The Waterbury Democrat. [volume] (Waterbury, Conn.) 1917-1946, 1944-01-13
WiIIkie Campaign
Strategy Revealed
While Friends Battle His Opponents Within COP,
Candidate Will Con6ne Own Criticisms to FDR 2

SIMULTANEOUSLY.
Mr.. willkie has two tasks. First
Is to get himself nominated and
second Is to get himself elected.
The first may prove TO be much
the more difhcult, because the
1910 candidates standing with
working politicians is consider
ably below that with the rank
and file membership Of his party,
To Governor Willis was assign
ed the opening barrage aimed at
next June's convention. The Yer
mont executive is not expected to
run for office again, so he was IN
a position to speak his mind very
bluntly. This he did.
ATTACKS ADMINISTRATION
He tied ALI Landon, John Ham
ilton, Joseph Pew foremost ant-
Willkieites up with Seantor Ger
aid Nye and Rev. Gerald L. K
Smith foremost isolationists
and the MacCormick Patterson
Press. He denounced them all as
"discredited forces Of negation
and as "four-year locusts' who
bring nothing but destruction
had nothing constructive to say"
agreed on no candidate but
simply agreed in their hatred Of
the outstanding Republican Of our
times-Wendel Willkie'
Mr.. Willkie himself refrained
from any attack upon those
GOPers who are trying to pre-
vent his nomination. He made
no new scars that might be hard
to heal. Instead, he began doing
what, If he had done 1t consist
emily since 1910, would have
strengthened him greatly with
those who now are bitterest against
him. He criticized the Roosevelt
administration.
A segment of the COP would
have opposed Mr.. Wilkie this
year for his international attitude
regard of anything he might have
But probably a larger portion Of
his critics consist Of those who from
the beginning wanted him to 90
exactly what he did in the OPEN
ing of his campaign the other day
not by name-for "the fallacy OF
one-man government; for his
failure to establish administrative
bodies whose decisions are Just and
fair and are not subject to capric-
ious overriding that destroys public
respect; for assuming that the
American economic system Is chron-
ically sick; for administering such
drugs as seizures of mills, mines
and railroads, after permitting the
nation to get into so much pain that
narcotic was required.
CAMPAIGN is SET
1t is to be assumed that this speech
outlined the course which Mr..
Wllkie proposes to follow II he
succeeds in obtaining another NOM
ination.
The division Of the task between
the candidate and Governor wills
was connected with the 1910 cam
paign, was in Montpelier, VT, while
Governor Wills speech was being
written, and there he saw not only
the governor but several Of his con-
fidants. One Of these visited New
York the day the two speeches were
to be made The same friend Of Mr.
Willkie arranged for Governor wills
broadcast.
There is some difference Of opin-
ion as to how the recent blast by
Pravda will affect Mr.. WILKES
candidacy. Some feel that any effect
will be helpful so far as the nomi-
nation is concerned. Many Repub-
ncans, friendly to Russia as a mil
itary ally, would dislike intensely
to nominate man who seemed too
close to Moscow. Every knock from
that source might be a boost with
the COP convention.