Evening star., 1941-11-02
Philip La Toilette
Lashes al President
And War Party
Tells America First Rail y
Nozi Menace Is Fought
With Dictator Methods

The 1912 elections will be the bat
tleground in the fight for American
freedom" former Gov. Philip La
Toilette of Wisconsin last night told
neutrality conference" of approx
mately 200 America First Committee
members from more than score of
States at a dinner at the Lee
Sheraton.
The dinner climaxed a one-day
meeting called to lay plans for
more vigorous action to awaken the
country to the dangers involved in
the proposed repeal of the neutral
ity law. and the threat to constitu-
tional government lately evlnced by
the Presidents program of unde-
clared naval war" an announcement
said.
I'VE shall band together to sup
port those members of the House
and Senate who have so courage
ously shown their devotion to the
common man." Mr.. La Toilette said
in outlining the course to be fol-
lowed next year
I'VE shall do all in our power to
oppose and defeat those who are
taking this nation step by step into
a Fascist dictatorship. Sooner or
later-and I think sooner than
some here in Washington realize
the people are going to restore con-
stitutional Government in this coun-
try. And I venture this prediction:
They will bring to account those re-
sponSible for taking us in and for
sending our boys to their deaths in
defiance of the Constitution.
Love of Liberty Persists.
And I make this passing observa-
ton: If there be men in seats of
power here in Washington with a
Nazi plan of dynamiting the Amer
lean ballot box, as they have the
right of Congress to declare war.
we assure them that they will find
that the fighting spirit and the love
of liberty which inspired our an
cestors to rise up against George
III is as fearless today as it was at
Lexington and Concord"
The line between Democratic and
Republican parties has disappeared,
Mr.. LaFollette told his audience,
and to-day the alignment is be-
tween the War Party and the Amer
ican Party.
~The War Party maintains that
American freedom is to be won or
lost on the battlefields Of Europe,
Asia and Africa. The American
Party maintains that the future
welfare and happiness of our peo-
pie will not be determined by the
defeat or victory of ANY other ma
ton anywhere on earth, but by
what we've in America-do to
protect and extend freedom and Sc
curity of our people here"
Mr.. LaFollette lashed at "the
President and the War Party" for
involving this country abroad.
Recalls Barrage of Pledges.
I'm spite of the barrage of pledges
Of peace. we are today in shooting
warfare-armed hostilities concern
ing which neither the people nor
the Congress has been consulted"
he asserted.
IL WIS Ollc llldll dllSl olN man
alone who changed the map of the
world and pushed the boundaries
of the Western Hemisphere more
than 1000 miles out into the North
Atlantic" he continued.
Sin of War Party.
Last Monday night" the speaker
said. this man rushed to the radio
to announce that shooting had
begun. that we had been attacked
and that our ships had been fired
upon. With a burst of generosity
he assured us that they were our
ships. that they belonged to you
and to me and to every other man.
woman and child in this country.
Yet. when this man ordered those
ships into the war zone. he treated
them as if they were his ships and
not ours. Certainly no one. not
even Congress, was consulted, let
alone asked for approval"
However, Mr.. La Toilette said,
"the sin of the war party is not
that they advocate war. The sin is
that their only answer to the menace
OF Hitlerism in Europe is step by
step to create Hitlerism in the
United States. Every step taken in
the past two years has been put
over on us by the same fraudulent
methods practiced by the European,
dictators."
Defeat on the issue of the Neu-
trality Act, the former Governor
said, does not mean that "the fight
for freedom" is lost.
THAT fight must and is going on
until it is won," he declared.
Mr.. La Toilette was introduced
by John T. Flynn of New York.
Senator Wheeler, Democrat, of Mon
tana, q leader of the Senate isola-
Zionist bloc, was introduced to the
gathering. but did not speak.