Evening star., 1943-02-24
PeopIeShouId
Decide Time
For Elections
Fourth Term Race
Could Deal Blow
To War Effort
BY DAVID LAWRENCE.

BY DAVID LAWRENCE.
When Gov. Neely of West Vir-
sinia fatty predicted that President
Roosevelt would be elected for a
fourth term, he merely put into
words publicly what many of the
Presidents supporters here have
been saying for long time although
they usually qualify it with the
assumption that the war will still
be on in November, 1914
The principal argument for the
breaking down Of the two-term
tradition was that a national emer
gency existed and If there is no
armistice before Is months hence,
when the nominating conventions
will be in progress, there would
seem to be no reason why Democrats
would not again resort to the
draft"
Few informed persons will be
found here who will predict that
the war will have ended by mid
1914. Usually the estimates of mill
tarv men are that the conflict will
be at a critical stage in 1914 and
that 1t may end in 1945. In any
event, the crisis attendant upon
close of the war might be regarded
by Democrats as sufficiently i'm
portant to be considered another
national emergency warranting
further suspension Of the two-term
idea.
. From the Democratic viewpoint
nobody else has come on the hori-
yon with AS much political strength
as the President possesses; and
while there will be some opposition.
1t is unlikely that any Of the men
prominent in the New Deal cause
would venture to oppose the Presi-
dent. Only from the snti-New Deal
faction-still a small group politi-
cally-could candidate emerge.
Wallace Not Popular.
The vice presidency may again be
q matter Of controversy, especially
since Mr.. Wallace is not popular in
the Democratic organization. 1t
looks as II James F. Byrnes is likely
to supplant Vice President Wallace
on the ticket. Mr.. Byrnes is Deputy
President today and he enjoys a
great deal Of popularity in Congress
and among the organization Demo-
Gratis of the country. If Mr.. Roose-
welt is to run again he would have
far more chance of winning to his
banner the discordant elements in
side the Democratic party with Mr..
Byrnes on the ticket than Mr..
Wallace.
AS for the Republicans, they have
nobody who has declared himself for
broad program Of international
cooperation with the same vehe-
mence that Wendell Willkie has dis
played. Yet the anti-Willkie senti-
ment in the party is bitter. When it
is attempted to translate that senti-
ment, even speculatively, into q
candidate who will unite all interna-
tionally minded persons in support
of the Republican ticket it is odd
but nobody Of prominence on the
Republican side fills the bill. One
possible exception is Gov. Stassen Of
Minnesota, who is regarded as a
Willkie man. There are plenty Of
near-isolationist candidates who
may try to carry water on both
shoulders very much as did Warren
Harding so successfully in 1920, but
the nomination Of any one who did
not approximate the present foreign
policy OF the administration could
conceivably make the reelection Of
Mr.. Roosevelt for fourth term very
easy. The country will not be iso-
lationist If the war is on.
System Needs Revision.
The whole system which stipulates
that elections for four-year terms
must be held even during a war
will some day come in for consti-
tutional revision. In Canada, Mac
kenzie- King has served as Premier
fnv xtrft
two brief Interruptions. The parlia-
mentary system permits the holding
of an election or the threat of an
election only when the people are
ready for a change. Had the United
States been governed by the parlia-
mentary system there would have
been no need for a national election
in the critical months of 1910 nor
in 1912, and yet if Mr.. Roosevelt is
elected for fourth term in 1914
because the war isn't over, there
will be no way to turn him out of
power for four years more-even
when the war will have been ended
and the domestic issues on which
public protest is considerable loom
most important in the public mind
The British democracy has not
been compelled to hold elections in
the midst OF war. Some day OBJ
iective historians will tell all Of
the truth about the way Americas s
role in this war was impaired and
the effectiveness of her mobilization
Of men and weapons interfered
with by politics incident to presi-
dental and congressional elections.
Perhaps Is months hence our war
effort will again suffer its third
blow from the same influences Just
because America has not stream
lined her constitutional system TO
permit elections only when the
people really want them.
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