Evening star., 1932-02-19
The Drys and Mr.. Garner.

Progressive candidate Of many Demo-
Gratis for the presidential nomination
in 1924, has declared his preference
this year for Speaker Garner as the
nominee of his party. Mr.. McAdoo's
statement in favor Of the Speaker
comes right on the heels of a declara-
tion of support for Mr.. Garner by SEN
ator Morris Sheppard of Texas, author
Senator Tom Connally. Senator Shep-
pard quite naturally feels a pride in
the achievements of a fellow Texan,
the Speaker of the House, and Just as
naturally is inclined to support him
for the presidential nomination 1t
must be admitted, however, that Mr.
Garner appears to be gaining a con-
siderable degree of support among the
driest OF the dryS in his party. And
yet the vets of the House, including
Representative La Guardia of New
York, are taking great delight in call
ing attention to the fact that Mr..
Garner, as member Of the House,
voted against the submission of the
eighteenth amendment to the States.
The vets twit their dry colleagues OF
the House on their present support of
a presidential candidate who opposed
the eighteenth amendment. Sooner or
later the Speaker may have to clear up
his position on the prohibition question.
And 1t is beginning to look as though
1t would be sooner rather than later.
The Democratic party in the North
and East is strongly prohibition
1t has been generally understood and
believed that the nomination for Presi-
dent this year by the Democratic Ma
tional Convention would go to an op-
ponent of the eighteenth amendment
The word has gone out that drys need
not apply. And there has been a dis
position on the part Of dry Demo-
cratic leaders in the South and West
to turn to a candidate who. although
opposed to the eighteenth amendment,
does not make his prohibition views
too prominent nor the question the
main issue of his campaign. That is
one reason why so many of them have
already declared for Gov Franklin D.
Roosevelt of New York. The New York
Governor, although he has declared
himself in favor of return of the con-
troll of the liquor traffic to the States
has indicated that the coming cam
paign should be fought out on economic
issues
The entry of Speaker Garner into
the field, an opponent of the eighteenth
amendment in the days when national
prohibition became effective. with dry
support threatens to complicate mat
ters for the Roosevelt Candidacy. Here
is q man who may command the sup
port of the vets and the drys of the
Democratic party, just as Gov. Roose-
welt has heretofore commanded that
support.
The Democrats in the past have
turned away from selecting a South
erner for their presidential candidate,
going to the North or the Middle West,
when as a matter of fact men of great
qualifications for the presidential Office
have been at hand in the South. No
Democrats have been more loath to
nominate a Southern man for the presi-
dency than the Southern Democrats
themselves. Perhaps this year, however,
they will cast aside their fear Of sec
tional differences and pick q South
erner., The Speaker is product Of the
West as we'll as the South, it is true.
1t will be interesting to observe the
attitude toward Speaker Garner adopt
ed by the dry organizations Of the
country, the Anti-Saloon League and
the Womans Christian Temperance
Union, for example.