Evening star., 1924-01-02
Ford Backing for Coolidge
Like Bomb to Progressives

sition." The politicians hate to give
him up" the Milwaukee Journal sar-
castically suggests, but with Mr..
Ford among the conservatives the big
mean his approval will not lend some
strength to Mr.. Coolidge, for 1T will.
But with that Endorsement Ford has
spent his strength. One thing the
country ought to gain. There must
now be a very thorough aifng of
the ins and outs, the rights and
wrongs Of the Muscle Shoals business.
The whole question Of how govern
ment is disposing of national assets
has become important"
The Reading Tribune feels 1t is
misfortune that Ford will not make
run for the office, for his entry into
the field would at least have placed
the present governing group on the
defensive, and the defense must, to
remain in .the fray, produce better re-
suits and better arguments than the the
offender" To which the Nashville
Banner independent democratic)
adds, THE Endorsement he has given
the, Coolidge candidacy cannot fail to
carry great weight with the voting
masses and may be sufficient to de-
termine the result"
"T'he party Of the third party has
come out for Calvin Coolidge for
President" suggests the, Cincinnati
Times-Star (republican), and "the
announcement is tremendously i'm
portant. 1t touches every nerve of our
national body politic. 1t is a thrill
that never before has come in our
political history. Henry Ford prob
ably could have got the democratic
nomination for President. There is
no question that IL he had chosen to
head the ticket OF a so-called third
party his party would not have been
a bad third. and it might have belied
its name by becoming the second
party in national politics. A political
Titan has consented to put bis shoul-
ders to another mans wheel" The
political effect may reach far afield,'
the Springfield Republican (independ-
ent) insists. 'Tf Mr.. Ford's support
of Mr.. Coolidge is to have the effect
of making the President seem less
conservative to the progressives of
the country, Mr.. McAdoo. AS the lead
ing democratic progressive, may turn
out to be a little favored. But for
the time being he sees a big picking
Of delegates in the middle west. He
is happy in crossing the Ford" The
Newark NcWS (lnQepenQeQC) sees tno
Ford support frank and unqualified"
and 1t is impressed with the fact that
facing a Congress especially disor-
ganized, the Presidents hand is
strengthened at a most critical
ttime." In addition, as the Philadel-
phia Bulletin independent republi-
CAM puts it, 'the reaction Of the
majority Of the people of the United
States to Mr.. Ford's declaration is
likely to be an appreciation Of its
common sense"
The Ford boom has passed into
history" the Rochester Tfmes-Union
independently holds, and aside from
any promise Of a more friendly ad-
ministration attitude regarding the
Muscle Shoals project, upon which
Ford evidently sets great store, 1t is
only reasonable@to suppose, that the
Mellon program Of reduced taxation
appealed to him" But the Richmond
News-Leader (iehocratic) feels the
Endorsement "does not. mean that
Ford will not revive his candidacy
whenever he changes his mind again."
/. while the Boston Transcript (inde-
pendent republican, argues "Mr. Ford
possesses business sagacity and he
displays that quality as well as a
certain capacity for plain statements
Of his beliefs and purposes in his
Endorsement" ~ 2