The midland journal. (Rising Sun, Md.) 1885-1947, 1938-09-09

Takes Important Second
Step in Controversy
And after that meeting and when
the tears were wiped away so there
would be no shifting, Mr.. Roosevelt
took the important second step In
the controversy. He denounced the
Republicans as having violated pub
lie morals" by voting for Mr.. Clark
in a Democratic primary, although
II the ballots were secret as the law
requires I have been unable to fig
ure out how either Mr.. Roosevelt or
Mr.. Pope know that 1t was the Re-
publicans and not the Democrats
who brought about Mr.. Pope's de-
feat. Anyway, Mr.. Roosevelt-ei-
Their as President Of the United
States or as head of the Democratic
party-condemned such terrible
things as Republican votes in
Democratic primary. Such course
of action, the President or the head
of the Democratic party said, con-
stituted an attempt to destroy the
direct primary system. 1t appar-
emily did not matter to the Presi-
dent or the head of the Democratic
party that Mr.. Clark had cam
paigned as a Democrat while Sena-
tor Pope was sounding off as 100
per cent New Dealer.
have been wondering, since the
Hyde Park condemnation Of the Re-
publicans, how Mr.. Roosevelt's posi-
ton in the two phases of his course
can be reconciled. II never has
seemed to me to be so terrible for
the President or the head Of the
Democratic party Tor the head OF
the Republican party If the Presi-
dent be Republican, to state his
views about candidates. Probably,
the presidential Office ought not to
be used that way, but / can not get
so excited about it as some writer's
and some newspapers and some pol
iticians have done. I am inclined
to regard such action as the purest
Of politics and politics is game and
the voters have to recognize that 1t
is a game. There has been a lot
of meaningless gushing going on
about Mr.. Roosevelt's course that
Just. fails to impress me at all.
But, on the other hand, there is
an old, old quotation: Consistency,
thou art jewel. In remembering
and applying that thought, it ap-
pears to me that Mr.. Roosevelt has
gone off the deep end of the pool
without an inflated rubber tube for
an arm rest. Indeed, isn't it a rath-
er silly thing, an utterly stupid piece
of business, to claim the right to
interfere on his own part and tell
the common, ordinary garden varie-
ty of voter that he can not take a
position because he once played on
the other team?
Is RooseUelfs Forgettery
Working Well These Days?
Further, I am wondering whether
Mr.. Roosevelt's forgettery works so
well that he fails to recall his ap-
peal in 1882 and again in 1886 for
Republicans to follow him, elect him
as the savior of the country. It
seems to me if it is sauce for the
goose, the old gander can eat the
same food.
Further, there is a bit of logic
about the whole thing that ought to
be examined. Take the state of
Georgia, for example, where the
Democratic nomination means cleo
ton. A Republican in Georgia would
be sunk without a trace, as far as
selection of someone to represent
him in congress is concerned, if he
wanted to have his real choice re-
corded. His only course, II he pre-
ferred one Democratic candidate to
another, would be to enter the DEM
ocratic primary and vote for one Of
those candidates. Assume that the
Republican voter lives in Idaho.
If that voter felt that neither
of the candidates for the Republican
nomination for the senate measured
up to his ideas, why should he not
be allowed to vote in the Democratic
primary in order to express his
preference? It might well be that a
Republican voter in Idaho would
feel that the Democratic nominee
had better chance of being elected
in November than did the Republi-
can nominee. If he felt that way, il
appears to me that he would be
showing good sense, common horse
sense to express his preference on
that side of the fence. ] believe Mr..
Roosevelt's record would look very
much better at this point If he had
extended his congratulations to Rep
resentative Clark in Idaho, and
promised him the support Of the
Democratic national committee in
the forthcoming election, as was
done by National Democratic Chair
man Farley. Surely, that would
have been sportsmanship and the
attitude of a good loser.
It may be, however-and this Is
an implication from the indications
of the day-that Mr.. Roosevelt Is
trying deliberately to force a re-
alignment of voters throughout the
country. He may be seeking to drive