Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-07-02
The Political Mill
By C. Could Lincoln.

aVerSe 10 making IurCnef changes II
the Republican National Committee
leadership and now Senator Simeon D
Fess of Ohio, the chairman, has said
that 1T looks as though" he would con-
tinue on as chairman until the Repub-
lican national convention next June
Senator Fess' reluctance to remain as
chairman of the National Committee
while he continued to be a member of
the United States Senate has been the
only visible stumbling block in the way
of this arrangement for some time. And
now, apparently, Senator Tess has
waived his objections and will go right
ahead as national chairman until the
convention. President Hoover, If he is
renominated, as now seems certain to be
the case, will determine then who is to
be the chairman Of the National Com
mittee during the active campaign
which is to follow.
* X X X
The Ohio Senator was made chair
man of the National Committee after
Claudius H. Huston retired from that
office about year ago. At first it was
reported that Senator Tess would hold
en- until about the time the Senate re-
assembled last December; that his
selection to head the committee was
only a temporary matter. But when
some of the vets turned loose an attack
upon the Ohio Senator, following his
expression Of an opinion that the Dem
ocrats would take the wet side of the
prohibition issue in the next national
campaign and the G. o. P. would have
to support the dry end of the question,
1t became certain he would not retire
under fire. The time for his retirement
from the craftsmanship was postponed
from time to time. There seemed no
particular reason for his getting out,
except his own desires. He repeatedly
expressed his willingness to step out to
those in authority, but the concensus of
opinion has been that he should remain
and he has held on.
4 x X
The Republican National Committee
organization is functioning under the
direction Of Robert H. Lucas, executive
director. This takes much of the work
off the shoulders of the national chair
man. Mr.. Lucas had his troubles with
some Of the Progressive members of the
Republican party particularly Senator
Norris of Nebraska, whose defeat Mr..
Lucas sought to accomplish on the
ground that Norris, who supported Al
Smith in the last presidential campaign,
was no asset to the Republican party
in the Senate. The G. o. P. leaders,
however, have clearly indicated that Mr..
Lucas is not to be set aside and that
he Is to continue right along on the
job as executive director of the Ma
tional Committee. He recently brought
about National Conference of Young
Republicans" in Washington, with dele
gates here from all the States, which
Arat xx,tf I.
wide publicity, and showed the Repub-
leans still full Of fight for the coming
camraign.
The Democratic national chairman,
John j. Raskob, according to all reports,
will continue to function, too, until the
Democratic national convention has
been held. His successor will be select
ed by the presidential nominee of his
party. 1t is possible that Mr.. Raskob
might be retained by that nominee,
unless he should seek retirement him.
self. If the Democratic party should
nominate Al Smith again, which it is
not expected to do, then what more
natural than that the former New York
Governor should ask Mr.. Raskob to
continue as chairman. Mr. Raskobs
political scalp has been sought fire.
quently during the last three years by
dry Democrats from the South, who
have insisted he was more interested in
doing away with national prohibition
and return of the control of liquor
traffic to the States than he was in
electing a Democratic President. AS
things now shape up, however, Mr..
Raskob's desire to put wet candidate
in for President and his desire to elect
a Democrat to that office are likely to
20 hand in hand. Unless there should
be big changes in the situation, the
Democrats are to nominate a candidate
who is opposed to national prohibition
and who favors return Of the control
of the traffic in liquor to the States.
X X X
Perhaps the way in which prohibition is
cutting across both the major political
parties is illustrated better than in any
other way by the attitudes Of factions in
the two parties toward the two national
chairmen. Senator Tess is attacked
and prodded to retire by the vets in
the Republican party. Mr.. Raskob, on
the other hand, is attacked and told
to get out by the drys in the Demo-
cratic party. The fact that Senator
Fess holds on so strongly is an indica-
ton that the dry sentiment strongly
prevails in the G. o. p, and Mr.. RaS-
kob's hold On the Democratic chairman
ship is no less to be attributed to the
strong element in the Democratic party
which favors the abolition of national
prohibition as it now exists.
X x
Mrs. Nellie Tayloe Ross, former Gov
ernor of Wyoming ana now vice chair
man of the Democratic National Com
mittee, made the principal address be-
fore the Indiana Democratic Editorial
Association at Gary, Ind, last week.
Her address was in measure reply
to the address of President Hoover de-
livered to the Republican Editorial AS
ISOLATION at indianapolis, which was
hailed by many Republicans as kind
of platform on which the G. o. P.
would wage its campaign next year.
Mrs. Ross attacked the tariff policy Of
the Republicans and scored Mr.. Hoover
for having signed the Smoot-Hawley
bill, which, she said, has been the cause
OF many of the economic ills in this
and other countries, because it has pre-
vented ether countries from trading to
the full with us and has prevented our
trading to the full with them. Nor
did Mrs. Ross think highly Of the
'twenty-year plan" put forward by Mr..
Hoover at Indianapolis as way out OF
the economic difficulties in this country
declaring that the President had
brought forward no practical sugges-
ton for improving conditions right now.
X X X X
Mrs. Ross forecast great fight on
the part of the Democrats to line up
the woman vote in the next presidential
She admitted that for one
reason or another the woman vote had
gone Republican to very large extent
In the 1928 election. She said this was
a lesson the Democrats should take to
heart in preparing for next year, ard
she added:
Conditions have changed since
1928, and, if mistake not, with them
has changed the mood of women-but
not their interests, let me emphasize.
The heart of woman does not change.
The home and the family, the value
and security of which Mr.. Hoover ex-
tolled so feelingly and appealingly in