Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-07-03
The Political Mill
BY C. Could Lincoln.

ClaudluS H. Huston. chairman OF the
Republican National Committee, whose
resignation has been urged by number
| of prominent Republicans because OF
the unfavorable publicity given to Mr..
HuSton's activities as president of the
Tennessee River Improvement Associa-
| ton, has come to the fork in the road
where he must either take himself out
OF the picture, be forced out or declare
himself in permanently. He has called
a meeting of the officers of the Repub-
lican National Committee, for Monday.
With them will meet the chairmen of
! the House and Senate campaign COM
E;;''Hes. Senator Moses and Represent
alive Will Wood. Republican leaders
at the Capitol insist that Mr. Huston
has given to them no intimation that
he intends to resign when he has talked
/ over plans for the coming campaign
with them. Nevertheless some of these
leaders say they believe that Mr.. HuS-
ton is going to resign.
4 Il
A suggestion has been put forward
that the Republicans take a leaf out
OF the Democrats book Soon after the
close of the 1928 campaign, there were
demands from many of the Democrats
particularly in the South, that John j
Raskob, wet, give over the post OF
Democratic national chairman. Mr.
Raskob, however, had debt to pay off
/ amounting to hundreds Of thousands OF
dollars, rolled up during the Smith
| campaign for President. He was re-
garded as the big money man and the
Democrats were as anxious that he
should handle this debt as they were to
get him out of the craftsmanship. Mr.
Raskob remained on the Job and has
materially reduced the debt of the
party. But Mr.. Raskob has been in the
background to very great extent. The
Democrats set UP a new executive to
organize and to campaign against the
republican foe. He Is Jouett Shouse
former member Of the House and former
Assistant Secretary of the Treasury in
the Wilson administration. He was
made chairman of the Executive Com
m1ttee of the Democratic National Com
mittee and given carte blanche to GO
ahead and patch up the badly split
Democratic party. Mr.. Shouse has been
very active, travelling through the coun-
try and conducting through his head
quarters here, under the direction OF
Charles Nicholson, director Of publicity
for the National Committee, an effective
publicity campaign.
4 + =
The suggestion made now by some
Republicans Is that the Republicans
find a Jouett Shouse to take the helm
in the offices of the National Committee
and that Mr.. Huston, If he retains the
title OF national chairman, be allowed
to fade into the background and to ap-
pear little in the coming congressional
campaign. 1t has been reported that
such proposal will be advanced at the
meeting to be held here Monday, but SO
far the report has not been confirmed
One prominent Republican leader ex-
pressed the opinion that 1t would be ad-
visable to have an active chairman of
the Executive Committee of the Repub-
lican National Committee, but rather
as an assistant to the national chair
man. The view of this leader was that
even under such plan, Mr.. HuSton's
resignation would be expected.
****
Mr.. Huston, on the ground that he
has done nothing wrong and that he
should not be forced to resign the
Craftsmanship, thereby giving himself q
black eye, has held fast to the office
despite the recommendations, If not re-
quests, which have come to him from
different Republican sources that he re-
tire "for the good of the party" The
time is at hand, however, when the
period of drifting must come to an end.
1t is qnite true that the House Repub-
leans have a campaign committee Of
their own and that the Senate Republic
ans also have such a committee to look
after their campaign. The National
Committee, however, has come to have
distinct function in the congressional
elections. It helps both the congress
sional committees and 1t aids in co-or-
dinating the work. raises the money,
etc. The Democrats will certainly be
1T nS5 -. 90 1nS.n YnkN
Committee in the coming campaign.
The Republicans hope to be able to OBJ
tain assistance from their national or
ganization. To do so, however, that or
ganization must have an active head.
It Is no secret that the Republican ma
tional headquarters here have been Just
marking time for months. If Mr..
Huston is going ahead with this work,
1t is time for him to do SO, the Repub-
licans say, or else give way and let
some one else to 1t.
The Senate Lobby Committee, headed
by Senator Caraway Of Arkansas, Demo,
crat, proved to be an effective political
weapon. Its inquiry into the Muscle
Shoals lobby was the net which brought
Mr.. Huston before the committee and
gave him the undesirable publicity
which has been the cause of the de-
mand, in some quarters, for his resig-
nation. The Senate Lobby Committee
also turned up a lot of information
about tariff making that has not been
pleasant for the Republicans. The
Bishop Cannon incident, however, has
taken a little starch out OF the COM
mittee.
There has been a great stir in many
newspapers about the unpopulartty OF
the Republican administration. Most
OF the reports, however, have been pub
lished in newspapers frankly antago-
nistic to Mr.. Hoover, either because OF
his stand on prohibition or because he
is Republican or because he supports
the London Naval Treaty and adher-
ence to the World Court under the Root
formula. Mr.. Hoover has not been able
to get along with the Senate, is one
complaint. Nevertheless, an examina
ton Of the records will not show that
the Senate has succeeded in defeating
the President in important matters, ex
cept in one appointment to the Supreme
Court. The talk now Is that the people
will go to the polls in the November
election and register their disapproval
of the administration by sending q lot
of Democrats and inSurgent Republic
ans to the Senate and House. The
Democrats undoubtedly will pick UP q
number of seats in the House now held
by Republicans, and their chances of
victory in a number of senatorial con-
tests appear good. But this will be due
to the swingback OF the political PEN
dulum and also the business depression,
rather than to any active opposition on
the part of the people to the Hoover
administration. Furthermore, 1t re-
mains to be seen just how much Of a
swing the pendulum is to take.
- - -
Whether Dwight w. Morrow's VIC
tory in New Jersey was q wet victory or
merely a personal triumph, the New
Jersey Republican State Convention. by
an overwhelming vote, has adopted the
stand taken by Mr.. Morrow on the