The Wilmington morning star. [volume] (Wilmington, N.C.) 1909-1990, 1945-07-09

During the three months that
MIR. Truman has been in the White
House the country has gotten what
it has long wante L.. but could NOT
get. The country has wanted new
administration but it could not
take Republican administration
dominated by the Taft Martin
wing of the Republican party. The
country did not want third and
a fourth term; but in period OF
extreme danger to the very ex-
istence Of the republic. it could not
run the risk Of turning even to all
enlightened leader of the opposi-
ton like Willkie because it was ap-
parent that he stood little chance
of leading his own party organl-
cation.
There was no way, in short, by
which the will Of the people could
express itself politically. The re-
suit was a sense of Illustration
which kept the nation from that
whole-hearted moral unity which
the enornity of the peril demanded
and the grandeur of the American
achievement in overcoming that
peril would otherwise have called
forth.
It is no reflection on President
Roosevelt or on the men who
served him faithfully to say this.
Here is the essence of democratic
government, and the vital secret
Of its strength, that when new
times call for new men changes
shall take place which conform.
not necessarily to what the people
were told they wanted but to what
in fact-when they see the change
they find they did want. The
ability to make such changes is
what keeps government close to
the people, causing them to regard
it's successes and its errors as their
own, and not as the works OF a re-
mote and suspect power.
Circumstances and his own sea
soned political judgment have en-
abled the President to clear away
the sense of Illustration. This has
released the pent-up good will ana
pride which was due to arise out,
of the astounding performance Of
the people in this war. For it was
a paradox that the nation should
have felt ill at ease, doubtful OF it.
self, and full of anxiety about the
future, at the very time when il
was moving on plane Of great
ness, and was doing what any
optimist would have thought was
impossible before it was done. But
the fact Of the matter has been
that victory, power, wealth and in
fluence were unable to satisfy this
democratic people until they had
been relieved of the Illustration OF
not being able to bring about a
change in government which
would make it conform to their
will.
This has been the difficulty, ana
not the existence of deep and r.
reconcilable conflicts within the
nation. During the interval be-
tween the two wars serious conflict
had, to be sure, been permitted to
develop. We had become weak in
world that was becoming ever
more dangerous, and we had been
unable by rational argument TO
agree upon how to revise Tor the
twentieth century foreign policy
which had served us well in the
nineteenth century. We had also
been unable to direct our activity
SO as to avoid the miserieS OF mass
unemployment and undeserveo
economic failures in land where
nature and the intelligence ana
skill of the people can provide
plenty. ~.+
Thus conflicts were en2endered
but they were not irreconcilablt
because in fact the United States
possesses everything that is neces
: sary to resolve its difficulties. TIT
war. has proved that conclusively
' 1t has proved that the Unlte'
S States has the power to conduc
: it's foreign relations; its vital in
3 terests can be defended and pro
t noted by measures well within tn
}. means at its command. Therefor
= the problem of our foreign polio;
d is quite soluble; the realizatio:
0 that this is the case is why the oil
e conflict of isolationism has dis
J. solved ~