Evening star., 1932-04-11
The Political Mill
By C. Could Lincoln.

| Tic vi Oh
| their patron saint, Thomas jefferson.
on Wednesday. There is much regret
among local Democrats that Gov
Franklin D. Roosevelt of New York. the
leading candidate today for the Demo-
cratic nomination for President. is not
to be present. M,Irh speculation goes
on regarding the reasons for withdraw
al of Gov. Roosevelts acceptance. 1t
it widely reported tnat the New York
Governor is not coming here because
he and his friends believe that the
gathering will be unfriendly. engineered
by the anti-Roosevelt Democrats, and
that big demonstrations will be staged
for other candidates for the Demo-
cratic presidential nomination. includ-
ing Gov. Ritchie of Maryland Alfred
E. Smith of New York and former Gov.
Harry Flood Byrd of Virginia, in an
attempt to make the Roosevelt can
didacy look insignificant. Such a pro-
| ceeding would appear to be childish,
to say the least, on the part of the
anti-Roosevelt group, even if they had
1t in mind. But for whatever reason.
Gov. Roosevelt is not coming TO Wash
ington. He has probably made up his
mind that he gets along very well
sticking to his job in New York, while
his friends contine to elect delegates
to the National Convention pledged to
his candidacy.
Just which one OF their candidates
for the presidency the Democrats will
undertake TO liken to Thomas jefferson
on this auspicious occasion is not yet
clear Probably none Of them. or all
of them. 1t is not likely that the sup
porters of these candidates would agree
to have their man left out in the cold
when it comes to picturing a single one
of the group as the Thomas Jefferson
of today. At the Democratic celebra.
ton of Jackson day this year indeed.
the Democratic speakers barely hnen-
toned "Old Hickory" They spent
their time talking about the Repub-
lican President, Mr. Hoover. Perhaps
they will do the same thing on Jeffer-
son day. although 1t would seem to be
the sensible thing to present a candi-
| date of their own instead of merely
trying to tear down Mr.. Hoover AS it
is. the Democrats have come close to
talking Mr. Hoover back into the sun
shine, with their constant attacks,
charging him with responsibility for
everything from earthquakes and fam
ines to the disruption of the Demo-
cratic leadership of the House during
l.
Senator Key Pittman Of Nevada. 2
close personal friend of Alfred E. Smith
recently sought TO find a way out for
the Smith candidacy, declaring that
Mr.. Smiths friends had no business
putting the standard bearer of 1928 in
a position to be Inundated in repeated
contests for delegates to the Democra tic
National Convention. He called atten-
! tion to the many States in which the
Smith forces have been worsted by the
Roosevelt supporters, and urged that ii
was time to stop, particularly as Mr.
Smith was not really a candidate
Senator Pittman's suggestion that the
Smith candidacy be withdrawn bv the
former Governors friends had. however
been public only day when Mr.. Smith
hlmseH gave out collection of letters
ne had written to his friends in Cali
lornla, Pennsylvania and iConnecticut.
| oeclarlng that he was a real candidate
Tor the nomination and not a stalking
morse Tor or aginst any other candidate
so Senator Pittman's well meant efforts
10 cure a situation that is threatening
real and lasting dissension in the Demo-
cratic party got nowhere.
y
In correspondence with Smith SIM
porters in California, the religious issue
was interjected. It was reported that
a son OF Isidore Dockweiler, the Demo-
cratic National Committeeman for Cal
norma. who IS supporting Roosevelt.
Jonn r: Dockweller, in addressing a
roosevelt rally said that "it is more
vital to elect Democratic President
than to try to prove that a Cath
hn oil ra[ i.
the wet sentiment is stronger than the
dry" 1t happens that Mr.. Dockweiler
Is himself Catholic. like other mem
bers of his family. The Roosevelt peo-
pie say that the Smith outfit is ap-
parently deliberately raising the re-
hglouS issue in this preconvention
campaign and insist that what Mr.,
Dockweiler had to say was no effort
whatever to raise such an issue. but
rather an attempt to lay it. What NAV
happen in the national election. If such
an issue becomes rampant among the
Democrats in many of the States in the
prenomination campaign, the Demo-
cratic leaders hate to contemplate.
They feel that victory by Roosevelt
In the national convention, which now
looks more than probable, might be the
signal for a lot of knitting by Smith
followers in the election in November
While Gov. Roosevelt is not to be
present at the Jefferson day dinner in
this city, some of his chief lieutenants
will be on hand, among them Chairman
Farley OF the Democratic State Com
mittee of New York They will be here
TO look after his interests.
c. BaScom Slemp for many years Re
publican national committeeman for Vir-
ginia and at various times member of the
House and Secretary to the President.
goes off the national committee this
year. The Republican State conven-
ton picked as his successor Joseph L.
Crupper, collector of customs at Nor
folk. Mr.. Crupper is reported to be e
friend of Mr.. Slemp and a power
among Federal Office holders in the
State. He defeated for the place Henry
w. Anderson, leading Republican at
torney in Richmond, who served as a
member of the Wickersham Commits
sion and suggested a plan to get rid
of the present national system of pro-
hibition. His plan certainly made no
hit with the drys.
X X x
Senator Brookhart of Iowa has re-
ceived word from his friends in Iowa
| tLia1 liiliiSo dlC lOOhlilS 1OSy lOI Ills IC-
nomination in June on the Republican
ticket. His opposition is split into hall
a dozen camps, which is naturally an
excellent situation for any candidate
The Progressive Republican Senator
who jumped clean over the political
fence in 1924 and supported the La
Toilette Wheeler presidential ticket, and
who was one of the wheel horses OF
the Hoover campaign in 1928, was
marked this year for defeat by the
regular RepublicanS-aS at times in
the past. But Mr.. Brookhart, if re-
ports are correct, is in a pretty strong
position today in his State and is likely
to win again. Polls taken by news
papers in Iowa have indicated strong
swing from dry to wet. Brookhart is
an>ardent dry. He does not take much
stock in the polls, however.
|