Evening star., 1944-09-04


all appreciate the importance OF
these Dewey utterances and un-
derstand that they will mark the
pivotal point in the 1914 struggle.
So do the managers of the fourth
term effort.
Up to date, Gov. Dewey has made
no breaks. His speech Of accept
ance was adequate. Such state
ments as he has made since have
been thoughtful and effective. He
has not made the mistake OF talk
ing too soon or too much and he
is in better position than was Mr..
Willkie at the same stage in 1910.
There is behind him a more
united and enthusiastic party or
ganization, a more efficient head
quarters and greater confidence all
down the party line.
Encouraged by Poll.
Republican politicians generally
are encouraged by the most recent
Gallup poll. Though it shows
Roosevelt leading with 286 elec-
toral votes to Dewey's 245, on both
sides this is recognized not as a
forecast but as a reflection OF the
situation as it existed in the middle
of August. 1t is the trend, the
swing, the change from now on that
is important.
There also is the fact that in
many States the poll percentage Is
so slight as to make it unsafe to
count them as sure for either candi-
date-particularly when, in even the
best of polls, there is 3-to-4-point
margin of possible error. In mid
summer 1910. this poll gave Will
kie 284, Roosevelt 247. Later 1t
showed the Roosevelt swing and
Roosevelt won, 449 to 80.
The shift in the next month can
be either way, but what stimulates
the Dewey side is knowledge that
the trend for three years. as shown
in the Congressional election of
1912. and in many by-elections of
the past 20 months, has been
strongly Republican-and the con-
viction that it Is unchanged.
If, beginning Thursday, Mr..
Dewey does not accelerate this trend
there will be deep disappointment
in the ranks behind him. He met
the acceptance speech test without
trouble, but these opening speeches
are even more critical. He might
have recovered from an inadequate
speech at Chicago, but there will
not be time to recover from poor
performance now.
His friends are confident he will
not make one. Certainly, he has
had ample time for preparation
Either he has it in him to ring the
bell or he hasn't. The report is
that. having pretty well taken the
issue of our future foreign policy
out of the campaign by his clear
advocacy of an international organ
ization, backed by force, to maintain
peace in the world, Gov. Dewey is
free to attack Mr.. Roosevelt not
only for wasteful, inefficient and
unsound conduct of domestic af-
fairs but on his past record in the
foreign f1eld-without leaving room
for the accusation that he is les
sening national unity in dealing
with the problems of the peace or
impeding the conduct of the war.
Vulnerable Target.
II Gov. Dewey has the goods he
is in pretty fine position, because
he certainly has a vulnerable tar
get. Aside from indictment of the
New Deal and exposure of admin
istration incompetence. there are
the phoniness of both the third and
fourth term draft" the manner in
which Mr. Roosevelt is using his
title of commander in chief to pro-
mote his candidacy; the menacing
White House alliance with Mr.. Hill
man, the communistic CIO, and
the Communist groups, organized
md unorganized. without whose
money and support his chances of
reelection would be slight, despite
the great voting strength Of the
Federal jobholders and the big city
bosses.
These are the things Mr.. Dewey
Is expected to deal with in his
forthcoming utterances. The Presi-
dent has announced that on Sep
tember %, he will make his first
political speech" but the admins
tration reply to the Dewey attack
will be made before that and no
one thinks Mr.. Roosevelt now in
tends to make direct reply. The
Roosevelt idea is to delegate that
Job to subordinates.
1t is said, however, that Mr.
Dewey does not propose to let him
get by with the supercilious aloof-
ness by which he was enabled to
ignore his opponent last time, go
through the campaign without mem
tioning his name, posing as living
on a plane so lofty as to be beyond
reach.
If after he makes his attack Mr..
Roosevelt puts up Mr.. Ickes or some