Evening star., 1946-08-15
La Toilette Defeated
By Split in Labor Vote
Friend of Union Legislation
Is Victim of Petty Politics
By David LaiOrence

Senator Bob La Toilette was beaten
by split in the labor vote. Yet no
man in public life has been a better
friend in Congress of labor union legis-
lation than the senior Senator from
Wisconsin.
For many years now the name La
Toilette has been attached to or has
been prominent in the sponsorship OF
labor legislation in Congress. When
the time came, however, to support the
present Senator for denomination many
labor organizations went over into the
Democratic party. and this was just
enough to defeat him by close margin.
When he came from the rest of the
State to Milwaukee with an almost
evenly divided vote that city was ex-
pected to give La Toilette sizable ma
lority. Milwaukee is labor union CEN
ter and In the last election Senator
Wiley, Republican, had a big majority
throughout the State with which to
overcome the prolabor vote given his
Democratic opponent.
Total Vote Curtailcd.
It was in Milwaukee, therefore. that
Senator La Toilette was eliminated and
this was done by labor voters who left
the Republican primary to vote In the
Democratic primary thus curtailing
considerably the total vote. 1t is said
that only about 35 per cent of the quail
fed Republican voters participated in
the primary
Why were there any labor votes
against La Toilette? The truth is that
these were not votes cast on labor issues
at all but on international questions
Senator La Toilette has voted with the
isolationist side and he is being pun
ished by the internationalist element
among labor unions. The same thing
happened in 1914 to Senator James j.
Davis of Pennsylvania, who had a rec
ord Of voting for every piece Of labor
legislation that the unions wanted dur
ing his entire career. But he happened
to be on the isolationist side and hence
big part of the labor union vote was
manipulated against him, and he lost
the contest
1t Is absurd for some of the Demo-
cratic politicians in Washington now to
contend that the Republican party
would not harbor Senator La Toilette
and that the primary election in Wis
consin has demonstrated a Progressive
to be unwelcome. Many eulogies are
already being spoken by Democratic
Senators about Senator La Toilette and
his loss to the Senate, but the Associated
Press reports from Milwaukee,
Democratic forces were believed to
have helped defeat Senator La Toilette
in Milwaukee County. The State Demo-
cratic organization worked against the
Senator and It's national committeeman,
Robert Tehan of Milwaukee. denounced
him frequently after the Progressives
disbanded their party at convention
and voted TO join the Republicans"
Strategy Called Futile
So it was the Democratic influence
which kept La Toilette from winning
the Republican nomination and de-
prived him of his opportunity to bring
progressive influences to bear in the
Republican party In the State Of Wis
consin. The Senator lost by less than
1000 votes, and it is said that fully
$4,000 votes in Kenosha, Racine and
Milwaukee which would normally have
oeen cast for La Toilette went into the
Democratic primary.
The fut:lity Of this strategy Of the
Democratic chieftains is apparent when
1t is considered that the State is over
whelmingly Republican anyway and
that the Democrats have no chance to
elect Senator this autumn, despite the
confident boasts of some Democratic
spokesmen who haven't observed how
small a proportion of the registered
vote is Democratic.
The only way the Democratic nomi-
nee could win this time would be If
Senator La Toilette ran as an inde-
pendent and split the Republican vote.
which he isn't likely to do, as that
would merely mean that he would be
helping the Democrats to a victory
which they themselves took from him.
This correspondent has not agreed
with Senator La Follette's views on
foreign policy but believes that the
Wisconsin Senator is one of the most
useful members of Congress to serve
in the last 20 years. and 1t Is regrettable
that petty politics in the Democratic
ranks took away such an able man from
the United States Senate.
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