Evening star., 1925-08-17
Following in the Footsteps.

The platform Of Robert NJ. La Fol-
lette, jr, seeking the Republican
nomination for the Senate in Wis
consin, is the platform of the late
Senator La Toilette. his father, In
1922. The younger La Toilette has
set at rest all speculation as to
whether he would enter the senatorial
race as Republican" or as an in
dependent Progressive" He enters
the Republican primaries, where he
will be opposed by Roy p. Wilcox,
the "stalwart' recently selected by
the regular" Republicans in con-
Vention at Oshkosh.
Mr.. La Toilette, in announcing his
determination to run for the Senate
as a Republican, follows the course
pursued by his father years ago when
the late Senator was a candidate for
Governor of Wisconsin. The senior
La Toilette was bitterly antagonistic
to the Republican organization which
then controlled the State. He in
sisted however that he and other
Republicans of Wisconsin, who be-
lieved in the principles of the Repub-
ncan party, should not be debarred
from the Republican party merely
because he and they differed with the
leaders of the party in the State.
Senator La Toilette discarded the
suggestion made by some that he
run as an Independent, and it was
as a Republican that he eventually
won his fight in the Badger State.
1t is as a Republican that his son
will seek to succeed him.
The effort of the La Toilette cam
paign in Wisconsin will be to con-
tinue to control the Republican or
ganization of the State. In the early
days of La Follette's fight with the
Republican State organization the
dead Senator maintained his loyalty
TO the Republican national organiza-
ton. But after he had become Gov
ernor and Senator he sought to re
form" the National Republican or
ganization as he had the State or
ganiZation. He came into conflict
ne
strove to work from within the party,
however, until the last year of his
life, when he ran as an Independent
Progressive candidate for the presi-
dency on a platform that was a mix
ture of his own old platforms and of
the Socialist party, which agreed to
support him.
La Toilette, jr., will seek to work
within the party for progressive
principles advocated by his father,
even though they bring him into
direct conflict with the powers that
be in the Republican national or
ganization today. But in this stand
he will not be alone. Other Republican
progressives in the Senate and in
the House, notably Norris of Ne
braska, take the same position. They
decline to yield their Republicanism,
although they differ radically with
the conservative leaders of the party.
The formal statement by the
younger La Toilette omits discussion
of the Government ownership of
railroads and looks to further regu-
lation of transportation. 1t omits
mention of the courts and the pro-
posal to make the Legislature su-
preme in determining what shall and
what shall not be the law, when con-
stitutional questions are involved.
Government ownership of railroads
and the attack on the courts featured
the platform of the La Toilette
Wheeler ticket last year and were
the principal targets of attack by the
Coolidge forces.
Mr.. La Toilette declares, however,
that he takes his stand upon the prin-
ciples which were his fathers guide
to public service
L shall not compromise, and 1 will
not surrender" he concludes. The
Republican regulars face in Wiscon-
sin the same fight which they faced
when the older La Toilette was their
bitter and successful antagonist.