Evening star., 1927-03-09
Politics at Large
By C.. Could Lincoln.

II
up their assets and deducting liabili-
ties with a view to the campaign Of
1928. The Republicans are fairly well
| satisfied with the results of their cal
culations, notwithstanding the fiji
buster in the Senate in the last days
of the Congress which killed num-
ber of important bills. They believe
that the country will place as much
blame at the door of Reed, the Demo-
crat from Missouri. as they will at
the door Of Reed, the Republican from
Pennsylvania. The Democrats dispute
this, of course. The Republicans see
the country still prosperous. That
| they regard as their greatest asset.
They have carefully educated the
voters in the belief that Republican
administration and prosperity are
| synonymous, and with no little sue.
cess.
The farm problem, the Republicans
| realize, Is still to be solved. They are
hoping that good crops and fair prices
during the coming season will go a
long way toward that solution. They
freely admit that bad crops and low
prices will make things difficult. to
! say the least, in many of the Western
States. One important Republican
leader from the Middle West-inci-
| dentally he voted for the McNary-
| Haugen farm relief bill, which the
| President vetoed--~has received whole
batch Of letters from his farming con-
stituents and. to his surprise, only one
Of them has been hostile to the Re
publican administration because of
| that veto.
| President Coolidge has announced
that he will spend his Summer vaca-
| ton in the West. AS he intends to
find a place where the altitude will
promise comfortable weather during
the hot months. 1t is unlikely he will
go to the corn belt proper. But the
West will have an opportunity of
seeing something of the President
| and the President, the West, which
will be a. very excellent arrangement
! Western leaders and Western people
| will have an opportunity to discuss
their problems with the Chief Execu.
tive. and he will have an opportunity
of learning first-hand what their prob
lens are.
The Democrats have emerged some
what from the gloom which enveloped
them a few weeks ago, when it ap-
peared that the old Smith.McAdoo
row was sure to crop up again in the
! next Democratic national conven.
tion. They are doing their best to
put an end to the wet and dry ques-
tion as national party issue. The
most hopeful sign so far from their
point of view was the harmony which
prevailed at the first caucus of the
| Democratic Senators who are to sit
in the next Congress. Vets and drys
alike at that conference expressed
the hope that prohibition would be
considered local. State ISSUE
| rather than a national party prob
lem.
| Despite the failure Of the resolution
extending the life of the Reed slush
fund committee in the closing hours
OF the Senate session, many of the
Democrats feel that the issue Of
heavy campaign expenditures and
raised against the Republicans in the
1925 elections, will prove of value to
| them in the campaign of 1928. If
the Reed committee has been halted
| somewhat In its stride for the re-
cess of Congress, the Democrats
figure that when the Senate meets
again 1t win give that committee
renewed life and power. With the
| Democrats holding practically one
I EItAI OE Tie S5CIldtc anu LAC 4IOSICo'
sive Republicans ready to back them
/ up, it is their belief that a new reso-
| luton can be put through, IL it is
| desired, and a committee made ready
| to probe campaign expenditures in
| 1928.
| The detection Of Senator Blease of
| South Carolina from his Democratic
| colleagues in the recent fight for
| passage of the resolution extending
| the life of the Reed slush fund COM
| mittee has stirred animosities on the
Democratic side of the Senate cham
| ber. There has been no little talk of
| disciplining the fiery South Caro-
Imam, even to the extent of shutting
him out of party councils, just as
| the Republicans a couple of years
ago threw out several Progressive
| Republicans. But 1t is doubtful
that they will proceed to such ex-
! treme measures. They have as an
| object lesson the futility of the action
taken by the Republicans. The latter
| found that their efforts to oust Pro-
| gressive Republicans did them little
| good, even though the four Senators
| eliminated from party councils had
opposed the Republican national
| ticket in 1924 and had thereby laid
l luGIilSCAtC6 OPCh W RSAA ~ AA0(APAAAS'
| Wisconsin,, Iowa and North Dakota,
| the States affected, continued to re-
| turn the same or other Progressives
| to the Senate. Probably Senator
| Blease would be strengthened politi-
cally in his own State If the Demo-
| Gratis should now undertake to oust
him from the party.
Il y X
| The reelection of Senator Joe"
| Robinson of Arkansas as Democratic
leader of the Senate was not only
a sign of harmony in the party. but
also in large measure a reward for
service rendered. The Arkansas
Senator. had proved himself an In
defatigable worker. an able floor
leader. He has held the party lines
strongly during the contests with
| the Republicans in the Senate.
* X X
| The boom for Senator Reed of
| Missouri for the Democratic presi-
Dental nomination next year con-
tinues. No man in the Senate has
beens more in the public eye during
| the session of Congress just closed.
The opportunities Of leadership be-
fore him in the contests over the
seating of Senators-elect Ware of
Pennsylvania and Smith of Illinois,
which are to come as soon as the
next Congress opens, are of no little
| importance. His rise In power in
| the party is all the more remarkable
when it Is remembered that less than
seven years ago the Missouri SEN
ator could not break into the Demo-
cratic national convention as a dele
gate from Missouri.
Incidentally, the rise of Senator
Reed as a Democratic possibility for
1928 bodies no good to the presidential
aspirations of former Gov. Frank O..
p re TtErofc hA 1,o~ c~.,