Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1926-12-19
DAWES LAYS SLUSH
TO DIRECT PRIMARY
Urges Return to Convention
System to Clean Up Pol
iticS of Nation.
By the Associated Press.

| NEW YORK, December IS. - Top
evils that attend them were laid at
the door of the direct primary system
tonight by Vice President Dawes, who
argued in an after.dinner speech here
for a return to the old methods of
choosing political nominees by con-
vention.
| The Vice President mentioned no
| names, but he reminded his audience
of recent political events" under the
primary plan and declared politics had
reached a stage where a candidate
! for State or National Office must have
either a fortune or going political
| organization behind him if he hopes
! to succeed.
With this declaration, Gen. Dawes
| linked renewal of his plea for re-
vision of the Senate rules to prevent
a few individuals in Congress from
so obstructing legislation as to put
/ the Government into predicament
against which the common sense of
| the whole country cries out"
The address was delivered before
the Pennsylvania Society Of New
York and was the second in which the
Vice President had attacked the pri
rnafy system.
Representative Government Gone.
THAT which distinguishes the
American Republic from the many re-
publics of the past which have failed
! is the fact that it's Constitution has
made it a representative government"
he said. This principle was long rec
| ognized in the government of politi-
col parties in this country, but in the
reaction against political corruption
land inefflciency we have passed pri-
mary laws which have done away
with representative government of
political parties.
1.-The rapid expansion of State and
municipal business and patronage,
coupled with the indifference Of quail
| fed voters, half of whom do not go
to the polls at general election and
many less to the primaries, often re-
suits in the nomination Of candidates
selected and controlled by those hav-
ing a business interest in the continu
ance of an existing administration.
Their election afterward because of
the habit Of party regularity on the
| part of the impartial voter means the
4
| free and clean government.
Under the old convention system
such a condition would encourage the
| drafting land nomination of clean
candidates by the opposition party in
order to gain an advantage from a
clear issue at the polls between clean
and unclean Government.
Can't Draft Best Men.
| Under the primary system, how
| ever, the opposition cannot draft its
| strongest men as candidates to en-.
pkasize the issue. The opposition
party is as likely to choose unknown
or incompetent men as candidates as
| If the chance did not exist to make
| good government an issue by proper
| nominations.
THE primary system is responsible
for an enormous and improper use of
money in contests under it and is
steadily tending to debauch our electo-
rate.
"Since it lessons the opportunity of
minority parties properly to make an
issue of corruption before the public,
| it largely insures immunity to vote
buyers from political or legal conse-
quences, with resultant increase in
their activity.
80 immense are the sums which
must be spent to advertise himself to
the people under the primary system.
even along legitimate lines, by a COM
paratively unknown candidate for a
State or National office. that under
those circumstances only a very rich
man, a man with rich men behind
him, or man with an organization
behind and generally controlling him,
is likely TO succeed.
The primary system is responsible
for the election by parties of some
men whose chief effort after election
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