Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-04-19

ance sheet phrase which Mr.. Raskob
would understand. "in the red ink" In
a genial spirit. Mr.. Frank Kent of the
Democratic Baltimore Sun summa-
rizes the Judgment of Democratic lead
crs about Mr. Raskob as being that Mr.
Raskob is too unanimous" which is
a Maryland phrase for persons who are
a little overwllling to take too much
on themselves" The adverse comment
goes so far as the terse judgment of
Josephus Daniels of the Raleigh, N. c.
News and Observer. who was Secre-
tary of the Navy for eight years under
Woodrow Wilson. Mr.. Daniels compact
comment closes with an imperative in
Vitation to Chairman Raskob to get
out" Another member of Woodrow
Wilson'S cabinet land Son-in-law to
Wilson,, William G. McAdoo, declines
TO attend public dinner for Mr.. Ras-
kob's. assistant. Jouett Shouse, and says
that the Raskob program means Ger
tain and disastrous defeat
This sort of thing constitutes the net
Of the comment of newspapers and
leaders on Mr.. Raskob's. way of func-
tioning as chairman of a great polit
jcal party Most of it is, necessarily
offhand-the sort of comment that
comes Immediately upon the heels of
the event. Comment of that kind, COM
ing at that time, usually springs from
persons directly concerned, persons
having strong feelings about the mat
tiers at issue.
Has Rank of Craftsmanship
There is. of course a different kind
of judgment. The writer of this article
has an acquaintance who, on the &C.
caSion of Mr.. Raskob'S most recent
statement, concluded that this Demo-
cratic chairman and his performances
q zTr0rfHu faf careful lOnly He maid
no more than casual attention to Mr..
Raskobs early activities, in the Demo-
cratic campaign of 1928 and later. More
recently he was impressed with the ap-
pearance Of a concrete purpose in the
Democratic chairman'S actions and his
steady persistence in pursuit OF that
purpose. He concluded to give care
full 'once over" to what Mr.. Raskob is
doing. The resulting observations are
given in quotation marks below. They
compose the serious Judgment of one
of the wisest and most experienced poll
ticians in the country. He is not
Democrat. He has focused his very
able mind on Mr.. Raskob and he de-
livers his reasoned Judgment as fol-
lows:
Chairman Rsskob's program consti-
tutce the most intelligent and far-see-
ing activity now being carried on in
either the Democratic or the Repub-
lican party. It is not only shrewd as
Democratic politics. More broadly than
that, it is to be regarded as having
the rank Of craftsmanship. Mr. Raskoh
lays before the country definite pro-
poSal for platform on every important
issue before the country. On prohibi-
ton the program looks to home rule
by States. On the tariff. the antitrust
law and other aspects of business, Mr..
Raskob's program is favorable to or
ganized business. but temperate and
reasonable enough to disarm opposition
except frcm extremists.
Sets Country Thinking.
mfr. Raskob lays down this program
and invites all who agree with 1t to
unite with him in making the D5mo-
cratic party an effective mechanism
for bringing this program about. The
fact is that at least 10000 900 to 49,
100000 voters in the North and East
already agree with this program. More
viii get behind it in proportion as Mr..
Rsskob continues to keep it before
the country and continues TO be as
tolerant in spirit as he is.
Mr.. Raskob's program may make
the Democratic. party the most formi-
dable party they have been in a genera
ton. Mr.. Raskob, in a deliberately
striking and effective way. is causing
the country 10 think of the Democrats
as a truly national party. The handi-
cap Of the Democrats in the past has
been that much of the country thought
Of them as a local party taking in two
dlssimilar groups-tho South and the
Northern cities. Mr.. Raskob has a
national program. 1t is more concrete
than any other program recently put
out by any other Democrat or any
Republican. It is a more concrete pro-
gram than the Republican party is as
yet known to possess.
Mr.. Raskob courageously stands out
in front of the country and says in
effect: Follow me and my program
and I will lead the country back to
prosperity That action and that
manner is the true stuff of which
leadership is made. especially at time
like the present. Nobody else is doing
anything like it.
Class Above Politicians.
"Mr. Raskob deliberately takes upon
himself one liability That Mr.. Raskob
ooes this deliberately is a sign of his
courage and his courage puts him in a
class above politicians. The liability is
that If Mr.. Raskob succeeds with his
program, the South may secede from
the Democratic party. In my judgment
that is no liability at all, for the South
won't secede. The South won't go Re-
publican and the South won't organize
third party. The worst that can hap
pen Is that some voters in the South
may stay away from the polls. That
won't matter. Enough Southerners will
go to the polls, for one motive or an
other, TO keep the South solidly Demo-
cratic as usual
The politicians and the newspapers
are Understanding Mr.. Raskob They
haven't 'SenSed' him right. They can't
get away from their habitual thinking
that a politician must be a politician
They think he must have had political
experience--must have come up through
the precincts. as they put it. They arc
IN the old nut of thinking that a bust
ness man can't be a political leader
and that he is subject for jibes when
ne tries TO. The politicians and news
papers enSlaved to this old point of
view haven't grasped a transformation
that is taking place in the world. They
forget that there is now in the White
House business man and engineer
who never had any contact with poll
and who never held an elective office
before the presidency. They forget
about owen Young, who is a real
Democratic presidential possibility, al
though he has never held political
office or had any contact with politics.
Dominant Ideal Is Business.
politics in all ages is merely the
name for the mechanism through which
a country governs itself according TO
the ideals Of whatever social function
and order of society happens TO be
dominant. once it was the military
order Another time it was religion.
Recently and as rule America has
been governed by caste of politicians
ettea Today and IN
the world the dominant order and
dominant ideal is business, by which
is meant the production and diffusion
of material goods Business in that