Evening star., 1941-05-15
Replies
Critics Of His
Appointment
Denies His Selection
For Legislature
Violated Statute

Efforts to obtain civic support for
a request that Maj. E. Brooke Lee
resign as member of the Maryland
House of Delegates from Mont
gomery County we're attributed to-
day to opposition which cannot
sink their ill-humored political fangs
into any charges of misgovernment"
Maj. Lee today issued fiat denial
that his appointment to the House
of Delegates by Gov. O'Conor last
winter was in violation of the State
constitution, as charged by H. S.
Yohe at a meeting of the Mont
gomery County Civic Federation
Monday night.
Mr.. YOhe, former president Of
the federation, aired his views at
the civic meeting when he revived
consideration of a resolution of last
December which then asked Maj.
Lee to refuse the appointment. Mr..
Yohe introduced a new resolution
Monday asking the delegate to re-
sign because Maj. Lees name was
the only one submitted to the Gov
ernor by the State Central Commits
tee of Montgomery County. Mr..
Yohe contended there should have
been two or more names submitted.
Charges Personal Attack.
The Star asked Maj. Lee for his
views and the following statement
was issued today:
Monday nights demand
T Of 1a
Lower House of the Maryland Leg
islature is an example of the we'll
recognized local political technique
of personal attacks and the attack
in this instance is hurled by one of
the most unreasonable of the po-
litical critics of the county Demo-
cratic administration.
THE basic political fact in Mont
gomery County is that for 20 of the
last % years Democratic State and
county administrations have given
this county the best public school
system, the most adequate public
highway system, the most extensive
public park system in Maryland and
also established an honest and eff
clenI county ponce 1ofce.
Since the political opposition
cannot sink their ill-humored po-
litical fangs into any charges Of
misgovernment that they can sus-
tain against the Democrats in
Montgomery County, they regularly
resort to political personal and fic-
tional attacks.
Five months ago Mr.. Yohe
pushed a resolution through the
Chevy Chase Citizens Committee of
Section demanding that I resign
as member of the State Legislature
which was not supported by any of
the other 300 civic groups in Mont
gomery County. The County Civic
Federation last December refused to
even vote consideration to Mr..
Yohe's attack before the Legislature
convened.
Cites Similar Appointment.
Now that the regular session Of
the Legislature is over, MI. Yohe
alleges that I was improperly ap-
pointed to the Assembly under the
Maryland laws and constitution.
This is not true. I was appointed
in the same manner that two men,
bers of the Maryland Senate and
more than a dozen other members of
the lower house were appointed
before the recent regular session.
In each case the State Central
Committee of the party representing
the vacancy in the unit affected
recommended one name to the
Governor for appointment to the
existing vacancy, which is the re-
quirement of the State constitution.
No attack on the other appoint
ments made in this same way has
been made in any of the other leg
islative units of the State.
Mr.. Yohe further knows that
the Legislature is the judge of the
credentials of its membership.
The lack of reason in Mr.. Yohe's
attack further is shown by the fact
that the only regular legislative ses-
sion before the 1912 election met at
Annapolis for 80 days this winter
and adjourned As days ago."