Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1931-01-12
The Political Mill
By C. Could Lincoln.

ny u. Gould Lincoln.
The drive Is on to make water power
the power trust-the great issue Of
the coming national campaign. Be-
hind the drive are first of all the Pro-
greSsives, both among the Republicans
ana the Democrats. The Democrats
generally are seeking to make 1t appear
that the G. o. p. is aligned with the
power interests, or, as they put 1t, with
the power trust. The Progressive Re-
seeking to smear Mr.. Hoover with the
power trust label in order to defeat the
President for denomination at the next
Republican National Convention.
X 4 \
The people make the issues in po-
litical campaigns, not the leaders. This
has been proved fact again and again.
This does not mean that the power
issue ought not to be an issue. 1t
merely raises the question whether the
people are interested or will be inter-
ested in that issue in the coming cam
paign. Most of them to date know little
or nothing about the issue of the power
trust, SO called, and its efforts to mo-
nopoliZe the power business in this
country, as charged by the Progressives.
The ProgreSsives are saying that the
power issue played a big part in the
recent senatorial and congressional cleo
tons. Senator Dill of Washington,
Democrat, is sure that the power issue
had its part in the Montana election,
where Senator Walsh was returned to
office; that the power issue was a major
issue in the Nebraska campaign, where
Norris, another Progressive, was re-
elected to the Senate, and in Colorado,
where Costigan, a one-time Eull Mooser,
but this year Democrat, was elected
also to the Senate over his Republican
rival. Senator Dill sees water power as
an issue in New York'S gubernatorial
campaign last Fall, where Gov. Roose-
welt was overwhelmingly reelected.
The issue, he says, played its part in
Tennessee, when Representative Carroll
Reece, Republican, was defeated by an
independent Republican.
X
Being a Democrat, Senator Dill
viSualizeS his part as the opponent Of
the octopus power trust and the savior
of the people He points out that there
are officials of the Republican National
Committee who, in his mind at least,
are hooked up with the power trust,
among them Executive Director Rob-
ert H. Lucas and the treasurer, Joseph
r. Mutt. Lucas, Dill says, must belong
to the power trust because he opposed
the rejection of Norris in Nebraska.
Mutt, he says, is chairman of a board
of the Fort Worth Power & Light Co.,
although Mr.. Mutt insisted he was not
financially interested in power when he
was before the Senate Investigating
Committee. But more still to Mr.
DilIs liking Is the fact that President
Hoover has not ousted the three mem
berS of the new Federal Power Com
mission who gave the gate" to Charles
A. Russell and William v. King, en-
ployeS of the old Power Commission,
who were the particular pets OF the
Progressives in the Senate.
4
President Hoover, declining to return
to the Senate the nominations of the
three Federal power commissioners,
where the stage was set to make a
Roman holiday and tear the commits
sioners limb from limb, or at least from
their Offices, asserts that the Senate,
meaning the Progressive Republicans
and the Democrats, has sought to raise
a false ISSUE" the power issue. which
he insists does not come into this mat
ter except in the minds of the Progress
sives and the Democrats. However, the
ProgreSsiveS are all set to smear Mr..
Hoover with the power trust If they can
do it. It Is a question, however, wheth-
er they can make the people take stock
in this issue. Senator Norris of Ne
braska, when he came out for Al Smith
in 1928 against Mr.. Hoover, raised this
power question, but in that year other
issues we're in the peoples minds and
the State went Overwhelmingly for
Hoover. If the Dill and Norris argu-
ment were applied it must appear that
the people of Nebraska after all were
I'D Nf he 4vr4c rrrIHf h
does not seem at all reasonable.
X X X
As a matter of fact, the big issues in
the 1890 campaign-and this goss for
Colorado, Montana, Tennessee,
ETC., as well as for the rest of the
country-were hard times and prohibit
ton, hard times in all parts of the
country and the liquor question in a
very considerable number of States and
congressional districts. If it had not
been for hard times, many victorious
Democrat would not have won. If the
Democrats are to win in 1882 in the
national election, it will be on account
of the disgruntlement of the people over
hard times. Hard times and prohibition
are things that the man on the street
feels and knows about. The water
power issue is something more intangi-
BILE. It will be the subject of thousands
of speeches by the spellbinderS. But
hard times or good times will, in all
win the election no matter
what is said about water power.
+ x X
Up in New Hampshire it is expected
that the new Governor, Winant, re-
garded as a "progrs ssive" in that con-
State, will be candidate for
the Senate in 1882. That is the year
II Moses
up for reelection. Winant is Repub- |
lican, too, and must make the race In
the primaries against Senator Moses. |
1t has been rumored many times that !
Senator Moses will not run for the
Senate; that he has a business offer |
carrying with it a $4,000 salary and
a contract for term of years, which |
may take him out of public life. Sen
ator Moses himself has so far said
not to run again, but to |
accept the lucrative offer to enter |
private life reported to have been made |
him, it may be that he will take 1t on
without much further delay. On the |
other hand, public life and the Senate |
are not without their allure and the |
Senator from New Hampshire, for so
many years the dominant political
figure in his State, may decide to con- |
tinue in the Senate. If he does, 1T
probably will mean a real fight in the |
primary next year. Winant is young, |
aggressive and wealthy. He won the |
this year over the opposi- |
ton of Senator Moses and the faction |
with which Mr.. Moses trains. But !
he could defeat Senator Moses |
himself Is something else. In the organ |
ization of the State Legislature, recently |
the Governor sought to have !
men of his choice in key positions, but |
he failed and men of the Moses faction |
were chosen for those positions.