Evening star., 1940-12-03
Gillette Recommends
Tighter Lawsto
Safeguard Ballot
Forum Speaker Points
To Abuse, Claims Huge
Sums to Buy Election

Chairman Gillette Of the Senate
Campaign Expenditures COMMITTEES
discussed the work Of his commit
tee during the recent election last
night in an address presented In
the National Radio Forum and ar
ranged by The Star. The talk was
broadcast over a national hookup
OF the National Broadcasting Co.
and was heard locally over Station
WMAL.
The text of Senator Gillette's ad-
dress follows:
On the evening of May 6, last, I
had the privilege. by invitation. Of
speaking over this network and
through a courtesy Of The Wash
ington Star similar to the one ex-
tended to me tonight. That re-
quest was for me to speak of the
work and policies planned by the
Special Committee on Campaign
Expenditures of the United States
Senate which was created by a
Senate resolution early in the year
and also to discuss those proposed
plans and policies as the designated
chairman of the committee. The
work, under the terms of the reso-
luton which created the commit
tee, is now rapidly approaching a
close, and once again I am asked,
as the committee chairman, to dis
course briefly and in general way
some of the work accomplished by
the committee during the past few
months and especially in view OF
the heightened interest in this work
which is so strangely accentuated
at this time because of the general
election held such short time ago
have hesitated to accept this in
vitation principally because our
committee is a direct agent of the
United States Senate. our authority
comes from them and our response
bility is to them and our reports
will, and must, be made to them fol
such use and action as the Senate
itself shall determine.
1t is very improper then for any
member of the committee to antici-
pate an agents report to his princi-
pal and it is even more unbecoming
and preSumptuous for me as one
member of the committee, and one
only, to even indicate In a public
address, what committee action may
be. This is true in greater degree
when such indication or statement
Is based solely on my own personal
opinions and by own personal de-
ductions. But while I have thor
oughly in mind the improprieties Of
what I am tonight doing, have
carefully weighed these against
what I conceive to be an immediate
public desire and need for some
statement from the committee rel
ative to the unusual features of the
recent presidential campaign, and
It Is this need that The Evening
Star is attempting in a small de-
gree to meet in their invitation ex-
tended to me tonight.
Nonpartisan in Efforts.
First, I believe I will be pardoned
Il I state that I have never seen a
group of men bring to their labors
and duties higher sense of public
service and its responsibilities than
has been brought to the work of the
committee by my associates in its
membership. The committee was
bipartisan in individual opinion,
but 1t was nonpartisan in its efforts
and in its labors, and am conf
dent 1t will be nonpartisan in its
conclusions and its report.
I have seen from time to time
sporadic charges or insinuations
appearing in some editorial columns
suggesting that the committee had
been remiss or at least lethargic in
It's labors. Some of these charges
have emanted from those who hon.
estly failed to know or understand
the scope, the powers and the lin
itations of the committee. In some
few instances the attacks can be
traced to partisans who had at
tempted to use the committee and
its agents for attack on their per-
sonal or party opponents. To
thwart all these attempts has been
the constant, and believe success
kul, effort of the committee.
In my statement on May I said
that the committee In outlining its
policy had determined that it would
be IN no sense of the word a "snoop-
ing committee" and that 1t would
be Just as inSiStent that It could
not be used as a smear commit
tee," neither could 1t be used as q
sw1ite-washing committee" Lin
hations of power, time, funds and