Nomination Best, Though
Open Warfare Feared.
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.
| CHICAGO, June Gov. Frank
Lowden of Illinois has the best chance
of winning the republican nomination
kfor the presidency, because he has the
most skillful and powerful political
reserves in the convention, but his
fate is entirely in the hands of Sena-
| tor Hiram Johnson of California, who
holds the veto power.
| The key to the situation is the
strategy in the Johnson camp. One
sentence from him, Il will not sane
tion the nomination of any one for
! whom delegates were bought, would
crystalline The undertone of whispers
into noisy apprehension that the
Missouri scandal is sufficient food for
democratic orators to make doubtful
a victory in November.
! William Hale Thompson, national
l
such statement as he bolted the
Lowden household. Senator Borah Of
Idaho has expressed ominous doubts
about the effect of the Missouri ex-
posure on the Lowden boom. But the
new "old guard" being possessed of
| a stolid determination to put over a
tried and true republican such as
they hold Frank Lowden to be. are
undismayed.
Movement to Run Course.
| So the plan is to let the Lowden
movement run its natural course, let
the balloting go on and see whether
! the convention Is disposed to be con-
cerned over the purchase Of delegates
in Missouri or whether it accepts as
final the reputation of those dele
gates by the Illinois governor him.
self.
| An agreement has been reached
between the Lowden. Wood and John
! son forces to keep the balloting go
ing, to ten ballots If necessary, to
| ascertain the exact strength of those
| other near-candidates will not be per-
mitted to reap the benefits of a dead
lock until it is absolutely demon
| strated that none of the three can
win.
Dismissing for the moment the sec
| ond stage of the convention, in which
| the dark horses--Hoover. Hughes
Taft. Lenroot. Allen and Sproul-
would be considered. the first stage
| Of the fight presents two opportuni-
! ties for Hiram johnson. He can
make fight on the convention floor
| league of nations, or else he can at
tack the Lowden candidacy as the
| product Of money power.
The members of the committee
which will draft the republican plat
| form are practically agreed upon the
a Versailles
They will favor the treaty of peace
| and the league of nations as an as
piration and will commend the repub-
| lican senators for opposing adoption
in the form in which President VII
son submitted the document, but the
ratification of the treaty and league
| will be favored with reservations"
Now, that doesn't mean with the
| Lodge reservations" 1t means what
1t says-simply with reservations
the phraseology of some of the Lodge
reservations, and doesn't tie the
hands of the next President Of the
United States if he happens to be
republican and wants to alter the
program to meet contingencies in
the foreign situation as they arise.
Ratification with reservations" VIII
| be a simple. all-inclusive expression
of republican intentions
johnson Opposes Declaration.
While Hiram Johnson is absolutely
opposed to such a plank, yet wnetner
he will consider 1t worth Wnlie 10
risk his chances for the nomination
certify. His ardent admirers insist that
he would rather lose the presidency
than recede one inch. He will hight,
they say, against the treaty with or
without any reservations. But II ne
should wage fight on the conVention
den. as this convention is too wise to
oppose a simple statement such as
ratification with reservations wnen
it isn't even said how far these res
ervations can go. So II Johnson maze
his fight and lost. the veteran poll
ticians are confident he would elimi-
nate himself from consideration when
the i1alloting began. The moral dam
age of defeat on the big thing on
which Johnson has waged ms primary
campaign would be 1rretflevaote; ndsn Mood
and the rest do not think Hiram
Johnson dares do it. Nor do they be-
lieye he will assail Lowden on the
Missouri exposure. because OF the ef-
feet that it would have on his own
poiitical fortunes For while johnson
might thus eliminate Lowden. the
resentment produced among the Low
dan sunporters would be sufficient to
prevent the selection of Johnson.
Can WELD the Veto Club.
Whichever way one turns, it is Hiram
Johnson who has the veto club in his
hands He can kill off Lowden and turn
the convention to consideration of dark
horses His own oratory may win him
snnnort. but the rank and file of the
noiiticians think him too radical and too
imnulsiye to be the republican nominee.
Frankly. they don't like him. And he
knous II. Therefore he has everything
to gain and very little to lose by open
warfare. And that's what is coming
Johnson on the warpath. and the con-
yention, like big jury. deciding whether
the Missouri exposure is a fash in the
nan or a serious flaw in republican
hopes.
Men like A. T. Hert of Kentucky. the
new Penrose of the situation. who is
for Lowden, do not consider the johnson
exp}osion can affect the sober, thought
fui delegates of republican national
convention. Anybody can win next No
vember on the republican ticket. reasons
the republican wiseacre who is for
I,owden. but the supporters of Leonard
wood and Hiram Johnson make good
use of Brother McAdoo's pull with or
canized labor and his political versatil-
ity as they argue that if the democrats
nominate McAdoo "it won't be such a
cinch," and that the Chicago convention
should not make the mistake of nomi
mating conservative
But It's Lowden's nomination thus far.