Evening star., 1939-06-04
Garner Backers
Map Fight in
Convention
To Seek Nomination
Even if Roosevelt
Is q Cundidute'
BY G. GOULD LINCOLN.

Inc name or JOnn Nance Garner
for President will go before the
Democratic National Convention
next year, whether or not that of
President Roosevelt is placed before
the convention for denomination.
While Vice President Garner will
make no public statement regarding
the presidential nomination nor will
he pursue it. if he becomes the choice
of the national convention, he will
accept.
These assertions were made yes
terday by close friends of the Vice
President and on behalf of a mill
tant Garner-for President organiza-
ton. headed by E. B. Germany,
Texas Democratic State chairman,
and Mrs. Clare Driscoll, Democratic
national committeewoman from the
Lone Star State.
The Garner-for- President organi-
zatlon is just getting actively under
Way-at a time when New Deal
Democrats are doing all they can to
advance the idea that Mr.. Roose-
welt must be renominated. 1t is
apparently the hope of the latter
group that Roosevelt wave will
engulf all other possibilities for the
Democratic nomination.
Expect Roosevelt Support.
The Garnerites say they do not
believe the President either wishes
to be a candidate or that he will be.
They are firm in that belief. They
insist that any suggestion that Mr..
Roosevelt would not support Mr..
Garner, the man who supplied the
delegates necessary to nominate him
in 1882. should be dismissed as idle.
If Mr.. Garner should be nominated,
his friends say they confidently ex-
pect the support of President Roose-
welt and the entire party.
However, should the President
allow his name to go before the con-
ventlon-which the Garnerites do
not expect-a historical situation
will be created, with the man who
has been President for eight years
and the man who has been Vice
President for the same period as
opposing candidates for the presi-
dentlal nomination.
The Garnerftes say they see no
reason why, having carried their
campaign to the people in the vari-
Gus States for Garner delegates,
they should not follow a similar
course in the convention. Nor do
they believe that this cannot be done
without the utmost good will toward
the President or any other candidate
for the nomination.
Presented as a Democrat.
The Garner campaign will present
the Vice Presidents name to the
country, not as New Dealer, nor
as a middle-of -the-roader, nor as
conservative. He will be presented
they say, as a Democrat without
particular designation, other than
that he has behind him a militantlv
liberal record over a period of SO
years as member and Speaker of
the House and as Vice President
and president of the Senate.
Within the next few months the
Garner-for-President campaign will
be carried into every State in the
Union. Already Mr. Germany and
Mrs. Driscoll have been in communi-
cation with State and national
Democratic leaders. They aim, how
ever, to go directly to the rank and
file of the voters.
In some quarters Mr.. Germany is
characterized as an amateur in
national politics. He makes no effort
to deny this. But at the same time
he points out that the friends who
worked for the nomination of former
President Hoover in 1928 were on
the amateur side, and so were the
Farleys, the Walkers and the Howes
who sought the nomination of Presi-
dent Roosevelt in 1881 and 1882.
Practically none of them, just as is
the case with Mr.. Germany, had had
national political experience. The
Garnerites, however, expect plenty
of professional" support, now that
the campaign is under way.
10000 Letters Mailed.
A couple of weeks ago, 10000 let
ters were mailed from the Garner
headquarters to Democratic voters
in all the States, asking them to
aid the Garner-for President move
ment. The response, according to
Mr.. Germany in Dallas. was amaz-
ingly favorable He is studying plans
to enlarge on this method of cam
paigning
The actual selection of delegates
to the Democratic convention will
not be begun until next spring. But
| the spade work will all be done
during the coming summer, fall and
winter. Thirty-three States use the
convention system of selecting dele
gates. IL employ the primary system,
and three use combination of both
systems.
The first State to make such Sc
iections, by primary. will be New
Hampshire, on the second Tuesday
in March. Other States acting
early in this matter are Illinois on
(See GARNER, Page A-9D