The Wilmington morning star., 1944-06-22

| Mr.. Wlllkle mas just peen tolo
by Mr.. Mark Sullivan that an at
firmative policy for the Republican
rarty is not what nature meant
and would be "disservice to the
country" After reminding Mr..
Wilkie that he has been a Repub-
lican only since 1889, Mr.. Sullivan
says that "the real guide for t h
Republicans in their platform-mak
ing next week" is in the rule that
1.-The function of an opposition par
ty is to be an opposition party"
Cynical as this sounds, it is pos.
sible to take an, evenmore cynical
view of the Republican platform.
It is that at its best the plato I'M
will be vague enough to permit
Governor Dewey to prove his fit
ness to cope with the real prob.
lens that lie ahead. Anything bet.
ter than this would be startling
novelty in the platform of party
which has so long been out of pow
er, and is still in the hands Of
men who have not had the expert
ence of responsibility.
The platform, we must remem.
Der, is written before the candidate
is nominated, and therefore before
he takes charge of the party or.
ganization. For this reason the plat
form almost invariably reflects ths
views of those who held the party
together when it was a mere op.
position party, and that means, as
Mr.. Sullivan so candidly sets forth
nothing affirmative" But this is
precisely why the country h {
learned to look to the candidate
not to the platform, for the policy
Of the party.
In 1910 the drama of Wendell
WILKES campaign was whether hi
could transcend the record of hi:
party organization, and by his lead
ership do what Theodore Roosevelt
did in 1904, what Woodrow Wilson
did in 1872. and what Franklin
Roosevelt had done in 1892: i'm,
pose discipline and instill purpose
into the old party machine. The
popular exhilaration which attend.
ed Mr.. Wilkes nomination was
the anticipation that this man who
had had such a triumph at Phil.
adelphia would put new life into
the old party. When in August il
became clear that the party ma.
chine was stronger than Mr.. Will.
kle's leadership, the Republican
campaign collapse like a pricked
balloon.
Governor Dewey faces the same
test but under more favorable con-
ditions than Mr.. Willkie. He will
be nominated by the combined ac-
ton of party workers from all Sec
tons of the country, and not, like
Mr.. Willkie, in spite of them. He
has not had to defeat his own party
in order to. become its leader, and
therefore he may hope to escape
Mr.. WILKES dilemma which was
that he could not appeal to the
country without alternating his par.
ty henchmen.
Mr.. Willkie got the nomination
without getting the control Of the
party. Governor Dewey has a good
prospect Of getting both. He will
need them both. For no man can
be an effective candidate If he can
not convince the voters that his
party willy enable him to make
good his campaign promises. Nor
can he be a successful President
unless his party is controlled By
men who are his faithful support
ers. 80
The real iseue in this campaign
will be whether the risks Of chang
ing the administration are greater
or are less than the risks of not
changing it. Either way the same
problems will have to be dealt with!
the war prosecuted to its finish,
settlement imposed on our enemies,
means agreed upon for consulta-
ton and collaboration, the armies
demobilized, indurtry reconverted,
trade re established, the conse.
quences Of the war lquidated.
Both parties are bound to pro-
less the same general detectives,
and while partisans will attempt
to show that there are radical diff
ferences in method, as matter Of
fact, this will be for the most part
mere words. Republicans n d
Democrats are actually working on
these problems today, and there is
not the slightest evidence t h a t.
faced with the concrete situation,