The Western news. [volume] (Libby, Mont.) 1933-current, 1938-10-13

nate as their candidate for congress
O'Connor, whom they regard as
discarded Democratic hack.
But some of the former Republi-
cans, who are just as bitterly anti
New Deal as their former col
leagues, glory in O'Connor's candi-
dacy, and are hoping he will be
elected. This group has no particu-
lar affection for O'Connor. Had it
not been for the purge" they would
have cared nothing about his de-
feat. They agree heartily with most
folks who know something about the
Sixteenth district that it was the
fact that O'Connor had "gone high
hat on his old friends which de-
feated him.
Only Hope Seems TO Be
Triumph Over Neio DeaIism
The real difference between these
two groups of anti-New Dealers is
that one of them hopes to defeat
Roosevelt and all his works by the
triumph OF the Republican party.
The other has no hope that there
is anything left of the Republican
party which can possibly overthrow
the New Deal Their only hope, not
as would-be office-holders and sit
tiers in the seats of the mighty, but
as patriotic Americans, as they see
it, is the triumph over New Dealism
by the conservative Democrats, and
eventually the creation of new par
ties.
Strengthening of the Republican
party now does not, as the dissent
ing group sees it, help in this pro-
gram. On the contrary it retards
it. Worse than that, it tends, again
according to this viewpoint, to per-
petuate the New Deaf.
On the other hand, if the Demo-
Gratis engage in knockdown and
drag out fight at their convention
when it comes to choosing Mr..
Roosevelt's successor, there is the
distinct prospect that there will be
party split.
Advantage in Having
Friendly Rules Chairman
There is no discounting the ire
mendous advantage President
Roosevelt expects in having
friendly chairman of the house rules
committeeman probably friend
instead of a yes, but Democrat in
place of Rep. William J. Driver of
Arkansas, who was defeated in an
upset in which national leaders had
not even thought of the word
purge.
But the further assumption that
the President will have more of his
own way in the next two years on
Capitol Hill is very violent indeed.
In the first place, there will be more
Republicans in the house. How
many? Nobody knows, but 1t will
scarcely be less than 40 more. and
it is more likely to run up to about
TO-
Assuming the minimum, there
will be 40 Republicans sitting in
seats which in the last house were
occupied by Democrats. Further,
the probability is that most Of the
40 changes will displace pro-New
Deal Democrats rather than "Yes,
but Democrats. The answer to
that is simple. The vast majority
of the Eyes, but" Democrats were
from the South. In the senatorial
purge the big drive was concentrat-
ed against three of the nine senator's
who opposed the President on the
Supreme court issue. This big drive
was below the Mason and Dixon
line--in Maryland, South Carolina
and Georgia. No real effort was
made in Connecticut, or Missouri,
or Nevada, or Colorado. The Presi-
dent himself did not speak about the
Iowa primary, though his son James
did.
BY the same token the representa-
tives friendly to the insurgent SEN
ators are from the South. Most of
the northern and western Democrats
were inclined to go along with the
President. John J. O'Connor, of
New York, was exceptional in this
respect. Perhaps that is why he
was singled out for attack. Perhaps
that is why the attack succeeded.
Insurgent House Members
Mostly From the South
The Importance of the fact that
most of the insurgent house mem
bers are in the .s,,,rx. ,,,,,,.1..
South, and most of -
the hundred per-
centers are in the
North and West, is
that it is the two lat s VI
ter classes who are
in danger from Re- I, La
publican opponents.
No one, not even
John d. M. Harsil-
ton, is predicting ss''e'''s9agv
Republican gains in