The Indianapolis times. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1922-1965, 1933-10-19


party in New York state. Even wher
Tammany had opposed Mr.. RooSe-
welt at Chicago and had beer
beaten, had opposed Mr.. Lehman at
Albany and been beaten, the donli-
nation of New York City by the
junta Of district leaders went I'M
challenged. In 1882, without any
resistance from regular Democrats
they nominated and elected their
own creature, Mayor John P
O'Brien, and in 1888 they renomi-
mated him.
GIXTY days ago there was still a
~ general belief that in spite OF
everything, in spite of the Walker
disgrace and the impairment of the
citys credit, they would win once
more. SO settled was the idea that
Tammany could not be beaten that
in organizing the anti-Tammany
Fusion ticket, no prominent DEM
ocrat could be induced to head it.
The nomination went to Major La
Guardia, an insurgent Republican
only after it had been made plain
that no one representing the indie
pendent or the Al Smith Demo-
Gratis had any stomach for the
fight.
The politicians had all of them
misjudged the depth and the extent
of the popular revolt against the
existing political regime. Last sum-
mer almost nobody realized that a
popular uprising was in the max
ing, and when Fusion took the field
few observers would have conceded
that it had better than an even
chance of victory. Nobody had ap-
preciated adequately the resent
ment of the taxpayers, particularly
among the small home owners. No
body had appreciated sufficiently
the anxiety of the great army OF
city employees confronted with the
possibility of default on their pay
rolls. And everybody had forgotten
to take sufficiently into account how
strong is the popular impulse every
where to turn out the ms and have
some kind of a New Deal.
The awakening came with the re-
turns from the September primaries
In the Republican party the old
boss and political associate of Tam
many, Mr.. Koenig, was overthrown
But what was even more significant
in the Democratic primaries the
Tammany candidate for controller
was defeated by Mr.. Prial, who
may be described as the walking
delegate of the civil service en-
ployes.
This was immensely important,
for it showed that the shock troops
of the Curry McCooey regime we're
in revolt. In New York City politics
the victory of Prial was like the
revolt of Machado's army in Cuba F.;
it forecast the certain end of the
existing political control. Almost
Immediately thereafter the evidence
began to come in that the rebellion
had spread to the voters. All the
reliable test polls showed that
La Guardia and fusion were deS-
tined to sweep the city.
Il
1T was then that certain Of the
J. table regular Democratic poll
ticians decided to act. The Mckee
movement was organized by the
Roosevelt Democrats and the semi
Roosevelt, Democrats, who had been
excluded from or had too much con-
science to participate in the Curry
McCooey district leader control. They
decided to have, Immediately, the
revolution within the Democratic
party instead of waiting until after
the party had been defeated at the
polls.
1t was a well-calculated coup, and,
on the whole, it may be said that,
after noting the conspicuous absence
Of Al Smith, the men who carried
it off represent actively or potential
ly those who have the best title to
control the Democratic party in New
York City. They have a good title
and great strength They already
control the federal and state patron
age; if they elect Mckee they will
control the municipal patronage,
and with this much power they can
and would undoubtedly substitute
themselves for the junta of district
leaders, which has dominated the
Walker and O'Brien administrations.
But their crop has been timed
badly. 1t came too late to be con-
vincing that hostility to the abuses
Of Tammany is their chief motive.
1t came too early to promise thor
ough reform. They are trying to
give the regular Democratic ogan-
ization another lease on power, to
be. sure, under different leadership.
But what that organization needs
first Of all is to be defeated, to be
driven out of it's entertainments,
and separated for many years from
the public pay roll. That alone will
give the younger liberal Democrats
a chance to purge the party.
The question presented to the
voters is whether change of con-
troll at the top is enough. Certainly
it would be an improvement. But