The Wrangell sentinel., 1943-07-30
TH1R0UGlH TEIlE
 SEN I lNlSIL
PIElRISG
. . .

If the Deomrcatic national con- vention were to be held tomorrow Franklin Delano Roosevelt would be certain to win the nomination for President and if the election immed- lately followed, he would be virtual ly certain of being elected for the fourth term. This is the considered belief of Alaska's Delegate Anthony Dimond, who is back from the congressional wars and spent last week end in Wrangell. Conditions and situations may change before next years nominations and cleo tions, the Delegate made clear, but if war continues and the national picture, now entirely based on pro- duction to win the war, is largely unchanged Mr Roosevelt has more than an even chance to be a fourth term President fo the United Statts.
 Main reasons for his conclusions are lack of outstanding candidates in the Republican ranks and no one else in the vote-getting ranks of the Democratic party to make req sonabIe bid. Many fine. excellent men in both parties, said Dimond, but no Roosevelt who has the facul- ty of capturing the national mind asl we'll as the international.
 Despite the polls and the bitter hatred of what are known as old line Republicans for Wendell Will kie, the COP standard bearer of the last election is very definitely the top prospect of the minority party. People like Willkie, Dimond says. With his ready wit, affable and sin cere approach, the liberal Willkie becomes the center of things where ever he may be. His character is such that people are drawn to him.
 The dope getting around that Jimmy Byrnes may be the Demo Vice Presidential candidate is not entirely unfounded Byrnes ranks high, not alone with the administra- tion, but with Congress and partic- ularly his own native south. Bril- liant in many ways and down right practical, be it politics or the na-i tianal economy Byrnes has lot of what it takes to win the confidence, and, of course, the votes Of the masses.
 OPA is in the thrOes of a re-or-i ganization which may deVel pl something which will aid in thel battle against war time imitation. Prentiss Browne, who succeed Leon Henderson, is firing them by squads and attempting to get in new practical people who have some idea of what it's all about Henderson had staffed up his agency with young economists and lawyers, on the whole, fine young chaps, but mostly just out of schools with lit tie or no practical background Charges have been made that he had as many as 2,700 of them but actual facts bear out that the num- Der was closer to 1000 or 1,200. Congressional advice to Browne was to sweep clean and start out from scratch. But Browne was confronted with the business of getting people to replace Henderson's theoretical herd and he was forced to keep the boys and girls on replacing them gradually. It's one of the reasons OPA won the wrath of Congress and the public generally. Now Browne is cleaning house and hope is that he will be able to bring something workable out of chaos. Incidentally, practical purpose of OPA is rarely challenged. General feeling is that curb on imitation is absolutely es- sential.
 Republican Senator Wm. Lang CT of North Dakota is one of the men putting great energy back of the movement for Alaska statehood. Langer. as you recall. is co-author of the bill now before Congress to give the Territory statehood. The other is Senator McCarran of Neva-