Evening star., 1944-10-25
Dewey's Best Speech

opCCS1i Vi OAiio Shllipdi6ll III WILL
neapolis last night.
In part, it was a fighting speech
a vigorous and aggressive reply to
the Presidents address of last week
to the Foreign Policy Association.
Mr.. Dewey denied that the President
had told the whole story of our
foreign relations over the past two
decades, and went on to enumerate
what he described as blunders, in
consistencies and distortions on Mr..
RooSevelt's part. He accused the
President Of having said in 1888:
I'VE are not members and do not
contemplate membership" in the
League Of Nations. BY implication,
Mr.. Roosevelt had charged that the
Republicans under President Hard
ing "scuttled" much of our Navy as
result of the Washington Naval
Conference. Governor Dewey an
swered that Mr.. Roosevelt, in
magazine article written at that
time, had urged America to trust
Japan and had complained that
United States ships were not being
scrapped quickly enough. The Re
publican candidate emphasized that
the Neutrality Act, of which so
much has been heard in this cam
paign, was passed in 1885 by an
overwhelmingly Democratic Con-
gress, and signed by the President.
Finally, he denounced the admins
tration for failing to stop our heavy
exports Of scrap iron and oil to
Japan during the years when she
was assaulting China and getting
ready to attack US.
But this, while it may have been
a politically effective answer to Mr..
Roosevelt, was not the most i'm
portant part of the Minneapolis
address.
Governor Dewey went on to say
that his earlier announcement OF
his opposition TO crippling "reserva-
tions" to our participation in a
postwar security organiza ton meant
that he was against any reservation
that would require our representa-
tive ION the Security CounciD to
return to Congress for authority
every time he had to make
decision"
That is declaration of the high
est Importance, for it eliminates
this vital question from the cam
paign.
The President already has an
nounced his position on this ques-
ton. Now that Governor Dewey has
taken a similar stand, no one will
be able to contend-whatever the
outcome of the election-that the
vote was protest from thu people
against effective American partici-
patton with other nations to prevent
a third world war. That may not
seem of great Importance now. But
the day may we'll come when. in
retrospect, it will loom as the most
significant fact of this turbulent
election year.
Finally, it is important to note
the emphasis placed by Governor
Dewey on the need for close CO.
operation between the President
and the Congress in this matter.
He warned that those who would
attempt to ride rough -shod over
Congress" and dictate the course it
must follow are "trif1ing with the
hope of the world" and in this he
is profoundly right. This is not the
time for veiled threats or ugly words
If we would avoid that Hardening
of minds" which could so easily lead
to a deadlock between the executive
and legislative branches. If this
country is to come safely through
the critical period ahead we should
recognize, as Governor Dewey did
last night, that all of us have made
mistakes in bygone years. And we
should also recognize that the i'm
portant thing now is not to harp on
past mistakes, but to avoid a repeti-
ton Of them in the future.