Evening star., 1926-06-06
TWO.THTRDS RULE BEGAN
ASPLOTTO BEAT CALHOUN
Van Buren, Gained Power and Presi.
dency, Then Lost Both Through
Its Operation.

in true steam-rOller style. Calhoun
| was dethroned from the seats of the
mighty and Van Buren, exalted to his
| place.
Elected Four Years Later.
Four years later Van Buren, fell heir
| to the leadership of the retiring chief
and was nominated and elected Presi-
| dent He vase given a unanimous
nomination for second term in lS40,
but went down to defeat under the
landslide that swept into Office Will
liam Henry Harrison of Tippecanoe
fame. In 1874 Van Buren,. who was
really one of the most astute and re-
sourceful politicians of his or any
other day. again sought the nomina-
ton. The Southern delegates. how
ever. did not like his views on the
annexation of Texas and succeeded in
preventing his choice by re-adopting
the two-thirds rule of former conven-
tions. Thus Van Buren, caIno t. grief
by the very makeshist which mad been
adopted. IL years before. for his
special benefit and for the undoing of
Calhoun.
Prior to the Civil War the delegates
from the Southern States, though
forming a constantly diminishing pro-
portion of the national conventions.
still had ample strength to dictate
party policy and to prevent the nomi-
nation of candidates unacceptable to
the South. The two-thirdS rule was
kept alive for that very purpose. They
used their power, its minority advan-
tage intrenched in the rule, with
skillfu stp4tegy and forced the nomi-
nation of Southern man or at least
OF one-sometimes contemptuously
called a "doughface" In the anti
slavery States of the North-who was
subservient to the wishes Of the
Southern leaders on the burning Is
sues of slavery and State rights.
Repeal to BE Difficult.
The Democratic party appears to
have been consistently conservative
in following tradition and precedent.
1t will not be easy. therefore. to repeal
the rule. There are two reasons Of
great weight in common political ex-
perience that stand in the way. In
the first place II q successful candi.
date dominates convention and wins
with little or no opposition. as was
the case in the last two of Bryan's
nominations and in Wilson's second
nomination, there Is no immediate
demand or need for q change and the
delegates will not act because no one
cares one way or the other; in the
second place. when a convention is
split and deadlocked by a number of
minority candidates. il is well nigh
impossible IN such circumstances to
abrogate the rule because of the fear
that the leading candidate may thus
be given an advantage or a chance to
win which the combined minorities
could usually prevent by the opera
ton of the two-thirds rule. The hope
is always entertained by the minority
candidates-and often 1t is justified
that by standing firm and holding
together the leading candidate may
ultimately be forced out of the run
ming and the nomination thrown to
some Of the lesser lights. A deadlock
is not only an endurance test, but 1t
is an almost dead sure preventive OF
repeal of the obnoxious rule.
The two-thirds rule kept Champ
Clark out of the nomination in 1912
and so probably out Of the presidency.
The sore spots Of the Baltimore con-
vention have not fully healed. Clark,
whose vote in the convention passed
we'll beyond the majority line, went
down to his grave a disappointed man,
feeling that through the operation Of
an undemocratic rule he had been
cheated out Of the highest honor that
may come to an American citizen.
The theory Of majority rule is at the
foundation of popular government.
From a. merely abstract point Of view
most Democrats agree that the two
thirds rule is unfair and ought to be
abolished, but the fact that it's abro-
CATION. if ever accomplished, must in
evitably be bound up with the polit-
ical fortunes of candidates them
selves, at g. time when they are en-
gagged in the heat Of battle, consti-
tutes the chief obstacle in the way
OF repeal.