Evening star., 1936-02-27
THE POLITICAL
MILL
By C.. Could Lincoln.


Senator Borah continues to make it
dificult for the Republican bosses. He
has done more In the last few months to
bring the race for the presidential NOM
ination into the open than 1t was believed
possible when he started his campaign
against "favorite son" delegations to the
national convention and "uninstructed
delegations" His latest move was to
accept virtual challenge issued him by
former Senator Edge of New Jersey to
enter the New Jersey preference primary
with conditions. It remains to be seen
whether the other candidates and their
supporters will come through. Said
Borah:
"The primary law in New Jersey is not
binding, or very effective. But if all
parties in New Jersey will agree to abide
by the result of the primary and put
their candidates in the field am per-
fectly willing to enter. shall be glad to
do so. do not know that I could sue
ceed under the circumstances, but 1 do
know it would help to establish sound
and decent system in the selection of
delegates. And I am always willing to
contribute to that cause"
Y X X
Edge, said Borah, who used to be an
Ambassador as we'll as Senator, lad
vises us in diplomatic language that he
is for Gov. Landon (of Kansas. That
was known long before he gave his inter-
view" Whether Edge will be able to pur-
Suade his candidate to come into the
primary-and to persuade the New
Jersey delegation to abide by the result
of the preference primary-remains to
be seen. Unless Landon changes his
tactics up to date, it does not look as
though he would be entered in the Jersey
contest.
A lot of controversy has arisen over the
claims of the Landon people that the
Governor of Kansas has been responsible
for balancing the Kansas State budget
and keeping it balanced Democrats
have insisted that former Gov. Woodring,
now Assistant Secretary of War, was in
reality responsible for economy in Kan
sas. Other Democrats, for example,
Chairman James A. Farley of the Demo-
cratic National Committee have sneered
at the efforts of Landon to economize.
Farley, speaking in Topeka on Washing
tons birthday took a rap at the Kansas
Governor for cutting salaries of school
teachers. THE policy of the Roosevelt
administration" said Farley, has been
to save the schools of the Nation wher-
ever possible"
Landon's friends say that Landon has
saved the schools but at the same time
has made them keep within the budget
A close friend of the Governor has re-
Gently written to Landon supporters here
a rather succinct picture of what the
Kansas Governor has been doing He
said:
You will be asked lot of times about
how the Landon record compares to his
predecessors. Deal with that just as
frankly as the Governor has dealth with
it. In his speeches he has given full
credit to the preceding administration.
Woodring approved the budget law that
was in effect when he was in as Gov
ernor; he made some progress toward tax
reduction: but the big thing in the
Landon administration is that the Kan
saS constitution does not prevent, and
never has, the issuance of anticipation
warrants; it does prohibit issuance Of
bonds.
"The thing Landon did was in
strengthening the budget law and in
causing the enactment of 2 per cent
tax levy, and in general good admins
tration by practicing economy, and not
talking about it.. The fact on which
there is no argument is that he enacted
a cash-basiS law which makes not only
the State government, but every gov
ernmertal SUBDIVISION within the State
down to the one-room school house, live
within their revenues. That is the rea-
son Landon gets so much credit as a
budget-balancer The program he put
through caused the balancing of thou
sands Of budgets In every community in
Kansas. The cash-basiS law Is one with
full teeth in it.. Any Official violating the
law is automatically subject to custer;
and in Kansas, that means automatic
custer.
"You remember, that in addition to
enforcing the budget law, the way KAN
sas met its waste was by cutting IS per
cent in the cost of its State government
alone. and that was an absolute Landon
order. The record will stand up any way
you take it,
Democla ic politics in West Virginia
seem to be at SKIES and SevenS. In the
first place Rush D. Holt, the Junior Sen
ator, is not satisfied with the manner
in which patronage has been handled
and the w. p. A. has been administered
| in his State. Seemingly he has broken
fatty with the senior Senator, Nicely.
He has made number of speeches in
the Senate assailing the conduct of
affairs in West Virginia and Senator
Nicely has replied with considerable heat
In 1884, when Holt was elected to the
Senate, he had Neely's support. Holt is
an active young man-the baby Senator
was still only 20 years old when elected
What the split between Holt and Nicely
will mean in the coming campaign has
not yet fully developed. Neely himself
| is up for reelection this year. The
Republicans have expressed confidence
they can carry the State next November
and the ructions in the Democratic
ranks are still further encouraging them
X X
And now it is announced that the
Democratic national committee man
| Herbert Fitzpatrick, is going to retire
from that Office, probably at the time
| of the Democratic National Convention
| Fitzpatrick comes from Huntington, the
| old home of John w. Davis It is said
that he is more in sympathy with the
ideas of Davis than with those of Roose-
velt and the New Deal, and that he
cannot go along further. Fitzpatrick is
| a vice president of the Chesapeake &
Ohio Railroad, has private car at his
| disposal and has for years been a big