The Western news. [volume] (Libby, Mont.) 1933-current, 1940-10-10


has taught the old
\ masters were sound
u,ro yohnson it is a cause for won
derment.
Most notable recent example was
the attack of the President on Sen.
Hiram w. johnson of California, fol-
lowed by the attack ON Willkle by
Harold L. Ickes in his reply to
the Westerner's acceptance address.
The President, it will be recalled.
told gathering of newspaper men
at the White House that Senator
Johnson was no longer Progress
sive. Ickes warned the country
over the radio that one of the dis
asters which would accompany Will
kie's election would be that Johnson
would become chairman of the sem
ate foreign relations committee.
INTENT OF ATTACK IMPORTANT
But the Importance here is not
whether johnson is no longer
Progressive, nor whether there IS
any chance of his becoming chair
man OF the senate foreign relations
committee II is the intent behind
the attacks.
AT the time the attacks were
made, johnson was candidate IN
all three parties for the senatorial
nomination-Democratic, Republl-
can and Progressive. Information
from every source available to this
writer was that he was certain to
win both the Democratic and Re-
publican nominations. These pre-
dictions have proven true.
Yet with this information, which
was certainly at the Presidents dis
posal, he chose to issue an attack
calculated to make Hiram Johnson
furious. And this despite the fact
that in 1882 Johnson, although sit
ting as a Republican in the senate,
spoke in favor of Roosevelt in Cali
fornia, and that in 1886 he did not
turn hand to oppose F. D. Rs re-
election.
At the time, also, nothing had
been said or limited by Johnson to
show that he was particularly favor
able to Wilkes candidacy.
It would seem to boil down to
this, that Roosevelt is SO bitter
against johnson because Johnson
! opposed him on the Supreme court
and other issues that he didn't care
a rap about the consequences, es-
pecially as he undoubtedly thinks
he can carry California even with
Johnson openly fighting him.
PRESIDENTS 'BOMBSHELL'
1t is interesting to note that
President Roosevelt's much predict
ed "bombshell' that most politl-s
clans had been expecting, calculated
| to stampede the country for Roose-
welt as against Wendell Willkie-was
j not an attack on business in con-
nection with the national defense
! contracts.
For time it seemed, from bolts
/ launched against profit greedy
manufacturers by high-placed New
Dealers, that this might be turned
into the paramount issue.
On the contrary, however, he took
| the position that not only was the
defense program going pretty well,
but that business WAS cooperating
He put most of the blame for delay
on the shoulders of congress.
There are number of interest
ing angles to the explanation. One
is that the President is actually
\ more sensitive to criticism from
what might be called the Southern
4 Conservatives in congress, and to
that of certain other Democrats who
are not Southern and not conserva-
tive--as for example Sen. David I.
Walsh of Massachusetts, and Sen.
Burton X. Wheeler of Montana
than he is to criticism from the
enemy" to wit, the Republicans.
OPPOSITION NEVER FORGETS
Every time the President has run
into real trouble with congress it
has been a combination OF most OF
the Republicans with this hostile
group OF Democrats. They beat him
on PasSamaquoddy and the Florida
ship canal. They beat him on the
Supreme court packing measure.
The, President has not forgiven
any Of them. So when three sena-
tors, Walsh, Harry F. Byrd OF Vir-
ginia, Democrats, and Arthur H.
Vandenberg, Republican, joined in
an attack on the defense program
it was not out OF character for the
President to make a strong case to
the newspapers that all three were
just fundamentally wrong The
feeling against Willkie, curiously
enough, is not nearly SO strong as
the Presidents feeling against the
individual senators who from time
to time have beaten his cherished